Hi-Line Boys Roundup: Harlem stuns Rocky Boy

With the regular season nearing an end, and teams preparing for the postseason, a lot of important conference games were played over the weekend. And with that, a lot of local teams faced off against each other.

On Friday, the Class 1B Rocky Boy Stars suffered their first loss of the season, falling to the Class 2B Harlem Wildcats 73-62. The Stars remain the top team in the 1B with an undefeated conference record, while the Wildcats are at the bottom of the 2B ranks with just one conference win.

Box Elder's Randall Gardipee launches a shot during a District 9C boys basketball game between the Bears and the Chinook Sugarbeeters Saturday night in Chinook.

Harlem held a narrow lead through the first half of play, but used a big second half to edge the Stars. The Wildcats led 32-24 at the break, but the Stars turned on the heat with a 21 point third quarter and a 17 point fourth. The Wildcats answered the challenge with a 22 point third quarter and a 19 point fourth of their own, not only fending off the Stars, but stretching their lead to 11.

Stanley Irvine and Micah Shawl led the Wildcats, each scoring a game high 23 points. Junior Day Child led the Stars with 21, while Desmond Parker pitched in 15 and Darien LaFromboise pitched in 14 in the loss.

Chinook and North Star also met in 9C action on Friday.

North Star's troubles continued, as the Sugarbeeters were able to defeat the Knights 61-46. Grant Tilleman led the Beeters with 21 points, as Chinook used a 21-15 run in the second quarter, and an 18-6 run in the third quarter to run away from the Knights. Dylan Surber also scored 17 for the Beeters, while the Knights were led by Gavin Spinler's 21.

Box Elder's Brandon The Boy, left makes a move during Saturday night's boys game in Chinook.

In another 9C rivalry game, the Big Sandy Pioneers narrowly defeated the Box Elder Bears. The Pioneers won 74-72 in league play on Friday.

The matchup was tight from the get go, and the Pioneers needed nearly every one of the five points that separated the two squads heading into the fourth and final quarter of play. The Bears outscored the Pioneers 26-23 in the final frame, but Big Sandy was able to hold on for the two-point victory.

Hays-Lodge Pole also earned a win on Friday, as the Thunderbirds hosted Winnett-Grass Range. The Thunderbirds were victorious 52-44.

The 9C Thunderbirds also had to fend off a surging offense in the fourth quarter. HLP was outscored 24-18 in the fourth quarter, but their earlier defensive stand proved to be the difference maker. Winnett-Grass Range was held to single digit scoring in the first three frames, including four in the first quarter, nine in the second, and seven in the third.

Marvin Cole led the Thunderbirds with 14 points, while Gage Essert followed with 11.

Chinook's Zach Molyneaux, right, goes up high for a shot during a District 9C boys basketball game against Box Elder Saturday night in Chinook.

In 10C action on Friday, the Chester/J-I Hawks handled the Sunburst Refiners with relative ease.

The Hawks beat the Refiners 57-34. Steven May and Jordan Oraw continued to have stellar seasons as they scored 12 points each to pace the Hawks. Dustin Romain also finished with nine, as the Hawks ran away from the Refiners with 16 first quarter points, 17 second quarter points, eight third quarter points, and 16 fourth quarter points.

On Saturday, the Hawks earned another win, but this time by just one point. The Hawks defeated the Simms Tigers 48-47 on the road.

Chester/J-I had to battle back after a slow start. Simms took an early 18-8 lead and looked to be in control. But after the Hawks outscored the Tigers 15-10 in the second quarter, and 25-18 in the second half, C/J-I came away with the win.

Justin May had a quiet night on Friday, but led the Hawks on Saturday night with 15 points. Dell Harmon also came out and put up 14 for the Hawks after scoring just three the night before.

The Hawks will face Valier on the road on Friday, but will return home to host Dutton-Brady on Saturday.

The Hays-Lodge Pole Thunderbirds earned another win on Saturday, but also had to do so in a very tight matchup. The Thunderbirds defeated Moore-Judith Gap 47-45 on the road.

Chinook guard Jacob Maclean, right, handles the ball during Saturday night's boys game in Chinook.

Despite the close contest, the T-Birds got a great performance from Jalen Brockie, as he led the team with his 16 points. Sorrell's 10 and Cole's 12 were also key in the win, as the Thunderbirds had three double digit scorers compared to Moore-Judith Gap's one.

