Basketball roundup: Liberty boys advance to first state playoffs

The Liberty boys basketball team is in the Class 5A state playoffs for the first time in school history.

It's reward? A first-round game Saturday against Benson, the PIL champion and the team widely considered the favorite to win the state championship.

"They are tough," Liberty head coach O.J. Gulley said. "They have a bunch of athletes, a bunch of guys who are basketball smart and can play multiple positions. They have a lot of confidence. They've definitely got it rolling right now."

The Techmen (22-2), ranked second in the OSAA power rankings, have won 21 straight games since losing to Lake Oswego in their opening game of the Les Schwab Invitational the day after Christmas. They beat perennial power Jefferson three times and didn't lose once in PIL play.

For some perspective, the last time the Techmen played Madison they won 87-36 on Feb. 21. Liberty, ranked 21st, needed a fourth-quarter comeback to beat Madison 60-53 in a play-in game on Monday.

But that doesn't mean Gulley is resigned to a loss.

"It's important for us to say, 'Hey, anything can happen,'" he said. "If they go into the game thinking they can't win then they're already defeated."

And despite the school's paltry history of basketball success, he said his team isn't just satisfied with making the playoffs. Their goal from the season's start, Gulley said, was to advance to the state tournament at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene.

And now they're one win away.

"They're excited," Gulley said. "We're kind of in uncharted territory."

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Basketball roundup: Liberty boys advance to first state playoffs