Hays/Lodge Pole gets past North Star 68-63, finishes 3rd at District 9C. Face Heart Butte tonight at 7:00 p.m. at the Northern C Divisional.

The District 9C and District 2B Tournaments were held this past weekend and the Chinook Sugarbeeters and Hay/Lodge Pole Thunderbirds will continue on to the Northern C Divisional in Great Falls this week. The Harlem Wildcats and Turner Tornadoes seasons concluded at their respective District Tournaments.

The Chinook Sugarbeeters stormed through the District 9C Tournament in Havre, winning every game by an average of 33 points.

The Sugarbeeters won their second straight District 9C Championship Saturday night, manhandling the Fort Benton Longhorns 68-40 to claim the title. It was the second week in a row that the Sugarbeeters have beaten up on the 18-3 Longhorns, making quit a statement.

The began their tournament with a slow start against the Chester/Joplin-Inverness Hawks, taking just 20-18 halftime lead. They opened things up in the second half and cruised to a 60-33 quarterfinal win. Senior Cord Schneider led the effort with 15 points and seven rebounds. Senior Brendan Edwards finished with 12 and senior Isaac Bell 10 in the win.

The 'Beeters then took on the North Star Knights Friday afternoon in a semifinal contest. They steadily built a 13-3 lead by the end of the first and pushed it to 36-12 by halftime.

The 'Beeters kept their foot on the gas after the break, leading 51-24 at the end of three and coasting to a 74-34 win and a spot in the finals.

Schneider torched the nets for 26 points on 10-15 shooting while grabbing four rebounds and recording three blocks. Bell added 17 points and dished out four assists for the 'Beeters. Sophomore Reese Elliot added 13 points and eight rebounds to the 'Beeter effort.

Saturday night the 'Beeters took on the Fort Benton Longhorns for the third time this season. Fort Benton has won 19 games this season with their only two losses coming to the Sugarbeeters. Saturday night the 'Beeters made it three with another dominate performance.

Fort Benton came out firing, taking a early 10-5 lead, but Chinook is an experienced team and was just getting settled in. Chinook scored the final nine points of the quarter and the first seven of the second quarter to take a 21-10 lead midway through the second quarter.

Bell knocked down a pair of triples and connected on all six attempts from the charity stripe and Schneider scored eight second quarter points and 10 in the half to help the Sugarbeeters secure a 33-23 lead at the end of two quarters of action.

With a second consecutive 9C title within their grasp, the Sugarbeeters took their game to another level to start the second half. Junior Hunter Neibauer connected twice from beyond the arc and senior Brendan Edwards took ownership of the paint, scoring six in the third quarter to help Chinook take a 54-32 lead into the fourth quarter.

Neibauer added eight more in the fourth quarter as the 'Beeters finished strong in securing a 68-40 win over the Longhorns to claim back-to-back titles.

Neibauer connected on 7-8 field goal attempts in the second half, scoring 16 points to lead the 'Beeter attack. Schneider scored 14 in the contest and cleaned the glass for 11 rebounds, six offensive and dished out four assists.

Isaac Bell added 14 more to the 'Beeter attack while assisting on six more buckets with beautiful passes to teammates. Isaac also recorded three steals and five rebounds. Edwards finished with 11 points for the Sugarbeeters.

The Sugarbeeters will open play at the Northern C Divisional in Great Falls tomorrow (Thursday) 11:00 a.m. at the Four Seasons Arena. They will play the winner of the Winnett Grass Range/Sunburst contest this evening.

The Hays/Lodge Pole Thunderbirds are returning to the Northern C Divisional after finishing third at the District 9

C Tournament in Havre this weekend.

The Thunderbirds got the tournament started Thursday afternoon in a contest with the Turner Tornadoes. The Tornadoes got the better of the Thunderbirds in Hays, 58-56 two weeks ago and the sting of that loss was still fresh on their minds.

The Thunderbirds started fast, racing out to a 15-6 lead at the end of the first quarter. They kicked up the offense a notch in the second, scoring 28 in the frame to take a 43-21 halftime lead.

