Skyline took Highland to triple overtime and fell short by two points in an epic battle on the hill on Tuesday. Skyline will now face the 5th place Boise team on Saturday, 2/25 at 1 p.m. at Burley High School for a berth to state. Skyline will play the winner of Boise vs. Eagle, which will be played on 2/23.
(From the Post Register)
At Pocatello, a wild ending capped Skyline High School’s 60-58 upset of Highland in boys basketball Friday night.
Skyline trailed by as much as 11 points in the fourth quarter until Ryan Cooper drained a 3-pointer to give the Grizzlies their first lead of the night with less than a minute to go.
Highland then tied the game at the free-throw line and had several fouls to give with 23 seconds left. The Rams eventually forced a turnover with 12 seconds left and broke down the court. But Braeden Mitchell swiped a pass at his own wing, heaved the ball to Joel Martin…who found Landon Austin for the game-winning layup as time expired.
“It was amazing how it came together,” Skyline coach Ty Shippen said. “There was a turnover, and then we stole it, and it was perfect timing…”
The win is the first for Skyline at Highland during the regular season since 1989, and just the third in school history.
“It’s a big confidence booster for us,” Shippen said. “We’ve had a lot close games this year. Some have gone our way and some haven’t. But it was nice for that to happen for us. It gives us more momentum toward the end of the season.”
Martin led Skyline by hitting four 3-pointers and scoring 16 points. Tyson Dennert added 12 and Mitchell scored nine. Skyline (8-8 overall, 2-1 conference) travels to Idaho Falls on Wednesday. (Visit www.postregister.com for the full article.)
Here is the “Game of the Week” Footage from KPVI:
Jan 212012
Skyline held on to defeat Madison in Rexburg on Friday night on a ankle-breaking crossover and finish by Landon Austin as time expired. Joe Grinnell stepped up big in his first start as a Grizzly, helping shore up Skyline’s inside game with the ankle injury to starting center Henry Russell that has kept him out of the last two games. Tyson Dennert led the way with great shooting from beyond the arc, hitting four treys and finishing with 16 points despite fouling out less than midway through the 4th quarter. Scottie Allison lit it up in the first half with clutch threes and aggressive dribble penetration.
Here is part of the recap from the Post Register:
Landon Austin hit a layup with 1.5 seconds left in regulation to lift the Skyline High School boys basketball team to a 66-64 nonconference win at Madison on Friday night. The game went back and forth in the first half, with Madison taking a 19-14 lead after one quarter and Skyline grabbing a 30-27 lead heading into halftime.
Madison knocked down a shot to tie the game at 64 with 30 seconds left, and Skyline held the ball for a final shot. Austin started his drive from the top of the key with six seconds left and made a nice move in the lane before hitting a shot while being fouled. He missed the ensuing foul shot but Madison couldn’t answer. The Grizzlies (7-7) were red hot from 3-point range, hitting 7 of 11 from deep in the first half and 10 of 15 for the game….
Tyson Dennert was perfect in four attempts from beyond the arc and finished with 16 points and a team-high seven rebounds before fouling out. Scott Allison was 3 of 4 from 3-point range and scored 15 points, while Braeden Mitchell made 2 of his 3 attempts from deep and added nine points.
Shippen also praised the play of Joe Grinnell, who stepped in for Henry Russell in the post and scored nine points and played solid defense.”
(By the way, Landon Austin missed that last foul shot on purpose–the smart thing to do when up by two with 1.5 seconds left!) :)
Skyline is 4-0 vs. the 2011 4A State Champions over the past two seasons. Check back for video highlights of the game.
After a pair of tight games in the first week of the new year, including a buzzer beater loss against #1 ranked Rigby and a buzzer beater chance against Highland, the Skyline boys team came back with a pair of double digit victories. The wins included an 11 point victory at Bonneville and the second was a 20 point win versus district rival Idaho Falls. The win puts Skyline at 1-1 in conference and 6-6 overall. The Grizz are off from conference play until January 27th but look to continue to gain momentum going into the second half of the season.
Grizz head into the break at a 4-4 mark. Skyline has had a pair of overtime thrillers, a couple of remarkable comebacks, and some hard fought victories including an emotional win at Pocatello and a home win over defending state 4A champs Madison Bobcats. With the exception of two large victories over Clearfield and Blackfoot and a loss versus Hillcrest with center Henry Russell out of the game with an illness, every other game has come down to the wire. It is evident there is a high level of play in the High Country Conference this season across the board. The new year should yield some exciting finishes and the Grizz are ready for the challenge! The first few steps into 2012 include a trip to #1 ranked Rigby trojans this coming wednesday and the conference opener versus Highland on friday. From the Skyline team to Skyline Nation we want to wish you a Happy Holiday and we’ll see you at the games. Go Grizz!!!
