By Oliver Lazenby
Blaine boys basketball toppled Oak Harbor 68-47 on December 4 thanks to dogged defense and a varied offense led by Zane Rector and Kyle Turnberg. Rector scored 20 points and Turnberg 15.
The win, Blaine’s second of the season, is a milestone for the team because that’s how many Blaine won all last season. But the team still has a way to go, new head coach Brett Farrar points out.
“I congratulated them and said this is just a start, let’s keep working to improve and not relax here,” he said.
Farrar was head coach at Sedro-Woolley from 2012 to 2018. There, he had a 67–63 career record. He replaces longtime coach Rob Ridnour, who came back to coach last season.
Farrar is looking to rebuild Blaine’s basketball program; the Borderites have had a rough couple seasons, finishing last season 2–18 (0–13 in conference games) and finishing 5–15, with a 2–10 conference record the season before.
The Borderites are showing a competitive energy and scrappiness on the court that looks promising.
“We’re really pleased with our effort in the first three games,” Farrar said. “Each guy is really attentive to his job defensively and we’re doing a good job rebounding the ball, which is pure effort.”
After beating Oak Harbor, the Borderites are 2–1. They lost to Archbishop Murphy 52–47 on November 29. Though the team has had some early success, Farrar wants to take the season one day at a time.
“We have to make sure we’re showing up every single day looking to improve, working to improve. If we do that, then we’ll be OK,” Farrar said. “We haven’t won a league game in 23 games, so it’s probably a little soon for talking playoffs.”
Next, the Borderites play at 7:15 p.m. at Bellingham High School (1–2) on Friday, December 7. Blaine’s next home game, and the first conference game of the season, starts at 7:15 p.m. against Lynden Christian on Friday, December 14.
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