Chris Peterson
Havre Daily News
cpeterson@havredailynews.com
As we reach the midway point of the District 9C basketball season, North Star High School has put some distance between itself and the rest of the league. Now it's up to everyone else to chase them down.
North Star traveled to Hays-Lodge Pole this weekend in a matchup of the top two teams in the 9C. The T-Birds needed a win to stay within striking distance of the Knights.
The game shaped up to be a very exciting game, and it definitely lived up to expectations.
The T-Birds came out fired up and proved they were not intimidated by the Knights. At the end of the first quarter they held a 15-11 advantage.
In the second quarter, everything seemed to go right for the T-Birds, who were playing with a sense of urgency. They dominated the second quarter and by halftime held a commanding 30-20 lead.
Facing a double-digit deficit heading into the second half, the Knights knew they had to make a run in the third quarter. They did just that, outscoring the T-Birds 13-4 to pull within one point at 34-33 heading into the final period.
The fourth quarter was similar to trench warfare as each team gave very little ground. The two teams would combine for just nine points in the fourth quarter but the Knights scored just enough to force overtime at 39-39.
In the extra frame, defense again was the name of the game. The Knights' Cody Donoven managed to find the basket for the only two points of overtime to give North Star a thrilling 41-39 victory.
Donoven led the way for the Knights with a game-high 15 points in the win. Brandon Melby contributed with 11 points. Cody McCabe and Lance Brockie each poured in 13 points to lead the T-Birds.
Box Elder played host to Turner on Friday night and with each team having identical 2-2 district records, each club had a golden opportunity to gain some important ground in the league standings.
The Bears came out firing as usual, trying to run and gun their way to a victory. But the Tornadoes were able to hold their own early on, and trailed by only three points, 19-16, at the end of the first period. In the second quarter, Turner was still able to keep up with the Bears and trailed 36-31 at the halftime intermission.
However, in the second half Box Elder was finally able to outrun the Tornadoes, and outscored them 32-24 to give the Bears a 68-55 win.
Aaron Henry and Steve Arca were both big, scoring a game-high 21 for the Bears. Dalton Cornell put in a team-high 16 points in the loss, and Chad and Colin Jones each added 11 points.
Rocky Boy hosted Chinook on Friday night in search of its first district win. Things got off to a rocky start as the Stars managed only two points in the first quarter and trailed 6-2. In the second quarter the Stars fought back and found some offense, but so did the Sugarbeeters, and Chinook led 20-17 at the break.
In the third quarter the Stars exploded and scored 23 points to give themselves a 15-point cushion heading into the final stanza. But the Beeters would not lie down and die, and in the fourth quarter they came all the way back with a furious rally to hand the Stars a heartbreaking 48-45 defeat.
Marty Birky led the Beeters with a game-high 18 points. Chad Beck and Adam Hayes each pitched in with 10. For the Stars, Ivan Whitford led the way with 14 points and Lakota Oats contributed 13 points.
The following night, the Stars played host to the Big Sandy Pioneers and from the get-go it was apparent that the Stars had still not fully recovered from their tough loss the night before.
The Pioneers jumped ahead early and never looked back, leading 43-26 at the half. In the second half, things got ugly for the demoralized Stars, as Big Sandy handed them an embarrassing 92-45 defeat.
The Pioneers (2-4 conference, 2-7 overall) got big nights from both Carl Osterman, who scored a game-high 26 points, and Justin Willis, who scored 25 points. The Stars (0-6 conference, 2-8 overall) were led by Ivan Whitford, who managed 18 points. Lakota Oats pitched in 16 points in the difficult defeat.
Turner traveled to Chinook on Saturday night looking to avoid a winless weekend. Chinook grabbed the momentum and jumped ahead early, as the Beeters cruised to an easy 63-44 victory over the Tornadoes.
Marty Birky led the way for the Beeters (4-2 conference, 6-4 overall) with 16 points. Luke Whitney also had a solid outing as he poured in 13. For Turner (2-4 conference, 4-5 overall), Chad Jones had a game-high 17 points.
Also on Saturday night, the Box Elder Bears paid a visit to the first-place North Star Knights with the hopes of handing the Knights their first district loss.
