Boy’s state basketball: Twin Falls, Wendell, Declo, and Dietrich all advance to semifinals on Friday

CALDWELL, Idaho (KMVT/KSVT) — Day one of the Idaho High School boys state basketball tournaments is in the book.

Four area teams came away victorious on Thursday and will fight for a state championship spot on Friday.

5A

No. 1 Preston 64, No. 8 Jerome 33

The Tigers battled in the first quarter only trailing by eight, but quickly the game escaped Jerome.

The Tigers were outscored in the second and third quarter, 32-11 and couldn’t muster back into it.

Seth Capps paced the Tigers with nine points while

Jerome falls into the consolation bracket and will take on Middleton Friday at 2:00 at Rocky Mountain High School

No. 7 Twin Falls 66, No. 2 Lewiston 49

Statement win from the Bruins.

Twin Falls gets the upset win as they an outstanding 66 percent from the floor to advance to the semi-finals for the first time since 2015.

Trey Billings had a game-high 23 points on 11/14 shooting.

Ty Hess and Ryker Rex had fantastic offensive production with 17 and 15 points respectively.

The Bruins also dominated in the rebound category, out-rebounding Lewiston 38-7.

Twin Falls will play No. 3 Hillcrest in the semi-finals Friday at 5:00 at the Idaho Center.

4A

No. 1 Bonners Ferry 81, No. 8 Kimberly 62

It looked as if Kimberly was in for a shootout going toe-to-toe with top-seeded Bonners Ferry trailing 22-20 through one.

The Bulldogs however wouldn’t be able to keep up as the game got away from them.

Kimberly shot 41 percent from the field and limited its turnovers to nine, but Bonners Ferry wouldn’t be denied.

The Bulldogs will play Cole Valley Friday at 2:00 in the consolation bracket.

No. 2 Snake River 61 No. 7 Filer 44

Filer will take on Sugar-Salem in the consolation semi-finals on Friday.

3A

No. 1 Declo 67, No. 8 Orofino 47

The Hornets quest for a 3A Championship will continue on Friday after a dominant win Thursday afternoon.

Emmett Gibby had a monster game for the Hornets in the win. He erupted for 26 points and collected 14 rebounds for a double-double. Gavin Rasmussen was also in double figures scoring with 11 points.

The Hornets cleaned the glass all night, out-rebounding Orofino 50-23.

Declo will play Ambrose Friday night at 7:00 in the semifinals.

No. 3 Wendell 53, No. 6 New Plymouth 42

The South East Idaho Champions advance to the semifinals after handling New Plymouth on Thursday.

The Swainston twins had a day as Jonathan had 17 while Jordan scored 15 points in the win. Jarrett Borges scored 14.

The Trojans were out-rebounded by five but made up for it forcing 20 turnovers.

Wendell will play Firth at 5:00 on Friday in the semi-finals.

2A

No. 7 Grace 43, No. 2 Valley 34

The perfect season comes to an end for the Vikings in the opening round.

Valley shot only 22 percent from the floor and 6/25 from beyond the arc. The Vikings struggled to find its groove, which made them so successful throughout the year and were stunned with the upset.

Josh Hardy had a team-high 11 points while Pedro Robles had 9.

Valley will square off with Hagerman in the consolation semifinals on Friday at noon.

No. 3 Kendrick 67, No. 6 Hagerman 42

Hagerman started the game with the opening 3 points, but Kendrick would respond with a 20-0 run and the Tigers never looked back downing Hagerman 67-42.

The Pirates struggled settling into their half-court offense and had 20 total turnovers. They shot 35 percent from the field but failed to convert from three going 0-9.

Casen Knight had a game-high 13 points in the loss while Martin Gonzales had 12.

Hagerman will take on Valley in the consolation semi-finals on Friday at noon.

1A

No. 1 Dietrich 69, No. 8 Couer de Christ 56

The Dietrich Blue Devils didn’t always look dominant but they were always in firm control over Couer de Christ winning 69-56.

Dietrich plays its brand of basketball all night by playing quickly in transition.

One thing about the squad they’ll want to turn around before the semi-finals is its second-chance opportunities.

Multiple attempts every trip down but came up short many times.

“We weren’t putting those shots in the first time so it’s important we have effort and got boards and those second chance shots ‚” senior Brody Torgerson said. “It’s something we got to get used to and adapt to and could be the deciding factor of a game later in the tournament so that’s something we have to adapt to,” senior Connor Perkins added.

Perkins scored 18 points in the win. Torgerson had a monster double-double of 14 points and 19 rebounds.

Corrd Wells was also in double figures scoring with 11.

Dietrich will take on Garden Valley in the semi-finals Thursday at 2:00.

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