STATE GIRLS BASKETBALL: Lessons learned in a pair of losses for Coeur d'Alene

By JASON ELLIOTT

Sports writer

Some schools travel to holiday tournaments to get an idea of what the competition might look like come a state tournament, should the matchup present itself again.

Other coaches, they go out of their way to find the toughest matchups, to learn, and maybe toughen their kids for the ride ahead.

So when Coeur d’Alene High set its sights on the Tarkanian Classic in Las Vegas Dec. 19-22, the learning began.

Playing in the Diamond Bracket, the toughest division the tournament offers, Coeur d’Alene won its first two games fairly easily, by a combined 48 points.

Then, Sierra Canyon of Chatsworth, Calif., the top-ranked team in the nation came calling.

The Vikings lost 73-47 on Dec. 21.

“I think Sierra Canyon was our turning point,” said Coeur d’Alene coach Nicole Symons, in her fourth season as head coach. “They were the No. 1 team in the country and we’d lost by 26 points. We had some inner-team rumblings, because nobody likes to lose.”

JuJu Watkins, the nation’s No. 1 recruit according to ESPN who signed with USC, scored 28 points for Sierra Canyon.

“There was some pushing and grinding to figure out who we are and how to be a good teammate in times of adversity,” Symons said. “The girls learned a lot about what their teammates need. I think the ugly reared its head, and we were able to talk about it and really work through what each player needed. How to encourage, how to push and how to hold up in tough times.”

The following day, Coeur d’Alene lost to Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) 65-55 in the third-place game.

“Both those losses were good for us,” Symons said. “We learned a lot and became a better team from those games.”

5A: The Vikings (21-2) open the state 5A tournament at the Ford Idaho Center tonight against Eagle (14-12), a 48-39 winner over Lake City in a state play-in game last Saturday in Lewiston.

Coeur d’Alene is the top seed in the tournament.

“It’s never been a discussion and something that I’ve worried about,” said Symons of being the top seed. “People always look at the state rankings, and I’ve never cared about that. You’ve just got to play whoever you’re put in front of that night.”

Boise (21-2), the fourth seed and District III champion, opens with fifth seeded Owyhee (19-4) at 4 p.m. PST. Defending champion Timberline (20-5) opens as the sixth seed and will face third-seeded Rigby (20-4) at 1 p.m. PST. No. 2 seed Thunder Ridge (24-2) of Idaho Falls faces seventh seed Rocky Mountain (16-8) of Meridian in the opening game.

Boise junior Avery Howell, who averages 20.7 points and 12.5 rebounds per game, has a host of scholarship offers, including one from Gonzaga. The fourth-seeded Brave, last year's state runners-up, have no seniors on their roster.

If Coeur d'Alene wins tonight, the Vikings would face the Boise-Owyhee winner Friday afternoon in the semifinals.

Coeur d’Alene beat Eagle 54-31 in a nonleague game at Eagle on Dec. 1, the Vikings' second game of the season, then beat Rocky Mountain 72-44 on Dec. 3.

Eagle junior Paige Cofer has committed to Division I Utah Tech and leads the Mustangs with 16 points and 1.8 steals per game.

“We’ve got to stay humble, stay grounded in who we are and continue to work on what has made us good,” Symons said. “We’ve got to close out that noise on the outside. But it’s cool that they recognize these girls’ talents. But it doesn’t mean anything if you don’t do the work.”

Coeur d’Alene went 1-2 in its last trip to state, falling to Rigby in the third-place game. The Vikings last brought home a trophy in 2014, when it won its ninth state title.

“I think most of our girls have played in an environment like this or big gyms in club ball,” Symons said. “Playing in the Idaho Center is a big environment and takes some getting used to. But we’ve got enough veterans that they’ll get right to work and know the job that needs to get done too.”

Timberline of Boise, the defending champion, is the sixth seed.

4A: Sandpoint (17-5), at state for the ninth time in 10 years, opens as the third seed and will face sixth seed Minico (16-7) today at 1 p.m. at Timberline High in Boise.

Sandpoint has played in four state title games, the last in 1996, but has never won a state title. Minico advanced to state for the first time since 2019.

Burley, winners of the 2022 title, did not qualify.

3A: No. 2 seed Timberlake (20-2), at state for the 12th time in 15 seasons but coming off a rare missed appearance last year, opens vs. No. 7 Filer (15-9) today at 11 a.m. PST at Skyview High in Nampa.

Filer is led by senior guard Josalyn Bailey (17.5 points per game).

Fourth-seeded Sugar-Salem, the defending champion, opens against fifth seeded Weiser (21-3).

2A: Grangeville (15-8), the District 1-2 champion, is the sixth seed and will face third seed and defending champion Cole Valley Christian (18-5) of Nampa today at 1 p.m. PST at Bishop Kelly High in Boise.

1A Division I: Lakeside coach Chris Dohrman has the Knights at state for the third time in four years, the second since moving to the 1A Division I level for the 2020-21 season.

To prolong that stay, experience will be a key.

“We’ve got to play our hearts out and have fun,” said Dohrman, whose team opens with top-seeded Lapwai tonight at 6 PST at Columbia High in Nampa. “There’s some really tough competition down there. You never know what will happen. You just need to get ready and play as hard as you can.”

Dohrman, in his ninth season as girls coach, last won a game at state in 2016, when the Knights captured the Division II consolation title.

Lakeside went 0-2 in 2021, the program’s first trip after advancing in the Division II tournament in 2020.

Senior Arianna Havier-Gorr injured her left knee during the 1A Division I District 1 championship game last Thursday in the first half. She did not return in the second half.

“She’s been having some issues with her knee from the previous Wallace game (Jan. 31 at Wallace, a 53-21 loss). “Hopefully she’ll be able to go and play. But we’ll have to see.”

Lapwai (23-1) is the defending champion.

“We’ve got to play them eventually,” said Dohrman of Lapwai. “We’ll see what happens.”

Greenleaf Friends Academy, located just west of Caldwell, is playing a week after a tragic car accident claimed the life of assistant coach Loma Bittick, the school's head volleyball coach. Her husband, Jim, the head girls basketball coach, suffered serious injuries in the crash and faces a lengthy recovery.

1A Division II: Clark Fork (7-12), the District 1 champion who is at state for the first time since 2012, will open with top-seeded Deary (17-2) tonight at 6 at Nampa High.

Rockland (20-3), the second seed, opens with Garden Valley (10-7) in the first game from Nampa High.