SBLive's 2021-22 all-state Washington high school boys basketball teams: Central Valley's Darling, Auburn's Hansen top postseason awards
The 2021-22 Washington high school basketball season, the first full season in two years, is in the books.
Now, it's time for postseason awards.
Here are SBLive's Washington state all-classification player of the year, coach of the year and the first and second all-state teams followed by individual all-state teams, players and coaches of the year for each of the six WIAA boys basketball classifications.
The awards and teams are compiled factoring season-wide accomplishments, team and postseason success, as well as conversations with coaches and media around the state.
STATE PLAYER OF THE YEAR (ALL-CLASSIFICATIONS)
G Dylan Darling, Central Valley (4A), sr.
Dylan Darling, SBLive's Washington all-class state player of the year, converts a layup in Central Valley's first round loss to Kamiakin in the 2022 Class 4A state tournament in the Tacoma Dome.
Photo by Vince Miller
Where to start? After making an invaluable mark as sixth man on Central Valley's 2020 4A state runner-up team, Darling (33.2 points, 8.5 boards, 5.8 assists, 4.4 steals) carried an undersized, less experienced Bears team back to the Tacoma Dome, smashing records along the way while fielding praise for his efficiency (55 percent FG) despite his high shot volume.
His 58-point night set new single-game program and Greater Spokane League scoring records, he set a new all-time GSL scoring average previously held by Adam Morrison.
And he willed the Bears (18-8) through loser-out stakes in both the district and regional postseason rounds, which included a 47-point showing on the road against Woodinville in a regional win-or-go-home.
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STATE COACH OF THE YEAR (ALL-CLASSIFICATIONS)
Ryan Hansen, Auburn (3A)
Hansen (center) celebrates Auburn's 3A state championship win with his coaching staff.
Photo by Vince Miller
When Ryan Hansen was tapped as Auburn's boys basketball coach in 2002, longtime athletic director Bob Jones reminded him of his No. 1 goal each year.
"[Jones] told me your job every year is to win a state championship," Hansen said. "We’ve been doing it for 20 years and we’ve finally got one."
Trojans beat 10 of the other 11 teams in the 3A field, including the top five Metro League teams, along the way to the 2022 Class 3A state championship, beating Rainier Beach 58-48 in the title game.
Hansen was equal parts cautious and excited when the Trojans classed down from 4A to 3A in the WIAA's re-classification cycle in 2020. Coming off of a 4A state first round appearance led by a young core headlined by Tre Blassingame and Maleek Arington, he knew his group would be back to compete for a title. But in 3A, that meant braving the vaunted Metro League.
Auburn (27-2) ran the table in the 3A NPSL and beat Eastside Catholic, Federal Way, Ferris, O'Dea, Tahoma, Gig Harbor and Timberline — all state tournament teams — on its way to Tacoma.
Once in the Dome, Trojans, perhaps fittingly, swept three Metro League stalwarts on its way to the 3A state title: No. 1 Garfield, No. 5 Seattle Prep and No. 4 Rainier Beach.
They are the first non-Metro League program in 10 years to win state. And their run continues in the State Champion Invitational, where the 2-seeded Trojans take on 3-seed Norcross, the GHSA (Georgia) 7A state champion on April 7 on ESPNU.
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ALL-CLASSIFICATION ALL-STATE FIRST TEAM
Tyler Bilodeau, Kamiakin (4A), sr.
The Kamiakin forward lays the ball in during a first round Class 4A state tournament win over 12-seed Central Valley in the Tacoma Dome.
Photo by Vince Miller
In the span of two years, he went from a younger, shorter, scrawnier rotation backup wing on a team that took sixth in the 2020 state 3A tournament, to a 6-foot-9 two-time Mid-Columbia Conference MVP, an Oregon State signee and Washington's "Mr. Basketball." He averaged 23.1 points on 57 percent shooting, 39.5 from 3, 10.3 boards and 1.4 blocks per game, leading Kamiakin to the state quarterfinals and a fourth place finish.
Guard: Tre Blassingame, Auburn (3A), sr.
Blassingame, a 6-foot-5 senior guard, advances the ball in. the Class 3A state championship against 4-seed Rainier Beach. The 2-seed Trojans ended up winning the state title.
Photo by Vince Miller
On a team without a traditional big, Blassingame pulled double-duty. On one end, he was a dynamic guard who scored on all three levels, broke down defenses off the dribble and excelled as a spot-up shooter. Defensively, his length was often utilized to combat opponent's biggest players. He averaged a team-high 19.1 points and 6.7 boards per game on a team that sacrificed individual achievements/prowess for an unselfish style of play.
Guard: Zoom Diallo, Curtis (4A), soph.
Zoom Diallo, Curtis sophomore guard, rises in the key into two Union defenders during the 2022 4A state semifinals in the Tacoma Dome.
Photo by Vince Miller
By the end of the 4A state tournament, there was no other player who bent, stressed and broke down a defense quite like Diallo. The 6-foot-5 sophomore point guard averaged 17.8 points (55 percent shooting), 5.2 boards, 5.1 assists and 1.5 steals per game. And the Class 4A tournament and 4A SPSL-North MVP stepped up when the moment was biggest, finishing with 22 points, three assists, three steals and the game-defining baskets in an overtime 4A state title win over Mount Si.
