Jittery, but still good enough

NAMPA — Even with a nine-point lead at intermission, Timberlake High junior McKeeley Tonkin knew the score was a little too close for her comfort.

So she did something about it.

Tonkin scored 10 of her game-high 15 points in the third quarter, sparking the Tigers past the Buhl Indians 46-25 in the opening round of the girls state 3A basketball tournament at Skyview High on Thursday afternoon.

“I knew that something had to change because the score was a little too close,” Tonkin said. “I knew I had to pump up the team and get them going.”

Timberlake (20-3) advances to the semifinals tonight at 5:15 p.m. PST at Skyview, facing Sugar-Salem (23-2), which routed Homedale 71-41 for its 20th victory in a row. Buhl (16-8) faces Homedale (11-13) in a loser-out game today. Timberlake won its second straight state title last year, over Sugar-Salem by a score of 60-57.

Timberlake shot 10 of 21 from the field in the second half, compared to a 7 of 24 start in the first half.

“We really didn’t adjust to the physicality of the game in the first half,” Timberlake coach Matt Miller said. “The refs let both teams play a lot. As everyone knows, foul trouble in a state tournament is a big deal. I was really happy with how we played defensively.”

Timberlake forced 21 turnovers, and committed 16.

“We talked about as a team trying to just slow down,” Miller said. “Not necessarily play slower, but just slow down. And the girls did a better job of that in the second half. We didn’t play slower as a team, but we slowed down.”

Timberlake didn’t score its first points of the game until Shelby Starr tied the game at 2 on a pair of free throws with 5:29 remaining in the first quarter.

“We looked a little nervous and frenetic,” Miller said. “It was just typical state jitters, and we looked like a jittery team out there.”

Buhl was making its first appearance at state since 2003.

“Our girls were a little tight, not being here in a long time,” Buhl coach Kody Bingham said. “I thought we played pretty well in the first half and came out sluggish in the second half. We were out of position on our screens and were just a little tight.”

Buhl 4 8 5 8 — 25

Timberlake 6 15 18 7 — 46

BUHL — Jaramillo 0, Benson 2, Eckert 5, Lively 0, Vera 2, Azevado 3, Gorell 9, Somers 2, Netz 0, Morse 2. Totals 11-47 2-8 25.

TIMBERLAKE — Tonkin 15, Starr 9, Kelley 2, Kronenberg 3, Suko 0, Soumas 4, Bronson 0, Jessen 9, Bremer 0, Allen 0, Linehan 0, Jezek 4, Willis 0. Totals 17-45 7-12 46.