AA basketball: Bravettes roar to state
<p>Flathead senior Emily Russell (15) celebrates after a play Friday night during the Bravettes’home victory over Missoula Big Sky to secure a spot in next week’s Class AA state tournament in Great Falls. (Patrick Cote/Daily Inter Lake)</p>
<p>Flathead senior Dani Davis (11) looks to pass the ball under heavy defensive pressure by two Missoula Big Sky players.</p>
The Flathead Bravettes are heading to state for the first time since 2008, storming back from a double-digit hole late in the third quarter to beat Missoula Big Sky 50-44 in a playoff basketball game Friday night at FHS.
Trailing by 10 points and reeling in the second half, the Flathead girls (11-9 overall) needed to do something to change the momentum in a game that was going the wrong way. The Bravettes seemingly couldn’t buy a shot and struggled to defend Big Sky (8-13) inside in the third quarter, surrendering a 16-3 run to fall down 39-31.
Things started to change at the close of the quarter, when reserve guard Tana Fountain buried a jumper from 17 feet as the clock ran out.
After senior forward Emily Russell buried a mid-range jumper to open the fourth, the Bravettes sprung their pressure defense on Big Sky, catching the Eagles off guard.
Bravettes senior guard Dani Davis stole a pass in the backcourt on two straight possessions, hitting a layup on the first to send the crowd to its feet. After another Davis steal and a dish to Jessika Abbrescia in the post for a bucket, Russell got a steal of her own in the backcourt, finishing at the rim to tie the score at 39-39 a shade over two minutes after the Bravettes trailed by double digits.
“Our defense led to buckets, which excited us all,” junior guard Emma Andrews said. “The whole gym just exploded. It was really exciting.”
Flathead worked its way into the double-bonus a minute later and used its speed advantage to get to the line, while also finding center Jenessa Heine in the post. The Bravettes closed the game with a 21-5 run, hitting 9 of 14 free throws in the fourth quarter. Flathead’s three seniors combined for 13 of the team’s 19 points in the fourth quarter.
“To be honest, I don’t think we’ve gone on a run like that in a number of games,” Flathead coach Karly Tait said.
“It was just time. We stepped it up when we needed to.
“It could’ve gone either way. They could’ve just folded, we were down 10 at one point, but they just battled back one possession at a time and pulled together. I’m just really proud of them. They deserve to win.”
Flathead controlled most of the first half, but couldn’t quite pull away from the Eagles. The Bravettes went up by three points late in the first but saw Big Sky’s Kendra Joyce hit a 3-pointer that tied the score 9-9 at the end of the quarter.
Flathead created a bit of separation early in the second, getting a pair of buckets to take a four point lead. A few minutes later, with the lead back to one, Russell buried a 3 while getting fouled, but stayed on the ground clutching her knee. Fountain finished the four-point play, but the Bravettes’ couldn’t take advantage of the momentum swing with the senior on the sidelines for the rest of the half.
Flathead traded buckets with the Eagles for the last four minutes of the second quarter and slipped in the last few seconds as Big Sky’s Sami Worster stole a telegraphed pass and ran to the other end of the court for a layup before the half ended.
“All the little things that we tried to do, that we needed to better in the second half than the first, (we did),” Tait said. “I’m just really proud of them. We’re off to state. It feels good.”
The Bravettes will have a steep task ahead of them at the state tourney, opening with hometown Great Falls High, the East’s top seed, in the first round on Thursday at 8 p.m.
Big Sky 9 10 20 5 — 44
Flathead 9 13 9 19 — 50
BIG SKY — Dani Baker 1-4 2-2 4, Maddy Shaide 1-7 2-2 5, Jenna Sedgwick 3-6 3-5 9, Sidney Davis 4-7 1-1 9, Jesse Schafer 1-3 2-4 4, Kendra Joyce 2-3 0-0 5, Hana Feilzer 1-2 1-4 3, Sami Worster 2-5 0-0 5. Totals: 15-39 11-18 44.
FLATHEAD — Emma Andrews 4-13 3-9 12, Dani Davis 2-6 2-6 6, Emily Russell 3-6 4-6 11, Jessika Abbrescia 2-6 2-4 6, Jenessa Heine 2-11 4-4 8, Tana Fountain 3-4 1-1 7. Totals: 16-46 16-30 50.
3-pointers — Big Sky 3-15 (Shaide, Joyce, Worster), Flathead 2-12 (Andrews, Russell). Rebounds — Big Sky 34 (Davis 10), Flathead 35 (Andrews 9). Assists — Big Sky 9 (Sedgwick 2, Davis 2), Flathead 8 (Abbrescia 3). Blocks — Big Sky 5 (Davis 2), Flathead 0. Steals — Big Sky 9 (Baker 4), Flathead 9 (Davis 4). Fouls — Big Sky 25, Flathead 16. Technical fouls — none. Fouled out — Worster, Schafer.