Buzzer-beaters and big-time performances marked the first round of the Class 4A state basketball tournament Thursday at Sullivan Arena.
The girls teams from Ketchikan and Colony won with last-second baskets, while Desmond Johnson finished one assist shy of a triple-double to lead the East boys to victory.
Ketchikan knocked off a powerful East team 58-56 in double overtime, clinching the win on Eliah Anderson's basket at the buzzer. And Colony disposed of perennial contender Wasilla 45-42 in a game decided by Faith Farris' last-second 3-pointer.
Johnson racked up 21 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists in East's 75-68 win over Ketchikan. He was one of several players who delivered big games, a list that included two huge efforts in losing efforts -- Taria Page amassed 18 points and 18 rebounds for the East girls and Mo Bullock piled up 28 points and 17 rebounds for the Ketchikan boys.
The game-winning shot by Anderson capped a rough-and-tumble saga controlled largely by the bigger girls from East, though Ketchikan always found a way to score when it mattered.
"We imploded," said East coach Rick Henderson, as his teary-eyed team streamed into the locker room.
"Thirty-six turnovers and not hitting free throws down the line had a lot to do with it," he said.
East entered the tournament with a 21-1 record, its only loss coming by three points to Kodiak. It was ranked third by coaches in a statewide poll.
Ketchikan coach Kelly Smith, whose team improved to 19-5, said the Kings were without a top player, junior Courtney Kemble, who left the game after about two minutes.
"She started puking and hardly played -- food poisoning or something," Smith said.
The Kings didn't shoot well, but they played aggressively until the end, he said.
"There was a lot of times they could have quit, but they didn't," Smith said.
Junior forward Alexis Biggerstaff led Ketchikan with 17 points and nine rebounds. Senior guard Felicia Ruaro added 13 points and four steals.
Page dominated for the T-birds, who also got 12 points from Lorna Suaava and 14 rebounds from Tennae Voliva.
The game was tied 48-48 at the end of regulation and 55-55 after the first overtime. The Kings outscored East 3-1 in the second overtime.
Results of Thursday's other games:
Girls
West Valley 50, Thunder Mountain 37: Ruthy Hebard, the Class 4A Player of the Year, pulled down 20 rebounds to help the Wolf Pack dominate the boards in their win over Thunder Mountain.
Hebard completed the double-double with 12 points. Teresa Sample also netted 12 points for West Valley.
Thunder Mountain was led by Siniva Maka's eight points and Ava Tomkins' eight rebounds.
Colony 45, Wasilla 42: Faith Farris scored a team-high 11 points, including the game-winning bucket, to lift Colony past Wasilla, whose streak of three straight state championships ended last season. Ashley Turcotte dropped in 13 points for the Knights.
Leya DePriest fueled Wasilla with 18 points and 13 rebounds, and Azlynn Brandenburg added 12.
Dimond 57, Chugiak 45: Rohyn Huss drained four 3-pointers to power Dimond to a 54-45 win over Chugiak in a battle between two Cook Inlet Conference teams.
Boys
Colony 42, Wasilla 36: Bailey West was red-hot behind the arc, draining six of 10 shots from 3-point range to carry Colony to the win over conference rival Wasilla.
Wasilla led by three points after three quarters, but the Knights owned the fourth quarter, 13-4.
Bailey finished with a game-high 25 points while helping the Knights to a 14 of 39 shooting effort. Wasilla, which was 13 of 45 from the floor, was led by Alex Baham's 10 points.
East 75, Ketchikan 68: Desmond Johnson led a trio of double-figure scorers for the T-birds, who welcomed Ketchikan back to the tournament by forging a commanding lead in the first quarter.
East led 23-11 after one quarter and the Kings, making their first state-tournament appearance in a decade, never recovered.
Marquis White scored 23 points and Brayton Keith added 10 for East. Mo Bullock's 28 points and 17 rebounds kept Ketchikan going.
The T-birds won the game at the foul line, where they were 17 of 31 to Ketchikan's 9 of 20.
Service 72, Lathrop 55: Eben Upton and Brad Wacker each sank 11 free throws for Service, which was 29 of 36 from the foul line.
Upton finished with 23 points and Wacker with 19. Pindo Drammeh pitched in 13 points and 10 rebounds and Nathan Fromm added 12 points and eight rebounds for the Cougars.
Lathrop lost two players to fouls, including Jade Whiteside, who scored a team-high 17 points before getting his fifth foul. Kobe Milk contributed 16 points and nine points for the Malemutes, who were 5 of 14 from the line.
West 72, West Valley 57: West shot 52 percent and put four players in double figures to overcome a 29-point performance by West Valley's Daniel Hornbuckle.
Brandon Huffman led the way for the Eagles with 18 points and 17 rebounds. Da'Zhon Wyche added 17 points, Devontee Doutrive 13 and Noah Christy 12.
West hit 26 of 50 shots. West Valley managed 19 of 59, with Hornbuckle hitting 10 of 23.