Lake City girls continue late turnaround

The Lake City girls basketball team is figuring things out.

The fourth-seeded Timberwolves survived their second straight loser-out game, thumping No. 2 Post Falls 59-30 Thursday in the 5A Region I tournament at The Arena.

This came after Lake City was whipped 62-36 six days ago by defending state champ Coeur d’Alene.

LC (14-8) will take on Capital (13-11), the District III fifth-place team, Saturday at Grangeville in a play-in game to decide a state berth. Tipoff is at 1 p.m.

5A Region I

Lake City 59, Post Falls 30: Timing, it’s been said, is everything.

And the T-Wolves couldn’t have picked a better time to play their best. It started Tuesday at Lewiston when they knocked off the third-seeded Bengals 53-49.

“I just feel our team has come together,” first-year LC coach Royce Johnston said.

It started early when sophomore guard Sydney Butler hit her first two 3-pointers.

Post Falls junior Katelyn Loper made a 3-pointer moments thereafter, pulling the Trojans (16-7) within 10-9. That’s the last time they would be within eyesight of LC.

LC used a 6-0 spurt to close out the first half with a 28-15 lead.

Things just got worse in the second half for the Trojans, who took both league games from LC.

“Lake City played extremely well. All phases of their game were really working,” Post Falls coach Chris John son said. “For the first time all year we just couldn’t get it going.”

LC senior post Katie Baker put her young team on her back, even if she apparently had a sprained shooting wrist.

Baker made 11 of 14 shots from the field – mostly jumpers from around the free-throw line – as she finished with a game-high 28 points, 10 rebounds and two blocked shots.

“She played phenomenal,” Johnston said.

When the Trojans surrounded Baker, she alertly dumped it low to senior post Alivia Johnson, who had a career game. She finished with 10 points and eight rebounds in her first meaningful start of the season.

Johnston debated on whether to start her Tuesday.

“I told our assistants that I’ve got a gut feeling about Alivia,” Johnston said. “She (was) going to show up tonight, because it’s do or die on her career. She was great on the defensive boards.”

The T-Wolves were unselfish with the ball, many times making the extra pass.

“A team is going to shoot a much higher percentage when you shoot open shots,” Johnston said. “When you start to feel it, everybody feels it and it’s contagious.”

Baker plans to get her wrist X-rayed, but she’s going to wait until after the season.Loper led the Trojans with 11 points.

4A Region I

Lakeland 47, Moscow 34: This time the visiting Hawks scored in the fourth quarter, and they finished off the Bears.

Moscow (7-15) forced an if-necessary game when it held Lakeland scoreless in a 38-34 win Tuesday.

But the Hawks bounced back. Senior guard Camille Reynolds eclipsed the 1,000-point mark with 16 to lead Lakeland (15-7), which advances to state.

Ali Whitted led Lakeland with seven rebounds and Katie Imthurn had six assists.

3A District I-II

Bonners Ferry 46, Priest River 44: The top-seeded Badgers (14-5) got two free throws from Caitlin Clausen with 4 seconds left to hold off the Spartans (8-11) at Lakeland.

The Badgers will take on Timberlake (15-5) in the title game tonight at 7:30. Priest River will meet St. Maries (10-12) in a loser-out game at 6.

Clausen led BF with 11 points. Taylor Stewart led PR with 22.

Timberlake 50, St. Maries 41: The Tigers advanced to their first district final as they outscored the Lumberjacks 26-5 in the fourth quarter.

Cassie Thompson led the Tigers with 24 points. Trinda Babor led St. Maries with 11.