Columbia Falls won its seventh straight Northwestern A divisional boys’ basketball title with a 64-54 decision over Frenchtown in the title game Saturday night.
Whitefish took the consolation crown with a 59-40 win over Polson. The Bulldogs advanced to the third-place game by beating Libby, 65-41, in the loser-out game.
Columbia Falls (15-5) and Frenchtown (10-10) will represent the Northwestern A in the state tournament March 7-9 in Billings.
Columbia Falls 64, Frenchtown 54
The Broncs had Columbia Falls down 28-22 at halftime, but the Wildcats rallied for 42 second-half points.
Luke Kazlauskas led the Wildcats with 18 points and six rebounds. Alex Presnell added 15 points, while Jared Trinastich chipped in nine points and nine rebounds.
The Wildcats took advantage of their free-throw shooting, making 28 of 37 attempts. Frenchtown was 14 of 24 at the line.
The Wildcats also shot 53 percent from the floor while limiting the Broncs to 39 percent.
Matt Price led Frenchtown with 17 points and John Chapman added 12.
Championship
Frenchtown 7 21 12 14 – 54
Col. Falls 13 9 20 22 – 64
FRENCHTOWN – Matt Price 17, John Chapman 12, Bridger Truett 10, Kyle Cyr 6, Daniel Lebsock 6, Andrew Honken 3. Totals 17 14-24 54.
COLUMBIA FALLS – Luke Kazlauskas 18, Alex Presnell 15, Jared Trinastich 9, Ty Morgan 8, Colin King 4, Trevor Houston 3, Austin Martin 3, Nakia Alexander 2, Jayce Fagerland 2. Totals 17 28-37 64.
3-point goals – Frenchtown 6, Columbia Falls 2. Total fouls – Frenchtown 25, Columbia Falls 21. Fouled out – Lebsock, Morgan. Rebounds – Frenchtown 16 (Truett 7), Columbia Falls 18 (Trinastich 9). Turnovers – Frenchtown 15, Columbia Falls 7.
Whitefish 59, Polson 40
Keaton Nicholson led three Whitefish players in double figures scoring with 13 points to lift the Bulldogs to the win in the consolation game.
Logan Harwood added 11 points and Cooper Olson had 10. Jace Kalbfleisch added nine points and a team-best seven rebounds.
The Bulldogs finished the season at 13-8.
Riley Sampson scored 16 points to pace Polson, which finished at 7-14.
Consolation
Whitefish 14 8 20 17 – 59
Polson 9 4 15 12 – 40
WHITEFISH – Keaton Nicholson 13, Logan Harwood 11, Cooper Olson 10, Jace Kalbfleisch 9, Art Doorn 8, EJ Havens 4, Jake May 2, Brandon Maassau 2. Totals 20 14-16 59.
POLSON – Riley Sampson 16, Will Davey 7, Cedrick Smith 7, Andrew Weltz 4, Hayden Congdon 3, Derek Peel 3. Totals 17 3-7 40.
BUTTE – Stevensville ruled the boards and Butte Central’s home court, and now the No. 2-ranked Yellowjackets rule the Southwestern A.
Zach Gavlak’s 21 points led the way as Stevensville beat Butte Central 55-45, in the divisional boys’ basketball title game at the Maroon Activity Center.
The win avenged Stevi’s only league loss, 51-47 in overtime on this same court. Both the Jackets, 17-3, and the 14-7 Maroons advance to the State A tournament March 7-9 at Billings’ Rimrock Auto Center.
There will be a new state champ. Defending champion Dillon, which beat Anaconda 57-54 in double-overtime in Saturday’s consolation game, can’t challenge because of its triple-overtime loss to Butte Central on Friday.
Dillon edged Hamilton 47-43 and Anaconda beat Corvallis, 61-51 in Saturday’s early loser-out games.
Stevensville 55, Butte Central 45
Jesse Sims added 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Yellowjackets, who won the rebounding battle 36-21. Jared Shultz added 11 points, eight of them coming from the free throw line.
That helped Stevi withstand 25 points by Butte Central’s Brady Tippett.
This was the Jackets’ first divisional title in five seasons. They made state for the second straight year.
Boyd Jenne hit two 3-pointers en route to a 12-point, six-rebound effort in the Beavers’ win over Hamilton.
Chance Kluesner added seven points while Caleb Gillis and Carson King each had six.
Dillon held a 27-13 advantage at the half.
Kameron Kohn went 3 for 3 from beyond the arc and led Hamilton (6-14) with a game-high 14 points. He also grabbed 10 rebounds and registered three blocks.
