Havre boys basketball set for postseason

The postseason is finally here for the Havre High boys basketball team. This week at the Metra in Billings, the Blue Ponies will compete in the Eastern A Divisional Tournament. With a chance to clinch a spot in the Class A State Tournament, the Ponies will look to go on a run.

The Ponies will face East Helena at 3:30 p.m. Thursday to open the tournament. The East Helena Vigilantes head into the tournament with a record of 5-14, so they will need players such as Deondray Ellis and Slade Olson to have monster games. Earlier in the season, Havre defeated East Helena 82-48.

The Ponies finished 7-1 in the Northeast A and 14-4 overall in the regular season. As the Ponies look to go on a run, they will look to top scorers Tre Gary and Kash Keller to continue their excellent seasons.

If the Ponies win their tournament opener, they would face the winner of the Billings Central-Miles City game that will be Thursday at 5 p.m.

The Rams have had an excellent season with a 17-1 record helped in large part by Kyler Northrup and Darcy Merchant who have had strong seasons. In the regular season, Billings Central beat Havre 78-70.

The Miles City Cowboys enter the tournament with a 7-11 record, so they will need Dylan Gundlach and others to play well. In the regular season series, Havre swept Miles City by scores of 88-57 and 78-49.

The tournament will start Thursday at 9 a.m. when Hardin and Lewistown play each other.

The Hardin Bulldogs finished the regular season with an overall record of 7-11 and were swept by Havre during the regular season. If the Bulldogs are going to go on a run, they will lean on top player Kingston Hugs.

The Lewistown Golden Eagles head into the tournament with a 7-11 record, so they will need Brody Jenness and other top players to excel on the court this week. During the regular season, Havre swept Lewistown by scores of 66-51 and 63-57.

Thursday at 10:30 a.m., Lockwood and Glendive will play each other.

The Lockwood Lions finished 15-3 during the regular season thanks to the contributions of top players Zicciah Callison-Blake and Tyce Casterline. In their lone regular-season meeting, Havre defeated Lockwood 56-53.

Glendive heads into the tournament with an overall record of 6-10. If the Red Devils are going to go on a run, they will need top scorer Carter Amsler to play well. During the regular season, Havre swept Glendive by scores of 69-59 and 55-48.

The tournament's semifinal games will be played Friday at 3:30 and 5 p.m. Then Saturday at 2 p.m., the consolation game will be held. The championship game will be later that day at 5 p.m. If the Ponies want to run the gauntlet and qualify for the Class A State Tournament, they will need to play their best basketball of the season this week.

The HHS boys basketball team will begin the Eastern A Divisional with a contest against East Helena at the Metra in Billings Thursday at 3:30 p.m.