CdA’s hot shooting too much for Shelley in TitleOne consolation semis

IDAHO FALLS — The Shelley Russets had no answer for the red-hot shooting of the Coeur d’Alene Vikings and wing Caden Symons in Friday’s consolation second-round of the TitleOne Tip-Off Classic at the Mountain America Center.

The Vikings (2-2) made 10 3-pointers to just three from the Russets (0-5, 0-0), accounting for the entirety of the difference on the scoreboard, in CdA’s 65-44 victory.

Shelley head coach Keegan Keller said after the game that the key to Star Valley (WY) beating CdA Thursday was the Braves’ ability to contest those jumpshots.

“We weren’t able to do that today,” Keller told EastIdahoSports.com. “We gave them way too many good looks. Someone would put it on the floor, get to the middle — then their 3s were kick-out 3s. It all started with — our initial defense wasn’t good enough. … The 3s they made, I expected them to make them, because they were good shots.”

Symons authored most of that offense, making five 3s himself, including three in the first quarter, when the two teams exchanged advantages.

The first eight-minute period saw one tie and four lead changes, ending in a 19-13 Coeur d’Alene lead. Shelley never saw a lead, or even tie, over the final 24 minutes of action.

Keller said that, not only was his team competitive in the first quarter, they were the better squad for much of it.

“For the first four minutes, we were the best team on the floor. Then, we didn’t ever have that surge come back. We just didn’t play with heart today,” he said.

One key factor in Shelley’s strong start was senior guard Brett Crandall, who scored four points, added a rebound, and had a steal before being forced to leave due to a bloody nose.

When Crandall was lifted, near the midway point of the first quarter, the Russets held a slim lead, 13-11. They didn’t score again in the first.

By the time he re-entered, Shelley trailed by six.

Crandall finished the game with a team-high 17 points, to go with five steals and three rebounds. He was joined in double-figures by senior Landen Smith, who scored 13 points.

Symons, who showed he can score at the rim as well with a fourth-quarter transition dunk, scored a game-high 31 points, with nine rebounds and two blocks.

Coeur d’Alene will play in the consolation championship Friday afternoon, against the winner of the Hillcrest-Century matchup.

The Russets, still searching for their first win of the season, will play in the TitleOne seventh-place game Saturday morning, against the loser of Friday afternoon’s Knights-Diamondbacks all-local 5A showdown.

Asked what his team will need to do to get that elusive first win, Keller said it will be a gut-check game for his team.

“We’re talented enough to do it,” he said. It’s going to be, maybe, just a challenge — a challenge to see who wants to come play the Saturday morning … it’s all about heart, to see who can muster up something.”