Spjute sparks Borah boys basketball team

Borah High basketball player Craig Spjute makes the majority of his shots, but two gut-wrenching missed free throws fuel his motivation.

The Lions' senior is the leading scorer in the 5A Southern Idaho Conference this season, averaging 23 points a game.

But the son of a former Boise State and Ricks College standout by the same name went to the line in the first round of last year's state tournament with 14.6 seconds left and the Lions up 59-58 against Post Falls.

Spjute said he had made 44 consecutive free throws, but watched both shots rim out to snap his streak. Post Falls converted a three-point play and added two more free throws to win 63-59.

"I don't think I've cried that much my entire life," Spjute said "It was horrible. After the game, the team tried to cheer me up, my girlfriend tried to cheer me up, but nothing would work. Then I saw it in the paper the next morning and I broke down again."

Motivated by that disappointment, Spjute is bent on taking Borah back to state and writing a happy ending to cap his high school career - like his father did 30 years ago.

Craig Spjute hit a game-winning shot for Boise High in the 1980 state title game, before embarking on his college career.

"I think that is what caused him to really elevate his game,'' said his father, who was at the Idaho Center in Nampa last year and watched his son miss those free throws. "In the long run, you learn a lot from those experiences. I felt his pain, because I've been there. I have missed my fair share of clutch shots, too."

His son has slowly recovered from the pain.

"It was a big struggle for a while, but then I was like, 'OK, it happened, so I have to get over it and I have to be better.' If I get in that situation again, I have got to make them," he said. "I always have strived to be the best I can be. That has really helped me stay motivated."

This season, Spjute is doing the heavy lifting for the Lions (8-9, 7-8 5A SIC), who are struggling with consistency and have lost several close games.

Entering Friday's 7:30 p.m. home game against Meridian, the 6-foot-4 guard/forward leads the conference in free-throw shooting (85-of-99, 85.9 percent). He shoots 54.7 percent from the field (127-of-232), including 36.3 percent from 3-point range (29-of-80).

"This year, he has furnished quite a scoring punch, but the best part is he's truly not denying other players their shots," Borah coach Cary Cada said. "He's shooting the ball very well and he rarely takes a bad shot, which is a sign of an unselfish player."

Spjute also is fourth in the conference in rebounding (7.4 per game) and averages 2.4 assists and 2.4 steals, but he and his coach agree he can improve on defense.

"If I can work a little harder, I have to do that for this team," said Spjute, whose team must finish at least fifth at this month's District Three Tournament to earn an opportunity to play at the state tournament. "Defensively, I have to get better and work to set an example."

While defense may count as a weakness for Spjute, offense certainly isn't. If he finishes the regular season with his current scoring average, he would rank fifth in the conference's 27-year history behind Danny Bower (Caldwell, 1993, 26.0 points and 1992, 23.1), Ricky Bower (Skyview, 1997, 25.7) and Mitch Bruneel (Eagle, 2008, 23.1).

"He's loved basketball since he was little. He works hard, he eats right and does all the little things to get better - more than I ever did at his age," said his father, who played for Boise State in 1984-86.

Despite being the son of a college standout and spending time around the game his entire life, the younger Spjute said he didn't realize he was good at basketball until he was a ninth grader.

"Since then, I've thought, 'I'm not bad at this,' " he said. "É I don't know what I would do without basketball. It's fun for me and it's kept me out of trouble. God and my family are first, but basketball is right there."

His long-time dream is to play at BYU. Spjute said we would welcome an opportunity to play at a junior college if that's what it takes to play for the Cougars, who he is in contact with on a regular basis.

BYU has requested film, while College of Idaho and College of Southern Idaho are among several small four-year schools and community colleges in the region that have expressed interest.

"He plays hard, he works hard and he's always optimistic. He's just a positive influence," Cada said. "É There is no question in my mind that he is going to do extremely well, no matter what his endeavors are. I can't imagine what it's going to be like without him here next year."

But before he leaves, Spjute plans on doing whatever he can to make a dream come true this winter.

"I want to win a state championship," he said. "If I could have it my way, I would love to be down by two and hit a game-winning 3 at the buzzer. Or, even better, I would rather hit two free throws against Post Falls to win the state title. That's my dream.''