Stars move on in Missoula

After taking the hard route to the Class B state boys basketball tournament, the Rocky Boy Stars are now just one win away from playing for a state championship.

Rocky Boy, the second seed from the Northern B, took on Southern B champion Three Forks at Dahlberg Arena in Missoula Thursday and used an early 14-0 run to take control of the game. The Stars eventually knocked off Three Forks 67-56 to earn a place in the semifinals tonight against undefeated Bigfork, which beat Joliet 67-38 in the opening round. The Stars and Vikings will tip-off tonight at 6:30 for a berth in the Class B championship game.

"Solid defense, get the ball out running (on fast breaks) and get it to the big guy (Windy Boy) on the other end," Rocky Boy coach Adam Demontiney said to 406sports.com after the win. "Three Forks worked the ball good, so we had to keep from over rotating, and contest every shot. And Windy Boy's five blocks inside were a factor. Kordell (Small) had great game, and one of our reserves, Frankie Bacon, came through for us. But just an overall good performance by everyone."

In the first few minutes of the game, the two teams went back and forth, but spurred on by their 14-0 run, the Stars grabbed a commanding 17-6 lead at the end of the first quarter. Rocky Boy led by as many 15 points early in the second quarter, but a 16-7 run by Three Forks to end the first half got the Wolves within four, 26-22 at the break.

In the third quarter, Rocky Boy took control of the game again, thanks to Kordell Small, who scored six points early in the second half, sparking a 9-0 run. By the end of the stanza, the lead was back to 10 points, at 50-40. The Wolves got the lead down to single digits at 60-52, but the Stars hung on to win by 11.

"That's what I think basketball is," Demontiney said to the Great Falls Tribune, "A game of runs. We just hope to have the last run."

Small, a senior, had a big outing for the Stars in the win, notching 18 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and four steals. Kendall Windy Boy was also stellar in the win for Rocky Boy with 14 points, 12 rebounds and five blocks. Senior Ben Iron Eyes contributed with 15 points and Frankie Bacon added 12. Three Forks got 22 points from Micaiah Hauser, as well as 14 points and 11 rebounds from Colter Miller.

Rocky Boy, which is in search of its first state championship in boys basketball since 2010, gets a shot at Bigfork tonight in Missoula at 6:30. The winner will play for the state championship Saturday night.

Rocky Boy 67, Three Forks 56

Three Forks 6 16 18 16 - 56

Rocky Boy 17 9 24 17 - 67

Three Forks - Micaiah Hauser 22, Darren Miller 5, Bryce Olson 3, TJ Miller 4, Colter Miller 14, Corey Yecny 8.

Rocky Boy - Kordell Small 18, Ben Iron Eyes 15, Frankie Bacon 12, Olin Arkinson 3, Kendall Windy Boy 14, Kade Galbavy 2, Wyatt Caplette 3.

3-point goals - Hauser 3, C. Miller, Olson, Small 2, Iron Eyes, Arkinson. Total fouls - Three Forks 17, Rocky Boy 17, Fouled out - Windy Boy, Miller, Miller.

Bulldogs stop Morning Stars

Momentum is a tricky thing. Sometimes it can go away as fast as it showed up.

The Rocky Boy Morning Stars seemed to have all the momentum in the world following championships in the both the District 1B and Northern B tournaments, as they entered Thursday's first round of the Class B state tournament in Missoula.

But momentum wasn't enough to get the Morning Stars a win in their first-ever Class B state tourney game.

Inside famed Dahlbeg Arena in Missoula, Rocky Boy fell to the Townsend Bulldogs, 65-44 Thursday afternoon, dropping the Morning Stars into a loser-out game this morning.

And while the final score was a bit lopsided, the Morning Stars were actually right there with the Bulldogs for 24 minutes. However, it was the eight minutes in the second period that did Rocky Boy in. The game was tied at 9-9 after the first quarter, then, Townsend ripped off a 25-8 run and scored 12 straight points at one stretch. That left the Morning Stars trailing 34-17 at halftime, and while they played the Bulldogs much closer in the second half, it was too little, too late.

"Our post defense really let us down tonight," Rocky Boy coach Cameron McCormick said. "I hate to make excuses, but I feel I didn't prepare us well enough there."

Tavia Rooney had a big game for the Bulldogs with 15 points and 22 rebounds, while Abby Leachman scored a game-high 19 points. Rocky Boy, which struggled to defend on the inside, also struggled from the field, shooting just 31 percent for the contest. Jaylynn Mitchell led the way with 14 points, while Adrienne Gopher added 13.

The Morning Stars (17-6) will try and keep their season alive by beating Deer Lodge in a loser-out game this morning. The Class B girls tourney runs through Saturday night in Missoula.

"This is heart-check time," McCormick said. "I still feel like we can get third if it's in the girls' hearts. If it's not, we may be going home early.

Townsend 65, Rocky Boy 44

Townsend 9 25 17 14 - 65

Rocky Boy 9  8 12 15 - 44

Townsend- Tavia Rooney 15, Abby Leachman 19, Charlotte Watson 12, Catie Watson 2, Lainee Hill 2, Denika Dolan 1, Grace McConnell 1.

Rocky Boy - Jaynah Gopher 6, Sean Henry 4, Sasha Coffee 3, Adrienne Gopher 13, Jaylyn Mitchell 14, Naomi Day Child 3.

3-point goals - Leachman 4, Ch. Watson, Gopher 2, Coffee. Total fouls -  Townsend 12, Rocky Boy 20. Fouled out - Coffee.