Bear Claws

As Lilly Gopher continues to nurse an injury, the Box Elder girls basketball team still isn't at full strength and with the way the Bears are dominating, that's a scary thing for the rest of the District 9C.

While Gopher did suit up and come off the bench to knock down a couple of 3-pointers and score 10 points, Box Elder would have been fine without her as the Bears cruised to an easy, 71-29 victory over North Star Thursday night in the semifinals of the District 9C tournament inside the HHS gymnasium.

With the win, Box Elder advanced to the Northern C Divisional and the 9C championship game for the fifth straight year and the Bears will be looking to win their third district tournament title in the last four years.

"We wanted to make sure we got off to a fast start," Box Elder head coach Joel Rosette said. "That was an emphasis for us because we didn't really do that in the first game, so that was a focus and the girls were ready to go. They really wanted to get out there and play."

While Gopher knocked down a pair of shots from beyond the arc, she wasn't the only Bear hitting from 3-point range, and after a Joelnell Momberg jumper opened the scoring, Eve The Boy helped the Bears build a 12-0 lead thanks to a pair of 3-pointers. Then, before the opening stanza ended, Box Elder finished with a flurry as Gopher hit a three, Kyla Momberg converted a 3-point play and Joelnell Momberg buried a three, putting the defending state champs up 23-5.

In the second quarter, Box Elder continued to grow its lead and it did it behind the play of Joelnell Momberg, who scored 13 points in the first half, three of which came on a deep 3-pointer with 13 seconds left in the first half. At the intermission, Box Elder led 40-15.

"We wanted to come out and start fast and I think our defense was important for that," Momberg said. "We want to put pressure on other teams and they don't always know what we are thinking and we try to catch them off guard. But we focus on defense first."

In the second half, Box Elder continued to knock down shots from deep as Gopher hit her second from downtown and then Talyssa Oats-Horn buried a three at the third-quarter buzzer, giving the Bears a 57-24 lead. In the fourth, Angela Gopher pushed the lead to 40 with a triple as Box Elder went on to clinch a berth in another 9C title game with a 42-point win.

"We set some team goals at the start of the year and winning the 9C is definitely one of them," Rosette said. "I am tough on these girls and I ask a lot of them and they know that. But they respond and they expect a lot out of themselves."

When it was all said and done, Box Elder hit nine trey's in the win. Momberg led all scorers with 13 points. Angela Gopher added 11, Lilly Gopher finished with 10 as did The Boy, who had a double-double thanks to 10 rebounds. Kyla Momberg also pitched in with seven points and five steals. Jade Wendland led the Knights with eight points, while Kendiee Wolery pitched in with six.

"This is a tough tournament," Joelnell Momberg said. "And there were a lot of teams that wanted to get out of here, so it's exciting to be back in the championship game."

Box Elder (20-0) will take on Fort Benton for the fourth time the past five years for the 9C championship tonight at 8:30 inside the HHS gymnasium. North Star played a loser-out game against Chinook earlier today.

Box Elder 71, North Star 29, SF

North Star 5 10 9 5 - 29

Box Elder 23 17 17 14 - 71

North Star - Laynie Sattoriva 2, Jade Wendland 8, Kenidee Wolery 6, Paij Peterson 1, Tanicha Hudson 2, Olivia King 2, Shayla Borlaug 2, Kaytlyn Domire 4, Rainee Watson 1, Ereka Harvey 1. Totals: 9-43 11-21 29.

Box Elder - Annalise Johnson 3, Talyssa Oats-Horn 3, Eve The Boy 10, Maddie Wolf Cheif 8, Lilian Gopher 10, Angela Gopher 11, Kyla Momberg 7, Joelnell Momberg 13, Zayna Henderson 6. Totals: 25-58 12-17. 71.

3-Pointers: Annalise Johnson 1, Talyssa Oats-Horn 1, Eve The Boy 2, Lilian Gopher 2, Angela Gopher 1, Joelnell Momber 2. Fouls: Box Elder 21, North Star 16. Fouled out -- none.