Players to Watch:
Mason Hensley, Lakeland
Ben Roth, Lakeland
Parker Bogar, Lewiston
Royce Fisher, Lewiston
Grant Abendroth, Moscow
Traiden Cummings, Moscow
Derrick Chamberlain, Sandpoint
Emerik Jones, Sandpoint
Written by: Brandon Baney
A year ago, the Class 5A Inland Empire League race was akin to pushing a heavy boulder up a steep mountainside. Just when someone would gather a little momentum, the boulder would come tumbling back down, and force that team to start over back at square one.
Lakeland, Moscow and Sandpoint all traded leads in the league standings last year, and all three finished with sub-.500 records along the way. The Bulldogs ultimately survived the IEL gauntlet, taking down Moscow twice in the best-of-three district championship series (once in double overtime) to advance to state. Sandpoint promptly went two-and-out, falling to eventual state champ Pocatello in the first round, and Twin Falls in a loser-out contest.
So with all three teams struggling to gain their footing in the IEL race last season, perhaps it’s no surprise that newcomer Lewiston was selected as the preseason favorite in our coaches poll. The Bengals have moved down from Class 6A competition, and boast a strong team.
Third-year coach Brooks Malm will have to figure out how to replace the production of departed senior Jordan Bramlett. Bramlett averaged 16 points per game last season and was an All-League selection. It starts with senior forward Parker Bogar and continues with junior guards Royce Fisher and Jordan Walker. Another player Malm has big expectations for is sophomore guard Blaze Hepburn. “Blaze played on varsity as a freshman, and we are expecting him to take a step forward,” says Hepburn.
For the moment, though, Sandpoint is the reigning district champion. Like Lewiston, fourth-year head coach Brian Childs will have to adjust to life without his son, Parker Childs. Parker led the Bulldogs in scoring, assists and steals a year ago, and was second in rebounding. However, Parker was the only senior that graduated a year ago, which has the elder Childs excited.
“We have size and the ability to score inside,” says coach Childs. “We want to first push the ball in transition and use our athleticism. If we don’t have anything (in transition), then we’ll play through the post.”
This is a tall Sandpoint team, as the four returning starters all stand six-feet or taller. 6-foot-1 sophomore Knox Williams triggers the attack at point guard. He’s flanked by 6-foot-5 senior Emerik Jones and 6-foot-7 wing Logan Roos on the wings. 6-foot-7 sophomore Derrick Chamberlain anchors the paint.
“We should be able to mix up our defenses and use our length to our advantage,” Childs adds.
Moscow won the regular season crown last year before falling to Sandpoint at districts. Josh Uhrig embarks on his tenth season as the Bears’ head coach, and has a stockpile of guards he can lean on.
“We installed a new offense this year that is very structured and contains a lot of motion,” says Uhrig. “It’s very much read-and-react. Our guards will need to make quick, accurate decisions, and have better ball security. We had too many turnovers last year. We need to keep the turnovers down so we can maximize each possession.”
Seniors Grant Abendroth, Traiden Cummings and Tyson Izzo are all penciled in as starters in Moscow’s guard-heavy lineup. “Tyson will set the tone defensively,” says Uhrig. “He is a physical guard with great footwork. Ball pressure and proper help-side defense is our focus this year. We won’t turn teams over much, but we want them shooting contested shots.”
Also competing for playing time are seniors JP Breese, Andrew Hurley, Maurice Bethel and Connor Isakson. You’ll notice of the seven Moscow players we’ve identified so far, all of them are guards and all of them are seniors.
“Our roster contains ten seniors, so I’m very excited about the experience and IQ that this group has,” says Uhrig. “We are throwing a lot of new stuff at them, but they have the basketball knowledge to be able to execute.”
Lakeland is working with a brand new coach in Caleb De Fabiis, who moved to Rathdrum from California this offseason. Caleb’s father, Jerry De Fabiis, is a California coaching legend, compiling 529 wins, 17 consecutive league titles, three CIF championships and a state regional championship. Long story short, coaching is in his genes.
That coaching change has put the IEL’s other members on notice. “Lakeland had a rough end to the season last year,” says Uhrig. “But they have some very good young guys coming up and they can make a run late.”
The Hawks will rely on guards Mason Hensley (senior), Gabe Harris (senior), Jace Taylor (junior) and Peyton Hillman (junior) to take the pressure off of senior forward Ben Roth and junior center Baryden Carrel inside.
“It is my first year but we returned our best players, in my opinion,” says De Fabiis. “I love the group of guys that we have. It’s a very close-knit group and they are playing for something bigger than themselves. They could care less about personal accolades, they just want to win.”
“Our best basketball is down the road,” he adds. “Keep an eye on us in February and March.”