Pony girls home to face Cowgirls tonight

The Havre High girls basketball has become accustomed to winning over the past few years. So whenever the Blue Ponies lose a game, they get hungry to get back into the win column.

This weekend, the defending Class A state champions will have exactly two opportunities to put their loss to Malta last Saturday to bed as they play host to Conrad tonight before making the trek to Lewistown for a Central A conference road game Saturday. Tonight’s game against the Cowgirls inside the HHS gymnasium will get underway at 7. Saturday, Lewistown and HHS will kick things off at 6 p.m.

"I know Conrad head coach Tyler Bucklin and he has a done a great job in Conrad," HHS head coach Dustin Kraske said. "His kids always play hard. And in the past they have always run some type of zone on defense and they usually have done it very well."

The Cowgirls, who are winless on the season, have a very young team with only two starters returning from last season's 13-12 team. The Cowgirls are led by seniors Michalea DeBoo and Gabby Drishinski, as well as junior Emily Harwood.

Havre, on the other hand, comes into the game 3-2 overall and 2-0 in Central A conference play. And while the Ponies were inexperienced to start the season, that’s becoming less of an issue now.

Senior Morgan Mazurkiewicz still leads the way for HHS, particularly on the offensive end of the floor. But, sophomore Naomi Terry has looked to score more with each outing and has emerged as a solid second option. Dani Wager has also developed into a scoring threat both inside and out, while Lindsey Kudrna and Tori Mazurkiewicz can also be counted on to contribute offensively.

"The big thing for us is to just try to go out and be a better team Friday than we were last Saturday," Kraske said. "So we do some things preparation-wise for our opponents but mostly we are going to do what we are going to do, especially on defense."

Defense has always been a strong point for the Ponies under Kraske and that is no different this season. In five games, HHS is allowing an average of just 43.5 points per game. Yet, if you take out the two games against Malta, which is one the best girls basketball teams in the state regardless of class, Havre has allowed just 32 points per game.

The stingy Havre defense will make things difficult for not only Conrad tonight, but also Lewistown Saturday. The Eagles are winless thus far in the 2014-15 season and average just 38 points per game. That means even though the Eagles will be playing at home against the Ponies, points will be hard to come by.

While no Lewistown player currently averages double figures in points, the Eagles do boast Jaree Mane, who is a talented two-way player that leads her team in points per game with 9.6 and rebounds per game at 5.8. She also averages a team-high 1.2 blocks per game. Lewistown's other top scorer is Lexie Anderson, who averages 7.6 points per game.

"Every time we play Lewistown down there, they play us tough, so we will have our hands full," Kraske said. "Jaree Mane is a player that I like. She is a good athlete and she will play well. Lexie Anderson is another good player, and she will also do well for them."

It's true that winning on the road in conference play is never easy but if the Ponies can grab a win over Lewistown, they will not only be 3-0 in the Central A, they will have already won three of their four conference road games, putting them in great position to win another Central A regular season title.

"I think by getting to 3-0 you put yourself in the best possible position as you prep for divisionals," Kraske said. "It won't make or break our season if we win or lose down there but getting three conference road wins already would be a really good start to our season."

The action will get underway for the Ponies tonight at 7 inside the HHS 7 against Conrad. The Ponies will face the Eagles in Lewistown at 6 p.m. Saturday.