The Thunderbirds travel to Chinook to face the Beeters on Friday and travel to North Star to face the Knights on Saturday in two 9C matchups.

In another 9C game, the Box Elder Bears defeated the Chinook Sugarbeeters 62-44 on Saturday. The battle for the 9C has been a good one all season long, but the Bears find themselves in great position to win the regular season.

Randall Gardipee paced everybody with 30 points, and was a big reason for the Bears' lopsided victory. Clayton Morsette Jr. added 11 and Lonnie Plain Bull added eight. Tilleman led the Beeters with 11 points as Chinook played from behind the whole game. Box Elder led 17-8 after the first quarter and never looked back.

Box Elder will host North Star on Friday. And Chinook will host Hays-Lodge Pole on Friday before facing Dodson on the road on Saturday.

Big Sandy was also able to earn a Saturday win, dominating non conference Denton 73-36.

The Pioneers cruised on Saturday, beginning with the 25-point first quarter that set the pace. Jerry Hanson and Trevor Lackner led the Pioneers with 19 points each, while Zac Leader finished with 12 and Jessey Bailey finished with 10. Big Sandy will be on the road this weekend, facing Roy/Winifred on Friday and Turner on Saturday.

In the final 9C game of the weekend, the Turner Tornadoes completed a regular season sweep of the North Star Knights. This time around the Tornadoes defeated the Knights 50-45 in Turner.

Turner jumped out to an early 32-15 first half lead, but nearly lost the game to a surging Knights team. North Star outscored the Tornadoes 14-12 in the third and 16-6 in the fourth, but ran out of time in the comeback attempt. The Knights were led by Cooper Spicher's 14 points, while the Tornadoes were led by Lucas Reed's 20.

Turner will host Hinsdale on Thursday and host Big Sandy on Saturday. The Knights will travel to Denton Thursday, travel to Box Elder Friday, and host Hays-Lodge Pole on Saturday.

Rocky Boy may have suffered its first loss of the season on Friday, but the Stars quickly got back on track on Saturday. The Stars defeated the Cut Bank Wolves 57-48.

The Stars stretched a one point first quarter lead to a six point half time lead. And despite holding a lead for most of the contest, the Stars needed a big fourth quarter to ensure the win. The Wolves outscored the Stars 17-12 in the third quarter, but the Stars responded with a 17-9 fourth quarter.

Desmond Parker had a huge night and led the Stars with 20 points. Junior Day Child and LaFromboise both pitched in 13 points each.

The Stars will host Malta on Thursday and will travel to Shelby on Friday.

Friday

Harlem 73, Rocky Boy 62

Harlem 15 17 22 19 — 73

Rocky Boy 11 13 21 17 — 62

Harlem — Stanley Irvine 23, Isaiah Lawrence 9, Micah Shawl 23, Tristan Gone 3, Tyler Doney 2, Clay Doney 13. Totals 28 9-13.

Rocky Boy — Elijah Gopher 4, Isaiah Murie 2, Junior Day Child 21, Desmond Parker 15, Darien LaFromboise 14, Cecil LaFromboise 6. Totals 27 6-9.

Total fouls — Harlem 9, RB 14. 3-pointers — Irvine 2, Lawrence 3, Shawl 2, Gone, Day Child 2.

Chinook 61, North Star 46

Chinook 8 21 18 14 — 61

North Star 7 15 6 18 — 46

Chinook — Lane Seymour 3, Dylan Surber 17, Zach Molyneaux 12, Ian McIntosh 8, Grant Tilleman 21. Totals 20 19-33

North Star — Cooper Spicher 9, Quinn Spinler 2, Gavin Spinler 21, Payton Peterson 3, Sam Ulmen 5, Jaxon Simonson 6. Totals 15 13025

Total fouls — Chinook 20, NS 21. Fouled out — Seymour, C. Spicher. 3-pointers — Surber, Molyneaux, G. Spinler 3.

Big Sandy 74, Box Elder 72

Big Sandy 15 22 14 23 — 74

Box Elder 14 21 11 26 — 72

Big Sandy -- Zac Leader 29, Kyle Strutz 2, Jesse Bailey 14, Jerry Hanson 12, Kaden Beck 2, Trevor Lackner 15. Totals: 26 18-36.

Box Elder -- Brandon The Boy 11, Clayton Morsette Jr. 6, Randall Guardipee 32, Quinn Baker 2, Nathan Parker 4, Thomas Parisian 12, Lonnie Plain Bull Jr. 5. Totals: 31 7-12.

