Luna takes it to the bank

SPIRIT LAKE — Kellogg High junior Gavin Luna picked a most dramatic time to attempt his first 3-point shot of the season.

But then again, given the circumstances, he didn’t really have a choice.

With the clock winding down and his team trailing by three points, Luna collected a loose ball some 30 feet from the basket past the top of the key, turned and banked in a 3-pointer with 1.1 seconds left to tie the game — and he was fouled on the shot.

Luna calmly sank the free throw to complete the four-point play, and when a desperation heave by Timberlake was off the mark at the buzzer, the second-seeded Wildcats had finished off a stunning 51-50 victory over the top-seeded Tigers in the championship game of the 3A District 1 boys basketball tournament Thursday night at Timberlake High.

“I was waiting for Brennan (Atkins, Kellogg’s senior point guard) to shoot the ball, and it ended up in my hands,” Luna said of the final play. “We were running out of time.”

Kellogg (9-13), which won its sixth straight district title, advances to state next week at Meridian High. The Wildcats open next Thursday at 5:15 p.m. against the winner of a Saturday play-in game between Buhl (10-15) and Marsh Valley (16-10).

Timberlake (8-14) will play host to third-seeded Bonners Ferry (10-11) on Saturday at 6 p.m. for the district’s second berth to state.

Jacob James sank two free throws with 8.7 seconds left to boost Timberlake’s lead to 50-47. The Tigers had fouls to give, and committed one with 6.7 seconds left. But the Wildcats then avoided a whistle and got the ball across halfcourt, where it wound up in Luna’s hands, and he delivered.

But he still had a free throw to shoot for the win, and the shot bounced on the front of the rim, off the backboard and into the net.

“I was doing everything to make my arms have feeling,” Luna said of his approach to the go-ahead free throw.

“I’m not surprised,” Kellogg coach Jeff Nearing said of Luna. “Good things happen to good people. He’s a great kid; he works his (tail) off for us.

“Let’s face it, the shot’s the shot — a turnaround bank shot as you’re getting fouled to force overtime. The free throw’s the big shot, and he’s the kid I wanted to shoot the free throw; he’s an 80-percent free-throw shooter.”

Senior Raiden Rickets scored 10 of his 15 points in the second half for Kellogg. Luna finished with 14, and junior Graden Nearing scored 10 of his 11 in the first half. Atkins finished with eight points and five assists.

Chase Gardom scored 12 of his 14 points in the first half for Timberlake. James finished with 12 points, Dylan Kluss 11, and Sheldon Kistler had nine rebounds and a pair of assists to go with his six points.

“Usually coming off a loss like that, it’s hard to get up for that Saturday game,” Timberlake coach Mike Menti said. “But if that loss doesn’t make you mad, then nothing will. I think we’ll come out hot, ready to go.”

Timberlake jumped out to a 7-2 lead as James made a 3-pointer and two free throws. Kluss scored in the lane to give Timberlake its biggest lead of the half at 29-21 late in the second quarter.

Nearing made a slight adjustment to Kellogg’s three-quarter-court trap at halftime, and Timberlake had 11 of its 18 turnovers in the second half, including six in the third quarter as Kellogg used a 12-2 run to lead 40-36 after three.

“We need to take better care of the ball,” Menti said.

Luna and Atkins were the only two returnees from last year’s senior-laden Kellogg team at state. This year’s Wildcats start three juniors and two seniors.

“It’s real satisfying, to be honest,” Nearing said of winning another district title with nearly a brand-new team. “It’s the first time in three or four years we haven’t gone to state with expectations.

“I’m not surprised (we won).”

The four meetings between Kellogg and Timberlake this season have been decided by a total of 13 points. Kellogg won by seven at the Silver Valley Tournament, and Timberlake won by 3 and 2 points in league play.

Kellogg 13 13 14 11 — 51

Timberlake 14 15 7 14 — 50

KELLOGG — Waller 0, Rickets 15, Atkins 8, Oertli 1, Nearing 11, Miller 0, Jerome 2, Luna 14.

TIMBERLAKE — Cramer 4, Kluss 11, James 12, Kistler 6, Gardom 14, Dickinson 3.

Bonners Ferry 66

Priest River 56

Sophomore Hayden Stockton scored 18 points and the third-seeded Badgers pulled away late to eliminate the fourth-seeded Spartans.

Seth Bateman and Dylan Hittle each added 13 points for Bonners Ferry (10-11).

Keegan Hegel scored a game-high 19 points for Priest River, which finished 2-18.

Priest River 8 17 18 13 — 56

Bonners Ferry 10 16 20 20 — 66

PRIEST RIVER — Hegel 19, Kreager 0, Mathews 4, Anselmo 0, Bell 0, Lucas 6, McCracken 11, Brennan 12, Zapfe 0, Thompson 4, Parkes 0.

BONNERS FERRY — Hines 3, Hubbard 0, S. Bateman 13, T. Bateman 4, Hittle 13, Durette 10, Petersen 0, Stockton 18, Beazer 0, Foster 3, Morgan 2.

ALL-INTERMOUNTAIN LEAGUE

BONNERS FERRY — Seth Bateman, sr. (MVP); Dylan Hittle, sr.; Chris Durette, sr. TIMBERLAKE — Chase Gardom, sr.; Jacob James, jr.; Sheldon Kistler, sr. KELLOGG — Brennan Atkins, sr.; Graden Nearing, jr.; Gavin Luna, jr. PRIEST RIVER — Caden Brennan, jr.

COACH OF THE YEAR — Mike Menti, Timberlake.