Local teams look to keep going at Northern C boys

Now that the District 9C Boys Basketball Tournament is over, the top three teams from that tournament will have little time to rest as they are now set to compete in the Northern C Divisional this week in Great Falls. With tough competition and only the top two teams at this tournament heading to state, the Box Elder, Chester-Joplin-Inverness and Big Sandy boys basketball teams have a tough week ahead.

"We're looking forward to the Northern C. Traditionally there's been a number of teams that will be there that could make a run at the state title," Box Elder head coach Jeremy MacDonald said. "I got a couple of favorites in Heart Butte and Belt and I think the 9C teams should be in the mix. There's other clubs that are coming to represent the 10C and the 8C that should be pretty dangerous as well so it should be a lot of good competitive basketball."

The Big Sandy Pioneers will start the tournament at 7 p.m. this Wednesday with a game against Heart Butte. The Pioneers finished third in the District 9C after defeating North Star, 65-25, in the consolation game. While they wish they could have done better in the 9C tournament, Big Sandy head coach Rhett Simanton looks forward to getting at least two more games this season.

"This isn't the way we wanted it to be but we found a way to get in so this week, we're going to reset mentally," Simanton said. "We just have to get ready to go because that divisional tournament is going to be a tough one, especially being that third seed."

The Pioneers will face Heart Butte, who just took first in the District 10C tournament with a 78-66 win over Cascade. The Warriors have not been slowed down yet this season as they are 19-0 heading into this weekend.

If the Pioneers want to put an end to Heart Butte's perfect season, their best players will need to show up. Braydon Cline will look to keep rolling after averaging 18.75 points a game at the 9C tournament. Kody Strutz can also make an impact after he averaged 11.5 points for the Pioneers in last weekend's tournament.

The Box Elder Bears will start the Northern C Thursday at 12:30 p.m. with a game against Cascade. The Bears enter the tournament as the District 9C champions after defeating CJI, 80-56, in the title game.

The Bears start the tournament against Cascade, the No. 2 seed from the 10C. Even though the Badgers finished second in their tournament, their 14-6 record demonstrates they have been a solid team this weekend.

"They got some pretty good athletes and some size," MacDonald said about the Badgers. "We were hoping that our pressure defense could get to them and then neutralize the big man. If we can do that, we like our chances."

The Bears have many players that can score points for them this weekend. Tracen Jilot is coming off the District 9C tournament where he averaged 29 points a game, including 36 points in the championship game. Matthias Blackbird is also dangerous after he averaged 14.33 points a game at districts.

The CJI Hawks will begin the Northern C Divisional with a game against Roy-Winifred on Thursday at 7 p.m. The Hawks finished second in the 9C as they lost, 80-56, to Box Elder in the championship game. After a loss to end last week, CJI head coach Joe Horel looks forward to moving past it and getting ready for the competition down in Great Falls.

"We're going to go down there and compete," Horel said. "This is our third year in a row going so we're not strangers to the gym. We're not strangers to the atmosphere so we expect to go down and compete."

The Hawks will face Roy-Winifred, the No. 2 seed from the 8C. While the Outlaws are coming off a 48-44 loss to Belt in the 8C championship game, their record of 19-3 shows they will be a tough opponent to start the tournament.

The CJI Hawks are a defensive-minded team, but they have some players who can score some points for them. Blake Harmon is coming off the 9C tournament where he averaged 16.33 points a game. Karson Pulst can also make an impact after scoring 13.67 points a game at last week's tournament.

Only the top two teams at the Northern C Divisional this week will advance to the Class C State Tournament in Billings next month. With the stakes so high, there should be plenty of great games down in Great Falls over the next few days.

The Northern C Divisional Boys Basketball Tournament will start Wednesday at 7 p.m. when Big Sandy plays Heart Butte at the Great Falls Four Seasons Arena. The tournament will continue Thursday with Box Elder playing Cascade at 12:30 p.m. and CJI playing Roy-Winifred at 7 p.m.