Hi-Line Boys: Hawks, Pioneers off to hot starts

High school boys basketball has finally made its return this past weekend with games across the Hi-Line and the state of Montana. This week of basketball got started this past Thursday with the All American Indian Shootout at the Metra in Billings.

The Box Elder boys basketball team got the tournament started Thursday with a 54-51 loss to Heart Butte. Early on, the Bears looked good as they raced out to a 16-4 lead in the first quarter. The Warriors played better in the second quarter but the Bears took a 30-15 lead into halftime.

The Warriors dominated the third quarter to get themselves back in the game. Heading to the fourth quarter, the Bears only had a 43-37 lead. The Warriors carried their momentum into the fourth quarter as they outscored the Bears to steal the win.

In the loss, Tracen Jilot led the Bears with 17 points. His teammate Matthias Blackbird scored 14 points for the Bears. Riley Reevis led Heart Butte with 16 points while Jude Reevis scored 12 and Lance Morgan scored 11 in the comeback victory.

The Hays-Lodge Pole boys basketball team got its week started Thursday at the All American Indian Shootout as well. Unfortunately, the Thunderbirds started their week with a 64-52 loss to Plenty Coups. The Thunderbirds played well to start the game as they took a 15-12 lead in the first quarter. The Warriors then responded in the second quarter to cut the Thunderbirds' lead to 30-29 at the half.

The Warriors maintained their momentum in the third quarter as they tied the game, 44-44, heading to the fourth quarter. In the final 10 minutes of the game, the Warriors dominated to pull away with the win. Daniel Henry wound up leading HLP with 13 points in the losing effort. Zander Goes Ahead led the Warriors to victory with 16 points.

The Chinook basketball team got its season started Thursday with a game against Cut Bank in Shelby. In their season opener, the Sugarbeeters could not keep pace as Cut Bank won 75-45. The Wolves got rolling early as they took a 19-12 lead in the first quarter. The Sugarbeeters were unable to shift momentum in the second quarter as the Wolves stretched their lead to 44-26 at halftime.

In the second half, the Wolves continued to play well to pull away for the win. Tate Monroe and Jaydas Runningwolf each scored 16 points to lead the Wolves to victory. Brenden Fetter led Chinook with 11 points in the loss.

Hi-Line basketball continued with more games Friday. The Box Elder Bears continued the All American Indian Shootout at the Metra in Billings with an 88-61 win over Plenty Coups. The Bears got off to a strong start as they took a 22-15 lead in the first quarter. They then rolled in the second quarter to take a 49-29 lead by halftime.

The Warriors played better in the second half but the Bears did not give up their sizable lead and closed out the victory. Jilot had a strong game as he led the Bears with 24 points in the win.

Some of the Hi-Line teams from Class B got their weeks started on Friday. At the All American Indian Shootout, the Rocky Boy boys basketball team defeated Lame Deer 81-67. Rocky Boy fell behind early as it trailed 18-12 to end the first quarter.

The Stars played better in the second quarter to cut their deficit to 35-32 at halftime. The Stars carried their momentum in the third to take a 58-51 lead. The Stars continued to pull away in the fourth to win the game. Aeson Gopher led the Stars with 22 points while Teague Stump and Joe Standing Rock each scored 21 points in the contest.

The Chester-Joplin-Inverness boy's basketball team got its weekend started with a 69-58 win over the East Helena junior varsity team in Cascade Friday. After trailing, 13-11, in the first quarter, the Hawks forced a 26-26 tie heading into halftime. The Hawks then dominated the third quarter to take a 49-33 lead. East Helena tried to come back in the fourth quarter, but the Hawks held on for the victory. Karson Pulst led the Hawks with 21 points while Blake Harmon contributed 19 points to the win.

On the road Friday, the North Star boys basketball team had a poor start to the weekend with a 63-16 loss to Harlowton-Ryegate-Judith Gap. The Engineers raced out to a 19-6 lead over the Knights in the first quarter before stretching their lead to 34-12 at halftime. Whatever hopes of a comeback went away in the third quarter when the Knights were shutout in the frame. Izaiah Barkhoff led the Engineers with 13 points in the win while the leading scorer for North Star was Chris Burkhartsmeyer with six points.

