Idaho boys: Jake Pfennigs’ layup at buzzer gives Post Falls 5A win in quarterfinals

NAMPA – After a blistering start, the Post Falls offense was sputtering down the stretch Thursday at the 5A State tournament.

But when it mattered most, the Trojans executed to perfection. Junior wing Jake Pfennigs caught an alley-oop pass from sophomore guard Drake Thompson and laid it off the glass at the buzzer, giving Post Falls a 54-52 victory at the Ford Idaho Center.

Pfennigs finished with 16 points and 10 rebounds for Post Falls (19-3) which advances to play Centennial (16-10) in a Friday night semifinal.

“It all happened in slow motion,” Pfennigs said. “It was a good pass and a good screen. It definitely wasn’t all just me, but it was awesome. It was crazy.”

The winning play was called during a timeout with 7.4 seconds remaining. Everything went according to script, and Thompson floated a perfect pass where only Pfennigs could catch it.

“We practice it every day,” Thompson said. “I love throwing lobs to the big man, and he went up and sealed the deal.”

The game featured nine ties and six lead changes, but a last-second finish didn’t seem likely in the early going. The Trojans scored 24 points in the first quarter, with freshman Colby Gennett and junior Tanner McCliment-Call lighting it up from deep. The Trojans led 24-16 after one and 39-33 at the break, with Gennett scoring all 13 of his points in the first half.

“We got off to a good start, but I knew Boise was going to do everything in their power to slow the pace down,” Post Falls coach Mike McLean said. “They’re a very good defensive team.”

That’s exactly what happened in the second half. Pfennigs completed a three-point play early in the third quarter, but Post Falls didn’t score again in the period. Boise (18-6) closed it to 42-40 through three quarters, setting the stage for a see-saw battle down the stretch.

With Pfennigs in foul trouble, the Braves took a one-point lead into the final minute. McCliment-Call (15 points) tied the score at 52, making 1 of 2 free throws 54 seconds left.

McCliment-Call fouled Paul Pennington with 35 seconds remaining, but when Pennington misfired on the front end of a 1-and-1, Post Falls seized the chance to hold for the last shot.

McLean called one timeout with 21 seconds left, then another with the clock at 7.4 to set up the winning play.

“At this time of year, you just have to survive and advance,” McLean said. “You don’t get a better seed tomorrow if you win pretty. We struggled to score at times, but I’m proud of the way our kids stuck with it and executed at the end of the game.”

Thompson chipped in seven points for Post Falls, which is seeking its third state title since 2010.

Lewiston 71, Mountain View 69 (OT): Senior post Trystan Bradley had 24 points and 13 rebounds, helping the Bengals (14-8) defeat the Mavericks (16-8).

Senior guard Riley Ray added 14 points for the Bengals, who regrouped to win it after Mountain View erased a nine-point fourth quarter deficit to force overtime. Lewiston advances to play Rocky Mountain (24-1) in Friday’s semifinals.

Lewiston never trailed in overtime, outpacing the Mavericks 11-9 thanks to a balanced attack that saw four players score points in the extra session.

Jalen Galloway scored 26 points and Cam Howard added 19 for Mountain View.

Preston 77, Moscow 46: Derek Wadsworth scored 18 points, Bodee Hymas added 12 and Preston (21-4) beat Moscow (8-12) in the opening round of the Idaho State 4A tournament at Borah HS.

After a competitive first half, Preston pulled away with a pair of 20-plus point quarters in the second half.

Moscow was led by Hunter Pickard with 13 points and Glen Gosse added 12. The Bears fall into the consolation bracket and will play on Friday at 1:15 p.m.

Sugar-Salem 57, Timberlake 44: Hayden Wood scored 12 points, Luke Holt had 10 and Sugar-Salem (19-5) topped Timberlake (13-9) in the opening round of the Idaho State 3A tournament at Meridian HS.

Timberlake drops into the consolation bracket and will play on Friday at 12:15 p.m.

Jordan Hardy led the Tigers with 10 points and Jacob James added nine.

Kellogg 54, Shelley 53: Chase Jerome scored 23 points and Kellogg edged Shelley in the opening round of the Idaho State 3A tournament at Meridian HS.

Kellogg advances to play Snake River on Friday at 8 p.m. in the semifinals.

St. Maries 72, Melba 43: Jake Sieler scored 20 points with six assists, Brady Martin added 16 points on 8-of-9 shooting and St. Maries (13-4) beat Melba (9-15) in the opening round of the Idaho State 2A tournament at Capital HS.

The Lumberjacks advance to paly Ririe in the semifinals on Friday at 5:15 p.m.

Sieler hit all four two-point attempts and went 4 of 5 from beyond the arc. St. Maries raced out to a 20-3 lead after the first quarter and were never threatened.

Justin Trappet led Melba with 11 points, five assists and six steals.

Genesis Prep 81, Butte County 55: Junior Williams scored 19 points and the Jaguars handled Butte County in the opening round of the Idaho State 1ADII tournament at Caldwell HS.

Genesis Prep advances to face Carey on Friday at 2 p.m. in the semifinals.