Bulldogs fall to Maroons in Class A state basketball
GREAT FALLS - It's hard to beat a team that doesn't miss.
The Whitefish Bulldogs found that out the hard way in a 67-52 loss to the Butte Central Maroons in the consolation bracket of the Class A state boys basketball tournament at the Four Seasons Arena on Friday.
The Bulldogs held a 6-point lead with under four minutes to play in the third quarter until Butte's Josh LeProwse cashed in a 3-pointer that sparked a 12-0 run that leaked into the fourth quarter.
After that, the Maroons were near perfect thanks to Andy Ritter hitting 10-of-10 from the free throw line as well as sinking a pair of treys. The 5-10 sophomore finished with a game-high 24 points, and LeProwse and Jonathan Richards chipped in 12 apiece.
Butte drained 9 treys in the game and finished 24-of-28 (86 percent) from the charity stripe, while Whitefish's offensive woes continued. The Bulldogs shot 8-of-21 (38 percent) from the line for the game and 10-of-27 (37 percent) from the floor in the second half.
"They hit some big shots there, especially in the fourth quarter," Whitefish coach Eric Stang said. "We had our chances at the free throw line, but we didn't capitalize on that, and we didn't finish on the offensive boards."
Whitefish is eliminated from the state tournament, while Butte Central moves on to today's consolation game.
Colt Idol wrapped up his esteemed basketball career at WHS with a team-high 21 points. Idol started the game on a roll for Whitefish, scoring 7 of his team's 9 points and helping Whitefish jump ahead.
Senior David FauntLeRoy had another monster game for Whitefish on both ends of the court. The 6-foot-2 forward finished with 14 points and 6 rebounds. Senior Matt Whitehead had 6 points running the point and Josh Backer had 5 down low.
The Bulldogs went into the half with the momentum and a 5-point lead, and the offense seemed to have found its groove for the first time this week.
The night before, the Bulldogs struggled against Dillon's zone defense and managed only four scorers in the game. But against Butte Central's man-to-man in the first half, Whitefish started to play like the Northwestern A regular-season champ that headed into postseason play on a 12-game winning streak. But Butte Central was quick to change that in the second half.
"A lot of the kids we had out there played as hard as they could, they did the best they could," Stang said. "They were a good group of seniors, they won a lot of games and got to the state tournament three times."
"Right now," Stang added, "for the kids returning, they gotta get in the gym in the offseason and work on some things and learn from this. Same for us coaches, we gotta learn from things like this and build on it."
For the second year in a row, Whitefish's tournament hopes were dashed quickly. But for an excited group of students that made the trip, they kept cheering until the very end.
One thing seemed to stand out, from the divisional tournament in Kalispell to the state tournament in Great Falls - basketball isn't a secondary sport in Whitefish.
"The biggest thing I saw, (the seniors' have kinda gotten a buzz going in Whitefish where the younger kids are starting to pick up the basketball," Stang said. "I hope the excitement continues."
Butte Central 13 8 18 18 - 67
Whitefish 11 15 9 17 - 52
BUTTE CENTRAL - Andy Ritter 5 11-12 24, Casey Norbeck 2 5-6 10, Aschan Richards 3 0-0 6, Sean Ferriter 0 3-4 3, Josh LeProwse 4 1-2 12, Jonathan Richards 3 4-4 12. Total 17 24-28 67
WHITEFISH - Matt Whitehead 2 2-4 6, Willie Roche 2 0-2 4, Josh Backer 2 1-5 5, Marc Hotzfield 0 2-2 2, Connor Silliker 0 0-2 0, Colt Idol 9 1-4 21, David FauntLeRoy 6 2-2 14. Total 21 8-21 52.
3-point goals: Butte 9 (Ritter 3, LeProwse 3, J. Richards 2, Norbeck), Whitefish 2 (Idol 2); Total fouls: Butte 18, Whitefish 23; Fouled out: None; Total rebounds: Butte 27 (J. Richards 7, A. Richards 5), Whitefish 28 (Idol 9, FauntLeRoy 6); Turnovers: Butte 11, Whitefish 12