Longhorns thunder their way into 9C semifinals

The Fort Benton boys basketball team lost only two games during the regular season and that's why they entered the District 9C tournament as a favorite to advance to divisionals next week.

But in the early going against Box Elder, in the quarterfinals of the 9C tournament Thursday inside the HHS gymnasium, the seventh-seeded Bears weren't intimidated by the Longhorns, who trailed at the end of the first quarter to upstart Box Elder. Yet, in the second stanza, Hayden Diekhans got hot and so did the rest of his team. His 3-pointers sparked a run that would eventually reach 45-5 as the Bears scored just five combined points in the second and third quarters of a lopsided 70-27 loss.

"The key for us was that we decided to start playing defense," Fort Benton head coach Tyler Pasha said. "You know our shots weren't really falling early but we were able to get some stops until we got some things going."

Fort Benton started well enough, as Hayden Diekhans got to the bucket for a 3-point play and Logan Giles also connected on a 3-pointer to give the Longhorns an early 6-2 lead. However, Box Elder responded with a run of its own, its best of the night, as it closed the opening quarter on an 8-2 spurt, thanks to buckets by Tayce St. Pierre and Jayden Jilot which put the Bears in front 10-7.

Box Elder took that advantage into the second quarter of play, but it wouldn't hold onto it long, as Diekhans drilled a three from the top of the key just seconds in the second stanza to tie it up at 10-10. Garrett Diekhans put Fort Benton in front with a strong move to the basket and when Hayden Diekhans buried another 3-point bomb, it put Fort Benton in front 18-10.

"Those 3-pointers, there is just something about them," Pasha said. "They are big for momentum. They just give your team a shot of energy.

The Longhorns scored the first 13 points of the second quarter and after outscoring the Bears 25-4 in the second frame, Fort Benton went into the half leading 32-14. In the third quarter, Fort Benton ripped off another 20-1 run putting them in front by 35 points. In the fourth quarter, the mercy rule would come into play as the Longhorns cruised to a 43-point victory.

Hayden Diekhans, an All-Conference player last season, led all scorers in the win after a stellar shooting night from deep. He connected on four 3-pointers on his way to 17. Bird pitched in with 12 and Garrett Diekhans contributed with 11 points and nine rebounds. St. Pierre led Box Elder with seven and Malique Rosette finished with six.

"I just tried to attack the basket, get to the rim and shoot free throws," Diekhans said. "I just want to keep being aggressive."

With the win, Fort Benton will now advance to the 9C semis for the second straight season. Last year, the Longhorns lost to Chinook and on Friday, they will face Hays-Lodge Pole in the semifinals, the same team Fort Benton eliminated in the 9C consolation game last season. That semifinal matchup will take place at approximately 5:30 tonight and the winner will clinch a spot in the Northern C Divisional next week.

"Hays-Lodge Pole has really come on in the last few weeks," Pasha said. "We needed a buzzer-beater to beat them a couple of weeks ago, so it's going to be a tough game. A big thing for us is going to be the pace of the game. We want get out and run with them a little bit but we don't want to fall into the trap of just running up and down with them. We need to crash the boards and keep up our defensive intensity."

Fort Benton swept the Thunderbirds, who beat Turner Thursday, during the regular season. The winner will play in the championship game Saturday night at 8:30.

Fort Benton 70, Box Elder 27

Box Elder 10 4 3 10 - 27

Fort Benton 7 25 24 14 - 70

Box Elder - Jayden Jilot 4, Kadyn Duran 4, Chris Burns 2, Malique Rosette 6, Tayce St. Pierre 7, Kobe Sutherland 2.

Fort Benton - Damon Bird 12, Jace Thompson 4, Stephen Gannon 4, Ethan Pfile 4, Hayden Diekhans 17, Max Lane 2, Logan Giles 6, Billy Ullery 2, Daven Cook 4, Garrett Diekhans 11, Jace Pimperton 4.

3-Pointers: Hayden Diekhans 4, Damon Bird 1, Garrett Diekhans 1, Malique Rosette 1, Tayce St. Pierre 1. Fouls: Box Elder 19, Fort Benton 17. Fouled out -- none.