Top-seeded Bears roar in win over the Thunderbirds

As the top seed in the District 9C boys tournament, the Box Elder Bears wanted to get the week started on the right foot.

Mission accomplished.

Thursday afternoon in Havre, Box Elder opened the 2023 9C tourney with a 94-58 win over Hays-Lodge Pole, advancing to tonight's semifinals in the process.

"There's always things we can do better, we're always looking to improve,' longtime Box Elder head coach Jeremy MacDonald said. "But as far as this game goes, I am pretty happy with how we played. The ball was moving well, we got our pressure defense going, and we controlled the tempo. So I'm pretty happy with the way we performed."

The ball was indeed moving.

HLP had kept things close early on, but Tracen Jilot sparked an 8-0 Bears' run with two straight layups, and the Bears ended up leading 30-16 at the end of the first quarter.

HLP responded early in the second stanza with a 3-pointer from Cash Messerly, but Jilot, Skylar Walker and Alex Four Colors combined for 21 points in the second stanza, and the Bears raced out to a 50-30 halftime lead.

Much of Box Elder's success came on the defensive end, as the Bears forced HLP into 24 turnovers.

"I think our full-court press was pretty good," MacDonald said. "Hays is a good offensive team, they have some weapons for sure. They fought us hard there for a while, but I think our press was the key. We forced them into some turnovers and then our offense fed off that."

Indeed. The Bears kept it rolling in the third quarter, especially Jillot, who, along with Tuarie Stiffarm-Rosette, drilled back-to-back threes, helping the Bears to a 28-17 run in the third, and a 79-47 lead, which ultimately put HLP away for good.

And while Box Elder's defense was really good Thursday, so too was the offense. The Bears shot 46 percent from the field and made six triples. Jilot had a game-high 31 points to go with five rebounds, while Walker added 23 points and nine boards.

On the other end, HLP (2-17), which faced Turner in a loser-out game this morning, was held to just 38 percent shooting, while the T-Birds got out-rebouned 42-38. William Has the Eagle led three T-Birds in double figures with 11 points.

On the flip side, the Bears (16-3) dominated and will now face Fort Benton in a semifinal game today at 4. The Bears swept the Longhorns during the regular season, but MacDonald expects nothing less than a tough game.

"We just need to keep playing our style," MacDonald said. "We play a full-court press style that's pretty much different than anyone else in our conference, so with us, it's going to be a contrast of styles and we need to make sure we execute and take advantage of that."

Box Elder 94, Hays-Lodge Pole 58

HLP 16 14 17 11 - 58

Box Elder 30 21 28 15 - 94

HLP - Jacoby Ball 10, Cash Messerly 10, Taeson Doney 5, Kaleb Walker 4, Daniel Henry 8, Avery Roe 2, William Hughes Jr. 5, William Has The Eagle 11, Russell Plainfeathers 3.

Box Elder - Tracen Jiloot 31, Skylar Walker 23, Mathias Blackbird 9, Taurie Stiffarm-Rosette 12, Theron Oats Jr. 2, Alex Four Colors 6, Timmy Rossette III 2, King Ragged Robe 9.

3-pointers: Jilot 2, Walker 1, Four Colors 1, Ragged Robe 1, Messerly 1, Doney 1, Walker 1, Henry 1, Hughes Jr. 1. Fouls: HLP 13, Box Elder 15. Fouled out: None.