Lakeland makes late charge, but Post Falls gets the win
The Post Falls Trojans got more than they bargained for from the Lakeland Hawks Tuesday in the opening round of the boys 4A Region I tournament.
But after surviving a pair of Lakeland comebacks, the top-seeded Trojans also got the one thing they were after – a 53-51 home victory that propels them to a 7 p.m. Friday home date against Sandpoint for the regional championship and an automatic state berth. The No. 3 Bulldogs (13-8) defeated No. 2 Moscow 53-46 at Moscow to advance to the title tilt.
Lakeland travels to Moscow (15-6) for a loser-out affair, also on Friday night at 7.
Post Falls (14-7) had handled the fourth-seeded Hawks (8-13) relatively easily in three previous meetings this season, and things seemed to be going the Trojans’ way again as they jumped out to a 10-0 lead.
Lakeland, however, battled back and took the lead 18-17 on senior guard Kam Kiefer’s 3-pointer midway through the second quarter.
Post Falls jumped right back on top when sophomore wing Brandon Haas got the rebound and putback of KC Billetz’s missed free throw and cruised into halftime with a 27-20 lead.
In the third quarter, it was more of the same as the Trojans got three 3-pointers from Billetz and one from Stockwell and led by as many as 13 in the period.
The never-say-die Hawks, though, stayed the course with great all-around play and forged a tie at 46 with 3:45 to go in the fourth quarter when sophomore swingman Bubba Bartlett laid the ball in between two airborne Trojans at the end of a fast break.
Haas put Post Falls back up by two, 48-46, on a quick baseline cut to the basket, but junior guard Ryan Gallia answered right back, laying a feed in midair from Phillip Viebrock at the point.
Senior guard Scott Stockwell came right back down the court and was fouled as he made a layin during transition. He hit the foul shot to put the Trojans up 51-48 with just more than a minute to go.
Gallia had the answer at the other end, drilling a 3-pointers from the top of the key and knotting the game at 51 with 44 seconds left.
After Stockwell made the front end of a one-and-one with 30 seconds left, both teams missed the front end of bonus opportunities. With less than a second left in the game, Stockwell, who led all scorers with 20, finished out the scoring, hitting the tail end of a double bonus.
Haas, asked by coach Dave Stockwell to step up his game in the absence of junior post Kyle Turpin, who injured his ankle during weightlifting class earlier in the day, said he was impressed by the intensity of the Hawks.
But when push came to shove, Haas said the Trojans had what it took.
“They were tough tonight, but we knew we had it in us to step up our game and get the job done,” said Haas, who finished with 11 points, five rebounds and two blocked shots. “Turpin came out during warm-ups and told us that we needed to up the dose – and our two other posts Zach (Nordmeyer) and Ben (Denn) just did a great job.”
The Trojans’ coach praised Lakeland’s level of play and looked ahead to Friday.
“They came out and had a great game plan, and Kyle being out definitely hurt us,” said Stockwell, adding that trainers have told him that Turpin will be ready to play Friday against Sandpoint. “But as I told the kids, I’d rather have an ugly win than a beautiful loss.”
Lakeland coach Trent Derrick said he liked just about everything about his team’s play Tuesday, with one obvious exception.
“I’m proud of our kids for coming back and showing the fortitude it takes in these situations,” Derrick said. “We were able to keep grinding back, and I’m happy with that.
“We’ve got a little more work to do – we have to learn how to finish these things out and get the win – but I think we’ll be ready for Friday night.”
Kiefer and Gallia led the Hawks with 16 points apiece.
Sandpoint 53, Moscow 46: Blake Mahler and Chris Hepperly each scored 13 points to lead the Bulldogs, who carried an 11-point lead going into the fourth quarter.
Brad Herrenbruck scored 16 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Bears.