Butte Central will head to the Class A State tournament, but it wasn’t quite the way the Maroons wanted to.
Stevensville topped the hometown boys 55-45 in the championship game of the Southwestern A Divisional basketball tournament Saturday night at the Maroon Activities Center.
Both the Yellowjackets and the Maroons will head to State, which is in two weeks at the MetraPark Arena in Billings.
Dillon, which battled back for third place, will not be able to defend its title. Several Dillon players watched the game wearing Maroons shirts and cheering in the Butte Central student section.
Zach Gavlak scored 21 points to pace the Yellowjackets (17-3). Jesse Sims scored 12 points and pulled down 11 rebounds, while Jared Schultz scored 11.
Brady Tippett paced BC with a game-high 25 points. Kale Guldseth and Marcus Ferriter each scored six, while Dalton Sessions scored five and Danny Peoples tossed in three.
Connor McGree, Nate Bolstad and Emmett McCarthy also played for the Maroons.
More to come …
Stats
Dillon takes third, BC boys going to State
Updated: February 23, 2013
Dillon’s boys’ basketball team played another epic battle Saturday.
The Beavers beat Anaconda 57-54 in double overtime in the consolation game of the Southwestern A Divisional tournament at the Maroon Activities Center.
The win by Dillon means Butte Central locks up a berth in the Class A State tournament, which is in two weeks in Billings.
Dillon will challenge Stevensville for the other spot if Butte Central wins tonight’s championship game, which is scheduled to start about 8. It will start closer to 9 at a near capacity MAC.
That means one year after Butte Central fans rooted for Dillon to win the girls’ title against Stevensville so the Maroons can have a title game, the Beaver faithful will return the favor tonight.
Boyd Jenne drove for baskets on back-to-back trips down the court to put the Beavers up for good in double overtime.
Anaconda freshman Caleb Stetzner missed an off-balance desperation 3-pointer as time expired.
Jenne scored 13 points to pace the Beavers. Ben Folsom came off the bench with a broken shooting hand and scored 12 points.
Stetzner paced the Copperheads with 17 points. Dennis Stanberry scored 11 and Jackson tossed in nine.
Since 8 p.m. Friday, the Beavers played three full games, including five overtime periods.
Dillon fell in triple overtime to Butte Central in Friday night’s semifinal. The Beavers beat Hamilton in a loser-out game Saturday morning.
Dillon and Anaconda’s boys’ basketball teams survived loser-out games today at the Southwestern A boys’ basketball tournament.
The shorthanded and likely exhausted Beavers beat Hamilton 47-43 at the Maroon Activities Center. The Copperheads topped Corvallis 61-51 at the Butte Civic Center. The teams will meet for third place at 5 p.m. at the MAC.
Only two teams advance to the Class A State tournament, which is in two weeks in Billings. Anaconda could challenge for a spot if the Copperheads take third and Butte Central loses to Stevensville.
Dillon needs to beat Anaconda and hope the Maroons beat the Yellowjackets for a chance to challenge.
Dillon 47, Hamilton 43 With the odds stacked against them, the Beavers rebounded in a bit way.
Boyd Jenne scored 12 points and grabbed six rebounds to lead the Beavers, who played about 13 hours after losing an exhausting triple-overtime semifinal to Butte Central.
Eight Beaveers scored for a team playing without Troy Scott, who left the semifinal in the fourth quarter with what looked to be a serious leg injury. Ben Folsom, who played Friday despite breaking his shooting hand in practice on Monday, didn’t play in the loser-out game.
Chance Kluesner scored seven points, while Caleb Gillis, J.D. Ferris and Carson King scored six and Wyatt Holland tossed in five.
Kameron Kohn scored 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to pace the Broncs, whose season ends with a 6-14 record. Teague Blome scored 10 points.
Anaconda 61, Corvallis 51 Jade Green scored 15 points to lead three Copperheads in double figures in the season-saving win. Jackson Wagner scored 14, and Caleb Stetzner tossed in 12. Also, Dennis and Cory Stanberry each scored eight.
Jayce Gilder, Chase Walker and Chaney Waldo scored 11 points for the Blue Devils.
Colter Bachmeier scored 10 points and Bryden Boehning added nine points and 11 rebounds as Glendive held off Miles City 39-33 to claim third place at the Eastern A boys divisional Saturday at Rimrock Auto Arena at MetraPark.
Lane Woosley hit back-to-back 3-pointers with less than two minutes remaining to pull Miles City (7-15) within 33-30, but Boehning and Ryan Hood each hit free throws late help the Red Devils (16-6) seal the game.
