BASKETBALL: Bravettes stumble in opener against Bozeman

Tiana Johnson scored a game-high 20 points but the balanced Bozeman Hawks were too much Saturday afternoon, spoiling Flathead’s season opener with a runaway 74-37 win.

One year after being held to just 15 points in a blowout loss in Bozeman, the Bravettes trailed just 34-20 at halftime on Saturday. The second half, however, belonged to the visitors, who outscored Flathead 40-17 over the final two quarters.

“We definitely showed some fatigue,” Bravettes coach Lisa Hendrickson said. “We had a good first quarter and second quarter, but it’s all about putting four quarters together.

“Bozeman is an excellent team and the girls were able to play with them for a half.”

All 10 Hawks who played in the game scored, a stark contrast from the Bravettes who relied almost exclusively on Johnson on the offensive end. The 6-foot-1 junior drained five 3-pointers and was the only Flathead player to score more than four points.

After a 14-point first half, Johnson slowed along with her teammates in the second.

“She played a lot of minutes,” Hendrickson said of Johnson. “We need to figure out how to get her some rest so that she can play hard the whole game.

“All of the assets of her game are starting to come together which is fun to see.”

Flathead features a roster with only two seniors, and the youth movement extended Saturday to include freshman forward Taylor Henley. Coming off the bench, Henley played significant minutes in the second half and finished with four points.

“She doesn’t hold herself like a freshman on the court,” Hendrickson said. “I debated starting her (in the game) and I was very pleased with her work ethic and how far she’s come in just a couple of weeks.

“The strides that she’s made defensively are only going to help her offensive game.”

Bozeman (1-0) controlled the paint most of the day with forwards Caitlin Lonergan and Emerald Toth. Lonergan led the Hawks with 19 points and Toth added 10. The duo was instrumental in giving Bozeman a 39-22 rebounding advantage.

Darra Perdaems added 12 points for the Hawks.

Flathead will return to the court Saturday Great Falls High School. The Bravettes will play five of their next six games away from home.

Bozeman 74, Flathead 37

Bozeman 15 19 25 15 — 74

Flathead 10 10 12 5 — 37

BOZEMAN — Darra Perdaems 4 3-4 12, Riana Rogers 4 0-0 9, Caitlin Lonergan 8 3-8 19, Tyler Olson 2 2-2 6, Emerald Toth 4 2-2 10, Elaine Chandler 0 1-2 1, Kyle Olson 2 0-0 5, Amber Tarabochia 2 2-2 6, Sydney Rollison 1 3-4 5, Alex Carey 0 1-2 1. Totals — 27 17-26 74.

FLATHEAD — Kylee Meredith 1 0-0 2, Sierra Siblerud 0 0-0 0, Kelsey Gillespie 1 0-0 3, Tiana Johnson 6 3-4 20, Liz Lorentz 1 0-0 2, Averie Olson 0 0-0 0, Sara Clarin 0 0-0 0, Allison Gagnon 0 2-2 2, Taylor Henley 2 0-1 4, Kylee Beccari 2 0-0 4, Taryn Gutierez 0 0-0 0. Totals — 13 5-7 34.

3-point field goals — Bozeman 3 (Perdaems, K. Olson, Rogers), Flathead 6 (Johnson 5, Gillespie). Total fouls — Bozeman 9, Flathead 17. Fouled out — None. Technical fouls — None. Records — Bozeman (1-0), Flathead (0-1).