Sugar-Salem, Mackay both miss out after 20-win seasons: breaking down the boys’ basketball brackets

Note: As a bonus to our readers who have followed us into Year 2, the East Idaho Sports staff will post a special story on Sundays – Could be a column, opinion, feature, or just something fun and goofy. Hope you enjoy, and thanks again for coming along on this journey.

EASTERN IDAHO — The Teton Timberwolves had to scrap and claw to beat the No. 1-ranked Sugar-Salem Diggers by one point in Saturday’s 4A District 6 championship game. Their spoil of battle is the No. 1 seed in next week’s state tournament.

The Diggers, on the other hand, get to sit on their 22-3 season record as they watch the tournament from home.

This has been an issue that the (current) 5A D5 teams have long faced: If two of the top teams in the state are in the same district, should there be a way for both to qualify for the tourney?

Both Sugar-Salem and Teton are among the top 12 teams in the state — 8th and 12th, respectively — regardless of class, according to MaxPreps, which is used for state bracket seeding. Sugar-Salem is the top-ranked 4A team, with Teton following as the No. 2-ranked team.

The Diggers are also the top-ranked 4A team according to IdahoSports.com’s coaches poll, voted on by coaches from across the state. The Timberwolves are third in that ranking.

So, we can all agree that both Teton and Sugar-Salem are among the top teams in the state, deserving of spots in the state tournament.

And they aren’t the only ones. The Mackay Miners finished the season fourth in both MaxPreps and the coaches poll among 1A teams, and did not get a bid because they compete against No. 1 Rockland and No. 2 Watersprings.

The question then becomes, should at-large bids be predetermined?

This may be a non-equivalent comparison, but imagine an NBA playoffs in which division champions qualified and the remaining 10 spots were based on pre-determined standings spots, rather than best record.

Using that system, the 26-32 Milwaukee Bucks and 22-36 Memphis Grizzlies would currently be sitting in playoff spots.

The seemingly obvious fix for a system that, while not broken, is at very least outdated would be to have each district champ claim a state berth, with remaining spots going to the teams with the best records among non-district champs.

Baseball recently introduced a super-regional round as the final step in state qualification.

Maybe that could be an answer. A Play-in Saturday, in which the final bid or two for each bracket is decided.

Whatever the answer might be — if one is ever offered — that won’t remedy the fact that Sugar-Salem and the 20-6 Miners will both be looking on this year as 10-14 Filer and 11-14 Dietrich fill spots that could have gone to them.

Anywhoodles, here is how the six brackets break down for D5-6 schools — and which teams each will face in Thursday’s openers.

1A, @ Caldwell HS

The D5-6 champion Rockland Bulldogs have earned the state’s top seed and will face No. 8 Dietrich in the noon game. Rockland faced the Blue Devils at Dietrich High School on Jan. 22, a game the Bulldogs won by 32.

District runners-up Watersprings Warriors are the No. 2 seed and will face Coeur Du Christ in the 7 p.m. game. The two teams did not face each other this year.

2A, @ Vallivue HS

The Grace Grizzlies, who earned their state berth as the victor of an epic district trilogy against Butte County, enter the tournament as the 8-seed. They will face top-seeded Kendrick at noon. Grace has not faced Kendrick this season.

3A, @ Meridian HS

The 3A D6 champion Ririe Bulldogs take the 4-seed and a first-round 2 p.m. showdown with the 5-seed Firth Cougars, the 3A D6 runners-up. In four meetings between the conference rivals this season, Ririe is 3-1, including a pair of district tournament victories.

The 3A D5 champion Soda Springs Cardinals will enter as the 7-seed, and will also face a district foe, the 2-seed Wendell Trojans. Reigning state champion Wendell lost to Declo in the opening round of the district tournament, then won three straight to take second in the district tournament. Wendell won the lone meeting between the two teams, 60-50, on Feb. 4

4A, @ Eagle HS

Teton will face No. 8 Filer in the noon game. The top-seeded Timberwolves did not face the Wildcats this season.

The 4A D5 champion Snake River Panthers will be the 3-seed and face a district foe in the 6-seeded Marsh Valley Eagles at 5 p.m. Snake River won its three previous meetings with the Eagles this season by a combined 56 points.

5A, @ Rocky Mountain HS

Reigning champion Preston takes the 2-seed this year and will face No. 7 Bonneville at 7 p.m. Preston beat the Bees in last year’s state semis. The two teams faced off on Jan. 20, in a game Preston won 56-40.

6A, @ the Ford Idaho Center

The 6A D4-5-6 champion Highland Rams draw the 5-seed and a first-round matchup with 4-seed Kuna in the 2 p.m. game. The Rams have not faced the Kavemen this season.

Rigby surprised the district, beating top-ranked Thunder Ridge in round one after going winless in conference play during the regular season. Then they beat Canyon Ridge to earn the second-place state bid. They will have another uphill battle, as the 8-seed, facing reigning champ Owyhee, the top seed, at noon. The Trojans did not face the Storm this season.