By CASEY OLSON, The Mirror
The city of Federal Way enjoyed unprecedented success during last week’s Class 4A boys basketball state championships inside the Tacoma Dome.
The Federal Way Eagles rolled into their first-ever title game before losing to the unbeaten Ferris Saxons. The Decatur Gators, after losing to the Eagles in the semifinals, also brought a trophy home from the state championships. Decatur ended up in sixth place.
And both teams had something in common — a go-to senior. Federal Way featured 6-foot-4 wing Aaron Broussard and Decatur had 6-foot guard Marcus Tibbs. Whenever their team needed a big basket in crunch time, Broussard and Tibbs were the ones called on.
For that reason, Broussard and Tibbs will share The Mirror’s 2008 All-City Boys Basketball Player of the Year honor.
Broussard was already a known commodity around the basketball community. He signed a national letter of intent before the high school season with Seattle University after averaging 14 points and 11.3 rebounds a game as a junior. Seattle U will become a Division I school next year.
“(Aaron) is a physical and focused student-athlete,” said Seattle University head coach Joe Callero. “We want to keep the best Seattle area players at home. He has the mental and physical make-up to face the future competition.”
But it was this year’s Class 4A state tournament that really put Broussard on the statewide map. The senior was a monster during Federal Way’s four-game run to second place. Broussard averaged 20.3 points and was named first-team, all-tournament. He tallied 29 points, 14 rebounds and three steals during Federal Way’s semifinal win over Decatur.
“He was unbelievable,” Olson said of Broussard. “He was the difference. He is a great player and a great kid. Before the game, he had a look that he was going to do everything.”
As a senior, Broussard averaged 17.2 points and 10 rebounds a game and earned first-team, All-SPSL North Division.
Broussard was also a first-team, All-SPSL North wide receiver this season for the Federal Way football team after catching 23 passes for 638 yards and four touchdowns.
Tibbs was also impressive during his senior season for the Gators. The explosive guard was a two-time, All-SPSL North Division first-teamer. During his senior season, Tibbs led Decatur in scoring at 18.3 points a game and into the state tournament for the second year in a row.
Tibbs scored in double figures in 28 of the Gators’ 30 games this season, including 12 20-point games. His biggest scoring game of the year came during a loser-out, West Central District game against Central Kitsap on Feb. 19, when he poured in 32 of Decatur’s 63 points.
He was also solid during the 2008 state tournament, joining Broussard on the all-tournament, first-team. Tibbs averaged 16.7 points in Tacoma, including 22 points during the semifinal loss to Federal Way.
It’s still up in the air where Tibbs will play next season in college. Eastern Washington University is giving him a long look, but he also might end up at a national-level junior college in Idaho or Utah, according to Olson.
Broussard and Tibbs aren’t the only repeat selections on the 2008 All-City Team. Decatur’s Darious Walker and Michael Hale, along with Beamer point guard Dakin Wanquist, are also making their second appearances.
Walker was a solid post presence all season long for the Gators, who finished the season 24-4 and tied for first place in the SPSL North Division. The 6-5 forward averaged 14.5 points and eight rebounds to earn All-SPSL North first-team honors and had several highlight-reel dunks in traffic. Walker, who was granted a fifth-year of eligibility by the WIAA before the season, had five games over 20 points during the season, including a 31-point effort in a win over Inglemoor early in the year. Walker also scored 27 points in the Gators’ opening-round win over Snohomish at the state tournament.
Hale, also a first-team All-SPSL North selection, was the floor leader all season for the Gators. The 5-7 junior point guard averaged 14.2 points, three rebounds and five assists. Hale will be one of the top returning point guards in the state next season and should take over a lot of the scoring responsibility from Tibbs and Walker.
Wanquist, a first-team All-SPSL South pick, led the Titans into the West Central District Tournament for the second year in a row with a 10-14 record.
The 6-foot point guard averaged 18.5 points a game and scored in double figures in all but three of Beamer’s games. He tallied a career-high 34 during a win over Spanaway Lake on Jan. 11. Wanquist also led the SPSL South in assists at 5.31 a game and got to the free-throw line 23 more times than anybody else in the league.
Last year, Wanquist was also the Titans’ leading scorer at 12.1 points a game.
Federal Way juniors Jeff Forbes and Andre Barrington were key ingredients in the Eagles’ run into the state championship game. The guards were Federal Way’s two best defenders and also provided clutch shooting to earn their first All-City honors.
Forbes, a 6-foot guard, was Federal Way’s second-leading scorer at 12 points a game and also shot 52 percent from the field and an amazing 50 percent from behind the 3-point line. Forbes also had 17 points during state tournament wins over Franklin and Decatur, and hit several clutch free throws during the postseason.
Barrington was the glue that held the Eagles together all season. The 6-2 guard averaged only 8.4 points a game, but the junior did all the dirty work.
“He played a great role,” Broussard said of Barrington. “His stats won’t show up in the stat book. He plays great defense.”
Barrington, who will be one of the top running back recruits in the fall for the Federal Way football team, shot 56 percent from the field, averaged four rebounds a game and 2.1 steals.
Sports editor Casey Olson: 925-5565, sports@fedwaymirror.com
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2008 All-City Boys Basketball Team
Co-Players of the Year:
Sr. Marcus Tibbs, Decatur, and Sr. Aaron Broussard, Federal Way
• Jr. Jeff Forbes, Federal Way
• Sr. Darious Walker, Decatur
• Jr. Michael Hale, Decatur
• Sr. Dakin Wanquist, Beamer
• Jr. Andre Barrington, Federal Way
