Knight Time at the 9C

In most basketball tournaments, the matchup between the fourth and fifth seeds is usually one of the best. And that was certainly the case in the opening round of the District 9C girls basketball tournament.

Thursday afternoon in the Havre High gymnasium, the fourth-seeded Chester/J-I Hawks and fifth-seeded North Star Knights waged another great game in their storied rivalry, and when the dust settled, a spectacular second-half performance lifted the Knights to a 34-28 win and a date with Box Elder in today’s first semifinal.

North Star had to stage a comeback in order to move on, as the Knights trailed the Hawks 22-15 at halftime. But the second half was a different story as the Knights held C/J-I to just one field goal in the final 16 minutes.

“I think we were just more aggressive in the second half,” North Star head coach Mackenzie Jenkins said. “Our defense was phenomenal in the second half. I think we just found more heart. We decided we wanted to win this game.”

The game didn’t start that way as the Hawks came out firing. And when Korrine Harmon nailed a 3-pointer, the Hawks were up 9-3 and eventually led 11-7 at the end of the first quarter. Things got even better for C/J-I in the second stanza, as the team went on an 8-1 run early. Peytan King did score a late bucket to pull North Star to within 22-15 at intermission, but it certainly appeared like the Hawks had all the momentum.

“We’ve worked all year in practice on situations where we were behind, where were having to overcome adversity,” Jenkins said. “And that’s what we talked about at halftime. Just coming out and playing great team basketball, and getting back into the game.”

And it didn’t take the Knights long to do just that. Sheridan O’Neil scored six points in a three-minute span, as the Knights went on a 9-0 run, while the Hawks managed just two free throws in the quarter. And the result was a 28-24 lead for North Star at the end of three.

Of course, the game was still in doubt with eight minutes to go, but the Knights didn’t let up. North Star’s defense held C/J-I scoreless until Kristina Dahinden finally hit a layup with :13 left, but by then, it was too late for the Hawks, while O’Neil scored her fourth straight bucket to start the period.

O’Neil would finish the game with 11 points and 11 rebounds, while Paij Peterson also had a big game for the Knights with 10 points, and Katelyn Hansen added eight. North Star held a 51-28 edge on the boards and also forced the Hawks into 18 second-half turnovers.

“It was really fun to watch us play like that,” Jenkins said. “Our defense was just so good and that helped our offense get going. We just played so together in the second half.”

It was the exact opposite for the Hawks, who had to play Big Sandy in a loser-out game this morning. After shooting nearly 50 percent in the first half, C/J-I finished the game going just 19 percent from the field. Dahinden led C/J-I with 11 points, while Harmon and Khloe Kammerzell each had five.

And while North Star’s defense was a big key to overcoming C/J-I’s lead, Jenkins said, today against undefeated Box Elder, the Knights will have to be even better.

“They’re (Bears) so quick,” Jenkins said. “They get up and down the floor, and they play really good team basketball. So we’re going to have to play really well defensively. We’re just going to have to play really good team defense and do our best to keep up with them.”

Today’s semifinal between Box Elder and North Star will tip at 4 inside the HHS gymnasium, with the winner moving on to Saturday night’s 9C championship game.

North Star 34, Chester/J-I 28

C/J-I 11 11 2 4 – 28

North Star 7 8 13 6 – 34

C/J-I – Kendahl Knapton 2, Korrine Harmon 5, Madeline Woods 4, Khloe Kammerzell 5, Payton Hawks 1, Kristina Dahinden 11. Totals: 7 13-20 28.

North Star – Kate Hansen 8, Graysen Spicher 2, Paij Peterson 10, Sheridan O'Neil 11, Peytan King 3. Totals: 8 18-38 34.

3-pointers: Harmon 1. Fouls: North Star 17, C/J-I 25.