The Fort Benton boys basketball team got its season started with a 65-40 win over Saco-Whitewater-Hinsdale in Lewistown. The Longhorns got rolling early as they took a 25-11 lead. The Mavericks then responded to cut Fort Benton's lead to 33-26 heading into halftime. The Longhorns recaptured momentum in the third quarter as they stretched their lead to 47-31. They then pulled away in the fourth quarter to close out the win to pick up their first win of the season.

In Lockwood, the Harlem boys basketball team got its season started with an 81-60 loss to Huntley Project. Parker Cook led the Red Devils with 26 points while David Wolfheil scored 16 points in the winning effort.

The Big Sandy Pioneers played again Friday with a 74-23 win over Valier. The Pioneers then wrapped up their week with a 63-25 win over Sunburst in Dutton Saturday. The Pioneers started hot as they jumped out to a 25-7 lead. By halftime, the Pioneers had a 42-13 lead.

With the huge lead, the Pioneers cruised to victory in the second half. Many Pioneers played well to end the weekend, including Isaac Pedraza with 19 points and Braydon Cline with 18 points.

The CJI Hawks also ended the weekend strong as they defeated Cascade, 71-64, on the road. After trailing 16-14 in the first quarter, the Hawks stayed in the game to only trail, 34-33, at halftime. The Hawks then dominated the third quarter to take a 55-47 lead. The Badgers tried to fight their way back in the fourth, but the Hawks held on to start the season 2-0. Harmon had a great game as he led the team with 32 points. Braden Mattson played well with 17 points while Pulst contributed 15 points.

The Chinook Sugarbeeters were not so fortunate Saturday as they lost, 57-51, to Shelby on the road. The Coyotes started the game by taking a 12-8 lead in the first quarter. The Sugarbeeters stayed competitive, but they trailed, 26-21, at halftime. In the third quarter, the Coyotes maintained momentum as they stretched their lead to 37-33. The Sugarbeeters continued to battle in the fourth quarter, but they could not overcome the deficit. Kyle McDermott led Shelby with 23 points while Flint Annis and Carson Nissen each scored 10 points for Chinook in the losing effort.

The All American Indian Shootout continued Saturday with Harlem losing, 86-43, to Lodge Grass. The Wildcats fell behind early as Lodge Grass took a 19-9 lead. By halftime, the Indians stretched their lead to 39-18. The Wildcats were never able to cut into the deficit in the second half and the game was called by mercy rule. The loss dropped Harlem to 0-2 on the season.

The Fort Benton Longhorns wrapped up their weekend with a 43-42 win over Melstone in Lewistown. It was a tight game that came down to the final seconds. Trailing 42-40, the Longhorns knocked down a 3-pointer at the buzzer to win the game and start their season 2-0.

Thursday

Heart Butte 54, Box Elder 51

HB - 4 11 22 17 - 54

BE - 16 14 11 10 - 51

HB - Riley Reevis 16, Jude Reevis 12, Lance Morgan 11, Casey DeRoche Jr. 6, Thomas Young Running Crane 5, Peyton Racine 3, Cobyn Eagle Speaker 2.

BE - Tracen Jilot 17, Matthias Blackbird 14, Theron Oats Jr. 6, T. Rosette 6, Alex Four Colors 4, Skylar Walker 2, King Ragged Robe 2.

Plenty Coups 64, Hays-Lodge Pole 52

PC - 12 17 15 20 - 64

HLP - 15 15 14 8 - 52

PC - Zander Goes Ahead 16, Ledrain Hugs 13, Dontez Gutierrez 12, Enson Kills Pretty Enemy 7, Tabias Goes Ahead 6, Fabian Wise Spirit 5, Kyler Plain Feather 2, Emerson Smells 2, Charles Ball 1.