Guard: Koren Johnson, Garfield (3A), sr.
Johnson, a Washington commit, lays the ball in against Seattle Prep in the Metro League championship game.
Johnson's return home to Garfield, where he won a state championship in 2020, from national power Wasatch Academy altered the 3A state title race. And for good reason. The Washington commit was the missing centerpiece for a Bulldogs team that ran the table, beat preseason No. 1 Auburn on the road in December, won the Metro League before losing to Auburn in the state quarterfinals. Johnson, a Washington commit, is gifted with the ball in his hands. He averaged 18.3 points, six assists and 2.6 boards per game, winning Metro League MVP and helping Garfield win the fourth place game after losing in the 3A state quarterfinals to eventual champ Auburn.
Forward: Quin Patterson, Mount Si (4A), sr.
Patterson, a UC San Diego commit, evades Curtis defenders during the 2022 Class 4A state championship game.
The UC San Diego commit was a stabilizing bridge between two dominant Mount Si runs and the most well-rounded player for a deep Wildcats team that was undefeated before losing to Curtis in overtime of the 4A state title. He hit key shots in the title game off the bench in 2020 as a sophomore, and did the same on March 5. Averaged 14.3 points, six rebounds, 2.1 assists and shot 45 percent from 3. 4A KingCo defensive player of the year.
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ALL-CLASSIFICATION ALL-STATE SECOND TEAM
Forward: Jordan Hansen, King's (1A), sr.
Jordan Hansen, a King's senior, rises to the rim against Tahoma in the 2022 King Classic in the Showare Center.
King's embodied a play anyone, anywhere mindset under recently-departed head coach Rick Skeen, and Hansen was its embodiment. He stepped into the Knights' feature role seamlessly after Washington commit and reigning 1A state player of the year Tyler Linhardt transferred to a prep academy in the midwest. The Idaho State commit averaged 26.6 points, 8.6 boards per game and elevated his play when the moment was biggest, scoring 34 on 3A contender Garfield, 42 on 2A tournament team White River and leading King's to six wins over state tournament teams spanning 1A to 4A and finishing 1A state runners-up.
Guard: Jonas La Tour, North Kitsap (2A), sr.
La Tour, a Seattle Pacific pledge who carries the "French Mamba moniker, led North Kitsap to a deep 2A state tournament run.
Photo by Jeff Halstead
Two years after helping the Vikings win their first state championship, La Tour put together his own record-breaking season, setting his school's single-game point record with 57 against Bainbridge and leading North Kitsap to a third place finish. The Seattle Pacific commit averaged 27 points, 9.5 boards and 1.8 steals.
Forward: Jaxon Nap, Hazen (3A), sr.
Jaxon Nap poses with his parents during an official visit to Montana in 2021. The senior led Hazen and made an impact against 3A KingCo defenses.
Like Bilodeau, Nap is just starting to tap into his full potential after a massive pandemic growth spurt. He was an undersized guard for years until sprouting up to 6-foot-8 and 200 pounds in time for his senior season. Montana, where he's signed, took notice over the summer, and in Hazen's 8-12 season, Nap, the 3A KingCo player of the year, averaged 22 points, 15 boards and four assists per game, through persistent double and triple teams.
Forward: Jayden Stevens, Gonzaga Prep (4A), sr.
Stevens impressed at the Tacoma Dome against top 4A talent in the state after a late-February offer and commitment to Oregon State.
Photo by Vince Miller
After the talent-laden Bullpups got off to a 4-6 start, head coach Matty McIntyre felt the season could have gone one of several directions. It finished in the 4A state quarterfinals, and he credits Stevens' leadership as a determining factor: “Jayden was the nucleus, the core component holding it all together. I’ll forever be grateful for his leadership,” McIntyre said of the 6-8 Oregon State commit, who averaged 21 points on 71 percent shooting, (35 percent from 3) seven boards, three assists, two steals per game — and played his best basketball of the season in the Tacoma Dome.
Guard: Braeden Smith, Seattle Prep (3A), sr.
Smith, a three-year standout, is committed to Colgate.
Photo by Mason Kelley, Seattle Prep Athletics
Seattle Prep coach Mike Kelly reached for a word to describe his three-year starting point guard's hard edge and cool demeanor, both on and off the court: "authentic." The first team all Metro League pick and Colgate commit is a jitterbug with the ball and has a knack for finding ways to score. He averaged 18.5 points, 6.9 assists and 3.7 boards per game, leading the Panthers to a third place Class 3A finish. "There are moments where I just go, 'woah,' " Kelly said. "This young man, young people gravitate toward him for all the right reasons."
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SBLIVE'S ALL-STATE TEAMS, BY CLASSIFICATION
CLASS 4A
Player of the year: G Dylan Darling, Central Valley, sr. (33.2. ppg, 8.5 rpg, 5.8 apg, 4.4 spg)
Dylan Darling, SBLive's Washington all-class state player of the year, converts a layup in Central Valley's first round loss to Kamiakin in the 2022 Class 4A state tournament in the Tacoma Dome.
