THE FRONT ROW with MARK NELKE: Don't like the other team stalling? Go get 'em

A boys district tournament basketball game the other day in the Boise area created quite an internet fervor.

In the first half, one of the teams held the ball for several minutes, and the other team opted to sit back and not challenge them.

Cries for a shot clock rang out on the internet.

It did nearly two decades ago, when Borah stalled to beat Boise in the title game in what was then called A-1 Division I in 2001. Final score: 17-7.

Yeah, a shot clock would help prevent teams from holding the ball. But I also figure, if the defense doesn't like a team stalling, go out there and pressure them. Sure, you might give up a backdoor basket, but you also might force a turnover, or a hurried missed shot, which you turn into a score, and all of a sudden the momentum changes.

Eight states, including Washington, currently use a shot clock.

In a survey a few years ago by Michael Lycklama of The Idaho Statesman, more than 80 percent of the state's basketball coaches favored a shot clock.

But the sentiment has not really gotten farther than that.

The IHSAA has not really pushed for a shot clock, for two reasons: One, it doesn't want to lose its vote on NFHS basketball rules committee; and two, it notes that only a handful of other states are using one.

But, much like the push for three-man officiating crews at state, which finally got OKd a few years back, maybe if coaches and schools keep pushing, eventually the same will happen with a shot clock.

Eventually, it will be time to quit stalling.

FOR A time, North Idaho teams dominated the largest-school division of high school girls basketball in the state.

For an eight-year stretch (2007-14), teams from the 5A Inland Empire League won every state title. And all four teams won at least won -- Coeur d'Alene won four, Lewiston two, and Lake City and Post Falls one each.

And four of those were all-North Idaho finals.

Since then, only one 5A IEL team has even made it to the title game -- in 2018, when Post Falls won.

Coeur d'Alene nearly broke through this year, but lost to Thunder Ridge, a school from Idaho Falls in its third year of existence. Thunder Ridge lost in the title game to defending champion Mountain View of Meridian, extending a three-decades-long drought for eastern Idaho schools.

In fact, before Thunder Ridge did it last Saturday, the last eastern Idaho team to play in a girls basketball state title game in Idaho's largest classification was Pocatello, which lost to Lake City in the 1995 A-1 title game at the College of Idaho in Caldwell.

Two years later, Idaho started playing its title games at the Idaho Center in Nampa.

The last school from the east to win a state girls basketball title in Idaho's largest classification was Madison of Rexburg, which completed a three-peat in the A-1 division in 1990. Before that, Highland of Pocatello won three straight from 1985-87.

But that's been it from the east at state.

HOW MUCH of a toss-up was the Intermountain League in boys basketball this season?

It actually came down to a toss-up — of a coin — to determine seeding for the 3A District 1 tournament.

The four teams were separated in the standings by just two games.

Priest River, which won its first league title since 2011, won it with a 4-2 record — its two league losses coming at home.

Timberlake was "last" at 2-4 — but one of those wins was at Priest River.

The IML went to a point-differential tiebreaker this year to avoid home-court advantage coming down to "heads" or "tails" — but it needed to flip a coin anyway. Because Kellogg and Bonners Ferry each finished tied for second at 3-3, and they split their two league meetings, with each team winning by five points.

Of course.

Kellogg, which won the last seven district titles, and five of the last six league titles, but dropped its first two IML games this year, won the coin flip, and edged the Badgers by three points in a first-round game.

Priest River went on to win the district title as the top seed, but the way this season has gone, seeing fourth-seeded Timberlake win wouldn't have been too much of a shock.

Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 664-8176, Ext. 2019, or via email at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @CdAPressSports.