ADNA — Over the last three seasons, there’s a unique conundrum that spills into the start of the Tumwater High School boys basketball season.
They’ve routinely had multiple football players coming off a grueling and extended campaign that finishes in early December at Husky Stadiums. Practices with the full roster are few and far between and games aren’t starting until mid-December.
Prior to the T-Birds first game of the Adna Holiday Hoops Tournament on Monday, they had only played four times in 18 days.
“It is an extreme challenge,” Tumwater head coach Josh Wilson said. “They do a decent job of (getting into) basketball shape, it is just more getting back into basketball mode.”
Tumwater hasn’t shrunk yet. It passed quite the signature test in a packed crowd at Adna High School.
Spurred by Landon Anchors’ clutch baskets in the final quarter and timely defensive rebounds, the Thunderbirds overcame a 16-point halftime deficit to triumph over Adna 62-61 in the only area head-to-head battle of the tournament.
Tumwater trailed by double digits as early as the second quarter and much of the third. It was down seven with over five minutes left in regulation.
Slowly and surely, the T-Birds chipped away until the final minute of the night.
“We changed our mentality and we started defending better,” Anchors said. “Came together at the right time.”
A game that featured nine different players finishing with at least three fouls and 45 total free throws were attempted ended in chaos. Luke Overbay put Tumwater up three, then on the ensuing Adna possession, Trevin Salme drew contact on a 3-pointer and was rewarded three foul shots.
He missed the first, but made the next two to make it a one-point game with 37 seconds to go. Anchors’ floater at the end of the shot clock caromed off the rim and he chased it down to retain possession. Except, he stepped out of bounds with 7.3 seconds left.
Out of Adna’s timeout, Salme drove the lane and went back to the line on a blocking call. Thirty-one minutes and 59 seconds were gone.
Millions of thoughts and situations started to swarm both coaches and the nine other players on the court.
“I was nervous about 3.1 seconds and was thinking through the scenarios,” Wilson said.
“I knew he was going to make both and we were going to play defense for three seconds,” Pirates head coach Luke Salme added.
Said Anchors: “We were a little frustrated, but we had full confidence we would win that game.”
Salme missed the first and the second, Overbay corralled his 10th and final rebound to ensure Tumwater’s win. There were screams of jubilation, all while Salme had his head buried in his jersey.
“There are certain teams that get in tough situations and can’t pull it out,” Wilson said. “It is nice to see we can get in a challenging environment and win the game. I did not think Salme would miss free throws, to be completely honest.”
“I don’t know if he’ll sleep tonight,” Coach Salme stated. “I was stunned when he missed the first one. We had a chance.”
It was Anchors that ignited the rally, scoring 12 of his team-high 18 in the fourth. He was kept out of the scoresheet the entire first half, but found his touch from deep late in the third with back-to-back triples.
He scored six in a 10-0 spree to turn a 59-52 deficit into a 62-59 advantage. It was Tumwater’s first lead since 9-5 in the first.
“Our whole team trusts Landon,” Wilson said. “Had a really good summer for us. He took advantage of the opportunities.”
Overbay and Owen Reamer each scored 13 for Tumwater, which finished 22-of-51 from the field with seven 3-pointers. Braeden Konrad registered seven boards and Ethan Bello notched five assists.
“I trusted my confidence and let it fly,” Anchors said.
Even in a loss and in the fashion it transpired, Coach Salme was chipper. He stated he hadn’t seen his group play with grit on a consistent basis, but got a glimpse on Monday.
Salme led the game with 30 points despite battling foul trouble, eclipsing 1,000 points in his career.
The Pirates switched up their defenses from zone to man and it led them to a 12-point halftime margin. Yet they never saw Salme and Grayson Humphrey together on the court for much of the final two frames.
They kept their head above water with Humphrey – who scored 13 points – leading the charge before fouling out. Still, Adna finished 15-of-27 from the charity stripe and were just 5-of-15 in the opening quarter.
“This is the happiest I’ve been after a basketball game,” Coach Salme said. “Our toughness and competitive spirit that I’ve been not seeing, was there against a really good opponent. I am very pleased with how hard we played.
“I’ve (been) asked several times ‘Why do you play them?’ Because of that. We will learn and grow. The kids proved a lot to me.”
Tumwater faces Montesano and Adna battles unbeaten R.A. Long on Tuesday in the final day of the tourney. Both will get into league play once the calendar flips to 2026.
And both are hopeful Monday serves as either a flip of the switch or a turning point for the rest of the season.
“Wins like this are a big confidence boost to keep on going,” Anchors said.
