Hi-Line Boys Basketball Roundup

The boys District 1B is one of the toughest basketball districts in the state, and even the defending the Class B state champion Rocky Boy Stars found out first hand that there are no guarantees.

The Stars entered the tournament as the No. 2 seed and rolled through Thursday's competition. The Stars defeated the Cascade Badgers 81-30 in a dominating first game.

A 30 point first quarter put the Stars way out in front early, and they never looked back ass they added 16 in the second, 17 in the third and 18 in the fourth. Skylar LaForge led the Stars with 14 points, while Garrett LaFromboise added 11 and Shane Bacon added nine. Cody LaMere also added eight while Kelsey Standing Rock added seven and both Leisin oats and Chontay Standing rock added six each.

The big first round win was just how the Stars wanted to start their post season, and it propelled them into the semifinals where they faced off with the Choteau Bulldogs. And earning another dominating win, the Stars defeated the Bulldogs 56-39.

But this time the Stars had to play from behind as they trailed 15-11 after the first quarter. But from then on the game belonged to the Stars as the limited the Bulldogs to no more than nine points in the remaining three quarters while Rocky Boy went on to post 16 in the second, 11 in the third and 18 in the fourth.

Leading the comeback was LaForge with 14 points and oats with 13. LaFromboise also added 11 while Jakoya Oats added seven.

The semifinal win put the Stars just where they wanted to be, in Saturday night's championship game.

But the Stars ran into an unexpected wall in the Shelby Coyotes in the championship. The Coyotes defeated the defending state champs 58-47, handing the Stars a No. 2 finish in the 1B.

The Stars looked to be off to another big win on Saturday as they took a 15-5 lead after the first quarter. But a 22 point second quarter by the Coyotes showed they had competitive offense. Rocky Boy held a 32-27 lead at the half, but the second half went in favor of the Coyotes.

In the second half the Stars were held to eight third quarter points and seven fourth quarter points. But in the same time, the Coyotes put up 13 in the third and 18 in the fourth to edge out the Stars.

LaForge and Leisin Oats both led the Stars with 13 points each. And Lafromboise added 11 in the second place finish.

But the stars also committed 20 fouls, and couldn't stop the efforts of Chase Ballantyne who who led the Coyotes with 17 points and four treys.

Rocky Boy will now get ready for the 2011 Northern B Divisional next week in Malta.

The Chester-J/I Hawks got off to a good start at the District 10C boys basketball tournament over the weekend, but one mishap along the way landed the Hawks a third place finish.

Thursday the Hawks had to battle from behind before they captured a 59-46 first round win over the Valier Panthers.

C/J-I trailed 16-10 after the first quarter was in the books. But in the second quarter the Hawks defense stepped up in a big way, shutting out the Panthers completely. The Hawks posed 15 points of their own to take a 25-16 lead at halftime.

The Panther bounced back offensively in the second half, but as the Hawks outscored the Panthers 34-30 in the final two quarters, C/J-I was able to avoid any real crisis.

The Hawks scoring efforts were led by Lane Harmon with 13 points and Bryat Ceynar and Brandon Graff who both scored 10 apiece. Ryne Tyler also added nine points and Ceddy Pogue added eight.

With the win the Hawks advanced to the semifinals round where they took on the heavily favored No. 1 Dutton-Brady Diamondbacks. But as the Diamondbacks proved to be too much, the Hawks were defeated 56-25.

After locking up with the Diamondbacks 8-8 after the first quarter, the Hawks looked to be in good position. But being held to single digit scoring in every other quarter, as the Diamondbacks posted 15 in the second, 18 in the third and 15 more in the fourth, the Hawks suffered the devastating loss.

This time around the scoring was led by Graff with 11 points, while Tyler added seven and Harmon and Grant Lakey combined for seven more.

The loss sent the Hawks into the consolation bracket where resumed the success they found early in the tournament.

In a loser out matchup the Hawks got the ball rolling with a 43-35 win over the Simms Tigers. The win came after jumping out to a 10-7 lead after the first eight minutes and holding after holding a 21-16 lead at the half. The Hawks were in control the entire game, including an 18 point fourth quarter to help ensure the win and a prolonged season.

Graff's 13 points led the Hawks, but Tyler followed close behind with 12. And Ceynar and Harmon combined for 10 more.

The much needed win over the Tigers kept the Hawks season alive for one more game. But this time the Hawks found themselves battling for a third place finish against the always challenging Heart Butte Warriors.

But C/J-I came away on top once again and earned a No. 3 finish after defeating the Warriors 57-47 on Saturday night.

The second and fourth quarters were what separated the Hawks from the warriors. After trailing 11-8 after the first quarter, the Hawks posted 21 in the second to take the 29-23 lead at half. And after maintaining a slight lead throughout the third quarter, the Hawks posted another 21 in the fourth to lock up the third place victory.

