YAKIMA — In the toughest of defeats, the R.A. Long Lumberjacks held their heads high. Without question, R.A. Long’s 62-54 loss to Bremerton in the Class 2A boys basketball state semifinals left the Lumberjacks reeling. But in a game that had 12 lead changes, including seven in the fourth quarter, the ‘Jacks had an answer for nearly everything the Knights threw their way. That was until Bremerton’s Junior Davis-McWhorter hit two 3-pointers inside of two minutes, including the dagger with 38 seconds left, to send the Knights to Saturday’s 2A state championship game against Prosser. R.A. Long (24-2), which lost its first game since December, will face Selah in the third-place game at 11:15 a.m. Saturday.

“We made a run at it, we had a chance … we kept fighting the whole time,” R.A. Long coach Jeray Key said. “(I’m) still proud of these guys. They did something special, and we’re not done yet.” R.A. Long’s vaunted defense gave up a season high in points to a versatile Bremerton team led by 19 points apiece from Davis-McWhorter and Jalen Davis. Frank Allen and Jaydon Turner each chipped in 12 points. The Knights shot 22 of 25 (62 percent) from the floor and hit eight 3-pointers. “They made some tough shots, to be honest,” Key said. “They’re a good team, they can make shots, they’ve got a lot of guards. We didn’t execute enough defensively.”

The Lumberjacks made their share of tough shots as well. After battling foul trouble in the first half, junior Joshua Crane hit two go-ahead shots in the fourth, including a tough fadeaway to put the ‘Jacks up 46-45 with five minutes left. But after a go-ahead layup from TraMayne Jenkins, Bremerton bounced back with five straight points — a three-point play converted by Davis-McWhorter and an Allen layup — to take the lead for good with three minutes to play. Crane and Landon Irwin each scored 11 points to lead R.A. Long. Making its second 2A state semifinal appearance in four years, R.A. Long has set a standard of reaching the dome annually with four consecutive appearances. But like the Lumberjacks’ 2022 semifinal loss to Lynden, they’ve come up just short of reaching the biggest stage. There’s no shortage of fuel to add to the team’s fire going into next season.

“Making history (with) how many years R.A. Long has been (to state) … it’s special,” Key said. “You want to get here, but at the end of the day, it’s all about, when you get knocked down, how do you fight back? It’s all right to be disappointed and cry right now, but they got to pick their heads up. If they want to do this again next year, we got to work for it. Eventually, we’ll get over the hump.” BREMERTON 62, R.A. LONG 54 BREMERTON (21-5) — Enoch Taylor 0, Aaron Matthews 0, Frank Allen 12, Dallin Anderson 0, Junior Davis-McWhorter 19, Jalen Davis 19, Jaydon Turner 12, Jay Beahan 0. Totals 22 (8) 10-14 62. R.A. LONG (24-2) — Payton Thill 3, Cameron Newsome 8, Jeffrey Rooklidge 9, TraMayne Jenkins 8, Joshua Crane 11, Landon Irwin 11, Rhet Young 4. Totals 20 (9) 5-7 54. Bremerton               11            14            17            20—62 R.A. Long                8            16            16            14—54