HLP - Daniel Henry 13, Davontae Sullivan 9, Avery Boe 6, Russell Plainfeather 5, William Hughes Jr. 7, Kaleb Walker 5.

Cut Bank 75, Chinook 45

CHI - 12 14 10 9 - 45

CB - 19 25 16 15 - 75

CHI - Brendan Fetter 11, Jackson Nordboe 9, Carson Nissen 6, Landen Beck 5, Flint Annis 4, Braxton Inman 4, Wylee Simenson 4, Levi Jensen 2.

CB - Jaydas Runningwolf 16, Tate Monroe 16, Chevy Burdeau 11, Peyton St. Goddard 8, Damien Burke 7, Preston Bird 6, Jackson Black 5, Greg Coy 4, Dallas Berkram 2.

Friday

CJI 69, East Helena JV 58

CJI - 11 15 23 20 - 69

EH - 13 13 7 25 - 58

CJI - Karson Pulst 21, Blake Harmon 19, Braden Mattson 14, Ty Backen 7, Nate Nelson 4, Adam Grammar 4.

Box Elder 88, Plenty Coups 61

PC - 15 14 15 17 - 61

BE - 22 27 18 21 - 88

PC - Dontez Gutierrez 16, Ledrain Hugs 15, Tabias Goes Ahead 10, Joseph Little Light 8, Zander Goes Ahead 4, Elijah High Hawk 3, Jamison Demontiney 3, Cancan Sees The Rgound 2.

BE - Tracen Jilot 24, T. Rosette 15, Dreydon Anderson 10, Matthias Blackbird 9, Skylar Walker 8, King Ragged Robe 8, Alex Four Colors 4, T'Sean Taylor 4, Tavory Whiteford 2, Theron Oats Jr. 2.

Harlowton-Ryegate-Judith Gap 63, North Star 16

NS - 6 6 0 4 - 16

HRJ - 19 15 18 11 - 63

NS - Chris Burkartsmeyer 6, Carter Campbell 4, Ty Hansen 3, Sebastian Mansfield 2, Michael Berg 2, Garrett Spicher 1.

HRJ - Izaiah Barkhoff 13, Tyler Cromwell 12, Joe Alvarez 11, Rom Hiner 7, Michael Willis 6, Angus Glennie 6, Bergen Mysse 4.

Rocky Boy 81, Lame Deer 67

RB - 12 20 26 23 - 81

LD - 18 17 16 16 - 67

RB - Aeson Gopher 22, Joe Standing Rock 21, Teague Stump 21, Jayden Gopher 6, Domitri Standing Rock 6, Kenny Corcoran 2, Braydon Lamere 1.

LD - Moses Sanders 16, Kendall Russell 14, Amelio Black Horse 12, Ethen Emerson 9, Markell Little Coyote 6, Frank Fling 5, Miciah Rolling Bull 4, Aalyias Haugen 1.

Saturday

Shelby 57, Chinook 51

CHI - 8 13 12 18 - 51

SHE - 12 14 11 20 - 57

CHI - Flint Annis 10, Carson Nissen 10, Jackson Nordboe 9, Brenden Fetter 8, Levi Jensen 8, Braxton Inman 2, Landen Beck 2, Wylee Simenson 2.

SHE - Kyle McDermott 23, Trenton Emerson 10, William Patterson 8, Randon Richman 8, Hayden Schilling 6, Bryce Lee 2.

Big Sandy 63, Sunburst 25

BS - 25 17 20 1 - 63

SUN - 7 6 6 6 - 25

BS - Isaac Pedraza 19, Braydon Cline 18, Kody Strutz 14, Wylee Snapp 9, Rusty Gasvoda 3, Ryder Galbavy 3, Jake Darlington 3.

SUN - Conlan Kerfoot 11, John Buckley 10, Connor Sullivan 2, Michael Miller 2.

CJI 71, Cascade 64

CJI - 14 19 22 16 - 71

CAS - 16 18 13 17 - 64

CJI - Blake Harmon 32, Braden Mattson 17, Karson Pulst 15, Nate Nelson 5, Pat Dahlin 2.