Totals: Big Sandy NA, Box Elder NA. Fouled out: Plain Bull. Technical fouls: Plain Bull. 3-pointers: Bailey 3, Hanson 1, The Boy 2, Plain Bull 1.

Hays-Lodge Pole 52, Winnett-Grass Range 44

Winnett-Grass Range 4 9 7 24 — 44

HLP 10 7 17 18 — 52

Winnett-Grass Range — Clay Barnett 4, Joe Stahl 9, Logan Sluggett 7, Jake Iverson 13, Jercin Streage 4, Ryan Sedgewick 2, Tucker Bevis 2, Roman Wollman 3.

HLP — Jalen Brockie 8, Jeff Sorrell 6, Gage Essert 11, Marvin Cole 14, Sterling White Cow 3, Keeran Stiff Arm 2, Darran Long Fox, Jr., 8.

Chester/J-I 57, Sunburst 34

Sunburst 6 12 2 14 -- 34

C/J-I 16 17 8 16 -- 57

Sunburst -- L. Simmes 6, T. Tharp 9, J. Nagy 1, A. Ryan 9, P. Mackintosh 4, F. McEwen 5. Totals: 13 5-13.

C/J-I -- Jordan Oraw 12, Dell Harmon 3, Tim Stokes 4, Mike Henke 4, Steven May 12, Cody Ramberg 5, Dustin Romain 9, Casey Kenyon 2, Justin May 6. Totals: 24 7-14.

Total fouls: Sunburst 15, CJI 10. Fouledout: McEwen. 3-pointers: Simmes 2, Tharp 1, Harmon 1, May 1.

Saturday

Chester/J-I 48, Simms 47

C/J-I 8 15 10 15 – 48

Simms 19 10 11 7 – 47

C/J-I – Jordan Oraw 6, Dell Harmon 14, Tim Stokes 3, Cody Ramberg 3, Dustin Romain 1, K. Lohr 6, Justin May 15. Totals 19 17-13

Simms – C. Crumley 3, E. Pschernig 8, J. Beaver 17, Z. Bloom 9, J. Bloom 4, J. Kersch 6. Totals 17 8-13

Hays-Lodge Pole 47, Moore-Judith Gap 45

HLP -- Jeff Sorrell 10, Marvin Cole 12, Gage Essert 6, Sterling Whitecrow 3, Jalen Brockie 16.

Moore-Judith Gap — Haden Wichman 18, Max Hertel 4, Gavin Melichar 9, Carver Hofer 7, Jordan Walter 7.

Box Elder 62, Chinook 44

Chinook 8 7 10 19 – 44

Box Elder 17 10 17 18 – 62

Chinook — Lane Seymour 7, Dylan Surber 4, Zach Molyneaux 10, Zach Schellin 6, Ty Simenson 2, Grant Tilleman 15.

Box Elder — Brandon The Boy 4, Clayton Morsette Jr. 11, Randall Gardipee 30, Lonnie Plain Bull 8, Lee Webster 2, Kylee Fiddler 2, Slayte Duran 3.

Big Sandy 73, Denton 36

Deonton 9 9 14 4 – 36

Big Sandy 25 16 15 19 – 73

Denton – Jake Gremaux 11, Austin Morris 4, Kendall Carpenter 16, Tyler Lee 5.

Big Sandy – Zac Leader 12, Jessey Bailey 10, Jerry Hanson 19, Kaden Beck 4, Trevor Lackner 19, TJ Shipp 3.

Turner 50, North Star 45

North Star 4 11 14 16 – 45

Turner 17 15 12 6 – 50

North Star – Cooper Spicher 14, Quinn Spinler 4, Gavin Spinler 10, Sam Ulmen 4, Donoven Ulmen 2, Jaxon Simonson 11.

Turner – Dylan Welsh 5, Tyler Humphreys 8, Bret VanValkenburg 15, Lucas Reed 20, Alyero Gonzalez 2.

Rocky Boy 57, Cut Bank 48

Rocky Boy 12 16 12 17 – 57

Cut Bank 11 11 17 9 – 48

Rocky Boy – Junior Day Child 13, Justin Raining Bird 8, Desmond parker 20, Darian LaFromboise 13, Cecil LaFromboise 3.

Cut Bank – Kaz Harwood 8, Rocky Racine 4, Clint Evans 9, Wyatt Harwood 6, Jess Ray 6, Dylan Vasboe 12, Joey Karcher 3.