In a battle between teams at the opposite end of the Evergreen 1A League standings, Hoquiam showed the home crowd what the entire varsity roster can do on the court against Tenino on Friday.

After the Beavers hit the opening 3-pointer of the game, the Grizzlies ran, ran and ran some more en route to an 81-23 boys basketball win at the Hoquiam Square Garden.

Jerod Steen led all scorers with 18 points, eight rebounds, five assists and four steals for Hoquiam (5-0, 11-5).

“We went in and talked about not getting overconfident and just playing our game,” HHS head coach Curtis Eccles said. “We used the game to just get better. We did the things we needed to do and that is the type of tempo we like to play.”

Hoquiam’s main focus was to move the ball around, find the best shot and make Tenino work for its shots. The plan came together quickly.

After Tenino’s Yngwie Dowies hit a 3-point shot for a brief 3-0 lead, Hoquiam moved the ball around and ignited its offense. Zach Spradlin, Steen and Marques Rivera hit 3-point baskets on open looks from the perimeter, while Jack Adams III and Jace Varner scored inside for a 22-0 run and a 22-3 lead after one quarter.

The Grizzlies forced 14 first-half turnovers to feed the transition offense, but were also credited with nine turnovers themselves — most of them on forced passes in transition.

Hoquiam kept moving, while rotating through its bench to give the reserves plenty of time and game action to get into the game’s flow. The Grizzlies were without Ryan Espedal (flu) and Victor James (sprained knee) for Friday’s contest.

“It was an opportunity for other guys to step up and get into the game,” Eccles added. “That gave guys like Jackson Folkers, Marques Rivera and Bryson Eccles a chance to come off the bench to give guys a rest.”

With the bench in full rotation with the starters, Hoquiam continued to flow in the second half. The game kicked in the 40-point mercy rule with 5:25 left in the third quarter on a Steen 3-point basket.

Adams added 16 points, Varner knocked down 12 points and seven rebounds and Folkers dished out five assists for the Grizzlies.

On Wednesday, Hoquiam hits the road to take on Elma.

Tenino 3 10 5 5 — 23 Hoquiam 22 22 28 9 — 81

Tenino (23) — Canepa, Griffis 2, Villa, Doesky 2, Dowies 8, Wall 2, Wright 3, Bratton 4, Brewer, Stakelin 2, Burnam. FG — 10-36. FT — 1-5.

Hoquiam (81) — Spradlin 11, Rivera 5, Eccles 2, Nash 5, Folkers 6, Steen 18, Adams III 16, Varner 12, Mazariegos 6. FG — 30-54. FT — 9-15.