Split tourneys a chance to focus

For Cary Finberg and the Columbia Falls basketball teams, two trips to Great Falls are certainly better than one.

The boys basketball team heads to the Electric City this weekend, having just won its sixth straight Northwestern A title. The Wildcats are looking to win their second state championship in four years and continue their run of five straight years with a top-three finish.

The girls team will also be in Great Falls this weekend, practicing halfway across the state to get a chance to watch their classmates in action. Unlike in Class AA and B, the Wildkats, also fresh off a divisional championship, won’t be competing at the same time as their male counterparts.

The top-ranked team in Class A, the Columbia Falls girls will try to win their first state title since 1983 next weekend. That tournament is also in Great Falls, which means a second trip.

That also means a break for their coach, who has led each team simultaneously for the past four months.

“My focus is the boys this week,” Finberg said. “Obviously we’re still practicing with the girls also. But once I get down to Great Falls, the boys, that’s the focus. The assistant coaches will handle the girls. Then come next week, the focus will be all on the girls.”

It’s not easy to get two teams to the state tournament. On Saturday, he became the first coach in the history of Class A to win both a boys and girls divisional title in the same season. Now in his third season coaching both teams, this is the second time he’s gotten both teams to the final weekend.

According to Finberg, just getting there is the hardest part.

“The divisional tournament is kind of the stressful one because you want to advance to the next round,” Finberg said.

“This is it. Regardless of if you take first (at state) or you’re out in two, this is the last weekend. You hope for the best, you hope you go out and play well, but as far as stress goes, no. This is a reward.

“At that point in the season, it is what it is. You go play and hope for the best.”

To try and coach both in the same week would be feasible, Finberg said, as is coaching both teams at divisional. But, with up to 12 new teams to prepare for instead of nine he’s coached against twice that year, pulling double duty the same weekend at state would be much tougher.

“I would much rather have it be split up than together,” Finberg said. “There’s no doubt there.”

Now that they’re in Great Falls, Finberg can turn his sights on getting the Wildcats back to the top of the state. They open against Central A runner-up Havre this afternoon.

“It allows me to focus on the one team,” Finberg said. “The other team is on the back burner. Last year, it was switched where the girls were first. They were my focus that first week.”

And it’s the back burner where he keeps part of his secret to success.

“That’s where you rely on your assistant coaches,” Finberg said. “I’m fortunate with both staffs to have very good assistant coaches. I trust that when I’m not there, they’re getting the job done. That’s part of the credit also. I’m fortunate to have two very good staffs.”

So even with the extra travel time, making two trips to state is a blessing in disguise for the Northwest’s busiest high school basketball coach. Two trips means both his teams are doing well, and that can be as satisfying as getting a week to focus on each team separately.

“I’d rather go back-to-back weeks to Great Falls than not,” Finberg said. “Traveling is just part of the deal. Great Falls is a lot closer than Billings.”

Joseph Terry is a sports reporter and columnist for The Daily Inter Lake. He can be reached at the newsroom by phone at (406) 758-4463 or by email at jterry@dailyinterlake.com. This column can now be found online at www.DailyInterLake.com.