Harmon led the way with 15 points and Tyler followed suit with 14 of his own. Graff also added 11 to the mix while Ceynar added nine and Lakey added six.

C/J-I had a chance to challenge for a spot in the Northern C, but Power's upset of Dutton-brady in Saturday night's 10C championship game meant the Hawks' season ended with a third-place finsih.

As the No. 6 seed, district basketball tournaments never present themselves as an easy task. And the 2B Harlem Wildcats found that out first hand this weekend in Malta as they recorded a 1-2 record and their season came to an end.

But the Wildcats started the weekend off on a high note as they captured a 73-67 win over the Popular Indians on Thursday.

The Wildcats came out strong as took a 15-12 lead after the first quarter. And though they were able to add 14 more in the second, the Indians were able to bounce back with 17 to tie the contest at 29-29 at intermission. From there on, the Wildcats used two big quarters in the second half to seal the deal, as they posted 21 in the third and 23 in the fourth.

Devone LaSorte had an outstanding game with 31 for the Wildcats and Skyler Speaks Thunder dropped another 20. Brandon Hammond also knocked down 10 while Bud Buck added six in the first round win.

But the win on Thursday put the Wildcats in a less than favorable semifinal matchup on Friday. The Wildcats advanced to take on the No. 2 Malta Mustangs and were defeated 70-53.

Harlem stuck close to the favored Mustangs through the first quarter, but after trailing 14-11, the Mustangs gained some separation in the second quarter with a 26-17 outscoring of the Wildcats. And the Mustangs 30 points in the second half knocked the Wildcats into the consolation bracket with a 17-point loss.

LaSarte had another good game with 12 points, but this time around it was Speaks Thunder who led the scorin with 18 points and four three-pointers. Hammond also added seven while Buck added five.

The tough loss wasn't what the Wildcats were looking for, but Harlem's season was still alive in the consolation bracket. But suffering their second loss of the weekend, and bringing their season to an early end, the Glasgow Scotties defeated the Wildcats 67-66 in overtime.

The Wildcats battled the Scotties for four quarter and an extra period of overtime. The contest was neck and neck throughout, but it was the Scotties who gained the edge after outscoring the Wildcats 8-7 in overtime.

To start the game, the Wildcats trailed 10-9 after the first quarter and 30-27 at intermission. And after being outscored 16-12 in the third quarter, the Wildcats pounced back in the fourth quarter with 20 points, just enough to force an overtime.

LaSarte did his best with a team 24 points and Speaks Thunder did as well, this time scoring 18 points. Buck added another eight points and Cole McCann added seven. Hammond also had five points as the Wildcats season came to an end.

District 1B/Cut Bank

Thursday

Rocky Boy 81, Cascade 30

Cascade 10 4 12 4 — 30

Rocky Boy 30 16 17 18 — 81

Cascade — Cody Wirth 0-1 0-0 0, Tyler Turan 1-6 1-2 3, Casey Ribaudo 2-3 0-0 4, Cody Ryan 1-1 0-0 2, Dylan Kotecki 0-5 3-4 3, R.J. Rogers 5-11 3-4 15, Cody Wright 1-3 0-1 3, Nick reiser 0-5 0-0 0. Totals: 10-35 7-11.

Rocky Boy — Leisin Oats 3-4 0-0 6, Garrett Anderosn 1-7 0-0 2, Jakoya Oats 2-6 0-0 5, Skylar LaForge 7-9 0-0 14, Shane Bacon 4-5 0-2 9, Kelsey Standing Rock 3-6 0-0 7, Coby Abbott 2-5 0-0 5, Nick Henry 1-5 0-0 2, Chontay Standing Rock 3-5 0-2 6, Cody LaMere 4-6 0-1 8, Garrett LaFromboise 5-6 1-1 11, Darlen LaFomboise 3-5 0-0 6. Totals: 38-69 1-6.

Fouls: cascade 4, Rocky Boy 12. Fouled out: None. 3-pointers: Rogers 2 Wright, J. Oats, Bacon, Standing Rock, Abbott.

Friday

Rocky Boy 56, Choteau 39 (sf)

Rocky Boy 11 16 11 18 — 56

Choteau 15 9 6 9 — 39

Rocky Boy — Leisin Oats 5-9 2-2 13, Jakoya Oats 3-6 0-0 7, Skylar Laforge 5-11 2-3 14, Shane Bacon 0-3 0-4 0, Kelsey Standing Rock 1-4 0-0 3, Nick Henry 2-5 0-0 4, Cody LaMere 2-3 0-0 4, Garret LaFromboise 4-5 3-4 11, Darien LaFromboise 0-1 0-0 0. Totals: 22-47 7-13.

