Because Sunnyside Christian was scheduled to play a boys and girls quarterfinal at the same time Thursday, the boys game with Northwest Christian has been moved to 9 p.m. The Moses Lake Christian Academy vs. T-O/Lummi winner game will be at 7:30. The girls schedule remains the same.

Inchelium High School English teacher Don Francis is a one-man spirit squad.

Donning a yellow clown wig, vintage warm-up suit, and last but not least, a unicycle, Francis helped keep the Hornet faithful cheering throughout their matchup with Mossyrock, even though their team trailed most of the game.

Much of the tiny town of 1,000 or so turned out, Francis said, as well as "just about everyone in Spokane who's ever lived in Inchelium." This is the Hornets' first trip to the State B since 1979, he said.

Francis said the school once tried to start a cheerleading club, but only two girls tried out.

"We only have 63 kids in the high school," he said. "Just about all the girls are playing basketball."

(Photo by Christopher Anderson / The Spokesman-Review)

Just went out to the truck to see the tape of the shot, and Den Boer's left foot was halfway over the 3-point line before he released the shot. Check out KREM-2 tonight, they were in perfect position to catch it.

To answer the question (because I know its out there), referees can't check the video, as far as I know, there's no provision for instant replay in Washington state high school basketball.

Also, SJ-E went six consecutive possessions without scoring before Bryce Johnson's jumper gave them the 53-51 lead with 3.9 seconds left. Before anyone points fingers at the officials, remember the Eagles had ample opportunity to put this away.

The play was called "Triples," designed for Sunnyside Christian point guard Matthew Haak to catch the ball and go at the basket, with Chad Den Boer spotting up for a jumper.

Instead, Den Boer ended up with it left of halfcourt, drove at a St. John-Endicott defender, and hit a floating 3-pointer at the buzzer for a 54-53 win.

Now, there was some controversy as to whether Den Boer's shot was a 3-pointer or a 2-pointer, but Den Boer was pretty sure.

"I'm 95 percent sure I was behind the line," he said.

SJ-E fans probably disagree, but nobody's opinion matters but the three officials, who immediately signaled 3-pointer.

After talking to his team, Sunnyside Christian head coach Dean Wagenaar emerged from his locker room and said he didn't think any of his teams at SC had ever won a game like that.

He also relayed a message from one of his players, Aaron Van de Graaf, who told him, "You always see things like that on March Madness, but I never thought it would happen to us."

The flute section of the St. John-Endicott pep band was none too pleased with the outcome of their game against Sunnyside Christian. Down by two with just a few seconds left to play, Sunnyside drove down the floor and #31 Chad den Boer hit what to some looked like the two pointer to tie the game.
The score rang up on the board, a 53-53 tie, but after the officials conferred, the shot was ruled a three-pointer, giving Sunnyside the 54-53 win.

"He was way in front of the line," SJE fan Eric Johnson said of den Boer's shot. Others, most importantly the officials, clearly disagree.

This is one shot they'll be talking about for years.

(Bottom photo by Christopher Anderson / The Spokesman-Review)

Snack vendor Mike Means (photo at right) helps liberate some rambunctious La Salle fans of their hard-earned cash. While "not quite up there with the monster trucks," the State B is by far one of the more lucrative events for the snack trade, Means said.

And how much does Means love hungry teenagers? "More than life itself," he says with a smile.

That La Salle crew needs their calories, too. While there's no official balloting for the loudest fans, they'd definitely be in the running.

Sunnyside Christian's Brittany den Hoed (center, #14) grabs a loose ball and passes to a teammate during the opening round game against Sprague Harrington. Defending on the play is Sprague Harrington's Stacie Shields (left, #20) and Roni Jo Mielke (#10). (Christopher Anderson / The Spokesman-Review)

I'm sitting by the girls court - Sprague-Harrington and Sunnyside Christian are tied at 43 with 1:33 to go. On the other side, NW Christian is ahead of Willapa Valley by 1 with 1:43 to go.

The noise in here is deafening.

Liberty Christian coach Terry Watson celebrates his team's 50-46 win over Wilbur-Creston Wednesday in the Spokane Arena. Hear his comments to the team in the locker room after the game.
Audio: Watson addresses his team in the locker room after the game. (Photo by Colin Mulvany / The Spokesman-Review)

Kim LeBret, her son Eric Pakootas and niece Dani Flett check out the State B Basketball Tournament program Wednesday March 1, 2006 in the Spokane Arena. Labret’s daughter Shelby LeBret is playing for the Inchelium team Wednesday night.

Audio: LeBret talks about her trips to the tournament and shares her thoughts on next year's changes.
(Photo by Colin Mulvany / The Spokesman-Review)

Not all the talent is on the court, of course. Luke Mittge, 13, shares trap set duty with the Willipa Valley High School band (shown here in the midst of pep-band classic "Barbara Ann"). Luke's been drumming for about six years, he says, and sort of downplays the accomplishment of playing in the high school band before he's even in high school (his buddy Dakota says Luke's the "first and only" to have the honor).

OK, we need earplugs early today. There isn't even a band behind us on press row yet, but the Evergreen Lutheran fans are seriously loud. They're only about four rows deep, but could certainly be considered Kennel Club material.

There are all sorts of ways to pass the time at the State B.
Waterville fan Gevi Utzinger has found a one of the more productive ways: She knits those fluffy scarves that are in style right now.
It takes about an hour and a half to knit a scarf from start to finish, she says -- just about the same amount of time as a ballgame.
Wife of the team's assistant coach, she has knitted 10 of the cozy scarves this year.
Some she gives away, others she's had her daughter sell on eBay.
And it looks like she'll have more knitting to do, becuase the Waterville girls won their opening round game.
"I didn't bring enough yarn," she says.

"It's pretty hot in here," said St John-Endicott Eagles mascot, Derek Lautenschlager, as he takes a water break. The Eagles won the game 55-39.
The Eagles mascot (and fans for that matter) have twice the job this year with both the boys and girls in the tourney. Hear it straight from the bird's beak.
(Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review)

Republic has a high-profile team sponsor this year. Bobby Brett sat on the bench with the team at Wednesday morning's first-round game.
After Republic came away with a closer-than-expected win, Brett looked up into the crowd of Republic fans and gave them a thumbs-up.
So what's the connection? Brett coaches a youth league baseball team on which Tiger senior Derek Gianukakis played.

Did you know...
The Waterville fight song is the same as the Washington State Cougars.
And the Shockers are running away with the game against Clallam Bay as we speak.
Update: St. John-Endicott has the same fight song.
This begs the question: What other schools in the tournament share their fight songs with colleges around the country? Tell us in the comments for this post.

The entry forms are down and player reports are up. If you entered one of our bracket games this year, see how your picks size up against everyone else's.

-- Boys game (188 entries)
-- Girls game (115 entries)

The most popular picks to win it all this year were Republic on the boys' side and Sprague-Harrington on the girls' side.

We know what most grownup fans like to have in their arsenal: a tournament program, money for snacks, a radio to listen along.
It's a different story for the preschoolers who come along. One young SJE fan brought what we're assuming no youngster should be without: purple Floam.