Players to Watch:
Grant Clemens, Coeur du Christ
Ben Connelly, Coeur du Christ
Chris Moore, Kootenai
Logan Strobel, Kootenai
Mike Morgan, Mullan
Talan Rupp-Connors, Mullan
Written by: Brandon Baney
The three-team North Star League is filled with excitement, intrigue and action ahead of the 2024-25 season. Longtime league members Kootenai and Mullan will grapple with newcomer Coeur du Christ for supremacy this season.
The North Star League has typically been controlled by Clark Fork in the past, but the Wampus Cats have gone and departed to the Class 2A level, leaving a huge chasm that will be filled by someone else in 2024-25.
Kootenai finished 3-15 last season, while Mullan went 2-16, so early indications actually point to Coeur du Christ Academy as the team to beat. The Saints are competing as a fully-fledged member of the IHSAA for the first time this season, and are chock full of promising athletes that just completed a successful football season.
6-foot-1 freshman Grant Clemens quarterbacked the first Saints football team in school history this fall, and brings those same leadership qualities to the Coeur du Christ backcourt. 5-foot-10 senior Ben Connelly, 5-foot-10 junior Greg Hayes, and 5-foot-10 sophomore John Denke are other familiar names who are making the switch from football to basketball.
Kootenai may have the most talented player in the North Star League in senior Christopher Moore. The athletic forward flirts with a double-double most nights, and he’s joined by senior William Addington in the Warriors’ staring lineup. Sophomores Logan Strobel and Aiden Braz will also be important members of this year’s Kootenai squad.
Mullan returns All-League guard Talan Rupp-Connors, a 5-foot-11 senior. Junior Colten Imes and sophomore Jaden Calvert are also expected to start at guard for the Tigers. 6-foot senior Mike Morgan, know for his abilities as a two-way lineman on the football field, will start at center, and could be a key inside presence for Mullan this season, as well.