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Anchorage Daily News

Anchorage Daily News

ANCHORAGE — It was the biggest game of Charlie Dushkin’s basketball career — even if he couldn’t remember to bring his jersey.

The King Cove senior made up for the mistake once he took the Sullivan Arena court.

Dushkin’s 6-foot-3 size proved too much for Fort Yukon to handle, as he controlled the boards and got the Eagles in foul trouble. As a result, the King Cove T-Jacks downed Fort Yukon 55-49 in a difficult day for Interior teams at the Class 1A state basketball tournament.

“We couldn’t handle the size,” Fort Yukon coach David Bridges said. “It boiled down to that.”

Dushkin, with the nickname “The Garbageman,” grabbed 18 boards as King Cove manhandled Fort Yukon 54-28 in rebounds.

“I’ve been playing like that since I was a kid,” said Dushkin, who also had 12 points. “I see a loose ball, I go to it.”

Despite getting dominated inside, the Eagles, who will take on Russian Mission today at 11:20 a.m. in the consolation round, used their outside game to keep it close.

After trailing 49-38 in the fourth quarter, Fort Yukon got hot from outside to pull within two.

Daniel James, who was held scoreless in the first half, and Wes James combined on a 9-0 run to rally the Eagles. Daniel hit a pair of 3-pointers and Wes hit one to bring Fort Yukon within 49-47.

But King Cove’s Jonny Samuelson made all six free throws down the stretch — he was 12-for-12 from the line for the night — finishing with a game-high 19 points.

And Wes James joined Zack Carroll in fouling out, forcing Fort Yukon to finish the game with four players on the floor, dooming any comeback hopes. Fort Yukon was whistled for 22 fouls compared to six for King Cove.

“They’re just a very good team,” Fort Yukon’s Shawn Peter said.

Carroll and Peter finished with 13 points apiece while Wes James chipped in 11. Peter added 11 rebounds.

The six-member Eagles spent the first half on the brink of disaster because of foul trouble.

Wes James, who picked up five early assists from the point, went to the bench late in the first quarter with three fouls and Carroll, who pulled Fort Yukon out of an early offensive struggle with three 3-pointers, was forced to play with three fouls after the midway point of the second.

The two teams traded leads in the first half, with Dushkin leading King Cove’s dominance in the paint.

The T-Jacks post player had a double-double by halftime, tallying 12 boards and 12 points before the break.

“He was pretty good, he was just tall and stocky,” Peter said.

Miles Walker added 16 points and 10 rebounds for King Cove.

Perimeter play from Carroll and Peter helped the Eagles open a 16-9 lead early in the second quarter.

After Peter’s 3 just before the buzzer put the Eagles up 11-9 at the end of one, Peter hit a mid-range jumper and Carroll connected on a trey from the top of the key to expand the Eagles’ lead to seven.

But the T-Jacks responded with a run midway through the frame, as Samuelson and Dushkin each connected on two free throws and Darcey Mack provided a layin to even the game. A layup by Dushkin — wearing Radley Christiansen’s jersey — gave the T-Jacks a 25-24 lead at the break.

The Eagles held their own on the boards in the first half but Dushkin and the rest of the taller T-Jacks changed that after intermission.

Huslia falls

The Huslia Huslers could find no answers early.

All they could do is watch the Togiak Huskies turn Sullivan Arena into a shooting range.

Togiak connected on 63 percent of its shots in the first half upon sprinting to an 23-point lead. The Huslers never recovered, dropping the girls 1A opening-round matchup 59-45.

While the Huslers defense couldn’t stop Togiak, Samantha Sam couldn’t find her mark on the offensive end.

Sam finished 5-of-32 from the field in tallying a team-high 14 points.

Keilyn Carlos didn’t have the same problem for Togiak. The point guard connected on 11 of her 16 tries for a game-high 24 points.

Center Dahlia Wassillie added 19 points for the Huskies.

Huslia will take on Alakanuk at 8 a.m. today in the consolation bracket after Alakanuk lost to Akiachak 35-31.