Preston 62, Pocatello 29

PRESTON - The Preston girls' basketball team racheted up its defense for a 62-29 home win over Pocatello on Saturday.

Pocatello scored more than eight points in a quarter just once. Preston led 32-12 at the half and 48-16 after three quarters.

"Our defense was solid right from the beginning," Preston coach Ryon Pope said. "We were able to force them into a few turnovers."

Holly Checketts led Preston with 15 points, while Brenna Brigham led Poky with 20.

Preston (14-8, 5-1) next travels to Century on Monday to play for the 4A Fifth District title. Century clinches the title with a victory, while a Preston win means the two have to match up again at Preston on Tuesday for the decider.

Pocatello's season is over.

Rockland 36, Clark County 13

FIRTH - Behind a strong defensive effort, the Rockland girls' basketball team defeated Clark County 36-13 on Saturday.

The Bulldogs allowed no more than five points in any quarter and beat Clark County for the fourth time this season.

Whitney Woodworth led Rockland with 18 points. Kambrie Munk and Amanda Spillett each had 10 rebounds.

"It was a good win for us," Rockland coach Vern Nelson said. "It's not easy to play a team four times and win all four times."

Rockland will next play North Gem on Tuesday with a state tournament berth on the line.

Mackay 44, North Gem 40

FIRTH - The North Gem girls' basketball team hung with Mackay until the bitter end, but lost in the closing moments 44-40.

Cowboys coach Corry Hatch said his team had all the chances in the world to win, but couldn't capatilize on its free throws.

"We shot 34 percent from the line," he said. "If we just shoot 50 percent we win the game."

Still, North Gem had a chance to send the game to overtime on its last possession. But it turned the ball over and allowed Mackay to make two free throws on the other end and go up by four points.

Natalie Semons scored 10 points to lead the Cowboys.

With the loss, North Gem dropped to 15-8 and will next play Rockland on Tuesday for a shot at state.

Boys' Basketball

Sho-Ban 47, Oakley 44

OAKLEY - Magic Smith scored 32 points and the Sho-Ban boys' basketball team defeated Oakley 47-44 on Saturday.

But coach Merle Smith said what made the difference in this game was his team's defense.

"Our defense is playing really well," he said. "Its letting us play with these bigger teams."

Sho-Ban and Oakley stayed closed the whole way, but the Chiefs took a three-point lead in the third quarter. It turned out to be enough.

Smith had to make two free throws at the end to win. But the victory moved Sho-Ban to 14-3 and gave it the No. 1 seed in the distrtict tournament. Next up for the Chiefs is a Tuesday game at Raft River.