Girls’ Basketball Whip-Around: 1-seeds dominate in Thursday tourney play

EASTERN IDAHO — Five local 1-seeds were in action Thursday night, winning their matchups by an average of 25.6 points.

Mackay’s 46-point victory over North Gem offset that average a bit, but Pocatello’s nine-point victory over Preston was the only of those five games decided by fewer than 10.

The 1’s weren’t the only teams that held serve. Of the 15 local girls’ district tourney games, Madison was the only underdog to earn an upset, beating the Titans by two at Thunder Ridge High School.

Here is a rundown of Thursday’s playoff games:

1A

The top-seeded Miners crushed the 8th-seeded North Gem Cowboys, 52-6, at Mackay High School, earning passage into the 1A District 5-6 tournament semifinals. In a bracket that will produce two state berths, Mackay is now two wins from grabbing a spot in Nampa. They will face No. 4 Challis Saturday.

The Vikings earned that spot with a 55-33 home victory over No. 5 Taylor’s Crossing.

On the other side of the 1A D5-6 bracket, No. 3 Leadore beat No. 6 Sho-Ban, 49-18, and No. 2 Rockland bested No. 7 Grace Lutheran, 60-31.

The Mustangs and Bulldogs will meet Saturday for a spot in the district championships.

North Gem will face Taylor’s Crossing, and Grace Lutheran will be at Sho-Ban Saturday, with the winners advancing in the losers’ bracket. The two losing teams will be eliminated.

3A

No. 1 Malad got 21 points from senior Brynnlee Jones and 17 from fellow senior Mikell Keetch, coasting to a 71-41 victory over No. 5 West Side. The Pirates got a team-high 12 from junior Ana Mariscal-Weinert.

The Dragons are now one win from claiming one of two state spots available to the 3A D4-5 bracket. They will face No. 2 Aberdeen on Monday for that spot.

The Tigers beat No. 6 Declo, 47-39, to get that tournament championship berth.

No. 3 Wendell squeaked past No. 4 Soda Springs, 41-40, eliminating the Cardinals and advancing to face West Side on Saturday. Declo awaits the winner, with the higher seed hosting a loser-out game on Monday.

4A

Marsh Valley has dispatched every other 4A opponent it has faced. But Bear Lake has been a problem for the Eagles all season, beating them twice by a combined 49 points.

The 1-seed Bears made it a 3-0 season against their conference rivals, beating the 2-seed Eagles 60-30 at Bear Lake High School.

Bear Lake will play in Tuesday’s 4A D5 tournament championship round, facing the winner of a Saturday matchup between Marsh Valley and No. 3 Snake River — who dispatched No. 4 American Falls with a 40-26 win Thursday.

5A

With one state berth up for grabs, top-seeded and reigning champ Pocatello opened its 5A D5 playoff run with a 43-34 win over No. 2 Preston. The Thunder are now one win away from booking their return to Nampa.

Preston will face No. 3 Century for a third time in just over a week on Tuesday. They have beaten the Diamondbacks by more than 20 points all three times the two teams have faced this season.

Blackfoot also handled their business. The one-seed beat No. 4 Shelley, 57-44, behind a 20-point game from sophomore Lexi Jackman.

RELATED | Youth on full display as Broncos best rival Russets in district tourney quarters

Thursday’s schedule featured another 5A D6 rivalry matchup, between No. 2 Hillcrest and No. 3 Skyline. The Knights earned a 64-41 victory to schedule a battle with the Broncos — on Tuesday — with a trip to Nampa on the line.

On Saturday, Shelley will face No. 5 Bonneville, who beat and eliminated No. 6 Idaho Falls, 63-56, as part of Thursday’s schedule. The loser of that game will be eliminated, while the winner earns a Tuesday matchup with Skyline.

6A

No. 3 Highland bounced back from a first-round home loss to No. 4 Madison by beating No. 5 Canyon Ridge at Highland High School. The Rams still have a path to one of two 6A D4-5-6 tourney state berths, which would require them to win their next two games.

The Bobcats kept their upset run going, with a 51-49 victory over No. 2 Thunder Ridge. Madison will face rival Rigby, the undefeated top seed, on Tuesday, with a state bid in the balance. The loser of that game will face the winner of Highland-Thunder Ridge for the second state bid.

The 4A D6 tournament resumes Friday night with the only local girls’ game on the schedule. Undefeated reigning state champ Sugar-Salem, the No. 1 seed, will face No. 2 Teton with a spot in the tourney championship round on the line.