‘Really surreal.’ Bishop Kelly, Cole Valley, Garden Valley headed to title games
Four of the six Idaho high school boys basketball state championships will feature a team from the Treasure Valley.
Bishop Kelly (5A), Cole Valley Christian (4A) and Garden Valley (1A) each made their respective title games, which will be played Saturday at the Ford Idaho Center in Nampa.
Top-seeded Owyhee will go for its third straight championship at the 6A level against No. 3 Lake City.
Here’s how District Three teams fared Friday in the 5A through 1A classifications.
IDAHO 5A BOYS BASKETBALL STATE TOURNAMENT
BISHOP KELLY 63, PRESTON 60 (OT): The Indians outscored the Knights 10-0 to start the fourth quarter, taking a three-point lead on a layup from senior Parker Galloway with 1:35 remaining.
But Conor Goss wasn’t going to let the moment slip away.
The Bishop Kelly senior guard sank a 3-pointer with about 38 seconds left in regulation, forcing overtime against the defending state champions in the semifinals Friday afternoon at the Ford Idaho Center in Nampa.
The Knights (20-6) then survived a wild OT session that saw Preston’s potential game-tying 3-pointer waved off after coach Tyler Jones called a timeout just before the shot was hoisted.
“Oh, my gosh. Well, that worked out very well for us, that’s for sure,” Bishop Kelly coach Andrew Ammann said. “I wasn’t watching the timing of it and how quickly he called it. Thankfully he did though.”
Jones was awarded the timeout with 3.4 seconds left, just before the ball left the hands of senior guard Rhett Schumann.
“There was two, three seconds I was motioning. (The official) was right there for a timeout,” Jones said. “He granted it to us. Unfortunately, it was a little too early, but it is what it is.”
Goss and fellow senior Andrew Johnson combined for all eight of Bishop Kelly’s points in overtime, with Goss totaling a team-leading 25 points. He made 5-of-9 from 3-point range while adding four rebounds, one steal and one assist.
Johnson contributed 12 points and six boards, and junior Cash Davis finished a point short of a double-double with nine points and 12 rebounds.
Bishop Kelly advanced to its first state championship game since 2016. The Knights have two state titles in program history, the last coming in 1998.
“I always knew I’d go to BK growing up, and I always imagined myself going to state ‘ship,” Goss said. “Now that we’re actually here, it just feels really surreal. I’m really grateful for the team I have, for the support I have, coaching I have and for everyone in the BK community. I just really want to bring them home a ‘ship.”
The Knights will face top-seeded Lewiston (22-3) at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Ford Idaho Center.
LEWISTON 58, COLUMBIA 50: Playing on the hardwood at the Ford Idaho Center for the first time in his career, Columbia junior Easton Lott met the moment like a seasoned vet.
He buried a 3-pointer just inside the halfcourt line to end the first quarter and hit another triple at the halftime buzzer to force a 28-28 tie.
But the magic ran out for the Wildcats in the second half, as No. 1 seed Lewiston denied Columbia its first state championship game appearance with a victory in Friday’s semifinal.
“We were talking about it in the locker room. One of our coaches asked us, ‘How many of you want to win a state championship?,’” Lott said. “And we all rose our hand, and he said, ‘It starts tomorrow.’ If we want to win a state championship next year, which we have all our starters coming back, so it’s definitely possible, it starts tomorrow.
“We think we’re really bought in for tomorrow and will be able to win that one.”
Making just its third state tournament appearance in program history, the Wildcats will battle Preston (21-4) for the third-place trophy at noon Saturday at Rocky Mountain High School. Columbia won the consolation title last season, its first state tournament hardware ever.
“It’s not over,” Columbia coach Blaine Wright said. “We won the consolation trophy last year. We’re going to keep upgrading colors of trophies until we find that blue one.”
Lott led Columbia with 18 points, while sophomore JR Whitworth chipped in nine points, and junior Tavin Jones had seven points, three rebounds and three assists.
Lewis-Clark State College commit Royce Fisher paced the Bengals with a game-leading 28 points, shooting 10-for-20 from the field and 4-of-10 from 3-point range. Junior Blaze Hepburn (14 points) and senior Jordan Walker (10 points) also reached double figures for Lewiston.
VALLIVUE 94, BURLEY 72: The Falcons set a state tournament classification record for points scored in an elimination win over the Bobcats on Friday at Rocky Mountain High School in Meridian.
The previous single-game record was 83 points, set by Jerome in 2009.
