Carli Rosenthal displayed a puzzled look at the line of questioning the other night.

Do you know who Wes Unseld is?, she was asked.

"Uh uh," she replied.

Do you know who Bill Walton is?

"No."

Kevin Love?

"Oh yeah," she said, eyes brightening. "I do know who that is."

What is he known for?

She shrugs.

Rosenthal can be easily forgiven for not knowing the lineage of basketball's big men who were also great passers. That's because Rosenthal, a 6-foot-3 senior, has been busy helping the Coeur d'Alene High girls basketball teams win state championships.

With Rosenthal in the post, scoring and rebounding and blocking shots, the Vikings have won three straight state titles, and go for a fourth this weekend at the Idaho Center in Nampa. Coeur d'Alene (18-5), ranked fourth in 5A, opens state on Thursday at 7 p.m. PST vs. Boise (19-4).

And while her scoring and rebounding numbers are impressive, she also stands out with her ability to pass the ball in traffic - to a guard on the perimeter for a 3-point shot, or to a fellow post for a layup.

"I always had good shooters on the outside, so I had confidence in them making it," the left-handed Rosenthal said. "Sometimes I just think I was nervous to go up with the ball (as a freshman), so I would always look to pass first, but now I'm looking to shoot first."

Ever have a coach tell you to be more selfish, she was asked.

"Yeah, Poff (Coeur d'Alene High coach Dale Poffenroth) all the time," she said. "He'd always tell me to look at the basket first. And my AAU coach (with the Spokane Stars), Ron Adams, he always tells me to shoot before I pass."

Poffenroth, in his seventh year as Coeur d'Alene High coach after 17 seasons as coach at Central Valley High in Spokane, says Rosenthal is the best passing post he's ever coached.

"She probably passes the ball as well as any point guard we've ever had," Poffenroth said. "In many games she's our leader in assists."

Poffenroth admits sometimes wondering why Rosenthal would grab a rebound or take an entry pass and fire the ball out to a guard, rather than turn and shoot - "What are you doing? We worked so hard to get you the ball." But you can't argue with the results.

"How can you fault a kid that's trying to get everybody else involved?" Poffenroth said.

This season, Rosenthal averages 13.3 points, 8.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.3 steals per game.

Also this season, Rosenthal has broken the career record for rebounds - she now has 766. She also heads into state with 1,082 career points, 184 assists and 114 steals.

Rosenthal admitted she was "tentative" when she came in as a freshman, joining a junior-laden team coming off two second-place finishes at state. Players like Kama Griffitts, now starring at North Idaho College, and fellow post Deanna Dotts, who missed Rosenthal's freshman season with a knee injury, helped ease the adjustment, she said.

So did Jean King, an assistant at Coeur d'Alene for one season - Rosenthal's freshman year. King helped her expand her range as a shooter - though she hasn't been called upon to shoot much from the outside as a Viking. And she also helped her with her free throw shooting - a nice thing to be good at, since Rosenthal gets fouled so much.

"I would totally brick my free throws my freshman year," she said. "But Jean King brought a book to practice and made me read it. It was all the rules on how to shoot a good free throw - elbow in, look at front of the basket ... "

And the results?

"I'm 80 percent this year," Rosenthal beams.

What was her percentage as a freshman?

"Oh man, I don't even want to know," she said.

Rosenthal said she is determined to get her academics in order so she can play at a Division I school next year. She'd really like to play at Saint Mary's, a West Coast Conference school in Moraga, Calif. She's also considering Fresno State and Oregon State.

She estimates she has received 15 full-ride scholarship offers - from a handful of schools in the Big Sky, Pac-10, Western Athletic Conference and WCC.

She has made official visits to Idaho and Boise State, and an unofficial visit to Oregon State. She hopes to visit Saint Mary's and Fresno State following the basketball season, prior to the late signing period in the spring.

"She's much quicker with her footwork now," Poffenroth said of her progressing from her freshman to senior season. "She can handle the ball a lot better. She's one of our best free throw shooters. Her agility has improved; she's faster than anybody thinks she is."

Basketball runs in her family - at least on the female side.

Her mother, Tammi, helped the Ridgefield (Wash.) Spudders qualify for state in basketball in the mid-1970s. Her grandmother, Sylvia Hickman, played in the 1950s in Worley - "that was when they only played half-court, and played in skirts," Carli said with a laugh.

Carli credits her mom for teaching her quite a bit about basketball. Tammi coached Carli's teams through elementary and middle school.

When Carli's dad, Matt, died of a heart attack early in Carli's sophomore year of high school, her teammates decided the team would wear Velcro patches on their uniforms with his initials on it, and dedicate the season to him.

"He was the calming influence on my life," Carli recalled. "My mom would yell at me if I had a bad game and he was like, ignore her, Carli, have fun. He would take me out and we would have ice cream, and he would be like, it's OK, have fun while you're playing, have a good time."

Rosenthal, who enjoys longboarding, said she might want to be a sportscaster - or a cook - when she grows up.

But, first things first. On Saturday night, don't be surprised to see Rosenthal and the Vikings at the Idaho Center, where they've been this time of year for five straight years.

And also don't be surprised to see her grab the ball and, instead of turning toward the basket, kick it out to a guard for a 3-point shot.

"Scoring isn't my No. 1 goal, I guess," Rosenthal said. "Team chemistry and making sure everyone on the team gets a chance to score is. (And), well, if the guard makes the shot ... "