Glendive will have the opportunity to play in a challenge game if Billings Central knocks off Laurel in the championship game later Saturday.
Glendive and Miles City advanced to the consolation game by winning earlier loser-out contests Saturday. The Red Devils held off Sidney 62-59, while the Cowboys topped Hardin 67-59.
Daniel Meyer (32) and Connor Cerkovnik of Central celebrate after Brett Thompson, right, of Laurel, missed a three-pointer at the end of overtime during the Eastern A championship game Saturday. Central won the game 36-34.
On Friday, Jim Stergar talked openly about putting Billings Central’s postseason fate in the hands of his players.
The Rams responded in a big way Saturday night, knocking off archrival Laurel 36-34 to win the Eastern A boys divisional championship game at Rimrock Auto Arena at MetraPark.
Central (14-6) survived a tight fourth quarter, a frantic overtime and two game-winning shot attempts by Laurel standout Brett Thompson to capture its first division crown in three seasons.
“Our motto going into the game was, ‘How bad do you want it?’” said Central’s Daniel Meyer, who finished with game-highs of 22 points and 11 rebounds. “We wanted it more. That’s why we won.”
With the win, the Rams will go into the state tournament in two weeks as the top seed from the Eastern A.
Laurel (18-2) entered the divisional tourney as Class A’s top-ranked team, having lost just once all year — in double overtime in its regular-season finale against AA power Billings Skyview.
To make it to the state tournament, the Locomotives must now survive a challenge game Monday against Glendive, which beat Miles City 39-33 earlier Saturday in the consolation round.
“The bottom line is you don’t have time to pout,” Locomotives coach Pat Hansen said. “You better step up. You better cut it loose and be ready to play on Monday.”
The game marked the fifth consecutive division title game meeting between Central and Laurel. They’d split the previous four.
Thompson had two cracks at winning Saturday’s game, first on an open shot from the right elbow at the buzzer during regulation, and again from the right baseline corner as time expired in overtime.
Both shots missed off the front of the rim.
Central’s Jacob Stanton rolled his left ankle trying to defend Thompson on the final shot of regulation. Though saddled with a pronounced limp from then on, Stanton remained in the game, and made three critical free throws in overtime that made the difference.
“My free throws haven’t been the best, as everyone knows,” smiled Stanton, who predicted he’d be ready to play for the state tournament. “But luckily, somehow, they went in.”
The Rams, who lost their two regular-season meetings against Laurel, won the game with defense.
Thompson scored 16 points and hit three 3s, but the majority of Laurel’s output came in the first three quarters. As the pace slowed late, so did the scoring: the Locomotives didn’t make a field goal and scored just two points combined in the fourth quarter and overtime.
“It was crunch time; it’s a little more intense,” Hansen said. “I think the kids played very hard. But to only score two points in the last 12 minutes or whatever it was, I’ll take responsibility for that. I’ve got to make sure we’re in a better position to score.”
Playing without injured starter Dylan Hanser, the Rams started hot, working the ball quickly into Meyer, their 6-foot-7 big man. Meyer scored 10 points in the first quarter to help build a five-point lead.
But Laurel seemed to settle in from there. With a 3-pointer and another long 2, Thompson spearheaded a 10-0 scoring run that tied the game 19-19. Taylor Maida also hit an important 3 for the Locomotives during the spurt.
Laurel took a one-point lead late in the third quarter on a basket by Jarred Simons, and Thompson banked in a runner just before the buzzer sounded to end the quarter for a three-point advantage.
Neither team scored in the final 3:17 of the fourth. In overtime, a gimpy Stanton made both ends of a double-bonus to give the Rams the lead with 2:28 on the clock. He later hit 1 of 2 from the line to put the Rams up three with 50 seconds left.
A free throw from Bryce Herman pared Laurel’s deficit to two points with 24 seconds remaining, which helped set up Thompson’s final look at an overtime win.
“We say it’s our time, and Billings Central’s got a rich tradition at this time to play at a championship level,” said Stergar, Central’s first-year coach. “I’ve been able to sit back and allow these guys to get it done. And they do it. It’s impressive to watch.”
The state tournament begins March 7 at Rimrock Auto Arena.
Glendive 39, Miles City 33
Colter Bachmeier scored 10 points and Bryden Boehning added nine points and 11 rebounds as Glendive held off Miles City to keep its season alive.
Lane Woosley hit back-to-back 3-pointers with less than two minutes remaining to pull Miles City (7-15) within 33-30, but Boehning and Ryan Hood each hit free throws late help the Red Devils (16-6) seal the game.
