SPOKANE — Nobody said summer league was going to be easy.

For the first time in program history, the Sandpoint boys basketball team has cut its teeth in the West Valley Summer League, which annually brings schools from across northern Idaho and the Spokane area together to square off in bi-weekly basketball action.

Although the Bulldogs fell short in a pair of games against Central Valley and Tekoa on June 26, the eight-man varsity rotation grew in defeat, battled back in both games and gained invaluable experience against more experienced opponents — all while only playing with two upperclassmen.

Here are a few highlights from Wednesday’s games.

Ethan Butler is one of Sandpoint’s best passers

Whether it’s aggressiveness in the paint in basketball, or his maturity and poise of the mound in baseball, sophomore forward Ethan Butler has made a name for himself for overpowering his opponents during his short, yet blossoming prep sports career.

Yet Butler’s passing from the high post and in pick-and-roll situations is one of the more understated and crucial parts of his game. One wouldn’t expect a still-growing 6’5, 200 pound-underclassmen to be such an adept passer, yet Butler is exactly that.

With soft hands, plenty of mobility in the high post and poise, Butler makes an ideal roll-man for guards like Preston Pettit and Darren Bailey, the latter of whom was the benefactor of several passes during the 46-42 loss to Tekoa.

“Ethan sees the game well and he knows what he’s supposed to do,” Sandpoint head coach Wade Engelson said. “And he passes it really well — in particularly when he’s getting hammered going up.”

The yin and yang of Butler’s game was especially on display on Wednesday afternoon. After trailing Central Valley early, Butler bullied his way to the rack with a personal 8-0 run to start the second quarter. In that game, he finished with 12 points and five rebounds.

A couple hours later, Butler’s back-to-back assists to Arie VanDenBerg and Randy Lane helped Sandpoint reclaim the lead. He finished with six points, seven rebounds and a team-high three assists.

A starting varsity role isn’t out of the question for the sophomore — even by the time the Bulldogs play with a full roster.

The kids are alright

Save for the Kentucky Wildcats or the Duke Blue Devils, suiting up more freshman than upperclassmen is usually a troubling sight. And although the Bulldogs had more freshmen available than returners on Wednesday, Engelson was pleased with their performance against varsity-level competition.

“They have been playing AAU basketball against some of the best players in the region for a number of years,” Engelson said. “So when they step in, it’s not foreign territory. It’s like, ‘We’ve been here, we’ve done this.”

The leader on Wednesday was Arie VanDenBerg, who hit his first three shots to start the Tekoa game en route to finishing with a team-high 18 points. Fellow guard Preston Pettit stepped into the point guard role with better-than-expected results; he could be the Bulldogs’ solution at point guard once Kobe Banks graduates next spring.

Although Jacob Eldridge, Evan Dickinson and Randy Lane had smaller roles, they were invaluable given Sandpoint’s thin bench. Eldridge fought in the paint alongside Butler, while Lane — a lanky wing with great ball handling, fluid movement on the court and a solid midrange game — looked like a man among boys while swinging for the freshman team in between games. Dickinson, meanwhile, always seemed to be in the right place at the right time on the boards; despite going scoreless, the freshman finished with three rebounds in the Tekoa game.

All in all, each freshmen brings something different to the table for Sandpoint’s teams — regardless of which team they suit up for in the winter.

But if there’s a common thread between all of them, then it’s their defensive instincts. The freshmen have uncanny communication on the court: When Sandpoint turned up the pressure on defense, the freshmen didn’t play out-of-control or rushed. Instead, they executed defensive switches often, stayed put on Tekoa’s moves off-the-dribble and used steady footwork to pick off passes and prevent cutters. They carried themselves like upperclassmen on Wednesday, which bodes well for the team’s future trials.

“When we’re playing and we get down six or eight or ten, you don’t see anyone jogging with their heads down,” Engelson said. “They all work and they all play really hard for one another. I really love the effort and energy these guys bring.”

The Bulldogs have learned the offense quickly

Yes, it’s early of Engelson’s second year at the helm of Sandpoint’s program, but the team looks like it’s grasped Engelson’s offense and then some.

The team’s ability to learn on the fly was especially evident on an out-of-bounds play late in the Tekoa game. After Pettit received the inbounds pass, Engelson directed a double-screen between four Bulldogs on the low block. Bailey, a known commodity after burning the Timberwolves to take a 40-38 lead, flared out to the opposite wing, which stretched Tekoa’s zone. Now with a mismatch in the paint, Butler set a hard screen on VanDenBerg’s defender, who was lost in the dust as he curled around Butler and received an easy entry pass for a layup.

“We’ve never practiced that play this summer. I drew it up and they ran it to perfection,” Engelson said. “When those plays don’t work, you look pretty stupid, but when they work, you look like a genius.”

In that moment, the Bulldogs didn’t look quite so young after all.

Game 1

C. Valley 11 4 18 9 — 42

Sandpoint 7 10 6 10 — 33

CENTRAL VALLEY — Roster unavailable.

SANDPOINT — Bailey 8, VanDenBerg 8, Butler 12, Pettit 1, Eldridge 2, Parsley 1, Lane 1, Dickinson 0

Game 2

Tekoa 6 8 20 8 4 — 46

Sandpoint 16 5 12 9 0 — 42

Tekoa — Roster unavailable.

SANDPOINT — Bailey 8, VanDenBerg 18, Butler 6, Pettit 4, Eldridge 0, Parsley 4, Lane 2, Dickinson 0