Spartans bounced by Tigers, pair of players earn all-league honors
Priest River boys basketball has been no stranger to adversity this season and that continued last Wednesday when they faced Bonners Ferry in a 3A District 1 loser-out game.
The No. 4 seed Spartans entered the game with the No. 3 Badgers as the underdog, but Priest River’s lone regular season win in Intermountain League play came against Bonners Ferry on Feb. 1.
With their season on the line, the Spartans responded by claiming a 60-52 victory to advance to the district second place game at Timberlake on Thursday with the winner advancing to a state play-in game against Marsh Valley.
Priest River was without sophomore Trentyn Kreager, who suffered a season ending injury in the team’s regular season, against Bonners Ferry and saw another play go down with an injury during Wednesday’s game when senior Cole Thompson broke his collarbone.
Its been the theme all season for the Spartans who have struggled staying healthy but battled in every game they’ve played.
“What a huge win for us,” Kevin Wylie wrote in a text following the game. “We played great, it took a team effort for sure. I’m proud of the guys and how smart they played. They worked together, ran their sets well and executed at the right time.”
In Thursday’s game against the Tigers, the Spartans fell behind early and were never able to recover as they fell 61-38.
Priest River ran out of steam with only seven players taking the court for the team. Senior Caden Brennan tried to kick start the team in the third quarter after they trailed 28-16 entering the second half. He scored 12 of his team-high 13 points in the quarter, but an 18-6 fourth quarter by Timberlake ruined any momentum Brennan and the Spartans built.
The defeat ended the team’s season. Priest River finishes with an 8-15 record.
Kreager and Brennan each received all-league honors for their efforts for this season.
The Spartans lose a group of six seniors that had a huge impact on the program over their careers. They’ll be tough to replace but Wylie will look for Kreager, sophomore Travis Mathews and freshman Jace Yount to lead the team next season. Priest River also has plenty of young talent coming up from this year’s JV squad.