The Thunderbirds kept their foot on the gas in the third quarter as the lead swelled to 69-33 at the end of three. Hays/Lodge Pole cruised in the fourth to secure a 88-46 first round win over the Tornadoes.

Senior Kyle Young Jr. paced the offense with 16 points on 6-8 shooting from the field. Senior Jeremy Pretty Paint added 13 and junior Wyman Bringinggood 11 for the Thunderbirds.

Hays/Lodge Pole then took on Fort Benton in a semifinal contest and stayed with the Longhorns much of the way. In the end though they were dealt a tough 64-52 loss. Young Jr. led the team with 15 points in the contest.

Saturday morning the Thunderbirds took on the Big Sandy Pioneers in loser out action and wasted little time settling the matter in a 90-52 win. Pretty Paint scored 16, while senior Kenneth Blackcrow Jr. added 13.

The win sent the Thunderbirds into the consolation final where they faced a red hot North Star Knight Saturday night.

Hays/Lodge Pole led 17-12 at the end of one and 31-22 by intermission but in this tournament the Knights were playing their best basketball of the season.

The Thunderbirds kept attacking the basket and extended their lead by one in the third to take a 52-41 advantage into the fourth quarter. North Star found a way to cut into the lead but the Thunderbirds found a way to win and secured a 68-63 win over the Knights and punched their ticket to the Northern C Divisional.

Young Jr. tossed in 17 points for the Thunderbirds, Pretty Paint, Blackcrow and Snow each score 14 in the win.

Hays/Lodge Pole will begin play at the Northern C tonight at 7:00 p.m. against the Heart Butte Warriors.

The Turner Tornadoes bounced back Friday morning in a loser out contest with the Box Elder Bears. The two teams went back and forth all game long with the Bears holding a 13-12 advantage heading into the second and a 34-30 lead by the halftime intermission.

Turner trimmed the deficit by one in the third to trail 51-48 entering the fourth quarter. The Tornadoes were strong down the stretch and held a 62-59 lead in the final seconds until Box Elder connected from beyond the arc to send the game into overtime.

In the extra frame Turner outscored the Bears 12-8 to earn a 74-70 win and advance to another loser out contest Saturday morning. Senior Cody Welsh connected on 12-23 attempts from the field and scored 30 points to lead the Tornadoes. Welsh also grabbed 10 boards in the win.

Saturday morning the Tornadoes took on the North Star Knights in another tightly contested contest. Turner led 15-7 early on, but the Knights battled back and eventually took a 27-25 lead by halftime.

North Star extended their advantage in the third quarter and led the Tornadoes 49-42 entering the fourth.

Turner turned in a valiant effort down the stretch but the Knights converted just enough from the charity stripe to keep Turner at bay, earning a 64-61 win over the Tornadoes, ending their season.

Welsh again powered the Tornado offense, scoring 24 points while collecting eight rebounds and dishing out four assists. Sophomore Shane Kimmel tossed in 14 and grabbed six rebound for the Tornadoes.

The Harlem Wildcats faced the Glasgow Scotties in a play-in game Thursday night at the District 2B Tournament in Glasgow. The winner would advance in the tournament and also qualify for the Northern B Divisional.

The teams split their regular season meeting with the Wildcats picking up a 69-66 victory back in January while the Scotties earned a 66-56 win two weeks ago.

Thursday night Harlem jumped out to a 25-17 lead over the Scotties but trailed 44-40 at halftime. The Wildcats would close the gap to 53-51 by the start of the fourth quarter but were unable to overcome the Scotties and fell 72-70, ending their season.

Harlem shot the ball very well, connecting on 13-15 attempts in the first half and shooting 58% for the game. Senior Lane Allen turned in a huge effort with 26 points on 8-11 shooting from the field and 8-11 from the charity stripe. Allen also cleared the glass for seven rebounds in the contest. Freshman RJ Ramone scored 19 in the contest.

