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closeHuddle up: Tides vs. Hawks hoops rivalry on Saturday
Marques Hunter
of the Gateway
Remember going to the drive-in and watching two movies for the price of one? This Saturday, the Gig Harbor and Peninsula high school basketball programs will face off against each other on the same evening in the same building.
The girls teams will play at 5:15 p.m. at Gig Harbor High School, followed by the boys at 7 p.m.
Sweet.
Starting the season with two crosstown rivalry games on the same night is a great idea. The Fish Bowl football game will always be the pride and soul of the communities’ appreciation for a rivalry.
And it should. Locals back the sporting event with a pregame salmon bake and a 5,000-plus-fan turnout.
But if there had to be a runner up, I’d say going to the Gig Harbor High School gym this Saturday would be your best option.
At least if one game is a blowout, there’s a chance the next could come down to the wire.
This winter high school sports season will kick off the way it should every year. It’s one of those ideas where you say to yourself, “Why doesn’t this develop into an annual tradition?”
I’m probably still going to be full with turkey and other foods for Thanksgiving, but the two games will surely satisfy my smalltown rivalry appetite.
I don’t expect any of the teams to compete for a state championship, but I do imagine there will be a lot of emotion floating around the gym.
Peninsula and Gig Harbor students must circle the date whenever they are scheduled to play. I don’t remember the last time the boys and girls teams played on the same day in the same gym, but I can tell you both athletic programs have figured out the recipe for a good night of rivalry action.
After spending some time talking with all four basketball teams last week, I have a feeling the Gig Harbor boys will have their way with Peninsula. But a team that hustles on every possession and plays with a lot of passion has a fighting chance of winning.
The Peninsula boys may be lacking varsity experience, but being an underdog sometimes has a way of working to your advantage.
If I were first-year Gig Harbor coach Tom Adams, I’d drop the ball down low to my 6-foot-6 post, Austin Seferian-Jenkins, and let him work.
And when Peninsula converges on the mismatch, swing it to the open man on the perimeter man, and let it rain.
The girls game may be the more competitive, because both teams return their top talent from last year, and they both like to push the ball up the court.
Aside from a good rivalry weekend to transition to the winter season, reporting on the local events inside rather than outside will put a smile on my face. My hands went numb a couple times during soccer or football.
I always thought if the players had to deal with the weather conditions, then so should a journalist. But about halfway through the fall season, my reasoning began to lose some of its valor as I used halftime to thaw my hands.
One thing is certain: Two rivalry hoops games on a Saturday is a perfect way to start the new season.