Choteau — Chase Crabtree 1-3 1-2 4, Aaron Barlow 0-1 0-0 0, David Lightner 2-11 0-0 4, Nate Durocher 2-9 0-0 6, Austin Walker 2-6 2-2 6, Isaac Howard 6-11 2-2 15, Chris Schlesser 2-3 0-0 4. Totals: 15-44 5-6.

Fouls: Rocky Boy 10, Choteau 11. Fouled out: none. 3-pointers: L. Oats 1, J. Oats 1, Laforge 2, Standing Rock 1, Crabtree 1, Durocher 2, Howard 1.

Saturday

Shelby 58,Rocky Boy 47 (1st)

Shelby 5 22 13 18 — 58

Rocky Boy 15 17 8 7 — 47

Shelby — Brennan Hayes 0-1 0-0 0, Chase Ballantyne 6-14 1-2 17, Chase White 4-14 5-6 14, Robby Miller 2-7 0-0 5, Kellan Clark 1-4 0-4 2, Matt Alford 3-6 1-2 7, Jordyn Irvin 4-8 3-4 11, Dane Alford 1-3 0-1 2. Totals: 21-57 10-19.

Rocky Boy — Leisin Oats 5-11 2-4 13, Jakoya Oats 1-5 0-0 3, Skylar Laforge 6-11 0-0 13, Shane Bacon 0-1 0-0 0, Kelsey Standing rock 1-3 0-0 2, Coby Abbott 1-1 0-0 3, Nick Henry 0-1 0-0 0, Mitch LaMere 0-1 0-0 0, Cody LaMere 0-2 0-0 0, Garret LaFromboise 5-8 1-1 11, Darien LaFromboise 1-1 0-1 2. Totals: 20-46 3-6.

Fouls: Shelby 12, Rocky Boy 20. Fouled out: None. 3-pointers: Ballantyne 4, White 1, Miller 1, L. Oats 1, J. Oats 1, Laforge 1, Abbott 1. Technical fouls: Ballantyne (S).

District 2B/Malta

Thursday

Harlem 73, Poplar 67

Harlem 15 14 21 23 — 73

Poplar 12 17 15 23 — 67

Harlem — Skyler Speaks Thunder 6 6-9 20, Devone La Sorte 14 3-7 31, Bud Buck 3 0-1 6, Cole McCann 0 1-2 1, Brandon Hammond 4 2-3 10, Wallace Birdtail 0 1-2 1, Michael Stiffarm 0 4-4 4. Totals: 27 17-28.

Poplar — Avery Young 9 3-7 18, Jace Daniels 4 0-0 9, Taylor Buckles 5 6-12 18, Loren Allen 7 0-4 14, C.T. Smith 2 2-2 6, Dan Franklin 0 2-3 2. Totals: 24 13-28.

Fouls: Harlem 22, Poplar 22. Fouled out: Buck (H), Hammond (H), Allen (P). 3-pointers: Speaks Thunder 2, Young 3, Daniels 1, Buckles 2.

Friday

Malta 70, Harlem 53 (sf)

Harlem 11 17 9 16 — 53

Malta 14 26 17 13 — 70

Harlem — Skyler Speaks Thunder 7-18 0-0 18, Devonne LaSarte 5-10 2-2 12, James "Bud" Buck 1-5 3-4 5, Cole McCann 0-5 0-0 0, Branden Hammond 2-10 3-4 7, Wallace Birdtail 2-3 0-0 4, Jimmy Werk 1-4 1-2 3, Michael Stiffarm 2-4 0-0 4. Totals: 20-57 9-12.

Malta — Kendall Denham 6-7 0-0 16, Kaden Bedwell 0-0 0-2 0, Daltan Brookie 1-1 0-0 2, Landon Costin 2-4 0-0 4, Dane Stiles 2-7 4-6 8. Brett Amestoy 0-1 1-2 1, Zach Handley 3-7 3-6 10, Kyle Boos 3-5 3-5 9, Jarvis Grahm 8-13 1-2 17, Tucker Schye 0-0 3-4 3. Totals: 25-45 15-27.

Fouls: Harlem 26, Malta 12. Fouled out: LaSarte (H), Hammond (H), Jimmy Werk (H). 3-pointers: Speaks Thunder 4, Denham 4, Handley 1.

Saturday

Glasgow 67, Harlem 66 (OT) (lo)

Glasgow 9 21 16 13 8 — 67

Harlem 10 17 12 20 7 — 66

Glasgow — Bryan Larson 4 0-2 8, Jeff Irving 1 2-2 4, Lane Herbert 3 2-4 10, Grant Legare 2 0-0 5, Chaz Gordon 1 2-6 4, Seth Johnson 5 2-3 12, Derek Hopkins 3 1-2 7, TJ Syrlan 4 6-7 17. Totals: 23 15-26.

Harlem — Skyler Speaks Thunder 7 2-3 18, Devone LaSarte 11 2-8 24, Bud Buck 4 -=2 8, Cole McCann 3 0-0 7, Brandon Hammond 2 1-3 5, Wallace Birdtail 1 0-0 2, Jimmy Werk 0 0-1 0, Riley Green 1 0-0 2. Totals: 29 5-17.

Fouls: Glasgow 21, Harlem 23. Fouled out: Larson (G). 3-pointers: Herbert 2, Legare 1, Syrlan 3, Speaks Thunder 2, McCann 1.

District 10C/Conrad

Thursday

Chester-Joplin-Inverness 59, Valier 46

C/J-I 10 15 17 17 — 59

Valier 16 0 14 16 — 46

C/J-I — Grant Lakey 1 3-4 6, Ryne Tyler 3 1-2 9, Ceddy Pogue 4 0-0 8, Bryant Ceynar 4 1-4 10, Mike Henke 0 1-2 1, Brandon Graff 4 1-4 10, Lane Harmon 5 3-3 13, Jeff Wanken 1 0-0 2. Totals: 21 13-21.

Valier — Brad Holden 2 0-0 4, Austin Wagner 1 0-0 3, Justin Sullivan 1 2-2 5, Jason CalfRobe 8 3-4 22, Jaron CalfRobe 3 0-0 8, Matt Christiaens 2 0-0 4. Totals: 17 5-6.

Fouls: C/J-I 11, Valier 21. Fouled out: Holden (V), Christiaens (V). 3-pointers: Lakey 1, Tyler 2, Graff 1, Wagner 1, Sullivan 1, Jason CalfRobe 3, Jaron CalfRobe 2. Technical fouls:

Friday

Dutton-Brady 56, C/J-I 25 (sf)

Dutton-Brady 8 15 18 15 — 56

C/J-I 8 5 5 7 — 25

Dutton-Brady — Logan Rossmiller 5- 1-3 14, Tiegan Johnson 7- 2-3 20, Kyler Johnson 3- 2-2 9, Bridger Timmerman 2- 2-3 6, Clint Williams 3- 1-3 7. Totals: 20- 8-14.

C/J-I — Grant Lakey 1- 0-0 3, Ryne Tyler 2- 2-2 7, Brandon Graff 4- 1-2 11, Lane Harmon 1- 2-2 4. Totals: 8- 5-6.

Fouls: Dutton-Brady 13, C/J-I 16. Fouled out: none. 3-pointers: Rossmiller 3, T. Johnson 4, K. Johnson 1, Lakey 1, Tyler 1, Graff 2.

Saturday

C/J-I 43, Simms 35 (lo)

CJI 10 11 4 18 — 43

Simms 7 9 7 12 — 35

C/J-I — Grant Lakey 1 0-1 2, Ryne Tyler 3 4-7 12, Ceddy Pogue 2 0-0 4, Bryant Ceynar 2 1-4 5, Brandon Graff 4 5-7 13, Lane Harmon 0 5-6 5, Jeff Wanken 0 2-2 2. Totals: 12 17-27.

Simms — Cody Hall 1 1-2 3, Kyle Tschetter 4 0-2 9, Tyler Martinez 4 2-4 12, Joey Crumley 3 2-3 8, Justin Thompson 1 1-8 3, Dallas Rushton 0 0-1 0.Totals: 13 6-20.

Fouls: C/J-I 18, Simms 20. Fouled out: none. 3-pointers: Tyler 2, Tschetter 1, Martinez 2.

C/J-I 57, Heart Butte 47 (3rd)

C/J-I 8 21 7 21 — 57

Heart Butte 11 12 6 18 — 47

C/J-I — Grant Lakey 1 4-4 6, Ryne Tyler 4 4-6 14, Ceddy Pogue 1 0-0 2, Bryant Ceynar 3 3-4 9, Brandon Graff 4 2-3 11, Lane Harman 6 3-3 15. Totals: 19 16-20.

Heart Butte — Kyler Eaglespeaker 0 1-2 1, Tony Calf Boss Ribs 5 0-0 12, Wyatt Skunkcap 3 0-0 7, Tylor Vaile 9 3-3 23, Jaycee Aimsback 2 0-0 4. Totals: 19 4-5.

Fouls: C/J-I 8, Heart Butte 18. Fouled out: Calf Boss Ribs (HB). 3-pointers: Tyler 2, Graff 1, Calf Boss Ribs 2, Skunkcap 1, Vaile 2.