Boys Basketball

District 9C Tournament, Havre

Chinook 60 Chester/J-I 33

Chester/J-I 7 11 10 5 — 33

Chinook 11 9 20 20 — 60

Chester/J-I: Lane Fisher 0 1-2 1, Andrew Woods 1 1-2 3, Kyle Hermon 0 0-0 0, Noah Bender 2 0-0 4, Spencer Richter 3 3-4 12, Evan Dalinden 2 1-4 5, Bryce Kammerzell 0 0-0 0, Kealy Haaland 0 0-0 0, Jarrett Green 1 0-0 2, Tyler Wanken 1 4-6 6. Team Totals 1010-18 33.

Chinook: Isaac Bell 3 3-3 10, Ethan Bell 0 1-2 1, Hunter Neibauer 3 3-4 9, James Christensen 0 0-2 0, Trajan Hannum 1 0-0 2, Reese Elliot 2 3-6 9, Ethan MacLeod 0 0-0 0, Riley Kellam 2 0-0 4, Brendan Edwards 5 2-2 12, Cord Schneider 4 7-8 15, Toby Niedergger 0 0-0 0, Damon Hannum 0 0-0 0. Team Totals 20 19-27 60.

Three Point Field Goals: Chester/J-I 3 (Spencer Richter 3), Chinook 1 (Isaac Bell); Team Rebounds: Chester/J-I 32 (Tyler Wanken 10), Chinook 36 )Cord Schneider 7, Brendan Edwards 6, Trajan Hannum 5); Team Fouls: Chester/J-I 0, Chinook 18; Fouled Out: Andrew Woods.

Big Sandy 55 North Star 59

North Star 9 10 9 31 — 59

Big Sandy 17 11 16 11 — 55

North Star: Austin Hansen 2 0-0 4, Bailey Spicher 4 2-4 11, Caden Rettig 5 4-4 17, Garrett Spicher 2 0-0 5, Payne Ditmar 1 0-0 2, Hayden Massar 8 4-4 20, Gavin Spicher 0 0-0 0, Rhett Wolery 0 0-0 0, Ethan Federspial 0 0-0 0. Team Totals 22 10-12 59.

Big Sandy: Brock Proulx 3 2-2 8, Ryan Roth 2 4-5 10, Kody Strutz 0 0-0 0, Crawford Terry 3 5-9 11, Parker Proulx 1 2-2 4, Jeremiah Genereux 2 1-2 7, Bradon Cline 0 0-0 0, Kade Strutz 7 0-0 15. Team Totals 18 14-20 55.

Three Point Field Goals: North Star 5 (Caden Rettig 3), Big Sandy 5 (Ryan Roth 2, Jeremiah Genereux 2); Team Rebounds: North Star 30 (Caden Rettig 9, Hayden Messar 8), Big Sandy 30 (Parker Proulx 5, Brock Proulx 5, Ryan Roth 5); Team Fouls: North Star 20, Big Sandy 16; Fouled Out: Austin Hansen (NS) Ryan Roth (BS).

Hays/L.P. 88 Turner 46

Turner 6 15 12 13 — 46

Hays/L.P. 15 28 26 19 — 88

Turner: Austin Welsh 1 4-4 6, Jack Harmon 0 0-1 0, Kurt Calvert 1 0-0 2, Cody Welsh 8 1-2 17, Shane Kimmel 8 1-5 19, Spencer See 0 0-3 0, Tracer Heilig 0 2-3 2. Team Totals 18 8-18 46.

Hays/Lodge Pole: Gilbert Snow 4 0-0 8, Jeffrey Stiffarm Jr. 4 0-0 9, Jeremy Pretty Paint 6 1-2 13, Kenneth Blackcrow Jr. 6 0-2 12, Desmond Shambo 0 1-2 1, Siris Grandchamp 1 0-0 2, Kyle Young 5 2-4 13, Moke Cliff 1 0-0 3, Deshon Shambo 2 0-3 4, Wyman Bringinggood 5 0-0 12, James Brockie 3 0-2 6, Tyshawn Shambo 1 3-4 5. Team Totals 368 7-19 88.