Photo by Vince Miller
Coach of the year: Tim Kelly, Curtis
FIRST TEAM
F Tyler Bilodeau, Kamiakin, sr.
G Zoom Diallo, Curtis, soph.
G Parker Gerrits, Olympia, jr.
F Quin Patterson, Mount Si, sr.
F Jayden Stevens, Gonzaga Prep, sr.
SECOND TEAM
F Yanni Fassilis, Union, jr.
G Bryson Metz, Union
G Bobby Siebers, Glacier Peak, sr.
F Carson Talbert, Tahoma, sr.
F Will Woodward, Eastlake, sr.
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CLASS 3A
Player of the year: G Tre Blassingame, Auburn, sr. (19.1 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 2.4 spg, 50% FG, 83% FT)
Blassingame, a 6-foot-5 senior guard, advances the ball in. the Class 3A state championship against 4-seed Rainier Beach. The 2-seed Trojans ended up winning the state title.
Photo by Vince Miller
Coach of the year: Ryan Hansen, Auburn
FIRST TEAM
G Koren Johnson, Garfield, sr.
F Jaxon Nap, Hazen, sr.
F Maverick Sanders, Mt. Spokane, jr.
G Braeden Smith, Seattle Prep, sr.
F Jaylin Stewart, Garfield, jr.
SECOND TEAM
G Brooklyn Hicks, Timberline, jr.
F Tyler Mrus, Seattle Prep, sr.
G Maleek Arington, Auburn, sr.
F Will Landram, Gig Harbor, jr.
F Josh Conerly Jr., Rainier Beach, sr.
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2A ALL-STATE TEAM
Player of the year: Jonas La Tour, North Kitsap (27 ppg, 9.5 rpg, 1.8 spg)
Coach of the year: Brian Roper, Lynden
FIRST TEAM
F Anthony Canales, Lynden, soph.
G Wyatt Dunning, Port Angeles, sr.
G Cavin Holden, R.A. Long, jr.
F Grayson Hunt, Pullman, sr.
G Jordan Medcalf, Lynden, sr.
SECOND TEAM
G John John Barbee, Franklin Pierce
G Luke Brewer, Tumwater
G Jaedyn Brown, Pullman, jr.
F Aaron Ofstun, R.A. Long
F Levi Pepper, Selah, jr.
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CLASS 1A
Player of the year: F Jordan Hansen, King’s, sr.
Hansen sets up the offense in the 2022 Class 1A state title game, which Lynden Christian won.
Photo by Sean Carter
Coach of the year: Joseph Mesplie, Toppenish
FIRST TEAM
G Logan Britt, Seattle Academy, sr.
G Clay Delp, Zillah, sr.
G Andrew Hommes, Lynden Christian, sr.
G Riley Mesplie, Toppenish, sr.
G Bradley Swillie, Life Christian Academy, sr.
SECOND TEAM
G TreyVaughn Bierlink, Quincy, sr.
F Quin Goldsmith, Freeman, sr.
G Cam Hiatt, King’s, fr.
F Luke Navarre, Zillah, jr.
G Tyler Sipma, Lynden Christian, sr.
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CLASS 2B
Player of the year: G John Lustig, Colfax, sr. (30.24 ppg, 10.3 rpg, 4.6 apg, 2.6 spg)
Lustig, a Lewis-Clark State commit, showed out at the Spokane Arena, backing up a tremendous senior season in one of the top leagues in 2B.
Photo by Jennifer Claasen, Simply Blessed Photography
Coach of the year: Jared Hodl, Liberty of Spangle
FIRST TEAM
G Tayshawn Colvin, Liberty of Spangle, sr.
G Jackson Esary, Kalama, sr.
F Kelson Gebbers, Brewster, jr.
G/F Tennessee Rainwater, Davenport, jr.
G Zach Swanson, Toutle Lake, soph.
SECOND TEAM
G Carson Boesel, Okanogan, jr.
F Gary Dotson, Morton-White Pass, sr.
F Keith Olson, Napavine, sr.
G Quincy Scott, Columbia-Burbank, fr.
G Tre Seydel, Raymond, sr.
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1B ALL-STATE TEAM
Player of the year: F Justice Hart, Yakama Tribal, sr. (29.6 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 4.9 apg, 2.3 spg)
Yakama Tribal's Justice Hart can score in a variety of ways - and did to the tune of 29.6 points per game this season.
Coach of the year: Rob Seymour, Cusick
FIRST TEAM
G Pierre Boorman, Moses Lake Christian, sr.
F Reece Isaak, Almira-Coulee-Hartline, sr.
G Yoel Kintzer, Northwest Yeshiva, sr.
G Colton Seymour, Cusick, sr.
G/F Cole Wagenaar, Sunnyside Christian, jr.
SECOND TEAM
F Thunderr Doty, Crosspoint, sr.
F Celias Holmes, Cusick, soph.
G Grady Murray, Almira Coulee Hartline, sr.
F Tyran Lane, Lummi Nation, sr.
G Jack Lesko, DeSales, jr.
