A 10-point deficit didn’t discourage the Bellevue Wolverines boys basketball team against the Garfield Bulldogs. Garfield led Bellevue 56-46 after three quarters of play and it appeared Garfield would cruise into the Sea-King District II finals.

It never happened.

Bellevue (22-2 overall) outscored Garfield 21-6 in the fourth quarter, earning a dramatic 67-62 victory against Garfield (22-2 overall) in the Sea-King District II semifinals on Feb. 19 at Bellevue College.

Bellevue sharpshooter Zack Moore, who finished with a team-high 20 points, nailed a three-pointer with 1:32 left in regulation, giving the Wolverines a 63-60 lead. Bellevue guard Sharif Khan hit 4-of-5 free throws in the final 28 seconds to seal the win. Moore said the difference between the first three quarters and the final eight minutes of the game was slowly trying to chip away at Garfield’s lead instead of just hoisting a barrage of three-pointers like Bellevue did in the first half.

“We were just trying to get the ball down low (in the post) and not try to jack up a bunch of threes (three-pointers) like we did in the first half. We wanted to slowly get back in the game,” Moore said. “We all have a lot of confidence in ourselves and we’ve been able to prove ourselves against a few teams earlier in the season. It feels good to come away with a good win against Garfield. My teammates looked for me and they really got me open. That opened up a lot of stuff down low as well.”

Bellevue head coach Chris O’Connor was glad to see his team catch fire in the fourth quarter both offensively and defensively. Garfield made just two field goals in the final eight minutes of regulation.

“Before the fourth quarter we still hadn’t played Bellevue basketball yet. We were waiting to see it. We challenged them to get the ball inside as much as possible and to play better defense and try to keep the ball out of (Jaylen) Nowell’s hands. He had a hell of a game. That’s really all we tried to do in the fourth quarter,” O’Connor said.

Howell recorded just two points in the final eight minutes of play.

“Its obviously a good win for our guys. They have been itching to play Garfield all season and they finally got their opportunity. They are a heck of a team and I know we’ll see them again (Class 3A state playoffs) so we got to stay humble and hungry,” O’Connor said.

The Rainier Beach Vikings defeated the Wolverines 70-56 in the Class 3A Sea-King District II championship game on Feb. 21 at Bellevue College. The Wolverines are the No. 2 seed out of the Sea-King District II and will face the Foss Falcons at 8 p.m. on Feb. 28 at Bellevue College in a winner-to-state, loser-out regional playoff game.

Shaun Scott: 425-453-5045; sscott@bellevuereporter.com