Glendive and Miles City advanced to the consolation game by winning earlier loser-out contests Saturday. The Red Devils held off Sidney 62-59, while the Cowboys topped Hardin 67-59.
Dylan Stenseth scored 17 points, Jakob Plagenz had 12 and James Derheim netted 11 to guide the Lewistown boys over Havre 59-56 on Saturday afternoon.
The Blue Ponies outscored the Golden Eagles 34-21 in the second half, but it wasn’t enough to overcome a 38-21 halftime deficit inside CMR Fieldhouse for Central A tournament action.
“The effort was solid start to finish,” Lewistown head coach Jimmy Graham said. “Our youth just shows down the stretch. Fortunately today, we were able to hold on.”
Eight of the 12 players on Lewistown’s roster are sophomores.
“Games like these are what will prep us for a challenge game and I get all these kids back next year,” Graham said.
Havre freshman Dane Warp led the Blue Ponies’ spirited third and fourth quarters, scoring 24 points, including buzzer-beating 3-pointers at the end of both frames.
“Warp is amazing,” Graham said.
Kade Rismon chipped in a double-double tallying 19 points and 13 rebounds.
It just wasn’t enough to overcome Fergus’ key free throw shooting late.
Tre’ Bradley connected on 3 of 4 attempts from the charity stripe, helping seal the victory for the Eagles.
“They needed to know they can win games,” Graham said of his precocious squad.
The Eagles will now prepare for a challenge game on Monday night at 7:30 p.m. at CMR.
Boys (loser-out)
Lewistown…59
Havre…56
Havre…9 13 17 17 – 56
Lewistown…20 18 12 9 – 59
HAVRE—Nate Rismon 3, Dane Warp 24, Alec Drew 1, Brian Smith 2, Ramsey Drew 1, Thurman Holdsclaw 4, Kade Rismon 19, Jase Kato 2. Totals: 22 10-24 56.
LEWISTOWN—Tre’ Bradley 9, Brock Butcher 3, James Derheim 11, Jessey Perry 7, Dylan Stenseth 17, Jakob Plagenz 12. Totals: 18 16-31 59.
3-pointers—Warp 2, Derheim, Stenseth 3, Perry 2, Plagenz. Turnovers—Havre 23, Fergus 15. Total fouls—Havre 25, Fergus 20. Fouled out—Stenseth, Holdsclaw.
Livingston…76 Lewistown…34 (3rd)
Livingston…20 22 22 12 – 76
Lewistown…10 13 8 3 – 34
LIVINGSTON—Caleb Gable 4, Nick Bragg 9, Ladan Ricketts 8, Garrett Schweigert 8, Ryley Heidt 1, Colton Carter 3, Connor Amsk 3, Jesse Darr 11, Daniel Fowlie 11, Colton Gavne 8, Marcus Payne 16. Totals: 29 11-23 74.
LEWISTOWN—Tre’ Bradley 6, Brock Butcher 5, Lane Smith 3, James Derheim 1, Dylan Stenseth 12, Jessey Perry 2, Jakob Plagenz 5. Totals: 8 12-19 34.
3-point field goals: Hamilton 9-24 (Kohn 3-3, Heath 2-3, Blome 2-4, Bartels 1-2, Burt 1-4), B County 5-11 (Jenne 2-5, Ferris 1-1, Kluesner 1-2, Holland 1-2); Rebounds: Hamilton 28 (Kohn 10), B County 28 (Jenne 6); Assists: Hamilton 4 (four players with 1), B County 5 (five players with 1); Blocks: Hamilton 4 (Kohn 3), B County 2 (two players with 1); Steals: Hamilton 4 (four players with 1), B County 8 (Williams 2, King 2); Total Fouls: Hamilton 20, B County 12; Fouled Out: Heath; Turnovers: Hamilton 18, B County 17.
3-point field goals: Anaconda 6-22 (Dennis Stanberry 3-8, Jackson Wagner 2-8, Caleb Stetzner 1-5), B. County 4-19 (Ferris 1-1, Folsom 1-2, Holland 1-3, Kluesner 1-5); Rebounds: Anaconda 32 (Fode 8), B. County 31 (King 8); Assists: Anaconda 7 (Stetzner 3), B. County 6 (six players with 1); Blocks: Anaconda 1 (D. Stanberry), B. County 4 (Williams 2); Steals: Anaconda 14 (D. Stanberry 5), B. County 11 (Boyd 2, Williams 2, Folsom 2); Total Fouls: Anaconda 29, B. County 21; Fouled Out: D. Stanberry; Turnovers: Anaconda 21, B. County 21.
