The Blaine County Journal News-Opinion - We've Got The County Covered

The Chinook Sugarbeeter boys basketball team have been a solid contender in the District 9C for the past several seasons. While changes have occurred, expectations remain the same, a trip back to the Northern C Divisional.

Long time Sugarbeeter Head Coach Mike Seymour stepped down this past May as head of the boys program. In Seymour's 10 years at the helm, the 'Beeters won 169 games and lost 71 a program best .704 winning percentage. Along side him for the bulk of that time was new 'Beeter Head Coach Chad Jones.

Jones is incredibly familiar with this years team. The seniors were coached by Jones as eighth graders and while playing junior varsity for Chinook. Taking over as 'Beeter Assistant Coach will be Scott Schmitt a Class of 2012 Chinook graduate.

Jones feels right at home with this group, "This group of seniors were eighth graders when I began coaching in Chinook so I've coached each of the guys on this team. We're all familiar with each other and the transition has gone well so far." Jones added, "I've learned a lot being a part of Coach Seymour's program and we want to continue with the success that we've had these past few years. That being said, we graduated a lot of talent and experience last year and we're going to need to mix some things up and play a little differently than we have in the past. Again, with one of our goals being playing in that Saturday night game."

Jones has been able to step in and get the ball rolling as a result and the seasons start has reflected that, "Practice has been very good so far. To date we've had about 13 practices. So, we've gotten through a lot of what we need and we're going to start this week preparing for Cut Bank and Belt which will be two tough games. With having 20 kids at practice we have to dedicate a little more time to each drill. But it also allows us to run a lot of guys at our older kids as we want to keep practice as competitive as possible."

Returning to the 'Beeters this fall is All-State, All-Conference senior Toby Niederegger. Oskar Pula was a solid starter for the team a season ago and will look to play an even bigger roll his senior season. Also returning for the Chinook boys are seniors Braden Eoff and Hunter Molyneaux.

Juniors looking to lead the team include Levi Jensen, Brendan Fetter, Braxton Inman and Flint Annis. Sophomores back include Wylee Simenson, Jackson Nordboe and Quentin Edwards.

Freshman seeing their first high school action are Landen Beck, Dentin DePriest, Jacob Metcalf, Brockton Elliot, Lance Pitkanen, Carson Nissen, Kohen Sullivan, Oliver Standiford and Kalled Jaha.

Jones said his team will rely heavily on its seniors, "We will depend heavily on senior leadership this year, particularly from Oskar (Pula) and Toby (Niederegger). They are two of the most athletic kids in our conference and are capable of making big plays for us both defensively and offensively."

With Jones at the helm, expectations remain high, "Our expectation this year, as well as every year, is to compete for a spot in the Saturday night game at Districts. We have a fairly equal mix as far as experience levels. Some of our older kids have played a big roll in the recent success of the program under Coach Seymour. We also have a competitive group of freshman/sophomores who are fighting for their spots to help us out."

The younger kids have done well in practice and will be counted on to contribute, "As mentioned, the younger kids put forth a ton of effort so far for us and are competing every day for their spots and gaining roles on their respective teams. There are a couple of them that we are going to depend on at the varsity level."

The Sugarbeeters will begin their 2021-22 season this Thursday in Shelby at the Coyotes preseason tip off tournament. The boys will play Cut Bank at 3:00 p.m. Saturday the girls will take on the Belt Huskies first thing in the morning with a 10:30 a.m. start time.

The Sugarbeeters will open District 9C play on the road Friday, December 17 against the Big Sandy Pioneers, Their home opener will be the following day, Saturday, December 18 as they welcome the Box Elder Bears to town. Both games are set to tip off at 6 p.m.

The 'Beeters will host conference games against Hays/Lodge Pole (12/21), Turner (1/8), North Star (1/14), Big Sandy (1/20), Chester/J-I (1/28) and Fort Benton (2/12).

Chinook will play two non conference games against Harlem. The first contest will take place on Friday, January 7 in Harlem. The Lady Cats will visit Chinook on Friday, February 4.

The District 9C Tournament will once again take place in Havre at the Blue Pony Gymnasium. The tournament will run from February 16-19. The top three teams will advance to the Northern C Divisional in Great Falls, February 23-26 at the Four Seasons Arena. The top two teams will then advance to the State Class C Boys & Girls State Tournament in Bozeman, March 9-12.