Box Elder captures the District 9C Boys Basketball championship

The District 9C Boys Basketball Tournament finally wrapped up at Havre High Gymnasium on Saturday. After three days of competitive basketball, four teams battled it out across the championship and consolation games. The night started with the Big Sandy Pioneers dominating for a 65-25 win over the North Star Knights in the consolation game. In the District 9C championship game, Box Elder got rolling to defeat Chester-Joplin-Inverness 80-56.

The Bears started the championship game hot as they raced out to a 9-0 lead. Matthias Blackbird scored a pair of baskets to start the run and Tracen Jilot knocked down a 3-pointer and made a layup. The Hawks eventually scored but could not slow down the Bears who ended the opening frame with an 18-7 lead.

The Bears continued to roll in the second quarter as they took a 41-26 lead into halftime. Even with the big lead, the Bears kept pouring it on in the second half to pull away for the win and the District 9C championship.

As a team, the Bears shot 38.8 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from deep. Jilot had a monster game for the Bears with 36 points as he went 14-for-26 from the field and 5-for-8 from deep. Blackbird added 18 points on 8-for-17 shooting from the field.

The Hawks shot 41.5 percent from the field and 40 percent from deep. However, they had 27 less shots than the Bears in the game. Blake Harmon recorded 23 points for CJI on 8-for-18 shooting from the field and 5-for-6 shooting from the free-throw line.

Both Box Elder and CJI will next play in the Northern C Divisional next week in Great Falls. Big Sandy will join them in the Northern C Divisional after defeating North Star in the 9C consolation game.

Big Sandy got rolling early and never looked back. Kody Strutz and Braydon Cline got going early as they led Big Sandy to a 13-0 lead to start the game. Isaac Pedraza capped off the hot start with a 3-pointer to give Big Sandy a 16-0 lead late in the first quarter.

The Knights finally broke through with a basket from Gavin Clawson, but still trailed, 16-2, to end the first quarter. The Pioneers continued to roll through the second quarter as they built themselves a 48-11 lead into halftime.

The Pioneers started the third quarter on a 7-0 run to start a running clock. The Knights were unable to make any headway on the scoreboard as the Pioneers coasted to a win to clinch their spot in the Northern C Divisional.

The Pioneers finished the game shooting 50 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from the free-throw line. Cline led the Pioneers with 20 points on 8-for-13 shooting. Lane Demontiney added 15 points on 6-for-9 shooting from the field and 3-for-3 shooting from deep.

The Pioneers limited the Knights to only shooting 27 percent from the field and 21.4 percent from deep. Garrett Spicher led North Star with nine points on 3-for-6 shooting from deep. With the loss, North Star's season came to an end.

Box Elder 80, CJI 56, Championship

BE - 18 23 18 21 - 80

CJI - 7 19 12 18 - 56

BE - Tracen Jilot 36, Matthias Blackbird 18, Tuarie Stiffarm-Rosette 10, Dreydon Anderson 6, Skylar Walker 4, Tavory Whitford 3, Julian Henry 2, King Ragged Robe 1.

CJI - Blake Harmon 23, Karson Pulst 14, Nate Nelson 6, Ryland St. John 4, Braden Mattson 4, Adam Grammar 3, Cooper Streit 2.

3-pointers: Tracen Jilot 5, Matthias Blackbird 2, Karson Pulst 2, Blake Harmon 2, Dreydon Anderson 1, Tavory Whitford 1. Fouls: BE 14, CJI 10. Fouled Out: None.

Big Sandy 65, North Star 25, Consolation

BS - 16 30 15 4 - 65

NS - 2 9 7 7 - 25

BS - Braydon Cline 20, Lane Demontiney 15, Kody Strutz 14, Isaac Pedraza 5, Wylee Snapp 4, Cooper Taylor 3, Rusty Gasvoda 2, Ryder Galbavy 2.

NS - Garrett Spicher 9, Gavin Spicher 6, Gavin Clawson 6, Carter Campbell 2, Parker Hansen 2.

3-pointers: Lane Demontiney 3, Garrett Spicher 3, Braydon Cline 2, Cooper Taylor 1, Kody Strutz 1, Isaac Pedraza 1. Fouls: BS 16, NS 9. Fouled Out: None.