Front court leads Braves past Wildcats
Osweiler, Hogan combine for 41 points in 63-56 Flathead win
The Daily Inter Lake
What was arguably the area's most intriguing regular season matchup on paper didn't disappoint on Friday night.
On one hand there was defending Class A champ Columbia Falls, fresh off a 20-3 season. On the other was a much-improved Flathead team that seems primed for an eventual run to the AA state tournament.
Despite a Flathead lead that grew as large as 18 points in the second quarter, the Wildcats stormed back and drew as close as five in the fourth quarter before the Braves held on for a 63-56 win.
"We were all getting nervous in the fourth quarter," Flathead coach Fred Febach said. "Columbia Falls was doing a great job with their pressure, I give them a lot of credit.
"But we were able to find the open guys when we had to and Brock (Osweiler) made some key shots down low."
Indeed, it no longer sounds premature to call Osweiler a freshman phenom. He poured in 25 points - including eight in the fourth quarter - to lead the Braves, while junior teammate Geoff Hogan added 16.
"We were trying to stretch the D and get the ball into the post and it worked well for us," said Febach, whose team improved to 3-0 for the first time since the 2000-01 season. "Brock and Geoff did a great job tonight running the high-low offense.
"Geoff is a matchup problem for anyone because he's an athletic slasher and he can also play with his back to the basket. Brock is so skilled and he makes his teammates better because he's also unselfish."
Osweiler certainly wasn't stingy in spreading around the credit after the win.
"Our guards (Jeremy DeHerrera and Beau Watkins) did a great job getting me the ball," Osweiler said. "And Geoff did a super job. The fans were huge for us tonight; they allowed us to come out and get off to a good start."
With Osweiler and Olson combining for 21 first-half points, Flathead jumped out to a 35-19 lead heading into the locker room.
"We didn't come out with the proper focus tonight, and we dug ourselves a hole," Wildcats coach Cary Finberg said. "We have to realize that teams are going to start coming at us early."
Columbia Falls turned up the pressure in the second half, forcing several Flathead turnovers and appeared poised to pull off the tremendous comeback. With a pair of free throws from Greg Macijunas, the Wildcats trimmed the lead all the way down to 50-45 with 3:48 remaining.
The deciding play of the game came on the next possession as Mack Andrews found himself wide open in the corner and unleashed a 3-pointer that brought down the house. Columbia Falls never got closer than eight after that until a trey from Kevin Boyer (15 points) as time expired.
"That was such a big shot," Osweiler said. "Mack's (3-pointer) really got us going again."
Osweiler added three layups in the final 2:10, including an alley-oop in the final seconds, to help the Braves hang on for their first win over Columbia Falls since 2004.
"We haven't beaten them since I've been on varsity," Hogan said. "They thumped us twice last year and again over the summer. So this feels pretty good."
Steffen Anderson led Columbia Falls (2-2) with 16 points, while Guy Smith added 12.
Up next for the Braves is a trip to Helena on Tuesday for their AA opener. Tip-off is 7:30 p.m. The Wildcats are in action today at 6:30 p.m. at Hamilton.
BRAVES 63, WILDCATS 56
Columbia Falls 12 7 13 24 - 56
Flathead 19 16 8 20 - 63
Columbia Falls - Kevin Boyer 5 3-3 15, Robbie Dakin 1 1-2 3, Steffen Anderson 3 9-13, 16, Guy Smith 3 6-7 12, Greg Macijunas 1 2-2 4, Nick Beckwith 3 0-0 6. Totals: 16 21-27 56.
Flathead - Beau Watkins 2 0-0 5, Mack Andrews 2 0-0 5, Jeremy DeHerrera 1 1-2 3, Burk Schaible 1 0-0 2, Jason Russell 0 1-2 1, Richard Boggs 3 0-0 6, Brock Osweiler 11 3-8 25, Geoff Hogan 6 3-3 16. Totals: 26 8-15 63.
Three-point goals: Columbia Falls 3 (Boyer 2, Anderson), Flathead 3 (Watkins, Andrews, Hogan). Team fouls: Columbia Falls 13, Flathead 19. Fouled out: None.