The Hamilton Broncs began their divisional play with a game against Whitefish, the No. 3 seed from the Northwest. The Broncs started their scoring with a couple of free throws by Trey Searle and he then sank another in the frame. The quarter ended with freshman Eli Taylor hiring a half court shot to put the Broncs up by five points.
The Broncs continued to lead until right at the end of the second quarter when they had a turnover and Whitefish converted on it. In the third quarter, Whitefish continued to put up points and grab rebounds while Hamilton’s shots rattled out time and time again. They trailed by seven points at the end of the third quarter. Hamilton made a couple of runs in the fourth quarter and reduced the margin to four points with two minutes left in the game. But Carson Rostad and Searle each picked up fouls and the Bulldogs converted on those. Whitefish won, 49-42.
Whitefish 49, Hamilton 42
Whitefish – Justin Conklin 20; Sam Menicke 9; Bodie Smith 8; Jayce Cripe 7; Talon Holmquist 5.
Hamilton – Carson Rostad 12; Trey Searle 10; Tyson Rostad 9; Austin Drake 6; Eli Taylor 3; Tyler Burrows 2.
Hamilton then had to play Dillon in loser out action on Friday afternoon. The Broncs’ came out hot and never looked back in the 52-32 win that sent the Beavers home. Searle finished with 16 points in the win.
Hamilton 52, Dillon 32
Dillon – Braden Anderson 8; Cole Truman 6; Jace Fitzgerald 5; Eli Nourse 5; Justus Peterson 5; Callahan Hoffman 2; Jonathan Kirkley 1.
Hamilton – Trey Searle 16; Carson Rostad 11; Josh Dickemore 7; Tyler Burrows 6; Austin Drake 6; Eli Taylor 3; Tristan Lewis 3.
In loser out action on Saturday morning, the Broncs had to get past the Butte Central Maroons in order to play for third. Although Butte Central came out strongly in the first quarter, the Broncs came back to tie midway through the fourth quarter. Carson Rostad was in foul trouble but battled for boards and shots until he fouled out with 11 seconds left in the game. He led the team with 17 points. A couple of missed opportunities at the charity line was the difference in the game. Butte Central 41, Hamilton 40.
Butte Central 41, Hamilton 40
Hamilton – Carson Rostad 17; Trey Searle 10; Tristan Hanson 5; Tyson Rostad 3; Austin Drake 3; Josh Dickemore 2.
Butte Central – Trevor Neuman 10; Luke Heaphy 9; Braden Harrington 7; Jared Simkins 6; Matt Simkins 5; Brian Holland 4.
Darby’s basketball run for state came to an end this week after meeting up with a couple of tough teams from Southwest Montana in the Western C Divisional Tournament in Frenchtown.
The Tigers, who earned the District 13C championship a week ago, came up against Harrison-Willow Creek in their first game. Harrison-Willow Creek was the runner up in District 12C. Harrison-Willow Creek came out on fire and put up 22 points in the first quarter and held Darby to only six in the quarter and a total of 17 in the first half. Although Darby fired up in the second half, it was not enough. Nelson Smith of Darby led all scorers with 31 points.
Harrison-Willow Creek 64, Darby 51
Harrison-Willow Creek – Cima 23, Homner 13, Nye 10, Contreras 9, Cromwell 4, Homner 3, Buus 2.
Darby – Nelson Smith 31, Gabe Smith 10, Jordan Anderson 4, Preston Smith 4, Tyler Davis 2.
With the loss, Darby had to play Plains on Friday afternoon in loser out action. The Tigers tough defense held the Horsemen to only two points in the first quarter while scoring 19 themselves. Nelson Smith again had the hot hand and scored 35 points in the 66-49 Darby victory.
Darby 66, Plains 49
Plains – Pardee 17, Brouillette 14, Reyes 7, Flock 6, Weyers 2, Brouillette 2, Feliksa 1.
Darby – Nelson Smith 35, Tyler Davis 7, Gabe Smith 7, Preston Smith 7, Jordan Anderson 5, Christian Humphrey 2, William Martin 2, Cullen Duggan 1.
The win on Friday gave Darby another chance to play Saturday morning and possibly advance to the consolation game. They had to play Twin Bridges, the District 12C champion. Twin Bridges doubled down on Nelson Smith and held him to only seven points as they went on to win, 44-30. Preston Smith led the Tigers with eight points.
Twin Bridges 44, Darby 30
Darby – Preston Smith 8, Tyler Davis 7, Nelson Smith 7, Gabe Smith 5, Jordan Anderson 3.
Twin Bridges – Nye 10, Smith 10, Hughes 9, Kaiser 6, Anderson 6, Nye 2, Harmon 2, Kruer 1.
Manhattan Christian won the championship, defeating Gardiner, 72-55.