STATE 5A BOYS: Fortunately ... Post Falls does just enough to knock off Timberline in state opener
MARK NELKE | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 5 years, 4 months AGO
Mark Nelke covers high school and North Idaho College sports, University of Idaho football and other local/regional sports as a writer, photographer, paginator and editor at the Coeur d’Alene Press. He has been at The Press since 1998 and sports editor since 2002. Before that, Mark was the one-man sports staff for 16 years at the Bonner County Daily Bee in Sandpoint. Earlier, he was sports editor for student newspapers at Spokane Falls Community College and Eastern Washington University. Mark enjoys the NCAA men's basketball tournament and wiener dogs — and not necessarily in that order. | March 6, 2020 1:03 AM
NAMPA — Colby Gennett kept Post Falls afloat just long enough for his Trojan teammates to eventually start heating up.
In a game few expected to be this close, Gennett finished with 17 points, nine rebounds and two steals, and Post Falls inched away late in the second half to finally put away the Timberline Wolves of Boise 39-30 in the first round of the state 5A boys basketball tournament Thursday afternoon at the Ford Idaho Center.
Gennett, the lone senior starter, had 11 points and seven rebounds in the first half, which ended with the Trojans up just 16-15.
“We’re playing tomorrow morning if we don’t have Colby today,” Post Falls coach Mike McLean said. “I don’t think he wanted his season to end the first night.”
Post Falls (21-3) will play Rocky Mountain (24-1) in the semifinals tonight at 5:15 p.m. PST.
Timberline (11-16) kept it close by keeping Post Falls out of the lane, and by hitting four 3-pointers. The Wolves finished with seven 3s, and only four two-point baskets.Nick Zenner, Jake Stranzl and Garret Long hit two 3s each for Timberline, which was 4 of 9 from behind the arc in the first half, 7 of 19 for the game.
“They had some kids step up and hit some 3s that we weren’t expecting … they came to play,” Gennett said of Timberline. “If we play like we did tonight, we’re going to be going home real soon. We were just lucky enough to get by; we’re definitely going to have to pick it up tomorrow.”
Back-to-back inside baskets by Alex Horning gave Post Falls the lead for good at 24-21 midway through the third quarter.
Caden McLean hit his only basket of the game — a 3 from the right corner. Then Gennett got a piece of a 3-point shot by Timberline and scored on the break from Horning to make it 29-21.
A basket by Wade Zenner with 5 minutes left pulled Timberline to within 33-30.
Post Falls then burned nearly 3 minutes of clock running offense on its next possession before Timberline got the ball back.
The Wolves missed a couple of shots, the Trojans rebounded, and Zenner fouled Cole Rutherford near midcourt with 55.8 seconds left. Zenner slapped the scorer’s table in frustration and received a technical foul.
McLean hit both technical free throws, and Rutherford scored on the drive 14 seconds later to clinch the game. Rutherford finished with eight points, Horning seven.
“Sometimes you’ve got to win ugly,” McLean said. “There’s no style points in the postseason. …you’ve got to survive and advance.
I thought tonight we were very much the hunted, and that first half, we lost every 50/50 ball, we were settling, our guys acted like they thought Timberline was going to just be happy to be here.”
Stranzl and Nick Zenner each scored eight points for Timberline, which beat Madison of Rexburg in a play-in game to advance to state for the first time since 2015.
Madison handed Post Falls one of its three losses this season, in Rexburg in December.
“Timberline, that team ran more sets and wrinkles than any team we’ve played this year, and they executed their stuff,” Mike McLean said. “They were very much prepared for us. We were very fortunate to get through that one.”
Timberline 11 4 10 5 — 30
Post Falls 12 4 15 8 — 39
TIMBERLINE — W. Zenner 2, Lumpten 3, N. Zenner 8, Stranzl 8, Long 6, Wiesenhahn 0, Raad 1, Wessels 2. Totals 11-33 1-3 30.
POST FALLS — Gennett 17, McLean 5, Rodriguez 0, Rutherford 8, Ballew 2, Lee 0, Horning 7. Totals 14-35 9-12 39.
MORE IMPORTED STORIES
PREP BOYS BASKETBALL: McLean, Trojans adapt ... In a matchup of 5A IEL teams missing key players, Post Falls routs Lake City
Coeur d'Alene Press | Updated 5 years, 5 months ago
ARTICLES BY MARK NELKE

Former Clark Fork High star athlete undergoes successful heart transplant surgery
The former Windy Eagle, a star athlete at Clark Fork High, had been awaiting a new heart since 2022, when she was diagnosed with cardiac sarcoidosis, an autoimmune disease which attacks the electrical system of her heart.

PREP FOOTBALL: Post Falls runs past Sandpoint
Sandpoint (2-1) hosts Davis High of Yakima on Friday.

Big Sky Football Kickoff: Plenty of new faces will need to step up for Vandals
“I’ve been very impressed by Zach’s natural ability to rush the passer,” Eck said. “And he’s worked hard on his body, he’s up to about 222 pounds now, and I really think he can be a difference maker for us. He’s still doing some things with the linebackers, but I think his speed can give some offensive linemen problems (as an edge rusher).”