THE FRONT ROW WITH JASON ELLIOTT: It's clear, this road is a mess

As any coach will tell you, there’s bound to be a few bumps on the road to a state tournament.

If you can see them, that is.

Then again all you really need to feel comfortable in your surroundings is someone that can get you there, and a little cheesecake when the time is right.

FOR THOSE that prefer the fast route, teams from Coeur d’Alene, Post Falls and Sandpoint took the tri-state route, heading down through the Tri-Cities, across the Blue Mountain Pass in Oregon to the Boise area on Wednesday.

“It was long,” Coeur d’Alene coach Nicole Symons said. “It took us a lot longer than we thought because we had to chain up and take some time. It was a little shady for a while for sure.”

“We had to stop and go a little bit,” Post Falls coach Marc Allert said. “We were going about 25 miles an hour over the pass, and it set us back about 40 to 45 minutes, but it wasn’t anything too bad. I didn’t have to get out and put any chains on.”

Sandpoint wasn’t so lucky in its travels.

“We had a breakdown in the Tri-Cities, so we were cruising along well and ended up spending an extra hour there,” Sandpoint coach Will Love said. “Then we get back on the bus, and it wouldn’t get into gear, so the bus company had to call another bus company to pick us up to take us to La Grande (Ore.), and getting over the Blues took forever, so we got there and had another bus take us to Boise. As soon as they dropped us off and we got to go to dinner, they had to get another bus.”

Through all that, both Coeur d’Alene and Sandpoint, with limited practice time, advanced to the semifinals.

Love was quick to credit the Bulldogs’ 4A Region 1 championship series opponent for getting his team ready for whatever happened next at state.

“Lakeland really got us prepared for this tournament,” Love said. “That was a grind-it-out series and an opening round, or better because of the atmosphere up there. So I give credit to Lakeland for really challenging us and getting ready. The kids have to be ready and execute at this point. If they do that, you’ve got a chance.”

WHILE ITS practice time was cut short, Coeur d’Alene advanced to Friday's 5A semis with a 56-50 win over Boise at the Ford Idaho Center in Nampa

“Rocky Mountain (High in Meridian) was gracious enough to let us hop into their gym,” Symons said. “We got to practice for about an hour and a half. We had a two-hour slot, but were a little late because of the bus. But it was good to get a sweat going."

Due to social distancing guidelines at the Ford Idaho Center, fans are not allowed on the arena floor, teams are spaced 6 feet apart, with chairs properly spaced. Gone — for this year at least — are the student sections behind the baskets, which are often times filled with pep bands, cheerleaders and screaming teenagers.

“It’s a little different than last year,” Coeur d’Alene junior Skylar Burke said. “But honestly, it’s kind of nice because they're not right next to us on the court. And there’s not a big black screen that stops at the end of the court.”

With the arena being cleared after each game for cleaning, teams are also unable to hang out and scout games — that is, unless they were able to purchase tickets through links sent out to each individual school earlier in the week.

Then again, coaches have adjusted.

“We got to watch bits and pieces of the game (on the internet) on our way to the gym,” said Timberlake coach Matt Miller of Parma, who the Tigers met in the semifinals on Friday. “But the connection kept going out. So we will have to try and watch it again.”

Then again, all you really can control is yourself and your team’s preparation at this point.

“We had a great dinner at The Cheesecake Factory that was sponsored by the Parkers as a team,” Symons said. “And it was a nice dinner for the girls and then we went to bed so that the girls were ready to rock and roll.”

Jason Elliott is a sports writer for The Press. He can be reached by telephone at (208) 664-8176, Ext. 2020 or via email at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @JECdAPress.