PREP BOYS BASKETBALL: Coeur d'Alene boys fend off Post Falls in 'ugly' one

By MARK NELKE

Sports editor

COEUR d’ALENE — Sometimes the numbers don’t tell the whole story of a game.

In this case, the numbers told a doozy.

The WINNING team shot 22.2 percent from the field.

The losing team shot 20 percent from the floor, didn’t score a point until nearly 12 minutes elapsed in the game — and still had two great chances to make it a one-possession game with 2 minutes left in the game.

The teams combined to go 2 of 35 from 3-point range — but the outcome was still in doubt until the final minute.

That’s how bizarrely entertaining Coeur d’Alene’s 34-24 victory over Post Falls in a scrap of an Inland Empire League boys basketball game was on Friday night at Viking Court.

“Ugly. As ugly as it gets,” Coeur ‘Alene coach Jon Adams said. “A win is a win, but that was very ugly. Now, I don’t mind ugly when we’re making them look ugly on offense; I thought our defense was stellar. … Offensively, we’re almost not trusting in each other. We’re not moving the ball well enough. I know they’re a young team, but you give any team a sliver of hope, it gives them some confidence and all of a sudden they’re knocking down shots and we’re in a game.”

Cameren Cope scored 17 points for Coeur d’Alene (8-3, 2-1 IEL). His three-point play with 1:06 left — after grabbing a teammate’s missed free throw — hiked the Vikings’ lead to 31-24.

Steven Burgess added seven points for Coeur d’Alene, which shot 10 of 45 from the field, including 0 for 15 from behind the arc.

Neil McCarthy hit the only two 3-pointers made in the game, and led Post Falls (3-10, 0-2) with seven points. The Trojans were 10 of 50 from the field, including 2 of 20 from behind the arc.

“We preach to them that a good shot is a good shot — it doesn’t matter if it goes in or not,” Post Falls coach Mike McLean. “I’ve never seen a team miss every shot they’ve taken in a half, but we almost did that. But again, a good shot’s a good shot.”

Coeur d’Alene led 7-0 after one quarter, and 11-0 before Post Falls finally scored with just over 4 minutes left in the half. It was a football-type score of 14-6 Vikings at the half.

After that “frustration” of a first half, McLean said he challenged his players at halftime.

“I told the guys, we’ve hit rock bottom, I think we had six airballs that first half … just keep shooting,” he said.

Cope’s drop-step and dunk with 2 minutes left in the third quarter made it 24-10 Vikings. It was 26-10 before Post Falls started hitting a few shots and nearly pulled off a remarkable comeback.

“If it weren’t for Cam, I don’t know where we would have been in that game,” Adams said.

A 3-point play by Alex Shields pulled Post Falls within 28-24 with 2:03 left.

The Trojans got the ball back, got a good look at a 3-pointer that missed, then missed the putback, and did not score the rest of the game.

“We’ve got a lot to learn,” Adams said. “That type of performance is not going to cut it against Lewiston on Tuesday, and the Fish (game, vs. Lake City) on Friday.”

“I think it just kinda talks to the character of these guys,” McLean said of his team’s comeback in the second half. “There’s a lot of high school basketball teams, you have a start like we had, they would just fold the tent. I was very happy and pleased with our guys with their lack of panic.”

On Tuesday, Post Falls is home vs. Lake City, and Coeur d’Alene plays host to Lewiston, both in IEL games.

Post Falls 0 6 9 9 — 24

Coeur d’Alene 7 7 12 8 — 34

POST FALLS — Sciortino 4, Naylor 4, Shields 5, McCarthy 7, VonBruck 0, Craig 4, Bowie 0, Blake 0, Butler 0.

COEUR d’ALENE — Entzi 2, King 0, C. Larson 1, Wellsandt 4, Nipp 1, Cope 17, Burgess 7, Orchard 2, G. Larson 0, Farrar 0.