For stunned West Linn, reality finally hits: ‘A historical season just didn’t finish the way we wanted’

By Alex Tam | Photos by Naji Saker 

PORTLAND — Nearly an hour after the final buzzer sounded in the Class 6A boys basketball state championship game, the emotions, the feels and, ultimately, the shock of what transpired were still just so much to overcome for West Linn. 

The court at the Chiles Center was already cleared out. The cleaning crew was just getting started to tidy up after four full days of basketball action. The only sounds left were the vrooming and white noise from the vacuums going through each row in the arena.

It wasn’t until a little after 11 p.m. when No. 1 West Linn emerged from its locker room to face the reality of what seemed improbable all season.

The Lions were the overwhelming favorite in the state title game Saturday night — and deservedly so — but found themselves in defeat, 60-47, to rival Tualatin in a stunning outcome for only their second loss of the season and the first to an Oregon team.

West Linn coach Robert Key said he had a lengthy conversation with his team in the locker room.

“We were in there for an extent and I gave at least a 10-to-15 minute conversation about how much I love them and how much they gave me,” Key said, fighting back a few tears. “It was emotional because it’s tough. I have a passion for these young men. I have a passion for what I do. To come this far and not finish the task, it hurts. It really does.”

It wasn’t just the loss that was a stunner. The way West Linn started the game was a shock to everyone — from the players to the coaches to all in attendance.

The Lions opened an uncharacteristic 0 for 10 from the field and faced a 12-1 deficit after one quarter against a talented, hungry and determined Tualatin squad. Key said he was as surprised as anyone with West Linn’s only point coming on Sam Leavitt’s free throw with 1:21 to go.

“I just didn’t see that coming, that slow start that we had,” Key said. “I hadn’t seen it all year and again, like I said, I don’t know if it was because of the game last night (against Lincoln) because it was so up and down and fast-paced. I don’t have any answers right now. I’m a bit stunned about it, but the ball just didn’t bounce our way.”

West Linn’s players had nothing but respect for the way Tualatin played.

“We left some shots out there that we usually hit but we couldn’t get it going tonight,” senior Mark Hamper said. “That’s a great defensive team, a great team overall, and they deserve it tonight over us, for sure.

“They came in with nothing to lose. We got everything to lose, so a lot of pressure to deal with, but props to them. They came in and executed their game plan and got the job done, so props to them.”

The accomplishments this season were nothing short of impressive for West Linn.

● The Lions won the Capitol City Classic title with a 60-57 victory over St. John Bosco (Calif.) in December.

● One week later, they won the prestigious Les Schwab Invitational with a convincing 62-50 victory over Duncanville (Texas), which was the No. 1 team in the country. West Linn also defeated Bronny James’ Sierra Canyon team in the semifinals.

● West Linn was ranked among the Top 25 nationally for most of the season, including a No. 1 ranking by USA Today at one point.

● The Lions won the Three Rivers League championship after going 10-0 in league play. They were 3-0 against the rival Timberwolves before Saturday.

While the pressure to win mounted with each game and the expectations became sky-high, it wasn’t anything the program shied away from.

“It’s a lot of pressure,” Hamper said. “But that’s pressure we work for. It’s pressure we wanted and we know we earned, so it’s just great getting to take the floor with these dudes every day.

“This loss hurts so much because it overshadows everything great we accomplished this year, so, yeah, it’s going to take a while for this one not to hurt.”

Key tried not to remember what happened in 2018, when he was on the opposite end. Five years ago, his Grant team lost to state title favorite Jefferson three times during the regular season before coming back to beat the Democrats when it mattered most — for the state crown.

“It’s definitely a reality now,” Key said. “That’s something I didn’t want to think about, but you could tell Tualatin really came out with the desire that they weren’t going to go down four times.”

Key said he was grateful to coach a strong senior-heavy group led by TRL player of the year Jackson Shelstad, who had a game-high 24 points in his final high school game.

“Just an unbelievable person,” Key said of Shelstad. “An unbelievable player, who’s going to do very, very well at Oregon. I’ll continue to follow him because like I told the kids in that locker room, they’re an extension of our family.”

Key also praised his players, plus the West Linn school and community, for accepting and bringing senior Adrian Mosley, last season’s PIL player of the year, into the fold after he transferred from Grant.

“How the kids embraced Adrian was tremendous,” Key said. “Adrian laid his hat on the hardwood every night out. I challenged him to guard the best players every game, and he did a phenomenal job.

“The sky’s the limit for him. We’re waiting to hear to see how his recruiting is going. I pray that the Division I offer comes sometime soon … but it’s a thing he has to be patient about.”

West Linn boasted eight other seniors, including several Division I athletes such as Hamper (football, Idaho), Sam Leavitt (football, Michigan State) and Drake Gabel (baseball, Seattle). The other seniors were Joey Bell, Jake Holmes, Blake Oltmans, Aidan Duea and Luke Young.

“Those 10 seniors, I feel really bad for,” Key said. “They gave me everything they had. Like I told them, a historical season just didn’t finish the way we wanted. … (But) you couldn’t ask for a better situation to be coaching in.”

Key acknowledged murmurs that this might be his one and only season coaching at West Linn, but as of right now, he said he plans on coming back.

“I hear a lot of rumors out there that I’m one-and-done,” he said. “But I love the game of basketball. I love the teaching moments. I love the family part of it, and it’s something that I live for, so I’ll definitely be back.” 

COMPLETE PLAYOFF COVERAGE