Three Point Field Goals: Turner 2 (Shane Kimmel 2), Hays/L.P. 5 (Wyman Bringinggood 2); Team Rebounds: Turner 27 (Austin Welsh 4, Jack Harmon 4, Shane Kimmel 4), Hays/L.P 50 ( Jeremy PrettyPaint 12, Tyshawn Shambo 9); Team Fouls: Turner 15, Hays/L.P. 16; Fouled Out: Cody Welsh (Turner).

Turner 74 Box Elder 70 (LO)

Box Elder 13 21 17 11 8 — 70

Turner 12 18 18 14 12 — 74

Box Elder - Jayden Jilot 2 4-6 8, Zander Parisian 4 2-5 11, Kadyn Duran 1 2-2 4, Chris Burns 8 1-2 19, Malique Rosette 1 2-2 4, Tayce St. Pierre 1 1-4 3, Kobe Sutherland 9 3-5 21. Total Fouls 23. Team Totals 26 15-26 70.

Turner: Austin Welsh 1 3-10 5, Jack Harmon 0 0-0 0, Kurt Calvert 0 0-0 0, Cody Welsh 12 6-11 30, Shane Kimmel 4 4-6 14, Spencer See 4 4-7 13, Tracer Heilig 5 2-5 12. Team Totals 26 19-39 74.

Three Point Field Goals: Box Elder 3 (Chris Burns 2, Zander Parisian), Turner 3 (Shane Kimmel 2, Spencer See); Team Rebounds: Box Elder 38 (Kobe Sutherland 16, Chris Burns 9), Turner 37 (Cody Welsh 10, Spencer See 6, Austin Welsh 6); Team Fouls: Box Elder 26, Turner 20; Fouled Out: Jayden Jilot (BE), Kadyn Duran (BE), Malique Rosette (BE).

Chinook 74 North Star 34 (SF)

North Star 3 9 12 10 — 34

Chinook 13 23 15 23 — 74

North Star: Austin Hansen 0 0-0 0, Bailey Spicher 2 0-2 5, Caden Rettig 2 1-2 6, Porter Ditmar 0 0-0 0, Garrett Spicher 2 6-9 10, Payne Ditmar 0 0-0 0, Hayden Massar 3 6-7 12, Gavin Spicher 0 1-5 1, Rhett Wolery 0 0-0 0, Ethan Federspial 0 0-0 0. Team Totals 9 14-27 34.

Chinook: Isaac Bell 5 5-6 17, Ethan Bell 0 2-3 2, Hunter Neibauer 2 0-0 4, James Christensen 0 0-0 0, Trajan Hannum 0 0-0 0, Reese Elliot 6 1-5 13, Ethan MacLeod 1 2-3 4, Riley Kellam 0 0-2 0, Brendan Edwards 2 4-6 8, Cord Schneider 10 6-6 26. Team Totals 26 20-31 74.

Three Point Field Goals: North Star 2 (Caden Rettig, Bailey Spicher), Chinook 2 (Isaac Bell 2); Team Rebounds: North Star 24 (Caden Rettig 4, Hayden Messar 4, Austin Hansen 4), Chinook 42 (Hunter Neibauer 9, Reese Elliot 8); Team Fouls: North Star 22, Chinook 22; Fouled Out: None.

Fort Benton 64 Hays/L.P. 52 (SF)

Hays/L.P. 13 11 16 12 — 52

Fort Benton 19 16 16 13 — 64

Hays/Lodge Pole: Gilbert Snow 3 0-0 6, Jeffrey Stiffarm Jr. 3 2-2 8, Jeremy Pretty Paint 5 1-2 13, Kenneth Blackcrow Jr. 4 3-4 11, Desmond Shambo 0 0-0 0, Kyle Young 5 2-2 14, Moke Cliff 0 0-0 0, Deshon Shambo 0 0-0 0, Wyman Bringinggood 0 0-0 0, Tyshawn Shambo 1 0-0 2. Team Totals 21 8-13 52.

