Ever since Ballard High nipped Inglemoor High’s boys by one point, 56-55, back on Dec. 14, the Vikings have been the hottest team in the 4A Kingco league.

Winners of six straight, the Viking boys polished off their holiday break with a 61-57 win over Sammamish in the finals of the Bellevue College Holiday Classic last week.

Eric Bryant scored a team-high 18 points, including going a key 6-for-6 from the line as the Vikings converted 15 of their 19 free-throw attempts for the contest.

Point guard Andy Nwaelele scored 14, and Brady Gregor nearly had a double-double with nine points and nine rebounds.

The win improved the streaking Vikings to 8-2 overall.

In what was a showcase of some of the top local high-school basketball teams, the Vikings were challenged the entire tournament, as they won their three games by just 14 points total.

In the opening round, 3A Eastside Catholic nearly upset the Vikings, and it took a 6-0 late Viking run to pull away in the final minutes.

In that game, Bryant led the team with 18, followed by Nwaelele with 14 and six rebounds.

During semifinals action against Glacier Peak and their 6-foot-11 post Payton Pervier, the Vikings, facing a 40-39 deficit after three periods, held the Grizzlies to just eight fourth-quarter points to notch a 53-48 victory.

Nwaelele had another big game, going 6-for-8 from the field for 20 points, followed by Bryant with 14.

The Vikings resume their league schedule at Garfield (4-0, 7-1) at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Bothell girls outlast Everett

The Lady Cougars notched their second win of the season against 3A Everett Dec. 30 by a score of 55-51 over the red-hot Seagulls.

Everett, possessing a Wesco league-leading 8-1 record going into the game, trailed by just one in the fourth quarter, 39-38.

The Cougar offense stayed strong, led by Kareena Dahl, who tied a season-high mark with 18 points, and Sarah Garinger added 10.

With the win, the Cougars are now 2-7 overall and return to league action at Newport at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.