Napavine coach Shane Schutz wanted his team to be challenged early and often this season. By playing tough competition early, the Tigers could see where their weaknesses are and work from there.

“State titles aren’t won in December,” Schutz said. “But state titles are earned by going through what you go through in December and January, so that hopefully you’ll be better in February and March.”

Napavine’s first big test of the season came in the opener of the W.F. West Winter Showcase on Friday, as the Tigers played King’s, a 1A quarterfinalist last season. 

Napavine hung with King’s for about two and a half quarters, but the Knights pulled away late to hand Napavine a 52-29 loss.

“You saw our growing pains tonight,” Schutz said. “This was the game I was looking for. It showed what we need to work on, and that’s why you play these games and play teams like this.”

The Napavine defense played phenomenally in the first half, limiting the Knights to just 13 points, but the offense struggled to build a lead.

As a team, the Tigers shot just 7 for 30 from the field in the first half, including just 1 for 8 from three. Napavine also took just one trip to the line, when Hayden Kaut sank one of two shots three minutes into the game.

“We gotta get north and south,” Schutz said. “Especially if we’re not shooting well. We gotta try to get some action at the hoop.”

The King’s offense got going in the third, as the Knights scored 18 points to build a six-point lead going into the third.

They pulled away in the fourth, outscoring the Tigers 21-4 to blow the game open. The Tigers continued to struggle from the field, eventually ending the game shooting just 21.4 percent from the floor.

Kaleo Anderson led the way for the Knights offensively, scoring a game-high 22 points, including 15 in the second half, to lead a King’s offense that shot 56.5 percent in the second half.

“Nothing to be ashamed of,” Schutz said. “That’s a top five to eight 1A team … It’s just that we got a lot more work to do.”

Schutz added that as the season goes along, the team will be better conditioned for a full 32 minutes, and he also re-emphasized the importance of not taking any time off on the floor.

Kaut led the Tigers with 12 points, while Ava Ondong added six and Taylen Evander added five. Ondong and Kaut led the Tigers on the boards with seven rebounds each, while Hannah Fay grabbed six rebounds and dished out four assists. Evander also finished with four assists.

The schedule doesn’t ease up. Next week, Napavine (1-1) will face a pair 2A teams, starting with a trip to Tumwater on Monday.

“I believe in these kids,” Schutz said. “They’ll bounce back and we’ll grow from it.”