The Knights had the difficult task of slowing down the high-octane Bears' offense led by the dynamic duo of Aaron Henry and Steve Arca. However, the Knights were able to hold the Bears in check for most of the night with their suffocating defense on their way to a 67-52 win.
The Knights (6-0 conference, 8-2 overall) were led by standout Cody Donoven and Shane Rice, who each scored a team-high 18 points. The Bears (3-3 conference, 7-3 overall) were led by Henry's game-high 26-point effort.
Hays-Lodge Pole played host to Winifred on Saturday night in nonconference action and fell 59-40.
Cody McCabe scored a team-high 16 points in the loss, and Lance Brockie also added 12 points in the losing effort.
The Harlem Wildcats took on conference foe Plentywood on Saturday and cruised to a 68-55 victory. Rick Haluszka led the way with 16 points for the Wildcats, and Jordan Mount also pitched in with 15 in the victory.
Harlem went on the road to take on the Malta Mustangs on Thursday night. The Wildcats crushed the Mustangs in a District 2B clash, 81-58, as the Wildcats turned in another solid weekend in what is turning out to be a rather successful season.
Chester-Joplin/Inverness took on Dutton-Brady on Friday night and fell 47-35. Kevin May and Tyler Han each notched 10 points in the defeat.
Saturday night, Chester/J-I met Heart Butte and again fell short of victory as they lost a nail-biter 43-39. Cullen McKinley led the Hawks with 12 points, and Kevin May contributed 11.
Friday
North Star 41, Hays-Lodge Pole 39 OT
North Star 11 9 13 6 2 - 44
Hays-Lodge Pole 15 15 4 5 0 - 39
North Star - Stephen Ramsbacker 2, Alex Chivilicek 2, Darius Wendland 9, Brandon Melby 11, Shane Rice 2, Cody Donoven 15.
HLP - Jordan Werk 2, Cole McCabe 4, Lenny Gray 4, Cody McCabe 13, Ty Hackanson 3, Lance Brockie 13.
Fouls- HLP 15, North Star 13. - 3-pointers - Cody McCabe 2, Hackanson, Brockie 2, Melby.
Box Elder 68, Turner 55
Turner 16 15 11 13 - 55
Box Elder 19 17 15 17 - 68
Turner - Colin Jones 11, Taylor Fouts 4, Chad Jones 11, Logan Fouts 7, Ryan Haugen 6, Dalton Cornell 16. Totals 21 11-19.
Box Elder - Aaron Henry 21, Joel Parker 5, Steve Arca 21, Lane Lamere 4, Mike Sangrey 5, Colton Montes 8, Dustin Bacon 4. Totals 25 16-29.
Fouls - Turner 23, Box Elder 15. Fouled out - Co. Jones. 3-pointers - Ch. Jones, Haugen, Henry, Sangrey.
Chinook 48, Rocky Boy 45
Chinook 6 8 9 25 - 48
Rocky Boy 2 13 23 7 - 45
Chinook - Chad Beck 10, Marty Birky 18, Dallas Miller 5, Jordan Lybeck 5, Adam Hayes 10. Totals: 17 10-20.
Rocky Boy - Ivan Whitford 14, Lakota Oats 13, Justin Big Knife 6, Lewis Sutherland 2, Kyle Standing Rock 10. Totals: 18 6-10.
Total fouls: Chinook 11, Rocky Boy 16. Fouled out: Standing Rock. Three-pointers: Birky 4, Standing Rock 3, Oats 1, Whitford 1.
Dutton-Brady 47, Chester/J-I 35
Dutton-Brady 8 9 17 13 - 47
C/J-I 5 7 10 13 - 35
Dutton-Brady - Jeff Blanchet 12, Travis Hodgson 2, Cody Kitchin 1, Donnie Chippewa 12, Nic Wells 5, Andrew Bishop 15. Totals: 18 11-20.
C/J-I - Derek Fraser 7, Chase Diemert 2, Kevin May 10, Cullen McKinley 5, Tyler Han 10, Shay Richter 1. Totals: 13 6-14.
