Priest River rocks Badgers, remains undefeated in league play

BONNERS FERRY — After a disappointing loss at Wallace on Friday, Priest River boys basketball came out on a mission Monday night and put on dominant performance against Bonners Ferry.

The Spartans crushed their Intermountain League foe 82-60 to improve to 3-0 in IML play.

Head coach Kevin Wylie said everyone pitched in to keep the team's unblemished league record intact.

"All across the board everyone stepped up huge tonight and it really felt like just a great team effort," he said after the game.

This game was originally scheduled for Jan. 30, but was postponed to Monday night. The shifted date resulted in a quick turnaround for the Spartans. On Friday, Priest River suffered a 64-58 loss at Wallace.

Wylie knew the short time between games would be tough on the boys, so they held a two-hour practice on Sunday to dial things in for their pivotal matchup with the Badgers, and it worked.

"We really pointed out the emphasis of team basketball," Wylie said, "moving the ball on offense and not settling for the first 3-pointer ... and our kids really did a great job of attacking [Monday] and really pounded the ball in the paint and I think that was a key part for us to carry out and get the win."

The Spartans were also, for the most part, back to full strength against the Badgers. Trentyn Kreager and Blake Barrett returned on Friday, but both still weren't fully healthy and Kreager only played the first half against the Miners.

But on Monday, both returned to form, especially Kreager, who went off for 28 points.

"He looked pretty healthy," Wylie said about Kreager. "He hit a couple shots right off the bat and you could just kind of tell he felt comfortable."

All season, Wylie has preached the importance of his team getting off to a fast start and bringing the intensity on the defensive end. The Spartans did that against Bonners Ferry and jumped out to a 33-21 lead at the half.

"When we start a game out with a lot of energy and a lot of hustle, our percentage of winning is really high this season," Wylie said. "It's kind of a proven thing. When we jump out early on a team, we're able to carry that momentum and finish the game."

With such a comfortable advantage heading into the second half, Priest River could have fell victim to letting their foot off the gas pedal. But they didn't, they pushed the pedal to the floorboard.

The Spartans scored 49 points in the second half and were able to withstand a run by the Badgers early in the fourth quarter thanks in part to their free-throw shooting. They went 9-of-11 from the line in the final period.

"I feel like if we play like this consistently, we're a very tough team to beat," Wylie said.

Four players reached double figures for the Spartans in their highest-scoring game this season. Jordan Nortz had 19 points, Barrett poured in 15 and Travis Mathews tallied 12.

Sophomore Jace Yount also added eight points. Wylie said he was really impressed with Yount's performance. He had a tough matchup against some shifty Bonners Ferry guards and Yount came up big for the Spartans, Wylie said.

"Jace Yount stepped up big in the paint and defensively he was huge," he said. "He did such a great job for us defending and getting rebounds, and offensively he was getting putbacks."

With the victory, Priest River is now in sole possession of first place in the league standings. The Spartans still have three IML games left, but Wylie said his team has plenty of confidence as they enter the home stretch of the season.

"The league is still pretty tight so we got to stay discipline," he said, "and our focus at the end of the game was great win, enjoy it on the bus ride home, but come [Tuesday] night practice hits and we got to hit the ground running."

In Friday's loss at Wallace, Barrett scored a team-high 19 points, Nortz added 12 and Kreager finished with nine.

The Spartans (11-6, 3-0 IML) host Timberlake at 7 p.m. Thursday. Priest River beat the Tigers 73-71 in Spirit Lake on Jan. 16.

Priest River 14 19 22 27 — 82

Bonners Ferry 9 12 18 21 — 60

PRIEST RIVER — Mathews 12, Butler 0, J. Nortz 19, Kreager 28, Marinello 0, Barrett 15, D. Nortz 0, Thompson 0, Yount 8.

BONNERS FERRY — Williams 0, Petersen 0, Rice 11, Henslee 6, Stockton 10, Hubbard 9, Mai 0, Nowell 0, Beazer 2, Bateman 0, Blackmore 22.

Priest River 10 20 9 19 — 58

Wallace 15 16 18 15 — 64

PRIEST RIVER — Mathews 4, Butler 0, J. Nortz 12, Kreager 9, Marinello 4, Barrett 19, D. Nortz 5, Thompson 0, Yount 5.

WALLACE — Tesky 17, Farkas 0, Hogamier 28, Allison 0, Jaramillo 0, Bailey 10, Denson 6, Hull 3, Hammerberg 0.