by Thomas Spencer
The valley’s Class A teams participated in the Tip-Off Tournament in Frenchtown over the weekend.
Hamilton Boys
The Hamilton boys kicked off their first game of the Tip-Off Tournament with a doozy. Facing off against the Columbia Falls Wildcats, the Broncs maintained a close game for much of regulation. The Broncs were down 46-43 at the start of the 4th quarter, missing several free throws, until Eli Taylor sank a beautiful jumper from the elbow to put the Broncs up by one point. The Wildcats answered and with 38 seconds left in regulation, Taylor forced a foul on a three-point attempt which sent him to the foul line. With stone-cold composure, Taylor knocked down all three baskets that tied the game and sent it into overtime. With 4 minutes in overtime play, Taylor again stepped up big for the Broncs, hitting a big three that put them up by one. Surely a sensational start for the group of young men who just a couple of weeks ago were hoisting the Class A state championship trophy in Laurel. The next day the Broncs took on the Libby Loggers and walked away with a 54-45 win.
The Broncs are led by 8th-year coach Travis Blome. When asked about what his expectations are for his team, Blome responded, “I expect our team to play hard, play as a team, and have fun. Hopefully, we are playing our best basketball at the end of the season.”
After this weekend’s performance, it’s clear the Broncs are off to a great start, and it should be interesting to watch this group of guys.
Hamilton Girls
The Hamilton Girls Basketball Team fought through a close 40-37 loss to Columbia Falls on the first day of the tournament. A close game all the way through, in the final minute of the game a steal taken back for an and-one put the score at 38-35 C-Falls. Then the game entered the foul and free throw phase of the game with the remaining 30 seconds. Two made free throws brought the game to 40-35 C-Falls. Then, with two more bonus baskets the score was 40-37 C-Falls. With only 6 seconds left, the Lady Broncs couldn’t get a last-second score but it was a great competitive game to start the season.
The next day the Lady Broncs came back and trounced Libby, 61-19, in the main gym.
Corvallis Boys
The Corvallis Boys matched up with Ronan and Columbia Falls this weekend in two close games. Just missing Ronan by 8 in a 59-51 loss and Columbia Falls by 6 in a 70-64 loss, this team appears to be right on the brink of being a pretty competitive team. The Blue Devils are undersized and did struggle some on the boards and defensively. However, this younger, undersized team can and will shoot the ball. With only two returning varsity players it is likely to take some time into the season before these guys start to develop into their potential. It will be interesting to see how this team overcomes their weaknesses and leans into their strengths. Head coach Zane Warnken is optimistic about his team’s prospects and notes his guys’ work ethic as part of those strengths.
Corvallis Girls
The young Corvallis Girls squad played Ronan and Columbia Falls this weekend at the Tip-Off in Frenchtown. In both the 35-60 loss to Ronan and the 24-63 loss to Columbia Falls, the Blue Devils were plagued by turnovers and struggled to get good looks at the basket. This young team will likely look to their senior leadership in Madi Gilder for success this season.
Stevensville Boys
A tough Tip-Off Tournament for the Stevensville Yellowjacket boys team who lost both games this weekend, the first to Libby in a 52-19 loss and another to Livingston in a 62-21 loss.
Stevensville Girls
The Lady Jackets came out strong this weekend in the Tip-Off Tournament, winning both games. First, crushing Libby in a 51-29 win on Friday and narrowly defeating Livingston 44-37 on Saturday.
Against Libby the Lady Jackets spread the scoring out pretty well. Claire Hutchison cashed 21 points, Cambree Praast accounted for 11, and Haily Thomas 8 points. Brewer, Lampi, Perez, and St. Germain also contributed to the win.