Boys hoops | Nixyaawii will have its hands full with Kittitas

Published 8:31 pm Tuesday, January 22, 2019

The Nixyaawii boys basketball team will step out of its comfort zone Friday to play Washington 2B power Kittitas at Hermiston High School.

The game, scheduled for 8:30 p.m., will follow the Hermiston girls (5:30 p.m.) and boys (7 p.m.) Mid-Columbia Conference contests against Hanford.

“We know the task is daunting, to say the least,” Golden Eagles coach Shane Rivera said. “We know they have a kid who has signed with Gonzaga. We are excited about the challenge, and the kids are pretty pumped to play a team that is so highly touted.”

Kittitas (17-1), the two-time defending state champion, is ranked No. 2 in the Washington 2B poll.

The game, which was not originally on either team’s schedule, came about after both ended up with an open date.

“I’m good friends with Kittitas coach Tim Ravet,” Hermiston athletic director Larry Usher said. “He said they needed a game and asked if I knew of anyone. I made some calls. I think there will be a big crowd.”

Ravet appreciates Usher’s help in filling the void in his schedule.

“He is doing us a favor,” Ravet said. “It will be fun. You never know how it will go. Hopefully we show up and play.”

Nixyaawii (16-1), ranked fifth in the Oregon Class 1A coaches poll, is led by 6-foot junior Mick Schimmel, who is averaging 19 points per game.

“He averaged more last year, but we are more well-rounded this year,” said Rivera, whose team beat Elgin 106-34 last Friday. “Mick usually guards the other team’s best player, so I image that will be the case Friday.”

That matchup would have Schimmel guarding 6-1 senior Brock Ravet, who has signed to play at Gonzaga.

Ravet, who averages more than 30 points per game, had 30 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists in Kittitas’ 77-52 victory over Class 4A Kentlake on Monday at the King Showcase Basketball Invitational at ShoWare Center in Kent, Washington.

Ravet needs 89 points to tie and 90 to surpass the Washington scoring record of 2,851 points, held by Lance Den Boer.

“He is good, but they are not a one-man show,” Rivera said. “They are a well-rounded team. We are a good team. I’m hoping our reputation is solid enough for them.”

Coach Ravet said he watched film of Nixyaawii, and that they will have their hands full.

“The Schimmel kid looks solid,” Ravet said. “They look good. It will be fun to see different faces and a different style of game. You have to adjust to the speed of their game, their kids and the officiating. It’s a late start, but it’s like a district or state game. I hope I feel the same way after the game.”

The game will have a shot clock, which Nixyaawii is not used to playing with, but Rivera welcomes.

“There is entertainment value to be had,” Rivera said. “It will be a good small-school basketball game.”