118-111 victory seals first championship in 61 years for Bellingham-based basketball team.
The championship would not be decided by last second heroics – there would be no miraculous buzzer-beating shot. Instead, the game would ultimately be decided by two free throws with 5.4 seconds left.
In front of a boisterous, sold-out crowd of more than 1,100 people at the Whatcom Pavilion, Paul Hafford stepped to the line hoping to add to a five-point lead, which would ensure the Bellingham Slam their first International Basketball League (IBL) championship.
Hafford calmly gathered himself as the Slam dance team continued to hand out celebratory confetti. As the crowd quieted in anticipation, Hafford effortlessly drained both free throws.
"With about 15 seconds left we finally knew we had the game won," Hafford said. "I just went to the line and focused on the free throws, knowing the game was in the bag."
The Slam capped off their first year in the IBL with a hard-fought, seven-point victory. Hafford and Tyler Amaya shared the honor of co-MVP and IBL Commissioner Mikal Duilio was on-hand to present the championship trophy to team captain Brandon Hartley.
In only their third year of operation, the Bellingham Slam brought the city of Bellingham its first professional basketball championship since the Bellingham Fircrests won the Pacific Coast Professional Basketball League title in 1947. General manager Bob Hofstetter said the Fircrests didn’t play on a national level and their championship didn’t really compare with the Slam’s.
Hafford led the Slam with a career high 30 points and 10 rebounds, while Amaya had 20 points, 13 rebounds and six assists coming off the bench. Jacob Stevenson added 24 points and Ryan Diggs had 19 for the Slam.
To open the game, the Express quickly jumped out to an 18-4 lead, the largest for either team. The Express led 22-11 halfway through the first quarter when Slam head coach Rob Ridnour called his first timeout.
"They started fast and hit a bunch of shots early," Ridnour said. "We knew that wasn’t going to last the whole game, and we just had to fight through it."
After the timeout, tournament co-MVP and former Western basketball player Tyler Amaya entered the game for the first time, and the Slam quickly turned the 11-point deficit into a 30-28 lead – outscoring the Express 19-6 through the final six minutes of the quarter.
The Slam held the lead from that point until the Express finally tied it up at 70 points each midway through the third quarter.
With 13 lead changes throughout the game, the Slam were able to regain the lead for good near the end of the third quarter when former Western standout Ryan Diggs scored seven consecutive points.
The Slam maintained a two-point lead, at 83-81, going into the fourth quarter.
The Express missed six free throws in the fourth quarter while Hartley, Jacob Stevenson, Diggs and Hafford all made pairs of free throws in the final 1:20 to lock up the championship.
"I’ve never won a championship in my life before," Hafford said. "I know some guys out here have won league titles but not all of us. It’s an incredible feeling."
Ridnour coached the 1999 and 2000 Blaine High School basketball teams to Washington state high school championships – teams that included NBA player and son Luke Ridnour, who was in attendance Friday night.
"It’s an awesome feeling to bring home a championship," Ridnour said. "I give a lot of credit to these guys because they have so much team chemistry. It’s different than my Blaine championship teams because there is so much camaraderie here."
The Slam are comprised primarily of former Division-II players. Paul Hafford, who attended Portland State, is the one exception. In contrast, the Express roster is filled with 11 players who played basketball for Division-I schools. Ridnour said he never thought of his players as former Division-II athletes.
"I think all of our guys had the ability to play Division-I – they’re that good," Ridnour said. "Most of them have played professionally overseas so they have that experience."
One reason the Slam has such good chemistry is because they have six former Western basketball players, including brothers Jared and Jacob Stevenson and one former WCC player, guard Charlie Vann, Hofstetter said.
"It’s awesome being able to play with my older brother," Jacob Stevenson said. "We only played together one year at Western, and he was the competitive one trying to outscore me. Now we’re just two teammates. There still is some sibling rivalry though."
Hofstetter, who helped start the Slam organization, said he wants it known the Slam are not just another semi-pro team; in fact, they are not considered semi-pro at all.
"I usually compare the level we’re on with Double-A baseball," Hofstetter said. "Most people understand the baseball levels. We’re right below the NBA Developmental League so they could be considered the Triple-A of basketball."
The IBL was founded a few years ago and is on the rise, Hofstetter said.
Some of the IBL rules include teams only getting one timeout per quarter – without the timeouts carrying over between quarters – a 22-second shot-clock, seven-seconds to advance the ball past half court and quicker inbounds to keep the flow going.
"It’s definitely a run-and-gun league," Amaya said, "It’s a lot of fun being able to score a lot of points, but you still have to focus on playing defense on your man. It isn’t just about outscoring opponents."
Another unique trait to the IBL is the physicality of the game in which referees generally ‘let the guys play,’ Ridnour said.
The championship was that type of game, very physical with the refs constantly hounded by fans after every call.
As the season comes to a close, Hofstetter said most players will begin to look to play on other teams during the traditional winter basketball season. By the time the new year comes, the Bellingham Slam will begin offering contracts to players.
