Fort Benton girls, Big Sandy boys win to start Northern C

Down in Great Falls, the Northern C Divisional Basketball Tournaments got kicked off on Wednesday. On the first day of the tournament at the Great Falls Four Seasons Arena, the District 9C did well as the Fort Benton girls basketball team defeated Belt, 48-36, while the Big Sandy Pioneers dominated for a 74-50 victory over Great Falls Central Catholic.

While it pulled away at the end, Fort Benton faced some adversity against Belt. The Longhorns and Huskies went back and forth throughout the first quarter. After Kaydyn LeFurgey scored to give Fort Benton an early lead, Belt scored to tie the game. After Emerson Giese scored, Belt scored to tie the game 4-4.

Giese then got on a roll with a pair of baskets to give Fort Benton an 8-4 lead. But the Huskies came back with a bucket and a 3-pointer to give Belt a 9-8 lead late in the first quarter. The Longhorns ended the first quarter with a pair of baskets from Addison Reichelt and Casha Corder to take a 12-9 lead.

The Huskies started the second quarter on a 4-0 run to take a 13-9 lead. Kylynn Nack responded with a three to give Fort Benton the lead again. After both teams exchanged free throws, the Huskies went on a 4-0 run to take an 18-16 lead. Giese scored for Fort Benton, but the Huskies went on another 4-0 run to take a 22-18 lead into halftime.

Hailee Wang opened the second half with a bang for the Longhorns as she made a 3-pointer and a layup to give her team a 23-22 lead. After Belt scored to retake the lead, a three from Nack and a free throw from Wang gave Fort Benton the lead. Aaliyah Gaylord then nailed a three for Belt to tie the game, 27-27, halfway through the third.

After some offensive struggles for both teams through most of the third, the Longhorns ended the quarter with scores from Giese and Corder to take a 31-27 lead into the fourth. But the Huskies opened the fourth with a bucket from Gaylord and a free throw from McKenzie Pogany to cut Fort Benton's lead to 31-30.

Over the rest of the fourth, the Longhorns played their best basketball of the night to take control. The Longhorns started the run with threes from Corder and Nack. Giese then made a basket to give Fort Benton a 39-30 lead.

After Belt scored trying to keep up, Corder knocked down a three to make it a 42-32 game halfway through the fourth. The Longhorns kept rolling with a layup from Wang and free throws from Giese to push the lead to 46-32. The Huskies were unable to mount a comeback as the Longhorns pulled away for the win to start the Northern C Divisional.

Giese led the Longhorns with 15 points as she shot 6-for-13 from the field and 3-for-5 from the free-throw line. Corder scored 12 points as she went 5-for-10 from the field and 2-for-4 from deep. As a team, the Longhorns shot 38.8 percent from the field and 54.5 percent from three.

The Longhorns also played strong defense as the Huskies shot 22.4 percent from the field and 13.3 percent from deep. Kylee Permann was the only Huskie in double digits as she scored 12 points on 4-for-16 shooting from the field and 4-for-4 shooting from the charity stripe.

The Big Sandy Pioneers got off to a hot start in their first game of the tournament. After a layup from Kody Strutz and a free throw from Cooper Taylor to take the lead, Braydon Cline got hot with a layup and a three to give Big Sandy an 8-0 lead. The Mustangs eventually scored, but the Pioneers responded with another three and a layup from Cline to make it a 13-2 game halfway through the first.

After their slow start, the Mustangs got rolling to get back in the game. The Mustangs started their run with a three from Colin Schmit and a layup from Austin Armstrong. After a free throw from Strutz, the Mustangs ended the quarter on a 7-0 run to tie the game 14-14.

The Mustangs opened the second quarter with a free throw from Deegan Duffy to take the lead. Cline responded with a bucket, but Armstrong scored himself to give the Mustangs a 17-16 lead early in the second.

After allowing the Mustangs back into the game, the Pioneers retook control with a 9-0 run. Cline continued to carve up the Mustangs' defense with five points during this stretch. After Relic Smith scored for the Mustangs, Cline scored another four points to give Big Sandy a 29-19 lead late in the half.

Schmit scored as the Mustangs tried to keep pace. However, the Pioneers continued to roll with an 8-0 lead to stretch the lead to 37-21. After a Mustang free throw, Lane Demontiney scored before the clock ran out to give Big Sandy a 39-22 lead heading into halftime.

The Pioneers kept rolling as Cline and Strutz scored to start the second half. After a Mustang basket, Wylee Snapp scored to give Big Sandy a 45-24 lead. With the big lead, the Pioneers coasted to victory and advanced to the next round of the tournament.

Cline finished the game with 32 points while Strutz added 18 points in the winning effort. Armstrong led the Mustangs with 12 points while Duffy and Smith each scored 10 points in the loss.

The Fort Benton girls basketball team will next play Simms tonight at the Great Falls Four Seasons Arena tonight at 5:30 p.m. The Big Sandy boys basketball team will play Heart Butte tonight at 8:30 p.m.

Fort Benton girls 48, Belt 36

FB - 12 6 13 17 - 48

BLT - 7 13 7 9 - 36

FB - Emerson Giese 15, Casha Corder 12, Kylynn Nack 9, Hailee Wang 8, Addison Reichelt 2, Kaydyn LeFurgey 2.

BLT - Kylee Permann 12, Aaliyah Gaylord 8, Dezirae Goodman 6, Ella Pethel 5, McKenzie Pogany 3, Hattie Bumgarner 2.

3-pointers: Kylynn Nack 3, Casha Corder 2, Aaliyah Gaylord 2, Hailee Wang 1. Fouls: FB 8, BLT 14. Fouled Out: None.

Big Sandy boys 74, Great Falls CC 50

BS - 14 25 18 17 - 74

GFCC - 14 8 11 17 - 50

BS - Braydon Cline 32, Kody Strutz 18, Isaac Pedraza 6, Cooper Taylor 5, Lane Demontiney 4, Wylee Snapp 4, Jake Darlington 3m Ryder Galbavy 2.

GFCC - Austin Armstrong 12, Deegan Duffy 10, Relic Smith 10, Colin Schmit 8, May Leray 5, Brandon Bliss 5.