Team Spotlightlight: Lynden Lions
The city of Lynden could arguably have been the best basketball city of 2018 in the state of Washington. The city took home three out of four state titles in last seasons 1A and 2A state tournament. Lynden High and…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingThe city of Lynden could arguably have been the best basketball city of 2018 in the state of Washington. The city took home three out of four state titles in last seasons 1A and 2A state tournament.
Lynden High and Lynden Christian are both dominating their classification, on the boys and the girls side. Some would say these are the best teams in the state, regardless of class.
The latest Boy’s WIAA RPI has Lynden Christian ranked #1 with Lynden coming in as #5. Lynden Christian girls are also ranked #1 in the state. But the team who finished 2018 on top would have to be Lynden High School Boys.
Aside from their 2018 state title, the Lynden Lions have some impressive wins on their resume this season. They defeated a Marysville Pilchuck team led by Univ. Washington commit Raequan Battle by 34 at Marysville. They also shocked 3A powerhouse O’Dea by 23 at home.
Lynden has not kept it close in any of their games, with an average win margin of 20.3 points.
The lions continued their winning ways when they traveled down to the Sundome Shootout in Yakima, Washington. They swept the weekend with big wins over 1A contender Zillah and 2A’s Selah by a combine 53 points.
After their win over Selah, Coach Brian Roper spoke highly of his seniors. “We have a veteran group. They know how to play the game, they know what the coaches want and they know how to play with each other” said coach Roper. “We are further ahead than most teams at this point of the year because we have guys who have been playing 2-3 years at the varsity level.”
Lynden has 9 seniors on their team and they all contribute in some way. Christian Zamora and Clayton Whitman headline their senior class. Clayton Whitman is a star front court player who can play inside and out who is committed to play at Seattle Pacific University next season. While Zamora is one of the best unsigned players left in the state.
Zamora continues to build his already impressive resume as he is now the all-time 3pt leader in school history.
Other notable players are guards Kobe Elsner and Blake Silves. Two good defensive guards who pick up full court. Both can shoot the ball and take turns initiating the offense. A lot of Lynden’s three point shots come from drive and kicks starting with these two.
Another stud is James Marsh, Whitmans front court mate. Marsh is the muscle for the lions. He is a tenacious rebounder and a lot to handle with his size and strength on the block. He would be considered the Draymond Green of this team.
And with 9 seniors graduating this year, a guy to keep an eye on is sophomore big man Liam Hanenburg. A 6’10 center who has experience playing with this talented group and the lone underclassmen on the team. He could turn some heads down the line with his role to soon increase.
The collision between Lynden schools is January 25th at Lynden. The Lynden gym will be where you will find anyone who lives in Lynden on this day. This inner city battle could very much be game of the year. By this point, both teams could very easily be undefeated and a perfect season and bragging rights will be on the line.