THE FRONT ROW with Jason Elliott Nov. 23, 2013
With the official end of the fall prep sports season coming on Friday night in the Kibbie Dome in Moscow, it's time to take it inside for a little bit.
Considering how cold the weather is starting to get, it might be at the right time.
AREA GIRLS basketball teams opened the season throughout the week, with a few playing in tournaments and others getting a nonleague game in or two.
At first glance, there's going to be some good competition in the 5A Inland Empire League this year, with Coeur d'Alene, Lake City, Lewiston and Post Falls all fighting for two berths to state Feb. 20-22 at the Idaho Center in Nampa.
Coeur d'Alene won't have much of a chance to play outside the league - weather permitting - in the month of January, with the lone nonleague game at Glacier High of Kalispell (Mont). on Jan. 20. They should be well tested by then however, with a trip to the Diamond State Classic in Wilmington, Del. on tap Dec. 27-30.
Lake City plays its final two league games at home, facing defending state 5A champion Post Falls on Jan. 24 and Lewiston on Feb. 1.
Post Falls will go back to the Archbishop Murphy tournament in Seattle Dec. 26-28, a tournament that the Trojans won fairly easily with a senior-loaded roster last year.
WHEN THE boys basketball and wrestling teams hit the ground running with the first basketball games of the season next Saturday, it should be an interesting race to the finish line to say the least.
We'll see where the teams are at after both Coeur d'Alene and Post Falls compete in the annual Coeur d'Alene Inn-vitational Holiday tournament and Lake City hosts its own tournament starting Jan. 2.
Games that should give a good indication of where teams are at will be Jan. 7 in the annual "Fight for the Fish" game between Lake City and Coeur d'Alene this year at Coeur d'Alene High.
Lake City and Post Falls, who advanced to state last year, aren't scheduled to play each other until Lake City hosts the Trojans on Jan. 24.
Let's face it, when it comes to wrestling in the area, there's no place other than the annual Tri-State Invitational at North Idaho College Dec. 20-21.
Just because a certain wrestler doesn't end up in the title match, doesn't necessarily mean he'll have a bad season. In fact, with the level of competition in the tournament, going the remainder of the year without a loss isn't that surprising either.
Other tournaments like the Rollie Lane Invitational on Jan. 2-3 in Nampa, as well as the North Idaho Rumble at Coeur d'Alene High scheduled for Jan. 31 and Feb. 1 will also be a good way to size up the rest of the competition in the state.
REGARDLESS of whether your sport is basketball or wrestling, there's plenty of things to be excited about during the 2013-14 winter sports season.
The best part, once you get there, weather won't be a problem.
Jason Elliott is a sports writer for the Coeur d'Alene Press. He can be reached by telephone at 664-8176, Ext. 2020 or via email at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @JEPressSports