Crosstown clash has playoff impact
There’s always something on the line during crosstown. This year, it means playoff seeding for the boys.
The boys game starts at 8 p.m. and the girls at 6 p.m. at Glacier High School.
“It’s a very meaningful game, probably a bit more than usual, but that’s the fun of crosstown,” Flathead coach Fred Febach said. “Adds a little more spice to it.”
Fourth-ranked Glacier (8-2 Western AA, 15-3 overall) has a chance to tie Missoula Hellgate — and possibly Helena Capital — for the top spot in conference, with only a game against the Knights remaining on the schedule. Flathead (4-7, 10-9) is playing for a chance to move back into the fourth spot in conference to host a playoff game next week.
And with the close nature of the last meeting, neither team is taking this game for granted.
“We know the game against Hellgate is out there,” Glacier coach Mark Harkins said. “But, we’ve got to focus on this one first. if we don’t win this one, It doesn’t matter.”
Flathead controlled much of the first meeting, leading into the third quarter, but Glacier closed the game on a 22-9 run to win in a 57-43 rout.
Since then, Glacier has risen as high as No. 1 in the rankings, and has won its last four games to put itself in a position to challenge for the top seed from the West. Flathead has lost six of its last seven conference games and will be looking to head into the postseason on a high note.
“Clearly they’re the favorites, based on record and what they’ve done,” Febach said. “Shoot, that’s OK. I think my kids kind of enjoy being the underdog. We played them once before, we felt we played them tough, and we’re looking forward to it.”
Glacier has won the last five regular season meetings, but lost a crucial game in the state semifinals last season. In order to win, the Wolfpack will look to restore the running game it lost in the first match.
“That’s always the first thing we do,” Harkins said. “Last time, Flathead did a great job of slowing down our transition and limiting our opportunities.
“We will look to push all game long. Hopefully we can get some buckets off of that.”
On the girls side, seeding isn’t on the line, but bragging rights certainly are.
“Any time we’re playing our crosstown game there’s a lot of emotions,” Glacier coach Kris Salonen said.
“This time of year, you want to be playing your best basketball. You don’t want to end on losing two games heading into a playoff game next week and expect that the girls are going to have confidence. We want to do the best we can to win out.”
Glacier scrapped to a 55-43 victory in the first meeting, but struggled on the offensive glass, giving up loads of second-chance points and free throw shots to the Bravettes. Flathead shot 31 free throws, but made just 16, leaving points on the court.
“You look at those things and that’s a turning point in the basketball game,” Salonen said. “You just can’t allow a team to get that many offensive rebounds. That’s something big we’ve definitely worked on.”
One of the players who has really flourished in that area is Glacier center Cassi Hashley, who has averaged 20.5 points and a shade more than 15 rebounds in her last eight games. Hashley burned Flathead for 22 points and 21 rebounds in the first contest.
“Hashley’s having a great season, she’s averaging a double-double, so we have to make sure that we control her,” Flathead coach Karly Tait said.
Tait said the Bravettes will also look to do a better job of finishing against Glacier. In the last meeting, Flathead shot just 23 percent from the field despite controlling the offensive glass.
“We have to shoot better than we did last time we played them,” Tait said.
“We’ve got to take care of some things ourselves, control Hashley and make somebody else beat us if they’re going to beat us.”
Daily Inter Lake reporter Steve Hamel contributed to this report.