Driggs drains 2 free throws to down Lakeland; SHS hosts Game 2 Friday

RATHDRUM — Free throws were anything but free for the Sandpoint Bulldogs on Wednesday night, in Game 1 of a best-of-3 series for the 4A Region 1 girls basketball title at Lakeland.

Almost costly, in fact.

Until it mattered.

Sophomore Daylee Driggs, fouled on a desperation 3-pointer with .7 seconds left, sank two of three free throws to lift second-seeded Sandpoint to a stunning 44-43 victory over top-seeded Lakeland at Hawk Court.

In the season opener, after Driggs had missed a 3-pointer that would have tied the game against Post Falls, head coach Will Love told her she would get another chance to do something late in the game.

“I didn’t really believe it,” Driggs said. “I always wanted another chance to win the game, but I didn’t think it was going to turn out like that. That was crazy.”

Because no team ran the table in the 4A Inland Empire League, Sandpoint’s win meant the Bulldogs (10-9) "stole" home court advantage for Game 2, scheduled for 6 p.m. Friday at Les Rogers Court.

A Bulldog win would send Sandpoint to state for the second straight year; a Lakeland win would force a Game 3 on Saturday, and return the series to the Hawks’ home court.

Lakeland (8-10) led most of the way, and by as much as 11 points late in the third quarter. But Sandpoint chipped away in the fourth quarter, pulling within 43-42 on two free throws by Hattie Larson with 21.7 seconds left.

Lakeland, which had missed just one free throw all night to that point, went 0 for 4 from the foul line in the final 14.6 seconds. The last two misses came with 4.7 seconds left.

Driggs grabbed the rebound of the second miss, dribbled up the sideline in front of the benches, and was fouled launching a 3-pointer from just inside the half-court line.

“I was thinking, what am I going to do?,” Driggs said after she grabbed the rebound. “I guess I’m going to have to throw up a shot, and see, and the girl fouled me, and I was really shocked.”

Sandpoint was 7 of 17 from the line to that point, but Driggs stepped up and rattled in the first free throw. After a Lakeland timeout, she swished the second, then missed the third, and the clock ran out.

“The free-throw thing has been a struggle for us all season,” Love said. “We went 22 for 29 Monday night, and you think you’ve got those things corrected, but it’s one of those things that mentally it starts building on itself, building on itself. But then, I think we started to get into the flow of the game."

Driggs said she battled some nerves when she first stepped to the free-throw line and realized she could win the game.

"I was shaking, the crowd behind the basket (Lakeland students) was making me more nervous, and I was looking at the [Sandpoint] parents and I thought 'Yeah, I got it.'"

Sandpoint hit 6 of 8 from the line in the fourth quarter to finish 13 of 25. Lakeland was 9 of 14.

The road team won in the two league meetings as well — Sandpoint winning 43-34 at Lakeland on Jan. 15, Lakeland prevailing at Sandpoint 63-49 two weeks later.

Kaylee Banks scored nine of her team-high 13 points in the first half for Sandpoint. Larson finished with 11 points and three steals, and Bella Phillips had eight points, seven rebounds and four steals. Karlee Banks hit a pair of 3-pointers early in the fourth quarter, and finished with eight points.

After going 9 of 32 from the field in the first three quarters, Sandpoint went 5 of 11 from the floor in the fourth.

“We’ve been relying on our defense all year to keep us in games, and the shots finally started to fall in the fourth quarter,” Love said.

Sandpoint 11 9 6 18 — 44

Lakeland 12 12 11 8 — 43

SANDPOINT — Gammon 0, Driggs 4, Lyons 0, R. Cessna 0, Phillips 8, Kar. Banks 8, Larson 11, Platte 0, Kay. Banks 13.

LAKELAND — Sterling 5, Neff 4, Hostetler 0, Ryan 8, Simon 2, Woempner 11, A. Kiefer 13, L. Kiefer 0.