Russets mash Kellogg’s storybook ending

NAMPA, Idaho – It didn’t have the fairytale ending that Kellogg desired, but that didn’t seem to faze the self-proclaimed Cinderella ‘Cats.

Shelley, a team familiar with state championship games, played like it had been to the Idaho Center before as the Russets prevailed 49-44 in a physically sloppy State 3A girls basketball championship game Saturday afternoon.

“We got to the Big Dance and the slipper fit, but the clock struck 12,” first-year Kellogg coach Steve Bourgard said. “To get to the (state) championship game far exceeded anything that we imagined. Even though we came up a little short, we can’t be disappointed. We definitely overachieved.”

Consider Kellogg (16-11) was picked to finish third in the Intermountain League. The Wildcats ended up tying Priest River for second. At district, Kellogg played back-to-back loser-out games, eliminating league champ and top seed Bonners Ferry 48-43. Then the Wildcats won a play-in game, topping Weiser 48-33.

They played four games in five days. Bourgard thought that by the third day at state, his Wildcats didn’t have much left in the tank.

Kellogg appeared a step slow, and it was especially evident on defense.

Shelley 5-foot-11 post Whitney Thompson owned the key, many times taking entry passes 3 feet from the basket. She had a game-high 15 points and 10 rebounds, including six offensive boards.

Still, as poorly as the Wildcats defended, they were in the game from start to finish.

Despite scoring less than a point a minute in the first half, Kellogg only trailed 20-15 at halftime.

The Wildcats, making their first trip to state in 15 years, took a brief lead in the third quarter when sophomore wing Marisa Bush hit a 6-foot jumper in the key at the 5:01 mark.

Shelley (20-7) used a 10-3 spurt to close out the period with a 36-29 lead.

The Russets, who captured their second state title in four years, extended their lead to 44-34 on Thompson’s putback with 1:41 to go.

But the Wildcats didn’t quit, using a 3-pointer by Jordan Budd to pull within 48-44 with 14 seconds remaining.

“We didn’t play our game at all, and we were still in the game at halftime,” said Bush, who had 10 points and eight rebounds. “Our defense wasn’t as good as it could have been. We didn’t do a good job defending (Thompson).”

Bush said the season finished better than she imagined. The Wildcats captured the first state girls trophy in school history.

“This means everything,” Bush said. “It really hasn’t sunk in yet.”

Bourgard praised the Russets.

“Our offense never really got going, and that’s a credit to Shelley’s defense,” Bourgard said. “They really came out aggressive and took some stuff away from us early. There was a lot of bumping going on, and it was real physical. But you know what, that’s state. They’ll learn from it, and next year we’ll be that team – we’ll be the ones bumping people.”

Budd scored 13 for Kellogg.

Gooding 32, Priest River 26: In the fourth-place game, Katie Garsin totaled 14 points and 10 rebounds as the Senators defeated the Spartans with a 12-5 advantage in the fourth quarter.

Tabitha Clark scored 11 points and Jessica Willig had 12 rebounds for the Spartans, who finished 0 for 10 from 3-point range.