Beeters slow down Tornadoes

The Chinook Sugarbeeters wasted little time announcing their presence at the 2013 District 9C boys basketball tournament. In fact, after one quarter against the Turner Tornadoes, Chinook showed it's still going to be a force to be reckoned with over the next four days in Havre.

Wednesday afternoon at the Havre High gymnasium, Chinook opened the 9C boys tournament with a dominant 70-36 win over the Tornadoes, setting up a semifinal showdown this afternoon against top-seeded Box Elder.

Chinook's Lane Seymour, right, goes up for a shot during Wednesday's District 9C boys basketball tournament at the Havre High gymnasium. The Beeters thrashed Turner to advance to today's semifinal against Box Elder. The Beeters and Bears meet at 2:30 today.

Chinook used a stifling defense, some hot shooting in the second half and a red-hot start to overwhelm the Tornadoes. Chinook (11-8) led 13-2 after the first quarter, and though Turner trimmed the gap in the second, the Beeters were never really threatened.

"We played well defensively, but we fouled too much in the first half," Chinook head coach Mike Seymour said. "That was our adjustment at halftime, to stop fouling because they shot 14 free throws in the first half, and that helped them come back on us some."

Chinook's Grant Tilleman, right, shoots over Turner defenders during Wednesday's 9C boys game in Havre.

Lane Seymour scored the first six points of the game and Dylan Surber knocked in one of Chinook's eight 3-pointers in the first eight minutes., while Turner didn't get on the scoreboard until there were just :35 left in the first period. Grant Tilleman then got good looks inside early in the second quarter as Chinook went up 16-8, but Turner did manage to turn things around from there.

The Tornadoes went on an 8-2 run behind some heady plays by Bret VanValkenburg and Lucas Reed. Twice Turner closed the gap to eight points in the second quarter, but the Beeters responded with three's by Scott Schmitt and Tyler Molyneaux, before Reed scored the final basket, leaving the Tornadoes within striking distance at 33-24 at halftime.

"In the second quarter, we did a really good job of rebounding," Turner head coach Kevin VanValkenburg said. "And that led to us getting into our offense a bit better and we got some good looks. So we did play pretty well in stretches.

"But in the second half, we didn't make any shots," he added. "We still got the good looks, but it seemed like somebody put a lid on our basket. And they (Beeters) hit some three's and all of a sudden, we're down 20."

Turner did go ice cold, scoring just 12 points and shooting 11 percent in the final 16 minutes, while Chinook went in the opposite direction. Molyneaux scored 10 points in the third quarter and the Beeters went on a 13-1 run which ultimately put Turner in too big of a hole to climb back out of.

Turner's Dylan Welsh, right, drives the floor during a 9C boys tournament game Wednesday at Havre High.

"We played much better in the second half," Mike Seymour said. "We moved the ball really well, we got really good post-to-post passes and some nice layups. We shot it pretty well, and we defended well without putting them on the free-throw-line. It was a pretty good second half."

Chinook out-rebounded the Tornadoes 48-33 and also turned Turner over 23 times. Molyneaux made three bombs and scored a game-high 17 points, while Surber hit two three's and added 10. Jake Diemert came off the bench to notch nine points and Lane Seymour added eight.

Turner (4-15), which will drop into loser-out action Friday night at 7:30 p.m., got 13 points and 10 rebounds from Reed before he fouled out. Welsh and Bret VanValkenburg added nine each in the loss.

"This was a good experience for these young kids, and the more experience the better," coach VanValkenburg said. "I thought in stretches we played a good game, and we can build on this one."

Now, the Beeters will attempt to beat Box Elder (15-3) for the first time this season. Seymour said his team is up to the challenge, but they must do some things better than they did against the Bears in the regular season.

"We have to rebound and we have to withstand their (Bears) runs," coach Seymour said. "And we can't play from behind all night. Box Elder is a good team and they will make some runs. But in the games we lost to them, we were already behind by eight points or more in the first quarter and that can't happen tomorrow. That first four minutes for us will really be key."

Today's semifinal between the Beeters and Bears is set for 2:30. The winner will move on to face either Big Sandy or Hays-Lodge Pole in Saturday night's championship game. The Pioneers and Thunderbirds meet tonight in the other boys semifinal.

Chinook 70, Turner 36

Turner 2 22 5 7 – 36

Chinook 13 20 13 24 – 70

Turner – Dylan Welsh 9, Tyler Humphreys 3, Bret Van Valkenburg 9, Lucas Reed 13, Alvero Gonzalez 2. Totals: 13-43 9-17 36.

Chinook – Lane Seymour 8, Dylan Surber 10, Scott Schmitt 3, Zach Molyneaux 16, Zach Schellin 2, Jake Diemert 9, Ian McIntosh 6, Ty Simenson 8, Grant Tilleman 7. Totals: 29-73 8-21 70.

Halftime: Chinook 33-24. 3-pointers: Turner 1-9 (Humphreys 1), Chinook 8-21 (Surber 2, Schmitt 1, Molyneaux 3, Simenson 2). Rebounds: Turner 33 (Reed 10), Chinook 48 (Molyneaux 7, Schellin 7). Fouls: Turner 13, Chinook 18. Fouled out: Reed.