Fouls - Dutton-Brady 13, CJI 13. Fouled out - Richter. Three-pointers - Fraser, Han 2. Technical fouls - May
Harlem 68, Plentywood 55
Harlem 19 14 19 16 - 68
Plentywood 16 17 16 6 - 55
Harlem - Eddie Moore 11, Neeko Bigby 8, Monty Snow 5, Jordan Mount 15, Rick Haluszka 16, Jeremy Rodney 2, Wally Grantz 11. Totals: 27 9-13.
Plentywood - Heath Howard 11, Andrew Rickett 3, Aubrey Smith 7, Tyler Young 10, Ryate Walstad 2, Zach McCoy 10, Keith Kavon 1, Riley Anderson 11. Totals: 20 9-13.
Fouls - Harlem 17, Plentywood 17. Fouled out - none. Three-pointers - Howard, Smith, Young 2, McCoy, Moore, Bigby, Snow, Mount 2.
Saturday
Chinook 63, Turner 44
Turner 8 10 9 17 - 44
Chinook 10 20 16 17 - 63
Turner - Taylor Fouts 4, Chad Jones 17, Logan Fouts 8, Ryan Haugen 2, Dalton Cornell 11, Garrett Maloney 2. Totals: 15 12-20.
Chinook - Chad Beck 8, Trevor Nicholson 3, Marty Birky 16, Taylor Tollefson 3, Dallas Miller 10, Luke Whitney 13, Jordan Lybeck 4, Adam Hayes 6. Totals: 24 14-21.
Fouls - Turner 17, Chinook 19. Fouled out - Colin Jones, L. Fouts, Miller. Technical fouls - Jones. Three-pointers - Chad Jones, L. Fouts, Nicholson.
Big Sandy 92, Rocky Boy 45
Big Sandy 25 18 21 28 - 92
Rocky Boy 14 12 14 5 - 45
Big Sandy - Justin Willis 25, Lawrence Jappe 4, Kyle Danreuther 8, John Sheehy 8, Chris LaBuda 10, Karl Osterman 26, Darren Ray 5, Logan Darlington 6. Totals: 37 13-19.
Rocky Boy - Ivan Whitford 18, Lakota Oats 12, Kyle Standing Rock 2, Daniel Nault 3, Justin Ahenakew 10. Totals: 18 2-4.
Fouls - Big Sandy 12, Rocky Boy 18. Fouled out - Oats. Three-pointers - Willis, LaBuda 2, Osterman 2, Whitford 3, Oats, Ahenakew 2, Nault.
North Star 67, Box Elder 52
North Star 21 17 12 17 - 67
Box Elder 11 14 14 13 - 52
North Star - Stephen Ramsbacker 3, Darius Wendland 14, Brandon Melby 14, Shane Rice 18, Cody Donoven 18. Totals: 21 25-34.
Box Elder - Steven Arca 6, Aaron Henry 26, Dustin Bacon 3, Lane Lamere 4, Joel Parker 6, Mike Sangrey 7. Totals: 17 6-13.
Fouls - North Star 15, Box Elder 20. Fouled out - Lamere, Bacon. Technical fouls - Lamere, Arca. Three-pointers - Henry 2, Sangrey 2.
Winifred 59, Hays-Lodge Pole 40
Winifred 10 16 22 11 - 59
Hays-Lodge Pole 6 6 16 12 - 40
Winifred - B. Foran 23, J. Foran 2, Z. Wichman 2, T.J. Foran 6, K .Berg 2, L .Heggen 6, G. Carr 13. Totals - 23 12-15 59
HLP - V. Fortin 2, J. Werk 2, L. Gray 2, C. McCabe 16, V. Gone 6, L. Brockie 12. Totals - 16 1-6 40
Total fouls - Winifred 12, HLP 17. Fouled out - none. 3-pointers - C. McCabe 3, V. Gone 2, L. Brockie 2.
Heart Butte 43 Chester/J-I 39
C/J-I 6 12 16 6 - 39
Heart Butte 4 13 12 14 - 43
C/J-I - Frazer 3, Diemert 8, May 11, McKinley 12, Han 5. Totals: 14 10-14 39.
Heart Butte - Whitcomb 13, Wombold 6, Armstrong 8, Horn 4, Brave Rock 10. Totals: 18 7-8.
Total fouls:C/J-I 14, Heart Butte 13. Fouled out: none. Three-point goals: Han, Whitcomb.
