One last game in the Corral for HHS seniors

Senior night is always special, but this year, for the Havre High boys basketball team, it will mean even more than usual.

That’s because the Blue Ponies will not only see one of the best players in school history play his final game at the HHS gymnasium, but a number of influential seniors will play in front of the hometown fans tonight against Lewistown in the Pony Corral for the last time. Tip-off is set for 7. Havre will also pay a visit to Rocky Boy Saturday and will take on the Stars at 6:30 p.m.

Of course the senior with the biggest star power is Dane Warp, the two-time All-State guard that currently leads Class A in scoring for what would be the third straight year.

Warp is averaging more than 20 points a game for the third consecutive season and with one of Havre’s Central A rivals in town, a big-time performance is to be expected.

However, Warp, who is averaging 24.1 points per game this season, is not the only standout among the senior class this year, as Jerod Boles and Nate Rismon will also be playing their final home game tonight. Forwards Zach Hunt and Bridger Bibeau are also part of the 2016 senior class.

"It's been a special group," HHS head coach Curt Leeds said. "They came in as freshmen, the same year I came in as head coach. And Dane and Nate have been playing varsity since they were freshmen, so they contributed a lot to our program. We all did it together."

Neither Rismon or Boles are putting up big scoring numbers this season, as they are each averaging about 7.7 points per game, which is just outside the top 10 of the Central A. But both players contribute to the Ponies’ success in a myriad of ways. Havre, which is 10-5 overall and 4-2 in the Central A, relies heavily on Rismon for his defense, while Boles is seen by many as the emotional leader. Both players are capable perimeter shooters and when they are knocking down 3-pointers, their ability to score, coupled with Warp’s is nearly impossible to stop.

Yet, even though senior night may mean something to Havre, beating Lewistown will mean more, especially with the tightness of the Central A race. Belgrade is in the clubhouse with a 6-2 record and has no more conference games. But, at 4-2 right now, the Ponies can get to 6-2 with victories over Lewistown tonight and Browning next weekend. And if they do that, they will be conference champs via the tiebreaker that they hold over the Panthers.

"This is a big game for us," Leeds said. "We control our own destiny. We have a chance to be the top team in the conference and we need to come out and play like a first-place team."

While Havre is right in the thick of the race for first, the Eagles have yet to win a conference game this season and despite losing to the Ponies by just a handful, it’s been a difficult season for Lewistown, which is 4-11 overall and 0-5 in league play.

However, the Eagles are not devoid of talent and actually boast the Central A’s fifth-leading scorer in Hunter Errecart, who averages more than 10.7 points per game. Yet, beyond that, the Eagles have little to work with, which means Lewistown will have to play a nearly flawless game to upend HHS.

After hosting their rival tonight, Havre will head out to Rocky Boy to try and complete the season sweep of the Stars, a team Havre routed earlier in the year.

Much like Lewistown, the Stars have struggled for much of the year and, thanks to a number of graduations, they started the season with little varsity experience. And while they have some experience now, they are still too green and too young not to have some ups and downs.

While the Stars may struggle mightily when it comes to stopping the Havre offense, one thing the Stars know they can do is score the ball and with a slew of talented scorers such as Ben Iron Eyes, Jerell Gopher and Kendall Windy Boy, Rocky Boy should at least be able to make it interesting.

"They have struggled a bit, but they are still a good team," Leeds said. "They have two good post players and that will be our biggest challenge. They have some kids that can score, so we need to play well."

Havre will host Lewistown tonight at 7 and then will travel to Rocky Boy for a non-conference game tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. Havre’s seniors will be honored before tonight’s game.