Call it crazy, call it guts. Call it faith, call it instincts. Or maybe it’s wildly unbelievable luck.
Whatever it is, Rich Dunn, Snake River High School’s girls basketball and baseball head coach, loves to gamble, especially when the stakes are the highest.
And why not? He’s been spot on in two state title games separated by three months.
Dunn had the state’s best 3A team in basketball. Apart from a home loss to Soda Springs and a road defeat at Marsh Valley, the Panthers rumbled through the regular season with a vicious man-to-man defense.
Snake River’s winning formula: pressure ball handles, stuff passing lanes, swat passes, force turnovers and race in the open court to score quickly once an opponent succumbed to the suffocation.
The Panthers’ identity permeated from its man defense. It defined them. It was so good that even when they weren’t hitting shots — like in the 33-32 semifinal victory against Parma — Snake could scratch out a victory.
But then in the championship game, Dunn and the Panthers dumped the man-to-man like a used wrapper and switched to a zone defense.
I’ll repeat that.
A team that hadn’t played zone in a game all season — never, not once — decided the best time to unveil it was in the state championship.
And, of course, it worked. The Panthers hadn’t abandoned their man principles. With a clever scheme, Dunn and his players slyly disguised their new defense, finding different ways to cause havoc.
Filer finished with its lowest scoring output of the season while shooting 27 percent from the field and coughing up 22 turnovers.
Can you imagine Jim Boeheim giving up his fabled 2-3 zone defense in the Final Four, to, you know, shake things up?
But Dunn wasn’t just guessing. The Filer Wildcats were big and lacked perimeter shooting. Snake’s zone offset their strengths.
I would’ve guessed that taking one gamble was enough for Dunn. But, no, he couldn’t resist going all in one more time.
It just happened last Saturday, so I’ll spare you some of the details. Here’s the Cliff Notes version: Snake River versus Fruitland. Total distance traveled: 310 miles for the Panthers and about 310 feet for the Grizzlies.
Fan attendance: Snake River with a few dozen and the town of Fruitland encompassing everyone else.
Reputation factor: Let’s see, Fruitland won the two previous titles, and I’m not sure which is bigger, the Grizzlies’ Joe Martarano (6 foot 3, 230 pounds) or his notoriety as an MLB baseball prospect and a Boise State football recruit. Snake’s reputation, well, aren’t they more of a football and basketball school?
Game breakdown and Dunn’s second big gamble: Fruitland’s lineup is brutal. The Grizzlies had scored 69 runs in their previous six state tournament games. So it makes sense to strut out your best pitcher, right?
What if it’s two days after he had just thrown seven innings in a four hit, 14 strikeout 7-0 shutout against Payette in the first round?
If you’re Dunn, yeah, apparently. And like the zone defense, Zane Stephenson was the right move. He was only supposed to pitch an inning, maybe two, a maximum of three.
But seven innings later, Stephenson was still whipping pitch after pitch, finishing off Fruitland with three straight strikeouts. Snake won 8-4 and were the first 3A opponent to knock off the Grizzlies this season.
Both gambles paid off. The zone shut down Filer and Snake won the girls’ first title.
Stephenson’s unreal durability — 14 innings pitched, nine hits, 23 strikeouts and two wins — held on just long enough to outlast Fruitland.
In truth, it wasn’t crazy and it wasn’t luck. Dunn’s instincts were to trust his gut and allow his athletes to come through in the biggest moments. That’s coaching, friends.
Guess he wasn’t really gambling at all.
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