To the IHSAA,
As concerned parents, coaches, administrators, and patrons, we are requesting that the unfair representation for 5A Districts 5 & 6 be addressed and rectified for the 2011 state boys and girls basketball tournaments. As it stands, 50% of 5A District 1 & 2 teams and 45.4% of 5A District 3 teams will go to the state tournament this year, but only 33.3% of District 5 & 6 teams.
The situation is readily remedied with a simple solution: a play-in in game for the second place team in District 5 & 6 versus the fifth place team in District 3. Please add consideration of allowing this play-in game to the agenda for the January 17th and 18th IHSAA board meetings.
Relevant Information
As a result of the IHSAA’s decision to allow Madison to move to 4A, District 5 & 6 5A teams lost two counter games AND a 0.5 play-in game to the state tournament. This has created the following situation. As stated, Districts 1 & 2 (Northern Idaho) get 2 of 4 teams into the state tournament. (50% of the teams) District 3 (Boise area) gets 5 of 11 teams into the state tournament. (45.5% of the teams.) District 4 (Magic Valley / Sun Valley area) doesn’t have any 5A teams. Districts 5 & 6 get 1 of 3 teams into the state tournament (33.3% of the teams)
Point #1: If the goal of the IHSAA is to have all areas of the state represented fairly, then this goal is not being met in 5A basketball. District 5 & 6 should have a play-in game based on the formula used for years by the IHSAA to determine representation for the state tournament. The formula (as provided by longtime Highland Athletic Director Don Neves to Highland Coach Chris Frost) is as follows:
# of teams in the district / total # of teams in the classification x 8 (# of state tournament berths)
Based on this formula, District 1 & 2 should get 1.77 teams, District 3 should get 4.88, and Districts 5 & 6 should get 1.33. It is evident a play-in game is needed to allow for fair representation and keep with the formula.
Point #2: If the goal is to have the best teams represented in the state tournament, a play-in game is a must. Eastern Idaho teams have fared very well in the state tournament, and to only have one team represented in the tournament will be unfortunate.
Point #3: Skyline, Idaho Falls, and Highland should not be punished unfairly for the IHSAA’s decision to allow Madison to drop down to 4A even though their reported enrollment was only 4.5 students under the cut-off of 1280. The IHSAA’s classification change request form asks the following questions:
“How will this proposal impact other schools within the same classification?” “Will this proposal impact any other classification and if so describe the outcome?” “How will this proposal impact league or conference play?”
The detrimental impact of this move for Skyline, Highland, and Idaho Falls is evident in the loss of two counter games should have been considered. Taking away the 0.5 tournament berth added insult to injury and should be remedied for the current season.
Play-in Game Venue Information
There is a 4A play-in scheduled for 2/12 (girls) and 2/26 (boys) in Burley. Burley High School Athletic Director Gordon Kerbs has confirmed there is no conflict with scheduling the 5A play-in games at 3 p.m. to follow the 4A games at 1 p.m., which would create a more exciting tournament atmosphere and increase the efficiency of using the venue. In addition, Kerbs verified that there is no cost for using the facility.
For the sake of our student athletes, we are hopeful that reason and fairness will prevail and the IHSAA will take immediate action in this matter.
Sincerely,
{Skyline, Idaho Falls, and Highland Coaches, Parents, Patrons, and Administrators as well as voices from other districts like Madison Coach Bill Hawkins who supports our effort. }
For more information on how to get involved, contact coachk@skylinehoops.net or call (208)757-8872
Here is the schedule for the Varsity, JV, and Freshman A and B teams for the Pocatello tournament this weekend: Pocatello Basketball Tournament Schedule 2010
Girls and Boys in Grades 2-7: June 14-16th from 9 to Noon. Cost is $40. (Ask about the sibling discount.)
Boys in Grades 8-12: May 24-26 from 5 – 8:00 p.m. Cost is $20.
Make checks payable to Skyline Basketball.
Please click here to download the 2010 Summer Tournament and Camp Schedule / Registration Form for boys in grades 9-12. The deadline to return the registration form was April 9th so contact Coach Shippen immediately if you haven’t turned it in yet.
Thanks to all the players, parents, coaches, students, administrators, cheerleaders, bandmembers, and volunteers who helped make this season a success!
Highlights from the Highland, Pocatello, and I.F. games have been posted on the video page. Enjoy!