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THE FRONT ROW with MARK NELKE: From the notebook and inbox with sadness, among other things

| July 20, 2025 1:20 AM

One of my favorite memories from Lake City’s undefeated run to a state boys basketball title in 2023 had little to do with what took place on the court. 

After each game at state, as the Timberwolf players left the court at the Ford Idaho Center in Nampa, each of them made a slight detour on the way to the long hallway that led to the locker room. 

They made sure to stop by and say Hi to Gwen “Gay” Winger, mother of Lake City coach Jim Winger, seated in the stands behind the benches. 

During that season up North, she was a fixture behind the Lake City bench at home games, beaming with pride for her son, who would go on to win his first state title as T-Wolf coach. 

Mrs. Winger passed away on June 28 at age 86. 

We had heard she had a room in her house which was basically a shrine to the accomplishments of her sons, Jim and Mike, and her grandchildren — newspaper clippings and pictures adorning the walls. 

One of the last times I spoke with Mrs. Winger, she invited myself and fellow sports writer Jason Elliott to come to her house and see this shrine in person.

I thanked her for the invitation and told her we would try to make it up to her house some day. 

Looking back, I feel bad that we never stopped by to witness this room full of pride and love. 


ALEX BOUDER, a dedicated wheelchair-bound coach and athlete who trains at Avid Functional Fitness, a gym in Hayden, has qualified for the 2025 CrossFit Adaptive Games in Las Vegas in September. 

Avid Functional Fitness has started a GoFundMe to help Alex cover competition costs, at https://shorturl.at/gUeti 

“His discipline and determination in the face of obstacles is inspiring,” GoFundMe communications manager Jeff Platt said. 


BLAKE BUCHANAN first met Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger when Otzelberger was an assistant with USA Basketball a few years ago, working with the big men when Buchanan, the former Lake City High star, was trying out for one of the USA Basketball teams. 

“And what stood out to me is how intelligent he was, how quickly he picked things up, how much effort he gave and wanted to make every rep his best rep,” Otzelberger said, according to a transcript of a recent presser published by Alec Busse of Cyclone Alert. 

Buchanan was a Virginia commit then. 

“And I remember calling Tony (Bennett, who coached Buchanan his first season at Virginia), and just saying, 'Man, he's going to be a great player for you. He picks things up, he's going to get better quickly.'” 

The 6-foot-11 Buchanan played his first two seasons there (the second year under Bennett’s former assistant). But when that assistant was not retained, Buchanan entered the transfer portal. 

Otzelberger called Bennett again.  

"And he was just like, 'Look, I love him. He's an elite defensive player. He's continuing to develop offensively, but he can pass, he's smart, good finisher, lob threat, all these things,'” Otzelberger said. “And so we knew that that was exactly what we were looking for in that position.” 

Buchanan eventually signed with Iowa State, where he will have two seasons of eligibility remaining. 

“And he's been everything that we thought he would be when we recruited him,” Otzelberger said. “So I think the relationship with Tony was helpful. I think the USA Basketball opportunity to interact with him and come away so impressed was impactful. 

“And so then when he was there (in the portal), it was a mad dash to go see him, to get him here and make sure he knew how important he was and how much he fit here,” Otzelberger said. 

Of the recruiting process with Buchanan, Otzelberger said “it felt like two weeks took forever.” 

“We knew we wanted him,” Otzelberger added. “I think I talked to him probably every day, just making sure that he understood, we're not just getting familiar with them. We don't see you as a piece of the puzzle. We see you as a prominent player in our program. And we feel like from a development standpoint, he has so much room for growth and development.” 


Mark Nelke is sports editor of The Press. He can be reached at 208-664-8176, Ext. 1205, or via email at mnelke@cdapress.com. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @CdAPressSports.