DeMar Johnson leads No. 4 Rainier Beach past No. 7 Mt. Spokane to familiar ground — the WIAA Class 3A state title

After overcoming a serious health scare, Vikings coach Mike Bethea is vying for his ninth state title. Here's why this team — and the road it took to get there — makes this run different.

TACOMA, Wash. — Rainier Beach coach Mike Bethea spent the better part of January in the fight for his life.

He spent 12 days in a hospital bed battling COVID and pneumonia, including five in critical care, and wondered if he’d even make it out to see his family, from whom he was isolated.

Two months later, the 28-year head coach has a clean bill of health, and is no longer fighting for his life. Instead, he’s back on familiar ground — the Tacoma Dome — fighting for his ninth state championship.

“I’ve had a roller coaster ride, man,” Bethea said. “It’s been crazy. From being on my deathbed to in the state championship game, it doesn’t get any better than this. Thank God for it.”

During Beach’s 53-50 win over No. 7 Mt. Spokane in the Class 3A state semifinals Friday night, it was his players who brought the fight.

Trailing by three at halftime, Beach outscored the Wildcats in 21-10 in the third quarter and forced 23 total turnovers to reach its fourth 3A state championship appearance in the last eight years on Saturday at 7 p.m.

Josh Conerly crashes coach Mike Bethea's postgame interview after Rainier Beach punched its ticket to tomorrow's 3A state title game. #HardwoodClassic @SBLiveWA pic.twitter.com/wwH1WRiVTL

— Andy Buhler (@AndyBuhler) March 5, 2022

In the middle of all of that was senior guard DeMar Johnson, who led the team in scoring but whose contributions were meaningful in terms of his energy, and quick hands.

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Johnson scored 17 points and finished with eight steals — one shy of the state tournament record (nine) set by Franklin’s Jason Terry in 1994.

“It’s something new for me,” Johnson said. “First time out here I was definitely nervous, everybody was nervous. I had to make sure my team was together and we handled business today. We’re going to make sure and finish the job (Saturday).”

Bethea likened senior guard Johnson to former Seattle SuperSonic Gary Payton. With the Tacoma Dome’s bright lights blaring, his energy was a lightning rod emblematic of Beach’s frenetic, in-your face defensive approach and track-speed up-tempo offense.

“(He’s) all over the place, running his mouth,” Bethea said. “There’s never a dull moment with DeMar.”

In many ways, Johnson embodies Beach basketball.

His effort on the defensive end — disruptive in passing lanes, scrappy on-ball defense — fuels his production on offense. As a sophomore, Johnson averaged 28 points per game for Bothell and was a first team all-4A KingCo selection.

"I told my teammates from the start, I'm not looking to score 100 points, I'm here to win a championship," Johnson said. "I let everyone know that's what I'm trying to do."

He transferred to Rainier Beach, where his dad attended, for his senior season and has bought into a different role next to four-year program pillars Nahmier Robinson and five-star offensive lineman Josh Conerly Jr. — one that requires constant energy, and starts on the defensive end.

“I love it because he’s stepped up,” Bethea said. “He’s had some ups and downs this year, and he’s peaking at the right time.”

The Vikings may have been the higher seed, but the Wildcats had no shortage of momentum entering Friday night. A week ago, they traveled across the state and beat No. 2 Auburn by 12 to earn a first round state bye. On Thursday, they beat No. 9 Mountlake Terrace by 25 in the quarterfinals.

Maverick Sanders’ 16 points and 13 from Xavier Kamalu-Vargas paced the Wildcats. Kamalu-Vargas scored six points in the final two minutes to cut the deficit to four with 30 seconds left, but had the ball poked away driving to the hoop down four with 12 seconds left, and Robinson hit two free throws to seal it.

Like his 2020 team that reached the semifinals and finished fifth in state, this Bethea-led Beach team doesn’t have the type of high-level talent as in years past, like current NBA players Dejounte Murray (Spurs) and Kevin Porter Jr. (Rockets).

“I usually come in here with two or three five-star recruits,” Bethea said. “Right now I have some five-stars in the making … I do have two five-stars, but they’re football players.”