Laurel trips C-Falls in double OT

BUTTE — No. 1 versus No. 2.

All the build up, all the excitement, all the heroics and all the big plays ... and it was all in an opening round game of the Class A boys state basketball tournament.

The No. 2-ranked Columbia Falls Wildcats (18-3) will be counting the couldas, the shouldas, and the wouldas of this one for a very long time.

A two-point first quarter, 23 total turnovers, a four-rebound deficit and 5-for-9 from the free throw line.

All that and the Wildcats still forced the No.1-ranked Laurel Locomotives (18-3) to double overtime.

But “all that” added up to a 47-43 Laurel victory on Thursday at the Butte Civic Center.

“Throughout the game, we wanted to do three things. We wanted to win the turnovers, we wanted to win the free throw battle and win the rebounding battle. We didn’t win any of them,” said Columbia Falls head coach Cary Finberg.

The Wildcats got off to a dismal start — two missed shots and a turnover in their first three possessions, five team fouls — including two charges — in the first quarter — and it took nearly five minutes for them to score their first field goal.

Luckily for them, the Locomotives really weren’t that much better.

Laurel didn’t really capitalize on the Wildcat miscues — after one period spent mostly around the Laurel basket, the Locomotives led 9-2.

The Wildcats came back strong in the second quarter and got themselves right back in the game.Howell’s jumper cut the Laurel lead to 10-6.

The Wildcats led twice before the half — 11-10 and 13-12 — and seemed ready to take charge in the third quarter.

They scored the first eight points of the second half to go up 21-14.

But the Wildcats never really got going and Laurel never went away.

“We came out strong. But give them credit for making some plays and battling back like we did,” Finberg said.

The Wildcats’ 7-point lead eroded over the next six minutes and with 6:13 left in the game, Laurel took the lead.

From there, it was a back-and-forth free-for-all.

Michael Williams gave the Wildcats a 33-32 advantage with a pair of free throws at the 1:53 mark, but Laurel junior Jake McKinney hit one of two free throws to tie the game.

The first overtime was a mess of turnovers and missed opportunities for both teams.

While the Wildcats continued to throw the ball away, Laurel was unable to put Columbia Falls away.

The Locomotives, with a two-point lead, went to the free throw line for one-and-one opportunities twice in the final 28 seconds. They missed both.

Mitchell Wassam’s layup with three seconds to go brought on another overtime.

Laurel made the first shot in the second overtime, then found its stroke at the free throw line. It was 6-for-8 in the final minute.

 “Both teams played their tails off. They just made one more play than we did. If we could have one more play in regulation or any of the overtimes, I think we would have been all right,” Finberg said.

    “But games like that come down to free throws and turnovers and possessions. They had a lot more possessions than we did and that’s the difference.

“We showed a lot of heart. But at state basketball you are playing good teams. Everybody is here for one purpose and that’s to win that first game,” he added.

“I’m proud of our effort. Now we’ve got to reassess a little bit and get ready for tomorrow. It’s a tough one to bounce back from, but we’ll see what we’re made of.”

Kyle Howell led the Wildcats with 12 points, four steals and six rebounds. Austin Barth added 10 points, five rebounds and two blocked shots.

In a rematch of last year’s state final, the Wildcats will play Dillon in loser-out action at 2 p.m. today.

Laurel     9     5     9     10     6     8 — 47

Columbia Falls     2     11     14     6     6     4 — 43

Laurel — Jake Miller 3 3-4 9, Quinn McGrath 0 2-2 2, Jake McKinney 2 6-8 10, David Swecker 2 1-3 7, Sean Condon 5 3-6 13, Brian Flotkoetter 3 0-0 6. Totals 15 15-23 47.

Columbia Falls — Kyle Howell 5 1-1 12, Austin Barth 5 0-1 10, Mitchell Wassam 3 0-0 6, Kaleb Johnson 1 0-1 2, Michael Williams 3 2-2 9, Nick Emerson 1 2-4 4. Totals 18 5-9 43.

3-point goals: Laurel 2 (Swecker 2), Columbia Falls 2 (Howell 1, Williams 1). Total fouls: Laurel 13, Columbia Falls 18. Fouled out: Johnson. Rebounds: Laurel 33 (Condon 14), Columbia Falls 29 (Howell 6, Williams 6). Assists: Laurel 6 (Miller 3), Columbia Falls 9 (Barth 3), Turnovers: Laurel 19, Columbia Falls 23. Blocks: Laurel 2 (McKinney, Flotkoetter), Columbia Falls 5 (Barth 2). Steals: Laurel 14 (McKinney 3, Swecker 3, Condon 3), Columbia Falls 8 (Howell 4).

One trip netted four points when Kaleb Johnson was fouled on a layup. He missed the free throw but got the rebound. Kyle