4A REGION 1 BOYS BASKETBALL: Lakeland ousted by Sandpoint in two overtimes
JASON DUCHOW PHOTOGRAPHY Bryce Henry (11) of Lakeland tries a reverse layup as Ethan Butler (35) of Sandpoint defends in a 4A Region 1 boys basketball loser-out game Monday night at Hawk Court in Rathdrum.
JASON DUCHOW PHOTOGRAPHY Nick Nowell (2) of Lakeland goes up for a shot between Randy Lane, left, and Jacob Eldridge of Sandpoint in a 4A Region 1 boys basketball loser-out game Monday night at Hawk Court in Rathdrum.
RATHDRUM — Lakeland led by four points early in the second overtime, but Sandpoint closed the game with an 8-2 run over the final two-plus minutes, and blocked an inside shot in the final seconds to surprise the Hawks 75-73 in a loser-out first-round game of the 4A Region 1 boys basketball tournament Monday night at Hawk Court.
Sandpoint (6-16) will play at top-seeded Moscow (12-9) on Wednesday in Game 1 of a best-of-3 series to determine the region’s lone berth to state. It’s the first time the Bulldogs will play for the regional title since 2016.
Lakeland, which had played for the regional title each of the past 10 seasons, finished 8-11.
“Sandpoint came out and played really hard; they played like they had nothing to lose,” first-year Lakeland coach Tony Hanna said. “They were beating us off the dribble, getting to the rim. I don’t know how many offensive rebounds they got; that was the part I was most frustrated with.”
Lakeland led 60-57 in the waning seconds of regulation. Sandpoint rushed the ball up the court, and Lakeland tried to foul the Bulldog who caught the inbounds pass, but he had just dished it off to Rusty Lee, who hit a running 25-footer at the buzzer — his first 3-point attempt of the night — to force overtime.
Grant Roth, who led all scorers with 26 points despite suffering a sprained ankle in the second quarter, hit a free throw and a 3-pointer to propel Lakeland to a 71-67 lead midway through the second overtime.
Sandpoint tied it at 71, but backup guard Nick Nowell’s driving layin with just over a minute left put Lakeland up 73-71.
Randy Lane hit two free throws to tie it for Sandpoint, and his free throw with 22.5 seconds left gave the Bulldogs a one-point lead. Sandpoint then survived a wild finish, which included a missed Lakeland shot in the lane, and a close-in shot that was blocked by the Bulldogs.
“It was kind of a weird one, because I wasn’t ready for the end-of-the-year speech,” said Hanna, whose squad led by 12 points in the third quarter. “Honestly I thought we were going to move on, and give Moscow a good battle. I honestly don’t think we looked past Sandpoint. It’s a tribute to them; for them to come in and still believe and battle like they did … pretty impressive.”
Bryce Henry added 15 points for Lakeland before fouling out in the first overtime. Fellow guard Scotty Hocking added eight points before picking up his fifth foul in the second OT.
Lee, a junior, led the Bulldogs with 18 points, and Ethan Butler added 17.
“Trust me, we’ve heard all about the streaks,” first-year Sandpoint coach Brian Childs said. “I was telling the kids at some point it’s going to end and one group of kids will step up and tonight was that night.”
Sandpoint 15 18 10 17 7 8 — 75
Lakeland 14 20 13 13 7 6 — 73
SANDPOINT — Lee 18, Eldridge 12, VanDenBerg 9, Dickinson 3, Childs 8, Lane 8, Butler 17.
LAKELAND — Nowell 4, Cameron 6, Henry 15, Munyer 7, Hocking 8, Roth 26, Haug 0, Loutzenhiser 0, Waddington 7.
