Snake River survives Marsh Valley scare, moves into state semis

EAGLE — It is hard to imagine a stranger finish to a high school basketball game.

After failing to score the go-ahead bucket with 30 seconds left, Marsh Valley appeared to get the stop it needed to force overtime when Nash Guthrie blocked Snake River’s Owen Jones at the rim with less than two seconds on the clock. Jones, though, stayed with the play and quickly got up a second-chance attempt, connecting through contact for a potential and-1.

But he and the Panthers, according to the officials, went overboard with their celebration while there was time left on the clock — 0.7 seconds, to be exact — and were called for a technical foul.

What that meant was, after Jones’ free throw attempt for a potential three-point lead, the Eagles would send a player of their choosing to the line for a pair, and would get possession afterwards.

Jones missed his shot, but Marsh Valley senior Jaxson Smith, who came into the game shooting a team-best 81% from the charity stripe, missed both. And after a half-court shot was just wide, Snake River walked off the court 58-56 winners.

“That wasn’t really what we were expecting, but we fought through it and got it done,” Jones told EastIdahoSports.com after the game. “It’s hard to play a team four times in one season.”

Conference foes, the Eagles and Panthers had already faced off three times this season before Thursday’s state tourney opener. Snake River won the first three meetings by a combined 56 points.

But Marsh Valley looked like a different team early.

As Snake River head coach Bob Coombs said after the game, the Eagles played hard, they were making shots and doing a better job of attacking off the dribble.

At least, that was what they did to build a 34-32 halftime advantage.

The Eagles shot 6-of-12 from beyond the arc in the first half, led by senior Tate Whitworth, who finished with 12 points — all coming in the first half.

After that hot start, the Eagles connected on just four 3’s in the second half, on 12 attempts.

Where Snake River did its damage in the second half was in the paint, taking advantage of a significant size advantage. The 6-foot-10 Bridjer Howard finished with nine points on 4-of-7 shooting. And the 6-foot-5 Jones came off the bench to match Marsh Valley’s Smith with a game-high 15.

Jones, according to Coombs, has been the difference-maker for the Panthers. The junior missed the first month or so of the season with a wrist injury. Since his return, Snake River has been just about unbeatable.

After the hard-fought win, Coombs was clear that while there were things with which he was pleased, there was one glaring issue.

“We scored enough points, offensively, to win. Defensively, we’ve got to do a better job tomorrow night if we’re going to win,” he said. “We can’t give up that many points.”

Snake River will face Cole Valley Friday in the 7 p.m. semifinal game at Eagle High School.

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