Braves open state tourney against Bellevue

Forget about Lincoln (at least for a while). It's state tournament time for the Bethel Braves.

Bethel lost to Lincoln last Saturday for the fourth time this season. But the Braves have a place in the 3A state high school girls basketball tourney nonetheless, starting with a first-round matchup Feb. 28 at 9 p.m. against Bellevue. All of the tournament will be staged in the Tacoma Dome.
The Bethel-Bellevue contest is a loser-out affair, meaning only the winner will advance. That would be a quarterfinals game Thursday versus Gig Harbor. The championship game will be on Saturday.
Lincoln edged Bethel 49-48 last Saturday at Puyallup High in the regionals. The victory earned the Abes a first-round bye and a spot in the quarterfinals of the state tourney, where the rivals could meet one more time if they both reach the title game.
Lincoln also defeated the Braves 51-43 Feb. 17 to claim the 3A West Central District title and the district’s top seed in the regionals. Bethel settled for the second seed, setting up last weekend’s showdown with the Abes. The Abes won every time they faced Bethel in the 2017-18 campaign, including two times during the regular season,.

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