Scratching that 8-year itch
<p>Post Falls High's Marcus Colbert falls backward as Chris Wheelock from Lake City High drives past him at the top of the key.</p>
POST FALLS - How big was the Lake City Timberwolves' victory over the second-ranked Post Falls Trojans in the 5A Region 1 tournament Tuesday night?
The Timberwolves fans stormed the court after the game - and they were the visiting crowd.
Lake City earned its first trip to state since 2002 by way of a 51-46 win over Post Falls at The Arena on Tuesday night.
"We felt that if we could slow Marcus (Colbert) down, we had a shot tonight," Lake City coach Jim Winger said. "T.J. (Philp) did a great job of chasing him around and staying in his face. He took the outlet away and forced him to shoot out of rhythm."
Lake City junior Mark Smyly had a game-high 16 points, including three 3-pointers and five free throws down the stretch.
"It's a big deal for us," Smyly said of the state berth. "We haven't been there in eight years. We were hoping to come out and play tough. It's real special. I haven't been there. Post Falls is a talented team, but we held strong and came through as a team."
Lake City (13-9) advances to state March 4-6 at the Idaho Center in Nampa.
Post Falls (18-4) plays host to Coeur d'Alene (15-7) on Friday at 7 p.m. for the region's second berth to state.
Lake City outscored Post Falls 13-8 in the second quarter to build a 23-18 halftime lead and led by as much as 11 points in the third quarter at 34-23.
"I thought we played pretty good half-court defense tonight," Winger said. "Our half-court defense was about as good as you can ask for."
Post Falls closed to within two points with 2:55 remaining after Malcolm Colbert came up with a steal and drove the length of the floor and drawing an intentional foul by Philp. Colbert hit a pair of free throws to get within 37-35 late in the fourth.
Lake City junior Chris Wheelock took a steal the length of the floor to put the Timberwolves ahead for good 39-35 with 1:41 remaining. Wheelock scored eight of his 12 points in the final moments to push the Timberwolves toward the Idaho Center.
Post Falls battled to within 49-43 on a 3-pointer by Connor Hill, but could not overcome a combined 6-of-40 shooting performance by Marcus Colbert, Malcolm Colbert, Shawn Reid and Hill in the loss.
Winger added that the team's holiday tournament helped prepare them for the postseason.
"Those early season games really helped prepare us for state," Winger said. "That Christmas tournament was huge for us. I'm really happy for the kids and this program."
Post Falls coach Mike McLean added that he's seen this situation before, after the Trojans upset the top-seeded Lewiston Bengals last year at Booth Hall. Lewiston later qualified and went on to win a state title in 2009.
"We're going to have to bounce back from this," McLean said. "Our state tournament starts tomorrow (Wednesday) at practice."
Of the team's cold shooting, McLean added that it was odd, but fixable before Friday's game with Coeur d'Alene.
"It was just one of those nights," McLean said. "Everything just kind of snowballed. Lake City came in with a plan. Coeur d'Alene will do the same thing to us on Friday. When we lost to them, we didn't run our offense as good as we should have. We just missed some shots tonight - mostly the open shots."
Matt Lickfold had 10 points to lead Post Falls off the bench.
"Matt's been playing well all year," McLean said. "He's got a big body and was able to score some points for us. Both him and Jared (Kennedy) gave us some energy all night."
Lake City 10 13 11 17 - 51
Post Falls 10 8 9 16 - 46
LAKE CITY - Beusan 7, Smith 4, Wheelock 12, Smyly 16, Philp 3, Stoddard 9, Hartz 0.
POST FALLS - Hill 8, Muncey 0, Mal. Colbert 8, Reid 6, Mar. Colbert 7, Mikkelson 2, Lickfold 10, Kennedy 4, Cragin 0.