High School

Union's Tanner Toolson wins third place game in teammate Brad Lackey's jersey

TACOMA — In the final game of Tanner Toolson's decorated senior season, he took a moment to honor a teammate and a friend who couldn't be out on the floor with

Andy Buhler, SBLive Sports

Union's Tanner Toolson wins third place game in teammate Brad Lackey's jersey
Union's Tanner Toolson wins third place game in teammate Brad Lackey's jersey /

TACOMA — In the final game of Tanner Toolson's decorated senior season, he took a moment to honor a teammate and a friend who couldn't be out on the floor with him.

Toolson wore Union senior Brad Lackey's No. 2 jersey as Union defeated Glacier Peak, 63-49, in the 4A state third place game on Saturday afternoon at the Tacoma Dome.

Lackey, Union's first team all-league senior point guard, suffered a season-ending knee injury last month. He underwent surgery and sat on the bench in a brace throughout the playoffs.

"Me and Brad have been best friends since I moved here in eighth grade," Toolson said, "and I feel like all the work we put in this summer, he deserved to have some recognition."

Toolson, named Washington's Mr. Basketball by the state coaches association for the best senior, scored 18 points and grabbed nine boards in the Titans' trophy game win.

Watch Toolson explain in full why he decided to switch jerseys:

Published
Andy Buhler, SBLive Sports
ANDY BUHLER, SBLIVE SPORTS

Andy Buhler is a Regional Editor of Texas and the national breaking news desk. He brings more than five years of experience covering high school sports across the state of Washington and beyond, where he covered the likes of Paolo Banchero and Tari Eason served on state tournament seeding committees. He works on the SBLive/Sports Illustrated Power 25 national boys basketball rankings. He has covered everything from the Final Four, MLS in Atlanta to local velodrome before diving into the world of preps. His bylines can be found in The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington), The Associated Press, The Columbian (Vancouver, Washington), The Oregonian and more. He holds a degree from Gonzaga and is based out of Portland, Oregon.

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