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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

No Doubt About It: Lc Will Win It All This Time

I’ve taken some good-natured ribbing for doing this in the past, but there’s no sense in stopping now.

Time for some predictions for the state girls basketball tournaments.

Lake City will win its second State A-1 title in the school’s four-year history, and the first under coach Dave Stockwell, a man very deserving of coaching a state championship team.

He put in the grunt work when he was an assistant under former Coeur d’Alene and LC coach Dave Fealko. And it’s not a fluke that the combined record this winter of the four girls teams at LC was 77-1.

Stockwell can prepare his post-championship game speech.

Yes, the Timberwolves should have won last year. But they should win in grand style this weekend.

They have two of the best players in the state in 6-foot-4 post Alison Asher and 6-0 guard Lindsay Herbert.

And players 3 through 9 on the roster fulfill their supporting roles well.

Although it would be a wonderful final, Post Falls won’t get another shot at LC. As much as I’d like to see it.

But the Trojans won’t be eliminated in two.

They’d have to win their opener to have a shot at third place. If they lose the opener they could earn fourth and a trophy.

I was surprised by Post Falls’ margin of victory over Boise in a nerve-wracking, loser-out playoff Saturday.

For that reason I would lean toward picking Post Falls third. But strange things happen on the first day of state tournaments.

So common sense says Post Falls will lose its opener, but bounce back to win two and take fourth.

In the A-2, Moscow is a serious contender for its first state title since Sally Greene, the architect of the solid program, stepped down three years ago.

The Bears have more athletes than some A-1 teams.

I’d love to say it’ll be Moscow and Bonners Ferry in the final, like it was in 1994. But the Badgers just don’t have enough depth to challenge.

Bonners Ferry could land a trophy. If any team deserves a good break or two at state this year it’s Bonners Ferry.

The Badgers fell to eventual state champ Buhl last year in a tearjerking 45-44 opener.

The expanded 16-team field in the A-4 ranks means the road to earning a trophy is much more difficult. But Lakeside or Kootenai could take something home.

My pick is it will be Kootenai.

The men in stripes

Bill Bopp is not only one of the best high school basketball referees in North Idaho - and the state, for that matter - he’s also a funny, funny man.

What makes his humor even more delightful is his timing.

Take, for example, a moment in the A-1 Region I boys basketball loser-out game Monday at Post Falls.

Sandpoint should have inbounded the ball under its basket, but a Post Falls player stepped in and took the ball from referee Scott Peterson.

The Trojan threw the ball to Chad Quesnell and he raced to the other end of the floor.

Realizing the officials had made a mistake, the scoreboard operator started buzzing the horn. In his haste to be in the correct position, Bopp, who was near midcourt, started sprinting to the other end of the floor with Quesnell.

Finally it dawned on Bopp that something was amiss.

As he retreated to correct the error, he said loud enough for many fans to hear, “I hate it when that happens.”

Bopp will hold court at the University Inn’s Irongate in Boise this weekend, where most of the state tourney refs retire for some liquid products and share their funniest “war” stories.

Bopp, his brother-in-law, Doug Olin, and Peterson will be working the state girls tournaments beginning today. They did the boys state tournaments last year.

Under a rotational system, they weren’t eligible for the boys this year. North Idaho will send Steve Hudson, John Posnick and Shannon Pooler to the boys tournaments in two weeks.

Hudson and Posnick attended the girls tournaments last year. This is Pooler’s first state trip.

North Idaho has a fine crop of referees. There are a handful of others who are capable and worthy of working state tournaments.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Attend a state tournament and you’ll come back with a greater appreciation for the local whistleblowers.

I’ve started an unofficial officials’ Hall of Shame.

My first inductee two years ago was Larry Lincoln of the Boise area. He worked about four girls games to qualify for state, and his efforts were below Park-and-Rec level.

Nobody earned a nomination last year - which is good.

But there’s always this year.

, DataTimes