BOYS BASKETBALL: Hellgate burns Braves from long distance
<p>Flathead's Matt Marshall splits Missoula Hellgate defenders Buckley Belcourt (5) and Connor Schenck as he puts up a shot during the second quarter at Flathead on Tuesday. (Aaric Bryan/Daily Inter Lake)</p>
<p>Flathead's Bridger Johnson scores the first points of the game as he shoots over Missoula Hellgate's Landon Youbles at Flathead on Tuesday. (Aaric Bryan/Daily Inter Lake)</p>
Sometimes basketball’s not all that complicated of a game.
“They made shots and we didn’t,” Flathead senior guard Matt Marshall said.
“That’s probably the difference.”
Clichés aside, Missoula Hellgate knocked down 7 of 11 3-point attempts and converted enough from the free-throw line in the final minutes to halt the Braves’ brief two-game winning streak with a 67-57 victory in Western AA action Tuesday night at Flathead High School.
The conference-leading Knights held a two-point advantage after a back-and-forth first half, but Derrius Collins and Buckley Belcourt each nailed triples during an 11-3 run to start the third quarter that would keep Hellgate in front the rest of the night.
“That’s a heck of a team we faced tonight,” Flathead coach Ross Gustafson said. “We were right there with them, I thought we just had a couple defensive lapses in the third quarter and they made us pay.
“We left a guy open at the 3-point line a couple times for a second and, boom, they would hit it.”
The win was the ninth in a row for the Knights (16-3, 9-2 Western AA) who can clinch the conference’s regular season championship Thursday night when they host Glacier.
While the Braves (6-13, 3-8) came up short in Tuesday’s contest, they clearly carried over some of the momentum they generated in a pair of wins last Friday and Saturday. Flathead had another strong night shooting the ball — 41.5 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from long distance — and scored at least 57 points for the third straight game. In their first 16 games of the season, the Braves eclipsed 57 points in regulation only once.
“We’re getting better,” Gustafson said. “I can’t emphasize (enough) how well we’re playing as far as competing, positive energy and doing a better job of executing.”
Flathead started all four of its seniors Tuesday in their final home games, and the group helped the Braves jump out to an 8-3 lead. Hellgate used an 11-1 run to bound in front in the second quarter, but Flathead rallied as the lead see-sawed between the two teams. The Knights’ lead was 25-23 at halftime.
“The guys play with confidence and they expect to get back in the game,” Gustafson said.
“(This team) has shown a tendency to continue to battle no matter what the score is. When you do have a few times where you are successful coming back and getting some wins, I think that just ups the confidence level as well.”
The Braves tried to rally in the fourth quarter, but Hellgate was solid at the free-throw line, finishing the game 22 for 32 at the charity stripe, and never allowed Flathead back within single digits.
Tyler Johnson led the Braves with 18 points, making 4 of 7 attempts from 3-point range. Johnson is 10 for 14 from beyond the arc in his last three games. Fellow sophomore Sam Elliott added 10 points and four rebounds in a losing effort.
Hellgate was led by Connor Schenk, who matched Johnson with 18 points and added six rebounds. Belcourt went 4 for 5 from 3-point range and scored 16 points. Collins chipped in 10.
The game was the final home contest for seniors Matt Marshall, Kye AuClaire, Wyatt Smith and C.J. Dugan. All four seniors scored Tuesday, combining for 18 points.
Flathead returns to the court at 8 p.m. on Friday at Glacier in the final regular season game of the year for both teams.
Hellgate 12 13 20 22 — 67
Flathead 9 14 10 24 — 57
HELLGATE — Landon Youbles 2 0-0 4, Derrius Collins 2 4-6 10, Peter Vandam 1 3-4 6, Bob Schenk 1 0-0 2, Connor Schenk 5 8-10 18, Buckley Belcourt 4 4-4 16, Kade Lunday 1 0-0 2, Dylan Botsford 0 1-4 1, Jason Koehn 2 1-2 5, Justin Koehn 1 1-3 3, Collin Reid 0 0-0 0. Totals — 19 22-32 67.
FLATHEAD — Matt Marshall 2 0-0 6, Kye AuClaire 2 3-3 7, Bridger Johnson 4 0-1 8, Wyatt Smith 1 0-0 2, C.J. Dugan 1 0-0 3, Seth Adolph 1 0-1 2, Cade White 0 1-2 1, Cooper Barrett 0 0-0 0, Tyler Johnson 6 2-2 18, Sam Elliott 4 1-2 10, Micah Bucy 0 0-0 0. Totals — 21 7-11 57.
3-point field goals — Hellgate 7 (Belcourt 4, Collins 2, Vandam), Flathead 8 (T. Johnson 4, Marshall 2, Dugan, Elliott). Rebounds — Hellgate 34 (Ja. Koehn 9), Flathead 24 (Elliott 4, B. Johnson 4). Assists — Hellgate 8 (Collins 2, Belcourt 2, Vandam 2), Flathead 12 (AuClaire 5). Turnovers — Hellgate 12, Flathead 6. Total fouls — Hellgate 17, Flathead 23. Fouled out — AuClaire. Technical fouls — None.
Records — Hellgate (16-3, 9-2), Flathead (6-13, 3-8).