Sherwood sends FHS past Sentinel
He's listed as a freshman in the program, but on the court George Sherwood is playing more like a cagey veteran these days.
The 6-foot-4 center scored seven of Flathead's final eight points to help the Braves knock off Missoula Sentinel 62-59 on Saturday at FHS.
"George had the ball in his hands a lot and he did well with it," Flathead coach Fred Febach said of his rising star.
"Good players do that, I don't care what age level they are. They want the ball in their hands."
Sherwood finished with a game-high 21 points and 13 rebounds. He tallied 12 points in the fourth quarter.
"He played very well," Febach said.
"He stepped up big for us tonight and we got a nice win."
Febach said Mike Van Arendonk, a 6-foot-2 sophomore, also had a standout showing.
"He had seven points in the first quarter to get us off to a good start," Febach said.
Van Arendonk finished with 10.
The win snapped a six-game losing streak for Flathead, now 2-6 in Western AA basketball play and 3-13 overall. Sentinel drops to 3-5 and 9-7.
Sherwood slipped through the Sentinel defense with an athletic base-line-drive to put the Braves on top for good at 56-55 with 1:52 left in the fourth quarter.
He followed with a dandy pull-up jumper with 1:26 remaining, extending Flathead's lead to 58-55.
Sherwood added a free throw with 48 seconds to play as Flathead enjoyed a four-point edge, 59-55.
But Sentinel wasn't through.
A Kyle Kostelecky layup trimmed it back to two, 59-57.
Van Arendonk put Flathead's lead back to three, 60-57, with a free throw and 36 seconds to play.
But Sentinel challenged again on a rebound and put back by Riley King with 17 seconds showing.
And this is when things got real interesting.
Flathead's Dean Stimpson missed two free throws three seconds later, leaving Sentinel with a chance.
But the Spartans were whistled for a charge on their next possession, Flathead promptly turned it over by failing to inbounds the ball in five seconds, giving Sentinel the ball right back under its basket. However, Sentinel's Ben Roberts missed a drive inside in heavy traffic.
Sentinel was forced to foul, sending Sherwood back to the free throw line, where he drew nothing but net on two shots with 1.1 to end it.
"Our team defense," Febach said of what also impressed him.
"This was a team that put 77 up on us the first time. They are a very athletic team. They had four guys in double figures (tonight), but we still found a win to win. That's primarily because of our defense."
Kendal Maier paced Sentinel with 15 points. Roberts tallied 12, Zack Wagemann 11 and King 10.
Flathead is back in action Friday at Helena Capital and Sunday at Helena High.
Missoula Sentinel 17 10 19 13 - 59
Flathead 15 10 16 21 - 62
MISSOULA SENTINEL - Connor Woodill 1 0-0 2, Kyle Kostelecky 1 3-4 5, Zack Wagemann 3 5-6 11, Kendal Maier 4 6-8 15, Ben Roberts 4 3-5 12, Trevor Olson 1 0-0 2, Taylor McGreevey 0 2-2 2, Riley King 3 3-7 10. Totals: 17 22-32 59.
FLATHEAD - Dean Stimpson 1 0-2 3, Matt McLean 2 1-2 7, Tanner Salois 2 0-1 6, Karl Ingram 4 5-6 13, George Sherwood 6 8-11 21, Mike Van Arendonk 4 1-4 10, Connor Tice 0 2-2 2. Totals: 19 17-28 62.
3-point goals: Maier, Roberts, King; Stimpson, McLean (2), Salois (2), Sherwood, Van Arendonk; Team fouls: Sentinel 24, Flathead 23; Fouled out: Wagemann.