Everybody knew about it, but nothing was said.

Linn-Mar's basketball game Thursday night at Washington marked the return of Jared Printy to the gym where he played the first three years of his prep career.

Printy transferred to Linn-Mar for his senior season and everybody in the Lions' camp knew the atmosphere would be more charged than usual when the two teams met.

"We didn't talk about it at all," Linn-Mar coach Chris Robertson said. "He knew, but we didn't talk about it."

After a bit of a slow start, Printy had a successful homecoming. He scored 18 points, including three 3-point baskets in the third quarter, helping the Lions to a 69-49 win.

"I knew it was going to be crazy intense," Printy said. "I didn't think I could possibly be unprepared for it, but it was intense out there. Both teams played so hard and it was a really fun game to be a part of."

Lions senior Jordan Bohannon, who led all scorers with 22 points, thought his teammate handled the situation well.

"He was just taking it as another game," Bohannon said. "We all had his back no matter what anybody said. We told him to keep his head up no matter what happened and he did a really good job of that."

Printy admitted he did hear some of the good-natured ribbing from his former classmates.

"You can say you block it out and you can't hear it, but you can't," he said. "The main thing is how you do after you hear it. You can't let it get in your head. I was just trying to let it go and do whatever it took to help my team win."

The Warriors (1-2) were pesky throughout. They jumped to a 6-0 and led 15-10 after the first quarter.

A big second quarter, sparked by three 3-point baskets from Bohannon, saw the deficit turned into a 31-22 lead at halftime for the Lions.

Sophomore guard Hunter Strait came out strong in the third quarter for Washington. He made a pair of steals and baskets to pull the Warriors back to within four at 32-28.

"They kept pushing," Printy said. "We'd get a little cushion and they kept coming back.

Ironically, it was Printy who restored order for the Lions. He connected three times from beyond the arc in the final four minutes of the quarter, helping Linn-Mar push the lead to 50-32.

"He really helped us get over the hump," Robertson said. "Once he got over his nerves, I think he settled in and started playing his game."

Beau Klostermann had a solid game as well for the Lions (2-1), finishing with 12 points.

Center Laveechie Williams had a strong game for the Warriors, finishing with 18 points. Strait added 12 for Coach Justin Decker's team.

Linn-Mar heads off to Minnatonka, Minn., for its next game on Saturday against Tartan, Minn. Washington returns to action Tuesday at home against Kennedy.

LINN-MAR (69): Printy 5 4-5 18, Murphy 3 0-0 8, Phillips 0 0-0 0, Bohannon 6 7-8 22, Klostermann 5 0-0 12, Voves 0 0-0 0, Brandt 1 0-0 3, Cronin 2 0-0 4, Workman 1 0-0 2, Kerr 0 0-0 0, Mentzer 0 0-0 0. Totals: 23 11-13 69.

WASHINGTON (49): Wills 2 0-0 4, Strait 6 0-0 12, Dawson 1 0-0 2, Hobbs 3 0-2 6, Thomas 2 0-0 5, D. Beard 1 0-0 2, Jackson 0 0-0 0, Williams 8 2-6 18. Totals: 23 2-8 49.

Halftime - Linn-Mar 31, Washington 22. 3-point goals - Linn-Mar 12 (Bohannon 3, Murphy 2, Klostermann 2, Printy 4, Brandt), Washington 1 (Thomas). Total fouls - Linn-Mar 13, Washington 16. Fouled out - Williams. Technical fouls - none.