Fort Benton - Damon Bird 4 5-7 16, Jace Thompson 0 0-0 0, Ethan Pfice 0 0-0 0, Garrett Diekhans 7 3-3 18, Hayden Deikhans 3 3-4 12, Max Lane 4 0-0 8, Logan Giles 4 0-0 8, Billy Ullery 1 0-0 2, Jace Pimperton 0 0-0 0 Team Totals 23 11-14 64.

Three Point Field Goals: Hays/L.P. 2 (Kyle Young 2), Fort Benton 7 (Hayden Diekhans 3, Damon Bird 3); Team Rebounds: Hays/L.P. 37 (Jeremy Pretty Paint 12, Kenneth Blackcrow Jr. 11); Team Fouls: Hays/L.P. 18,Fort Benton 11; Fouled Out: Kyle Young (HLP).

North Star 64 Turner 61 (LO)

Turner 17 8 17 19 — 61

North Star 13 14 22 15 — 64

Turner: Austin Welsh 3 0-2 7, Jack Harmon 0 0-0 0, Kurt Calvert 0 1-2 1, Cody Welsh 10 3-4 24, Shane Kimmel 6 2-3 14, Spencer See 1 2-2 5, Tracer Heilig 3 4-7 10. Team Totals 23 12-20 61.

North Star: Austin Hansen 2 1-4 6, Bailey Spicher 6 3-4 19, Caden Rettig 3 6-8 13, Garrett Spicher 2 0-2 6, Payne Ditmar 1 0-0 2, Hayden Massar 6 6-8 18, Gavin Spicher 0 0-0 0. Team Totals 20 16-26 64.

Three Point Field Goals: North Star 8 (Bailey Spicher 4), Turner 3 (Austin Hansen, Cody Welsh, Spencer See); Team Rebounds: North Star 33 (Caden Rettig 9, Hayden Masser 9), Turner 33 (Cody Welsh 8, Tracer Heilig 7, Shane Kimmel 6); Team Fouls: North Star 13, Turner 22; Fouled Out: Austin Welsh (Turner).

Hays/L.P. 90 Big Sandy 52 (LO)

Big Sandy 9 7 22 14 — 52

Hays/L.P. 23 25 19 23 — 90

Big Sandy: Ryan Roth 6 8-12 20, Kody Strutz 2 3-6 9, Crawford Terry 3 3-7 9, Justin Haugen 0 0-0 0, Parker Proulx 1 1-2 3, Jeremiah Genereux 3 0-2 7, Braydon Cline 0 0-0 0, Kade Strutz 2 0-2 4. Team Totals 17 15-31 52.

Hays/Lodge Pole: Estavon Granados 1 1-4 3, Gilbert Snow 3 2-3 8, Jeffrey Stiffarm Jr. 4 0-0 9, Jeremy Pretty Paint 8 0-0 16, Kenneth Blackcrow Jr. 6 1-4 13, Desmond Shambo 1 0-0 2, Siris Grandchamp 3 0-0 6, Kyle Young 2 0-2 5, Moke Cliff 2 0-0 6, Deshon Shambo 5 1-2 11, Wyman Bringinggood 3 1-2 9, Tyshawn Shambo 0 2-4 2. Team Totals 38 8-21 90.

Three Point Field Goals: Hays/L.P. 6 (Moke Cliff 2, Wyman Bringinggood 2), Big Sandy 3 (Kody Strutz 2, Jeremiah Genereux); Team Rebounds: Hays/L.P. 48 (Kenneth Blackcrow 14, Siris Grandchamp 7), Big Sandy 28 (Ryan Roth 6, Kade Strutz 5); Team Fouls: Hays/L.P. 24, Big Sandy 16; Fouled Out: Siris Grandchamp (HLP), Tyshawn Shambo (HLP), Jeremiah Genereux (BS); Technical Fouls: Jeremiah Genereux (BS).

