Hi-Line March Madness in Bozeman

The high school basketball season has nearly come to a close in Montana. But there is one weekend left and among all the state tournaments set for this weekend, there are none more anticipated than the 2017 Class C state boys tournament.

The field at the Class C state tournament, which starts Thursday in Bozeman at Brick Breeden Fieldhouse, is always loaded, but this year, it's even more so.

For starters, Box Elder, the defending state champions are back, but qualified as the No. 2 out of the Northern C, after Hays-Lodge Pole won the Northern C championship two weeks ago. Arlee, the 2016 runner up is also making a return trip and is the favorite, while other teams such as Manhattan Christian, Scobey, Fairview, Bridger and Plenty Coups all bring strong squads.

"I had some time the other night and I was just looking back at some of the history," Box Elder head coach Jeremy MacDonald said. "And I thought it was kind of cool that every team in this tournament has been to the championship game at least twice. That's something that is pretty hard to do. To be one of two teams out of 80 and I think there used to be close to 100 teams in Class C, so to make the final two out of that, is pretty special. So we are going to have a lot of great basketball tradition on display."

As as the second-seeded team from the North, Box Elder will take on Scobey, the champion from the Eastern C, which enters the tournament with a 23-1 record. The Spartans dominated the 3C and won the East with ease. They even swept Class B rival Glasgow this season and will be led by Peyton Nieskens and C.J. Nelson.

"Scobey has a really nice group of guards, they attack the basket really well and they have a couple nice shooters," MacDonald said. "Defensively, they like to put a lot of pressure on the ball. It will be a pretty tough matchup for us. I think we have an advantage with some of our size, so hopefully we can exploit some mismatches."

The Bears, who come into the tournament boasting a record of 20-4, have their own dangerous duo, as they are led by Pernell Morsette and Trey Henderson. Both have been a big part of the Bears' return trip to the state tournament. Others who have made significant contributions for Box Elder are Pete Azure Jr., Tanner Parisian, Dusty Weiss and Wyatt Caplette.

"I think a lot of people didn't really expect us to be back this year," MacDonald said. "We lost all those guys from last year's team, but we really built this team around Pernell and Trey. And then Tanner Parisian has really been a sparkplug for us. Dusty Weiss has been almost a double-double guy and Petey Azure, he has had some big games. But it means a lot for us just to have this opportunity again to be one of the eight teams still playing."

Box Elder and Scobey will wait until 8 p.m., Thursday to tip things off, but another local team, Hays-Lodge Pole, will get things started much earlier. The Thunderbirds, the Northern C champions, will battle Fairview, the second seed from the East at 2 p.m.

"We are just excited to get a chance to play on the big stage," HLP head coach Derrick Shambo said. "We want to see what we can do against the best teams. I think we have a good chance. We just have to stick with what has worked for us all season."

The T-Birds, who lost only to Arlee at the season-opening Native American Classic and to Box Elder in the 9C championship game, come in at 22-2. Part of the reason for their impressive record is the backcourt duo of Frank Runs Above and Tyson Shambo, two past All-State selections.

However, HLP has much more than its two senior guards, as Jace Shambo, Ryle Foot and Chance Main also make a consistent impact, as does Lance Strike off the bench. Fairview will answer with Patrick Hardy, Tanner Reynolds, Taryn Candee and Rex Reynolds.

While the T-Birds will play the second game of the tournament, the opening contest will be between Arlee, the champion of the Western C and Plenty Coups, the No. 2 from the Southern C, which won a challenge game Monday to qualify.

The Warriors come in at 22-1 and are coached by Zanen Pitts. They feature possibly the best individual player in the tournament in Philip Malatare. Tyler Tanner, another standout for Arlee, isn't far behind. Plenty Coups (15-9), which beat Melstone 55-45 Monday, features Ethan Lambert, Arlo Male Bear Jr. and Blake Decrane. Tip-off time for Arlee and Plenty Coups is 12:30 p.m.

The other quarterfinal matchup Thursday, which will tip at 6:30 p.m., pits Manhattan Christian (21-4), the second seed from the West, which features two All-State players in James Ramirez and Joey Lodine, against Bridger (17-6), the champion of the Southern C.

"I think that Arlee is the favorite," MacDonald said. "They beat us by 22, they beat Hays-Lodge Pole by 11 and they also beat Manhattan Christian by double figures. So those are three of the better teams and they beat all of us by double digits. So I think they are going to be the team to beat. But after that, I think that this tournament is wide open."

The four winners Thursday will meet in the semifinals Friday night at 6:30 and 8, followed by the state championship game, which is set for Saturday night at 8. All games will be held inside the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse.