Hi-Line Boys: Big Sandy, Turner grab big wins

The high school basketball season is coming to a close across the state and after this last weekend of hoops, there is just one full week left before the postseason gets underway.

And while most high school teams in Montana have experienced a loss, one team that hasn't is the Chinook Sugarbeeters, who kept their undefeated season going with a 77-29 home win over Harlem last Thursday. Chinook got 16 points from Isaac Bell and Cord Schneider, along with 13 from Ethan Bell. RJ Ramone was the top scorer for the Wildcats with seven.

Play within the District 9C picked up Friday night and in one of the regular season's biggest upsets, the Turner Tornadoes knocked off Hays-Lodge Pole 58-56 Friday night on the road. Turned trailed 36-31 at the half, but outscored the Thunderbirds 14-5 in the third quarter and then held on for the two-point win in the fourth. Cody Welsh carried the Tornadoes in the win with 27 points. Austin Welsh also added 10. HLP got 15 points from Gilbert Snow in the loss as well as 14 from Ken Black Crow Jr.

Elsewhere in the district, Big Sandy paid a visit to North Star Friday night and scored 34 points in the second half to defeat the Knights 56-46. Brock Proulx had a huge night with 25 points, while Austin Hansen, Hayden Massar and Payne Ditmar all had eight for North Star.

With Hays-Lodge Pole falling to Turner, Fort Benton had a chance to lock up the No. 2 seed in the district with a win over Box Elder and the Longhorns delivered with a 66-60 triumph. And, in non-conference action Friday, Chester-Joplin-Inverness scored a win for the 9C against District 1B opponent Cut Bank, 54-52 in Chester. Tyler Wanken finished with 18 points for the Hawks, who also got 11 from Spencer Richter.

Saturday, all eight teams from the 9C were embroiled in district contests and one of the most exciting games was between Fort Benton and HLP. The T-Birds hosted the Longhorns, but in the end, the visitors left victorious as Fort Benton squeaked out a 66-63 win. Garrett Diekhans poured in 17 points to lead the way for the Longhorns, who also got 12 from Hayden Diekhans and 10 from Logan Giles. HLP got a game-high 18 points from Kyle Young Jr., as well as 15 from Black Crow Jr. and 14 from Snow.

Also on Saturday, Chinook traveled to Turner and needed a win to maintain a one-game advantage over Fort Benton. Turner, on the other hand, was fresh off its best win of the season against HLP, however, the Tornadoes were quickly grounded by the Beeters who rolled to an 88-45 win. Schneider scored 22 points in the win; Isaac Bell had 14 along with Brendan Edwards. Welsh paced the Tornadoes with 14 and Shane Kimmel also added 11. Chinook and Fort Benton will meet this Saturday in a game that will likely determine the 9C champion and top seed at the district tournament.

After beating Cut Bank in non-conference play Friday, CJI was hoping to cap the weekend with another win and through three quarters, at home against North Star, things looked promising. The Knights trailed CJI 32-24 after three, but in the fourth and final stanza, North Star scored 12 points and managed to take down the Hawks 45-44. Caden Retting scored 19 in the come-from-behind win. Bailey Spicher also had a solid effort with 14. Wanken paced CJI with 14 points and was followed closely by Richter who ended up with 12.

Big Sandy also had an important game Saturday against Box Elder, as the Pioneers are trying to lock up the No. 4 seed and they got some help in that effort after a 58-56 win over the Bears. Ryan Roth scored 25 points for Big Sandy; Chris Burns was the high scorer for Fort Benton with 12.

In Class B action, Rocky Boy followed up a loss against Havre at home Thursday, with a road win over Northern B rival Malta Friday night. The Stars managed just 43 points but held on for the five-point win in the defensive struggle. Frankie Bacon led the Stars with a team-high 13. Olin Arkinson also pitched in with 10.

Harlem, which lost to Chinook Thursday night, played host to Glasgow Saturday and fell to the Scotties 66-56.

Thursday

Chinook 77, Harlem 29

Harlem 12 12 3 2 - 29

Chinook 28 25 14 10 - 77

Chinook: Isaac Bell 16, Ethan Bell 13, Hunter Neibauer 3, James Christensen 3, Trajan Hannum 2, Toby Niederegger 1, Ethan MacLeod 3, Riley Kellam 2, Brendon Edwards 12, Cord Schneider 16, Reese Elliot 6.

Harlem: RJ Ramone 7, Lane Allen 5, Brad Cichosz 3, Sonny Gray 2, Daniel Lawrence 5, Amari Stanley 3, Cassius Johnson 4.

Friday

Turner 58, Hays-Lodge Pole 56

Turner 11 20 13 14 - 58

Hays-Lodge Pole 18 18 5 15 - 56

Hays-Lodge Pole: Gilbert Snow 15, Jeffrey Stifarm 9, Ken Black Crow Jr. 14, W. Bringingwood 2, Moke Cliff 2, Deshon Shambo 2, Kyle Young Jr. 10.

Turner: Austin Welsh 10, Shane Kimmel 5, Spencer See 8, Kurt Calvert 4, Cody Welsh 27, Tracer Heilig 4.

Rocky Boy 43, Malta 38

Rocky Boy 8 9 9 17

Malta 4 14 9 11 - 38

Malta: Kevin Henry 4, Ben Costin 4, Kooper Oxarart 12, Tanner Smith 14, Cormac Benn 4.

Rocky Boy: Frankie Bacon 13, Mac Sutherland 2, Wyatt Caplette 8, Ben Crebs 2, Orin Arkinson 10, Jordan Tyner 6, Blake Cantrell 2.

Big Sandy 56, North Star 46

Big Sandy 14 8 13 21 - 56

North Star 7 8 13 18 - 46

North Star: Austin Hansen 8, Bailey Spicher 7, Caden Rettig 7, Gavin Spicher 6, Rhett Wolery 2, Payne Ditmer 8, Hayden Massar 8.

Big Sandy: Brock Proulx 25, Ryan Roth 12, Jeremiah Genereaux 3, Wyatt Labuda 2, Kade Strutz 4, Kody Strutz 2, Crawford Terry 5, Parker Proulx 3.

Chester-Joplin-Inverness 54, Cut Bank 52

Cut Bank 13 10 17 12 - 52

CJI - 13 11 16 14 - 54

Chester-Joplin-Inverness: Andrew Woods 9, Noah Bender 8, Tyler Wanken 18, Evan Dahinden 8, Spencer Richter 11.

Cut Bank: Devin Gobert 11, Hayden Harrell 23, Dayne Barbie 4, Dawson Vasboe 2, Colby Kraft 6, Braden Swenson 6.

Saturday

Fort Benton 66, Hays-Lodgepole 63

Fort Benton 16 15 10 14 - 63

Hays-Lodge Pole 16 9 14 16 - 63

Hays-Lodge Pole: Jeffrey Stifarm 4, Ken Black Crow Jr. 15, Kyle Young Jr. 18, Gilbert Snow 14, Deshon Shambo 10, Moke Cliff 5.

Fort Benton: Damon Bird 7, Jace Thompson 3, Garrett Diekhans 17, Max Lane 13, Logan Giles 10, Hayden Diekhans 12

Chinook 88, Turner 45

Chinook 19 27 18 24 - 88

Turner 14 10 15 6 - 45

Turner: Austin Welsh 8, Kurt Calvert 2, Tracer Heilig 7, Shane Kimmel 11, Spencer See 3, Cody Welsh 14.

Chinook: Isaac Bell 14, Ethan Bell 6, Hunter Neibauer 4, James Christensen 2, Cord Schneider 22, Toby Neideregger 2, Reese Elliot 11, Riley Kellam 11, Brendon Edwards 14, Damon Hannum 2.

North Star 45, Chester-Joplin-Inverness 44

North Star 14 7 3 21 - 45

CJI 17 6 9 12 - 44

Chester-Joplin-Inverness: Andrew Woods 4, Noah Bender 8, Tyler Wanken 14, Evan Dahinden 4, Jarret Green 2, Spencer Richter 12.

North Star: Bailey Spicher 14, Hayden Massar 8, Gavin Spicher 2, Caden Rettig 19, Austin Hansen 2.

Big Sandy 58, Box Elder 56

Box Elder 13 9 18 13 0 56

Big Sandy 9 10 14 24 - 58

Box Elder - Jayden O. 12, Zander P. 6, Kadyn Duran 5, Chris Burns 12, Malique Rosette 9, Kobe S. 8.

Big Sandy - Brock Proulx 12, Ryan Roth 25, Kody Strutz 4, Parker Proulx 5, Jeremiah Genereaux 6, Kade Strutz 6.