STATE CHAMPIONS: Colfax boys basketball has had a (perfect) season to remember

Mar. 7—When coach Reece Jenkin describes the Colfax boys basketball season that just concluded, "special" is the word to which he continually returns.

His team, he says, was special in its depth, in its poise, in its unselfishness and in its players' love for one another.

Sentimental as that characterization may sound coming from the program's headman, a look at the cold, hard facts does nothing to undermine it. The Bulldogs finished their 2023-24 campaign with a spotless record of 29-0, toppling larger-division foes like Clarkston and Rogers (Spokane) in nonleague competition before sweeping to league, district and state titles at the Washington Class 2B level.

"It's special for everyone to be able to get that reward at the end," Jenkin said of the state championship, which was sealed on Saturday with a 65-52 victory over Columbia (Burbank) at Spokane Arena. "Going into the state tournament, you've got the semifinal round there was a total of one loss between those four teams; Lake Roosevelt had lost one game earlier in the year to Columbia-Burbank. We ended up playing both the other undefeated teams. To be able to knock those guys off, too — to where I think there's not really any question this year that we were the best team — I think that was super, super special too."

Jenkin, who has been at the helm of the Bulldogs' program for 16 years, had guided the team to one previous state title, coming in 2012.

"It's been a while, obviously, but the feeling is still the same as it was in '12," he said. "You're just grateful and thankful, and just excited."

Balanced, clutch Bulldogs clinch gold ball

This year's roster featured four different players who made a habit of scoring in double figures — Reece's son Adrik Jenkin with an average of roughly 18 points per game, Jayce Kelly at 15, Seth Lustig with 14 and JP Wigen with 10. Reece Jenkin noted that he had several more players who were capable of rising to the occasion when the situation called for it.

"Our offensive balance this year was obviously a strength of ours all year, and having multiple kids be able to step up and get in double digits on a given night was huge," he said.

Not only did Colfax field a Swiss army knife of offensive threats, but it also showed a consistent knack for finding big surges when it needed them throughout the season. Nowhere was this more critical than in the state final, where the Bulldogs trailed by a point with around three minutes left in regulation before exploding late to achieve their double-digit margin of victory.

"Every time we're in that (tight late-game) spot, I feel like these kids would just go on a run," Reece Jenkin said. "They're very poised kids, and a competitive group. All year, it was different guys, but we'd just go on a run where we scored 10 points in a minute. We've had most of those in the second half all year."

Bright hopes and fond memories

Bulldog fans eager for more of what they've been seeing may take heart from the fact that the team's two high-scorers are set to return next year — Adrik Jenkin as a junior and Kelly as a senior. That said, the likes of the graduating Lustig and Wigen (who, at 6-foot-9, cuts a figure seldom seen at the 2B level) will leave big shoes to fill.

"We have a lot of work to do to get to that point again," Reece Jenkin said of the possibility of his team repeating its successes next year. "In our league, the majority of teams were a little bit younger this year, so the majority of teams bring most of their guys back. Freeman (Rockford), who's been super successful in the 1A classification, will be dropping down to our level next year. It's going to depend on the growth of our kids this summer, and how everyone kind of fits and adjusts to new roles next year."

In broader terms, Jenkin is optimistic that the thriving baskeball community in Colfax, which also produced a state-title-winning girls team a year ago, will continue to excel year after year.

For the moment, though, he is content to let the memories of this season settle in.

"The huddles before games were — I thought it was special — kids were telling each other how much they loved each other," he said. "I've coached long enough to know that not every team is quite like that. The bond between this team is something that was super, super special."