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HHS boys earn first win of the season

HHS's Ryan Brandt flys in for a shot during Saturday's Central A game between the Blue Ponies and Belgrade in Havre.

Havre High's Brandon Smith scoops a shot during Friday's game against Livingston in Havre.

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It wasn't the prettiest weekend of basketball the Havre High boys basketball team has ever put together, but the Blue Ponies were still able to come away with at least one win this weekend.

Friday and Saturday the Central A Ponies were at home, hosting two conference opponents. Friday the Livingston Rangers defeated the Ponies 54-43 and Saturday the Ponies rebounded to defeat the Belgrade Panthers 43-40. The win over the Panthers was the first win of the season for the Ponies, who are now 1-3.

The win on Saturday was hard fought by the Ponies. The offense struggled for the second straight game, and really never got anything to hot going. But thanks to a solid defensive performance, the Ponies were able to grab their first win of the season.

"We were both 0-3," Havre High head coach Andy Smith said. "So we were both fighting for our first win. I liked our kids' effort, and when it came right down to it, it came down to who wanted their first win more. And being down 11 with the kids battling and fighting, that was good to see. It wasn't pretty, but to get that win was huge for us.

"We found a sense of urgency on defense," Smith added. "And really played our man-to-man defense well to force turnovers. We really just upped the pressure and the tempo, and I think that our intensity was a lot better."

Without a great defensive performance, the Ponies would still be winless, as the HHS offense was just 13-of-47 for 28 percent on the night. The Ponies were 6-of-30 from two-point range and 7-of-17 from 3-point range. And to make things worse, the majority of the two-field goal misses came right from the paint, as the Ponies just couldn't their offense rolling. At the half, the Ponies trailed 22-17. But mid way through the third quarter, the Ponies suddenly found themselves down 31-20. The offense was still struggling, but the changes the Ponies talked about at halftime eventually resulted in come from behind win.

HHS really brought the pressure on defense with 4:03 remaining in the third. The result was a 10-3 run by the Ponies to cut the Panthers' lead to 33-30 heading into the fourth. In the last four minutes of the third, the Ponies forced four turnovers on defense and an offensive spark by Ryan Brandt with two treys.

In the final frame the Ponies forced six more turnovers. The Ponies also allowed just seven points on one Belgrade field goal and four made free throws. And at the 3:34 mark the Ponies still trialed 37-34, and Brandt fouling out didn't help matters as they lost a huge part of their offense and a key defensive player as

Havre's Thurman Holdsclaw flys in for a layup during Saturday's Central A boys game between the Blue Ponies and Belgrade Panthers at the HHS gymnaiusm.

well. But the Pony defense continued to play hard and replacements like Justin Jensen did an outstanding job in those final three minutes.

Down the stretch the Blue Ponies tied the game at 39-39 on a Brandon Smith free throw. And with 38 second left to play, the Ponies weren't going to let another game slip away. Thurman Holdsclaw grabbed his most important offensive rebound of the night and was fouled, knocking down 2-of-2 free throws and giving HHS a 41-39 lead with 22 second on the clock. And leading 41-40 with eight seconds left, Brandon Smith also hit two free throws to clinch the win, as the Belgrade desperation three fell short at the buzzer.

In the first half the Panthers had 11 offensive rebounds, in the second half they had just three. The Ponies also had 10 turnovers in the first half, but had just two in the second half. Those were all key adjustments at intermission, and coach Smith said that they were two big statistical areas that had to be fixed and his kids stepped up huge to do so.

"That was a pretty good game for us," Brandon Smith said. "Especially since it was against a conference opponent. We played well and it was exciting how we came back."

Brandon Smith led the scoring with 16 points, while Brandt added 12. Holdsclaw also had seven, while Kade Rismon had four. Holdsclaw also led the team in rebounds with 10.

Havre High was happy to get the win on Saturday, but the Ponies weren't as fortunate enough on Friday, when the offense struggled through its game with the Rangers.

And a slow start didn't make things any easier, as the Ponies went down 21-11 after the first quarter and 26-16 at the half. HHS did keep the game close throughout, putting up 26 points in the second half, but the Rangers' 28 second-half points kept any major run by the Ponies at bay.

At times the Pony offense looked alright, but in other times, they struggled to find high percentage shot. In the first quarter they shot about 25 percent from the field, but in the third quarter the Ponies were closer to 40 percent as they found holes in the zone defense. But even with the success found in the third, the Ponies only scored nine points, making it hard to make a sufficient run.

Livingston really hurt the Ponies inside with 6-6 Marcus Payne. He finished with 19 points, and was 7-of-7 from the field and 5-of-8 from the free throw line.

Brandt finished with 18 points for the Ponies, knocking down three treys in the fourth quarter. Brandon Smith followed with 13, but he struggled to knock down shots all night. Rydell Ruff had a decent night with six points.

"It was just a night where we really struggled offensively," Coach Smith said. "Brandon (Smith) really had a rough night shooting, and if we are going to be in games, he has to hit some shots. He got some good looks, but he just didn't knock them down. He is one of our key shooters and we need him to hit some shots for us."

The Ponies are back in action on Thursday when they host Great Falls High.

Livingston 54, Havre 43

Livingston 21 5 12 16 — 54

Havre 11 6 9 18 — 43

Livingston — Brandon Greathouse 1 2-2 4, Kevin Kokot 2 0-1 5, Decker Willson 2 2-2 6, Landon Willyerd 4 0-1 8, Dallas Lussier 4 0-0 12, Marcus Payne 7 5-8 19. Totals: 20 FG 9-14 FT 54.

Havre — Ryan Brandt 6 3-6 18, Rydell Ruff 3 0-0 7, Brandon Smith 4 3-4 13, Thurman Holdsclaw 2 0-0 4, Kade Risman 1 0-0 2.

Totals: 16 FG 6-10 FT 43, 3-pointers — Lussier 4, Kokot, Brandt 3, Smith 2, Ruff

Havre 43, Belgrade 40

Belgrade 8 14 11 7 — 40

Havre 10 7 13 13 — 43

Belgrade — Jereo Bryant 4, Ryan Townsend 4, Shiloh Christopher 8, Trevor Mahn 13, Mark Erickson 11. Totals: 14 6-12.

Havre — Ryan Brandt 12, Rydell Ruff 2, Justin Jensen 2, Brandon Smith 16, Thurman Holdsclaw 7, Kade Rismon 4. Totals: 13 10-15.

Total fouls — Belgrade 16, Havre 15. Fouled out — Brandt, Ruff. Technical foul — Havre coach. 3-pointers — Bryant, Mahn 2, Erickson 3, Brandt 3, Smith 3, Holdsclaw.

 

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