Vikings streak past Post Falls at home
They say that speed kills.
Coeur d’Alene proved the point, getting fast and furious in a 74-64 Inland Empire League boys basketball victory over Post Falls at Elmer Jordan Court on Saturday night.
The Vikings (11-7, 6-4), who got 20 points and six rebounds from forward Cody Smith, are tied for third place in the league with Lake City, which holds the head-to-head tiebreaker.
Post Falls (10-8, 4-7) never seemed to catch up with the pace, committing 18 turnovers, mostly against CdA’s swarming full-court press, that turned into 14 points for the Vikings.
Coeur d’Alene coach Kent Leiss said his team’s effort early in the second half was what made the difference.
“I thought the key to the game was in the third quarter – they cut the lead to five at halftime – and we came out and we executed our offense pretty well and got up by as many as 18,” Leiss said.
“We played a very good third quarter to get the lead up and then hung on in the fourth.”
The Vikings went on a 9-0 run near the end of the first quarter, capped by John Latorre’s 8-foot jumper in transition, and took a 28-18 lead at the end of one.
Late in the second quarter, a couple of Zack Deines 3-pointers and Brandon Haas’ rebound and putback cut it to five, at 39-34.
CdA came out of the locker room and promptly went on a 12-0 run, highlighted by a pair of Smith 3-pointers.
Post Falls was able to get within eight in the last 40 seconds, but the hole was too deep.
Leiss said his focus coming into the game was getting off to a quick start.
“Tonight, I thought we got off to a great start,” he said. “We came out flat in our Thursday night game, and I challenged the kids to go, and they came out and put up 28 in the first quarter.
“I was proud of that.”
PF coach Dave Stockwell gave credit to Coeur d’Alene’s fast-paced game plan.
“It all comes down to matchups,” Stockwell said. “We’re just not as quick as they are. Coeur d’Alene is just a tough matchup for us – basically, five, six, seven, eight guards, and they all shoot well.
“They’re a little bit like Villanova, in that direction.”
Stockwell said he could find little fault with his team’s effort in the loss.
“Our intensity was great,” Stockwell said. “I thought maybe in some ways we were overworking and trying so hard that we weren’t thinking very well.
“I can’t complain that they’re not working hard enough. We’re on a losing streak as far as wins and losses, but we’re not playing bad.”
Leon Duplessis and Matt Palmer each had 12 points for the Vikings. Kyle Turpin had 17 points and eight rebounds to lead Post Falls.