Hays/L.P. 68 North Star 63 (3rd)

North Star 12 10 19 22 — 63

Hays/L.P. 17 14 21 16 — 68

North Star: Austin Hansen 0 0-0 0, Bailey Spicher 4 2-2 10, Caden Rettig 6 1-1 17, Garrett Spicher 1 0-2 3, Payne Ditmar 6 0-0 16, Hayden Massar 5 3-3 13, Gavin Spicher 2 0-0 4. Team Totals 24 6-8 63.

Hays/Lodge Pole: Gilbert Snow 5 2-5 14, Jeffrey Stiffarm Jr. 2 0-0 5, Jeremy Pretty Paint 7 0-0 14, Kenneth Blackcrow Jr.4 6-16 14, Desmond Shambo 0 0-0 0, Siris Grandchamp 0 0-0 0, Moke Cliff 0 0-0 0, Deshon Shambo 0 0-0 0, Wyman Bringinggood 1 0-0 3, Tyshawn Shambo 0 1-2 1. Team Totals 24 12-27 68.

Three Point Field Goals: North Star 8 (Caden Rettig 4, Payne Ditmar 4), Hays/L.P. 8 (Kyle Young 4, Gilbert Snow 2); Team Fouls: North Star 17, Hays/L.P. 12; Fouled Out: Bailey Spicher (NS).

Chinook 68 Fort Benton 40 (1st)

Fort Benton 10 13 9 8 — 40

Chinook 14 19 21 14 — 68

Fort Benton - Damon Bird 5 4-6 15, Jace Thompson 0 0-0 0, Stephen Gannon 1 0-0 2, Ethan Pfice 1 0-1 2, Garrett Diekhans 2 0-1 4, Hayden Deikhans 4 5-6 14, Max Lane 0 0-0 0, Logan Giles 1 1-2 3, Billy Ullery 0 0-0 0, Jace Pimperton 0 0-0 0 Team Totals 14 10-16 40.

Chinook: Isaac Bell 3 6-6 14, Ethan Bell 4 1-1 9, Hunter Neibauer 7 0-0 16, James Christensen 0 0-0 0, Trajan Hannum 0 2-3 2, Reese Elliot 0 0-0 0, Ethan MacLeod 0 0-0 0, Riley Kellam 1 0-0 2, Brendan Edwards 5 1-2 11, Toby Niederegger 0 0-0 0, Damon Hannum 0 0-0 0, Cord Schneider 7 0-0 14. Team Totals 27 10-12 68.

Three Point Field Goals: Chinook 4 (Hunter Neibauer 2, Isaac Bell 2), Fort Benton 2 (Damon Bird, Hayden Diekhans); Team Rebounds: Chinook 30 (Cord Schneider 11, Isaac Bell 5), Fort Benton 24 (Garrett Diekhans 6) Team Fouls: Chinook 15, Fort Benton 14; Fouled Out: None.

District 2B Tournament, Glasgow

Glasgow 72 Harlem 70 (Play-In)

Harlem 25 15 11 19 — 70

Glasgow 17 27 9 19 — 72

Harlem: RJ Ramone 19, Tyler Cichosz 1, Daniel Lawrence 9, Lane Allen 26, Trenton Main 0, Brad Cichosz 5, Truth Brockie 8, Cassius Johnson 0, Sonny Gray 0, Hunter Gray 0, Teagan LeValdo 0. Team Totals N/A.

Glasgow: Saul Hansen 19, Kobe Sibley 11, Jace Nickels 2, Alec Boland 16, Tayson Hoester 12, Keigan Skolrud 0, Saul Hansen 0, Chevy Boos 8, Tim Wageman 4. Team Totals N/A.

Three Point Field Goals: Harlem 0 (xx), Glasgow 0 (xx); Team Fouls: Harlem 0, Glasgow 0; Fouled Out: None.

Senior Cord Schneider converts on a great move in the paint during second half action against the Longhorns.