Lone local 2A state participant gets tough draw for first round

EASTERN IDAHO — The Grace Grizzlies have a difficult opening-round matchup, as they draw the undefeated Valley Vikings in the first round of the 2A Boys Basketball State Championships.

Grace currently carry a sub-.500 record (12-13) but have gotten hot at the right time, beating regular-season conference champs, Butte County, twice in the District 5-6 tournament twice. Those wins earned the Grizzlies a state play-in game against Oakley, which they won, 49-37, to make it four straight victories.

Now, the No. 7 seed will face the No. 2-seed Vikings, who boast a 22-0 record.

The state tournament begins Thursday, with games at six different venues scheduled to start at noon, 2 p.m., 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. Winners will advance into the semifinal round, while losers will continue to play in hopes of claiming a consolation finish.

Here is how the 2A bracket shakes out.

GRACE GRIZZLIES
Record: 12-13
State seed: #7; District 5-6 champ, play-in winner
Coach: Rory Lloyd, 19th season
Players to watch: F Parker Yost, jr.; G Braden Kimbell, sr.; G Jamie Smith, sr.
Notes: At state for the eighth time in 10 years. … Was just 6-12 on Jan. 30. But the Grizzlies ended the year winning six of their final seven games, including upsetting Butte County twice. The Pirates were ranked third and spent the entire season ranked in the state media poll. … Grace has three state titles to its name with the last coming in 2003. … But it has placed seven times at state since, with the best one being a runner-up finish in 2020.

HAGERMAN PIRATES
Record: 16-8
State seed: #6; District 4 runner-up
Coach: Katie Knight, second season
Key players: G Ky Kendall, sr.; G Martin Gonzalez, sr.; G Wyatt Mavencamp, jr.; G Casen Knight, fr.
Notes: First state tournament appearance since 2009. … Seeking first state trophy since 2009, when it finished third. … Unranked in the final state media poll. … Won its only state title in 1972 and last reached the finals in 2008. … Lost Snake River Conference championship to Valley before beating Oakley in overtime in the true second-place game to make state. … Kendall and Gonzalez are 1,000-point scorers. … Kendall leads with 19 points and 3.5 steals per game. … Gonzalez leads with 6.9 rebounds per game and averages 13 points per game. … Casen Knight is the son of head coach Katie Knight. … Casen Knight leads with 3.1 assists and averages 7.7 points per game. … 0-3 against field (only played Valley).

KAMIAH KUBS
Record: 21-2
State seed: #1; District 2 runner-up
Coach: Aaron Skinner, ninth season
Players to watch: F Dave Kludt, sr.; G Jaydon Crowe, sr.; G Matthew Oatman, jr.
Notes: Never won a state title game, going 0-5 in state championship games. … Runner-up in 2022, ’13, ’12, ’10 and ’06. … Ranked second in the final state media poll. … David Kludt was selected to the all-state first team last season and has committed to play at the College of Idaho. … Started the season 20-0. … 3-1 vs. 2A state qualifiers. … Third-best scoring offense in 2A (65.0). … Fourth-best scoring defense in 2A (43.0).

KENDRICK TIGERS
Record: 17-7
State seed: #3; District 2 champ
Coach: Steve Kirkland, first year
Players to watch: G Ralli Roetcisoender, jr.; G Maddox Kirkland, so.; G Hudson Kirkland, fr.; G Cade Silflow, jr.
Notes: Fourth straight year going to state. … Won four district titles in a row. … Currently on a 10-game winning streak after a 7-7 start to the season. … Upset top two seeds, Logos and Kamiah, in the district semis and finals. … Its football team, which fields most of the same players, won its fourth consecutive state championship in the fall. … First season moving up to the 2A level. … Won seven state titles, the most recent coming in 2023 in what’s now the 1A classification.

LAKESIDE KNIGHTS
Record: 15-5
State seed: #4; District 1 champ
Coach: James Twoteeth, eighth season
Players to watch: G Tyson Charley, jr.; G Hallah Peone, jr.; PG Preston SpottedHorse, sr.
Notes: Last year’s state runners-up are back at state for the fifth time in six seasons. … Knights have played Lapwai in the last two state title games, winning in 2023 for their second title in four years, and third overall. … Charley, a three-year starter, averages 23.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, 7.7 assists and 2.3 steals. Peone averages 20.2 points and 4.9 assists. SpottedHorse averages 12.7 points and 5.9 rebounds. Sophomore guard Furyus Louie averages 9.5 points per game, and sophomore post Jadin Pluff averages 8.5 points and 5.8 rebounds. … Lost at Kamiah by 11 points in early December. … Unranked in the final state media poll. … Highest scoring average (76.1 ppg) across all classifications.

RIVERSTONE OTTERS
Record: 20-2
State seed: #5; District 3 champ
Coach: Nicholas Kitnikone, first season
Players to watch: PG Amer Sangha, sr.; SF Conrad Ness, sr.; SG Finn Simon, sr.
Notes: Returns to state for the first time since 2021, when it went 15-1 and took second, the only state trophy in program history. … Top defense in 2A (35.5 ppg), allowing the Otters to win games by an average of 20.1 points per night. … Ranked No. 4 in the final state media poll. … Started the year 11-0 and closed on a five-game winning streak. … Only losses came to Victory Charter and Cascade, both state qualifiers. … 2-1 vs. the only 2A state qualifier it faced, Victory Charter. … Sanger leads the team in points (14), assists (3.2) and steals (2.7) per game. … Ness is the only other scorer in double figures (11.4 ppg). … Simon (8 ppg) has committed to play lacrosse at the College of Idaho.

VALLEY VIKINGS
Record: 22-0
State seed: #2; Snake River Conference champion
Coach: Brian Hardy, 13th season
Players to watch: G Josh Hardy, sr.; G Pedro Robles, sr.; F Nathan Christensen, sr.
Notes: Second straight state tournament appearance. … Back-to-back Snake River Conference champions. … Lost the 2024 consolation game. … Searching for its first state trophy since 2015, when it finished third. … Won its only state title in 2001 and last reached the finals in 2018. … State’s only undefeated team. … Average margin of victory of 33 points. … Only two single-digit wins. … Ranked first in the final state media poll. … 3-0 against field (only played Hagerman). … No. 2 offense in 2A (68.7 ppg). … No. 2 defense in 2A (35.7 ppg). … Josh Hardy is the team’s do-it-all point guard and son of head coach Brian Hardy. … Experienced team with seven seniors. … Anyone can lead the team in scoring on any given night.

VICTORY CHARTER VIPERS
Record: 14-9
State seed: #8; District 3 runner-up
Coach: David Weaver, third season
Players to watch: G Cody Luce, sr.; G Jett Wood, sr.; W/F Carson Wood, sr.; W/F Mark Beliy, so.
Notes: Returns to state for third straight year and fourth time in program history. … Won the state consolation title last year, securing its first state tournament trophy and state tournament victories. … Has yet to win a first-round game at state. … Started 2-7 before winning 11 of its last 13 games. … Regular-season champ in the 2A WIC. … Unranked in the final state media poll. … 1-2 vs. the only 2A state qualifier it faced, Riverstone. … Luce leads the team in points (20.5), assists (4.7) and steals (2.4) per game while adding 6.2 rebounds. … Four players average six or more points per game, including Jett Wood (7.4 ppg, 7.9 rebounds), Carson Wood (6.9 ppg) and Beliy (6.5 ppg).