Trojans beat highly-touted Grizzlies for second straight year, advance to first state title game since 2015

NAMPA — It took weathering a pressure-packed, foul- and turnover-filled, big-free-throw-made, 43-minute fourth quarter, but the Post Falls Trojans are headed back to the state title game for the first time in five years.

Post Falls built a 20-point lead early in the fourth, then survived a comeback by Rocky Mountain of Meridian to beat the Grizzlies 73-66 in a state 5A semifinal game Friday night at the Ford Idaho Center.

“I’ve been waiting all four years to get here,” said Post Falls senior and four-year starter Colby Gennett, who scored 20 points, and whose team had lost in the semifinals each of the last three years. “And to do it like this, and to do this against the best team in Idaho, supposedly, it feels so great.”

Post Falls (22-3) will play defending champion Borah (21-5) of Boise tonight at 7 PST for the state title. Borah defeated Eagle 47-43.

It was the second straight year Post Falls had knocked off Rocky at state. The Trojans won 54-50 last year in the first round, when the Grizzlies were two-time defending state champs. This year, Rocky came in ranked No. 1, Post Falls No. 3 in the final state media poll.

Post Falls coach Mike McLean pooh-poohed any suggestion Friday’s result was an upset.

“I don’t know; it’s been two years in a row, right,” he said. “It’s hard to say we’re ever the underdog. We’re in the North. People down here don’t see us, or know what we do. It would be hard to say we were that big of an underdog. Maybe we were.”

Junior forward Alex Horning also scored 20 points, nine in the first quarter when Post Falls attacked Rocky (24-2) inside. Junior point guard Cole Rutherford added 17 points, 11 in the second half, hitting 7 of 13 free throws in the fourth quarter.

Just like in last year’s matchup, Post Falls had to match the intensity and physicality of a bigger Rocky squad. They also had to slow down a Grizzlies squad that likes to get up and down the floor.

“You let Rocky get out in transition, you saw yesterday what they could do (beating Meridian 81-52),” McLean said. “Rocky wants to get out and go, and we wanted to slow it down.

“They’re a lot like the 1980s Lakers, they want to be cute and flying around dunking, having a good time,” he said. “We’re a little more like the Celtics. We’ll get out and go, but if it has to get physical, half-court and grind it out, we felt like we had a chance.

“I think Rocky just kinda bullies people down here.”

Post Falls scored the last 10 points of the first half, which included a 3-pointer by junior reserve James Lee, a run capped by Cole Rutherford’s driving layup through pressure at the buzzer for a 31-26 Trojan halftime lead.

In the third quarter, Gennett ended a 1-minute plus possession with a 3 from the right corner to increase the lead to 41-30. That started a 12-2 run by Post Falls to end the quarter and the Trojans, who shot 72 percent (23 of 32) from the floor for the game, led 50-32.

Horning opened the fourth quarter by driving and dishing to reserve Zack Rodriguez for a layin and a 52-32 lead.

Then came that last seven minutes that McLean described as “lonnnnnng. Lonnnnnnng.”

Rocky, which had won 21 straight since a loss to a Utah squad, went to a full-court press, forced Post Falls into 11 of its 18 turnovers in the final quarter, and inched closer.

But fouls started to add up, and Rocky’s Briggs Ranstrom, an Idaho State signee, fouled out with 3:58 left. Grizzlies coach Dane Roy was whistled for a technical foul, and Gennett hit 3 of 4 free throws to keep Post Falls’ lead at 56-39 with 3:58 left.

But the turnovers started to add up as well, and a three-point play by Straton Rogers with 2:49 left pulled Rocky to within 58-50.

Townsend Tripple missed a dunk that would have brought Rocky to within six. Rutherford sank two free throws and Gennett fed Horning for a layup, and Post Falls was seemingly in control at 62-50 with just under 2 minutes left.

Seemingly.

Rocky got it to within 6 with 42.5 seconds left, and cut it to 69-64 on a 3-pointer by Tanner Hurst with 16.2 seconds left. Hurst was fouled on the shot, but missed the free throw.

Rocky was called for a rebound foul, and Post Falls junior reserve Josiah Shields sank two free throws with 15.2 seconds left.

Rocky’s Cooper Frith, who finished with 15 points, then was fouled on a 3-pointer. He made the first two and intentionally missed the third, but the ball hopped up over the backboard.

Two free throws by Horning with 6.6 seconds left iced it.

“We’ve been preparing all season; this was the game we wanted,” Gennett said. “We knew Rocky was going to bring it to us; we took ’em out last year. We knew we had to come out and fight harder.”

Post Falls was 17 of 27 from the line in the fourth quarter, 22 of 34 for the game. The Trojans made 11 of their last 12 at the line over the final 1:55.

Rutherford, who missed 5 of his first 6 free throws in the fourth quarter, sank 6 of his final 7 over the last 3:15.

“I had to redeem myself there,” Rutherford said. “We knew we had to bring it, and we knew what we had to do to get it done, and we brought it from the tip.”

Post Falls was in the semis for the eighth time in 12 seasons. The Trojans are in the title game for the fourth time during that span, seeking their third title under McLean, in his 13th season as coach. Post Falls won in 2010 and ’15, as well as in 1963 and ’64.

Post Falls lost to Borah in the third-place game in 2018 when Austin Bolt, then a sophomore, scored 28 points. Bolt is now a Boise State football signee, and had 18 points and seven boards, and hit four clutch free throws to put away Eagle in the second semifinal on Friday night.

Rocky Mountain 14 12 6 34 — 66

Post Falls 13 18 19 23 — 73

ROCKY MOUNTAIN — Hansen 5, Rogers 12, Sherle 5, Frith 15, Nead 0, Ranstrom 13, Hurst 5, Tripple 11. Totals 21-47 19-30 66.

POST FALLS — Gennett 20, McLean 9, Rodriguez 2, Rutherford 17, Ballew 0, Lee 3, Horning 20, Shields 2. Totals 23-32 22-34 73.