The Abes might have needed their wake-up calls a little bit earlier than they got them on Jan. 2, when they played Spanaway Lake in an 11 a.m. game. After a sluggish start, Lincoln prevailed over the Sentinels, 67-60, in a non-conference game.

Led by Turrell Smith and Denzel Dansby, the Abes rebounded from a 14-point deficit early in the second quarter. They got within five points by halftime, trailing 32-27. Dansby and Smith kept coming up with key baskets as the Abes closed out the third quarter on a three-pointer by Smith, which gave them the lead at 49-48.

Picking up their defense was the key to the comeback. They were able to contain the Sentinels’ leading scorer, Terrelle Loggins, and generated turnovers.

“We’ve all got a lot of confidence that we can come back when we get down,” Smith said.

The Abes’ players are getting a lot of practice at it. They have had slow starts in many of their games, and against Spanaway Lake, they trailed by 19 points before getting it in gear.

“We are kind of slow to get started,” Dansby said. “We need to start getting more intense early in the games - even in the locker room before the game.”

That would be fine with coach Aubrey Shelton.

“I don’t like it,” he said, “but that has been the personality of this team.”

The Sentinels went on a 10-point run with Loggins and Marvin Robertson hitting consecutive three-point shots to close out the first quarter with a 17-9 lead.

They pushed the lead to 14 points at 26-12 at the 5:27 mark of the second quarter. But Lincoln started getting more energized on defense, sparked by the steal of an inbounds pass by Shane Stagg, which turned into a fast-break layup on the other end. Two more quick turnovers turned into four points. When Dansby hit a reverse layup with 20 seconds left in the half, the Sentinels’ lead was cut to five, at 32-27.

With Damani Coley’s block igniting the defense to start the third quarter, Dansby and Smith went on to erupt for a combined 21 points and the lead at the end of the quarter.

The Sentinels did not go quietly, as three-pointers by Robertson and Shay Patton knotted the score at 56-56, before a six-point run by the Abes put them in command in the last two minutes of the game.

The Abes, having come off a tough loss to Auburn-Riverside, 63-59, are now 6-3 before facing off this week with Foss.

 

Here is how some of Tacoma’s schools fared over the holiday break:

Bellarmine Prep sandwiched a couple of wins in between losses at the MaxPreps Holiday Classic in San Diego.

The Lions opened with a 69-52 loss to Rocklin (Calif.) before winning consecutive games against Pasadena, 65-60, and Santa Rita (Ariz.), 82-76 in three overtimes. The Lions then fell victim to St. Anthony’s (New Jersey), 54-41.

Abdul Gaddy led the Lions with 24 points against Rocklin, then 27 against Pasadena. Donald Gaddy and Brandon Taft also hit in double figures, with 13 and 10 respectively. Abdul Gaddy scored 30 before fouling out in the fourth quarter of the game against St. Rita’s, and without him in the lineup, the Lions struggled. The Eagles overcame a nine-point deficit to tie the game. The Lions survived the three overtimes with contributions by Romece Barnes and Taft. In their final game in the tournament, the Lions were put away in the fourth quarter by the Friars. Abdul Gaddy scored 20.

With their 2-2 road trip, the Lions improved to 3-5 for the season and face Gig Harbor this week.

Mt. Tahoma had two good wins, defeating Clover Park, 56-47, and Cleveland, 68-46. The Thunderbirds come back to Narrows League play against Lincoln this week with a 6-1 record.