Five players scored in double figures for Vallivue (20-8), which plays Twin Falls (18-7) for the consolation trophy at 10 a.m. Saturday.
Senior Xander Wilson led the charge for the Falcons with 24 points and 12 rebounds. Fellow senior Noah Mitchell also earned a double-double with 16 points and 12 boards, while senior Dominik Betancourt (19 points), sophomore Victor Gutierrez (14 points) and senior Zakary Hogg (16 points) contributed to the balanced effort.
IDAHO 4A BOYS BASKETBALL STATE TOURNAMENT
COLE VALLEY CHRISTIAN 51, SNAKE RIVER 41: The Chargers notched their 17th consecutive win to move into the state championship game for the second time in three seasons.
No. 2 Cole Valley Christian (21-4) will face defending state champion Bonners Ferry — a 56-53 winner over top-seeded Teton — in the title game at 3:50 p.m. Saturday at the Ford Idaho Center.
The Chargers earned a state runner-up trophy in 2024 and have three championships in program history (2002, 2004, 2012).
Sophomore guard Jamin Hughes led Cole Valley for the second straight day, collecting 13 points with five assists, two steals and two rebounds. Junior guard Madden Compton chipped in 11 points and two rebounds, and junior Eli Hamby and sophomore Soren Fraas had nine points apiece.
MARSH VALLEY 62, HOMEDALE 47: The Trojans’ season came to an end with a loss to the Eagles in a consolation game Friday at Eagle High School.
Senior Lukas Hall was the top scorer for Homedale (14-10) with 18 points to go with four assists, three rebounds, one blocked shot and one steal.
IDAHO 3A BOYS BASKETBALL STATE TOURNAMENT
WENDELL 53, NEW PLYMOUTH 44: The defending state champion Trojans knocked off the Pilgrims in a semifinal matchup Friday night at Meridian High School.
New Plymouth (19-9) draws Ririe (16-10) in the third-place game at 11:30 a.m. Saturday.
Senior point guard Carter Ziemer led the Pilgrims against Wendell, scoring 10 points, and senior center Cohen Evans added nine points and nine rebounds.
FIRTH 76, PARMA 58: Despite a game-leading 33 points from senior Nathan Compas, the Panthers (14-12) were eliminated in a loss to the Cougars on Friday at Meridian High School.
Compas shot 12-for-24 from the field and hit six 3-pointers, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a balanced effort from Firth. The Cougars used a 22-3 run in the second half to pull away for the win and had three players score in double figures, led by junior Wyatt Killpack with 23 points and 10 rebounds.
IDAHO 2A BOYS BASKETBALL STATE TOURNAMENT
KENDRICK 75, NORTH STAR CHARTER 51: The top-seeded and defending state champion Tigers racked up 30 points off turnovers to top the Huskies on Friday at Vallivue High School in Caldwell.
North Star Charter (18-5), playing at the state tournament for the first time since 2014, will play Prairie (19-7) for the third-place trophy at noon Saturday.
Senior guard Ralli Roetcisoender led all scorers with 29 points on 10-for-16 shooting for Kendrick (22-3), while sophomore Paul Cougher was the leading scorer for North Star with 13 points.
MURTAUGH 59, RIMROCK 40: The Red Devils dominated the boards and held the Raiders to just 25% shooting in an elimination game at Vallivue High School in Caldwell.
Rimrock (19-6) was led by sophomore guard Liam Aquiso with 14 points, and freshman guard Casen Aquiso added nine points in the loss.
IDAHO 1A BOYS BASKETBALL STATE TOURNAMENT
GARDEN VALLEY 60, WATERSPRINGS 56: The Wolverines avenged a regular-season loss to the Warriors at the perfect time, earning their 11th straight win and a spot in the state title game.
Garden Valley (22-2) will face No. 1 seed Rockland (24-2) in the title game at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at the Ford Idaho Center. The Bulldogs won the only meeting between the two teams this season, 64-43, on Dec. 6 at the Carey Holiday Tournament.
Senior guard Maxon Yearsley led three Wolverines in double figures with 19 points and four assists. Senior guard Madix Miller notched a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds, and senior forward Elijah Marchand had 13 points and five rebounds.
GREENLEAF 56, COEUR DU CHRIST 42: The Grizzlies have a chance to earn some hardware in their first state tournament appearance since 2007 thanks to a win over the Saints on Friday at Caldwell High School.
Greenleaf (18-10) will play Timberline (Weippe) for the consolation title at 10 a.m. Saturday.
This story was originally published March 6, 2026 at 9:32 PM.
