Columbia Falls boys 5th, one win from State A
RONAN — The Columbia Falls Wildcats are one step away from the State A boys basketball tournament, and now they just have to wait.
Jace Hill had 25 points and seven rebounds to lead the Wildcats over Browning 69-50 in the fifth-place game at the Western A Divisional Saturday. Columbia Falls next plays Havre, the fourth-place team out of Eastern A, for a berth into the State A tournament March 9-11 in Bozeman.
Columbia Falls won’t find out when or where — it will be a neutral site — until Monday. They do know that both the boys and the Wildkat girls, who also won their fifth-place game Saturday, will travel together to the same spot (the Kats will face Laurel).
In the third-place game, Dillon (16-6) beat Hamilton (16-5), 41-39.
Both the Wildcats and Indians lost Saturday morning; it was the Cats that rallied back the best.
Columbia Falls 69, Browning 50
Hill hit two 3-pointers and scored 12 points in the third quarter as Columbia Falls (16-5) pushed a 29-23 halftime lead out to 49-32.
Behind Bryce Dunham and Cody Schweikert’s eight rebounds each, the Wildcats ruled the glass 47-19. Schwiekert also had 13 points; Hunter Goodman scored 10.
Maurice Redhorn III scored 19 points and Robert Reagan added 15 for Browning, which ended up 15-7.
Browning 14 9 9 18 - 50
C-Falls 16 13 20 20 - 69
BROWNING — Maurice Redhorn III 19, Payton Grant 2, Brayds Vielle 6, Tommy Runningrabbit 6, Robert Reagan 15, Tristan Crawford 2.
COLUMBIA FALLS — Mark Robison 7, Alihn Anderson 7, Jace Hill 25, Bryce Dunham 5, Reggie Sapa 2, Cody Schweikert 13, Hunter Goodman 10.
Dillon 60, Columbia Falls 50
Down 31-22 at halftime, the Wildcats cut the gap to 41-39 in the third quarter and 44-41 early in the fourth quarter, but the Beavers had the answers each time to win Saturday morning.
A 7-0 spurt ran the Beavers’ lead back to 51-41, and they hit 9 of 12 free throws from there.
Jace Hill had 16 points for the Wildcats, and Alihn Anderson added 12.
C-Falls 12 10 15 13 - 50
Dillon 13 18 13 16 - 60
COLUMBIA FALLS — Mark Robison 8, Alihn Anderson 12, Jace Hill 16, Bryce Dunham 2, Cody Schweikert 8, Hunter Goodman 8.
DILLON — Carter Curnow 15, Max Davis 10, Tyler Laguns 9, Eli Nourse 7, Caden Hansen 6, Kyler Engellant 5, Kee Christiansen 5, Treyton Graham 3.
Hamilton 66, Browning 50
A slow first half put Browning in a hole it couldn’t climb out of; Asher Magness and Cole Dickemore each broke 20 points for Hamilton.
Maurice Redhorn III scored 14 to lead three Browning players in double figures. Brayds Vielle checked in with 12 and Jamerson Lazy Boy added 10.
Hamilton 15 17 11 23 - 66
Browning 9 9 7 25 - 50
HAMILTON — Asher Magness 22, Cole Dickemore 20, Canaan Magness 11, Tyler Jette 5, Liam O’Connell 4, Eli Taylor 4.
BROWNING — Maurice Redhorn III 14, Brayds Ville 12, Jamerson Lazy Boy 10, Robert Reagan 8, Isiah Running Rabbit 3, Tommy Running Rabbit 2, Mahkia Ehlers 1.