Kellogg, Moscow In A-2 Semis
Co-Intermountain League champions Kellogg and Moscow took different, but effective routes to opening-day victories in the State A-2 boys basketball tournament Thursday.
Kellogg led start to finish, gradually pulling away to a 64-50 victory over Jerome at Idaho State University’s Reed Gym, while Moscow dominated early, sprinting past outmanned Marsh Valley 66-42.
If both continue what they started Thursday, it could be a North Idaho showdown in Saturday’s championship game.
In other openers, Bear Lake stunned previously undefeated and top-ranked Bishop Kelly 59-45, while Vallivue of Caldwell went to overtime to beat Shelley 59-54.
Kellogg (20-4) will square off with Bear Lake (20-3) tonight at 5:30 PST, followed by Moscow (19-3) facing Vallivue (19-6) at 7.
In loser-out games, Bishop Kelly (22-1) meets Jerome (15-10) and Marsh Valley (11-14) tangles with Shelley (16-7).
Kellogg 64, Jerome 50
Guards Jeremy Behm and Tim Kohal steadied Kellogg’s first-game jitters in the first quarter against the physical Tigers.
Then Kellogg’s 6-foot-7 post, Casey Fisher, took over in the second quarter. Fisher scored 15 points, almost at will inside and in transition, as Kellogg opened a 10-point lead before settling for a 36-31 advantage at halftime.
Fisher finished with 18 points and nine rebounds. A telling statistic saw Kellogg outrebound shorter Jerome 47-28.
The Tigers did a better job defending Fisher in the second half, but the Tigers couldn’t counter Kellogg’s balance. Behm scored 14 points; Kohal and Brian Carlson added 10 each.
Jerome made a run midway through the third quarter, trimming Kellogg’s lead to 41-40.
But Kellogg coach Tony Kerfoot wisely called a timeout, and the Wildcats regrouped. “I just reminded them to get back and play good defense,” Kerfoot said.
The instructions worked.
Kellogg held Jerome scoreless the final 4:20 and extended its lead to 49-40 going into the fourth quarter.
Jerome’s woes continued as the Wildcats used a three-point play by Nathan Corkill and a free throw from Carlson to push the lead to 53-40.
The Tigers awoke momentarily as Brian Williams buried a 3-pointer and Brad Thompson drove for a layup to slice Kellogg’s double-digit lead to 53-45 with just under 5 minutes left.
That’s when Kellogg went to a spread-delay offense. The Wildcats built their lead again on free throws as the Tigers were forced to send them to the foul line.
“It was a good first game of a state tournament,” Kerfoot said. “I was a little concerned when it was 41-40, but the kids responded. They were a very quick team, but I thought we did a good job containing them.”
Kerfoot watched the Bear Lake-Bishop Kelly game and came away impressed with the winner.
“They’re very athletic and I hope they spent it all (against Bishop Kelly),” he said, smiling. “We’ll have to play a little bit better than we did today to get them.”
Kellogg 64, Jerome 50
Kellogg 15 21 13 15 - 64
Jerome 13 18 9 10 - 50
KELLOGG Mercado 1, Corkill 4, Behm 14, Hansen 3, Kohal 10, Fisher 18, Towne 2, Rice 0, Carlson 10, Little 0.
JEROME Ismail 0, Walters 4, Thompson 12, Bauer 2, Cozakas 0, Clark 0, Williams 13, Blamires 7, Walter 7, Walgamott 5, Swan 0, Hollifield 0, Lickley 0.
Bear Lake 59, Bishop Kelly 45
Russ Wallentine scored 19 points to lead Bear Lake into the semifinals.
Moscow 66, Marsh Valley 42
It may be the Bears’ first trip to state since the late 1970s, but they played like frequent attenders.
Moscow spread the ball around. Seven players scored six or more points. Guards Ryan Dudley and Adam Miller led with 13 each and Jeff Lathen added eight points, nine rebounds and three assists.
The Bears made 23 of 40 shots from 2-point range, many from inside the key.
Moscow 10 18 18 20 - 66
Marsh Valley 5 10 8 19 - 42
MOSCOW Dudley 13, Miller 13, Lathen 8, Z. Johnson 6, Owen 6, Strobel 6, Curtis 3, Petersen 5, Stinebaugh 0, G. Johnson 0, Keep 6.
MARSH VALLEY Dahlke 5, Marshall 0, Peterson 3, Neilsen 7, Howe 10, Yearsly 5, Hough 2, Hunsaker 3, Godfrey 0, Denney 4, Neeser 3, Jolley 0.
, DataTimes