There’s nothing cut-and-dried with the Northwestern A divisional basketball tournament. It’s that time of year when 12 long-time rivals, bound by geography, descend upon a common gymnasium and determine the fates of their seasons. Fill out your bracket predictions, but use pencil. A team’s seed has never meant too much here.
For seniors, it might be the last gasp. For that eighth man on the bench, it’s a chance to step into the spotlight. For coaches, it’s why you do what you do.
For the rest of us, it’s as much fun as we’ll have at an athletic event all year.
The tournament is held on Feb. 26-28 at Glacier High School. The top two teams for girls advance to the state tournament in Butte on March 5-7. The top two teams for boys will play in the state tourney in Great Falls on March 12-14.
Boys:
Last Year’s Recap: Ronan emerged as the champion of a wild tournament in which eight of the nine games were decided by eight points or less and an extra day was needed to sort everything out. In a Monday night challenge game, Whitefish narrowly defeated Columbia Falls 68-66 to join Ronan as the conference’s two representatives at the Class A state tournament.
A star of last year’s tourney, Colt Idol, is looking to lead Whitefish to its third straight trip to state. His Bulldogs, riding a 12-game win streak, are the No. 1 seed and have a first-round bye. They haven’t lost for nearly two months and lead the conference in scoring at 62 points per game. Idol averaged 26.5 points at last year’s divisionals.
Record: 14-4 (8-2 conference)
Coach: Eric Stang
Key players: Colt Idol, Sr., (20.3 points, 5.7 rebounds); Aaron Tkachyk, Sr., (12.2 points); Josh Backer, Sr., (5.6 rebounds)
Libby, the second seed, has been somewhat of a surprise this year. After losing all-state forward Jim Mee to graduation, the Loggers jumped out to the conference lead and then played consistent enough through the rest of the season to hold on to the second spot. Only fifth in the conference in scoring at 48.8 points per game, Libby relies on a stingy defense and opportune scoring. The Loggers won the state title in 2004.
Record: 13-5 (7-3 conference)
Coach: Wally Winslow
Key players: Conner Benson, Sr., (15.4 points, 48.4% field goals); Joel Fuller, Sr., (10.9 points); Alex Cislo, So., (5.8 rebounds)
The No. 3 seed, Polson, likes to get an early lead and then play keep away, using a tough defense and meticulous half-court set on offense to wear down opponents. The Pirates are fourth in the conference in scoring at 51.6 points per game and make nearly five three-pointers per contest, second best in the conference. They are young and talented.
Record: 8-9 (5-5 conference)
Coach: Karl Tait
Key players: Kyle Bagnell, So., (11.7 points, 40% three-pointers); Tim Rausch, Jr., (11.3 points); Craig Bagnell, Sr., (5.4 rebounds)
Fourth-seeded Columbia Falls is fundamentally strong, as has become the custom under head coach Cary Finberg. The Wildcats lead the conference in free-throw percentage (69.4), field-goal percentage (44.7) and assists (16.7 per game). Under Finberg, the Wildcats have won three state championships since 2003. They lost all-state forward Chase Grilley to graduation last year, but returned a strong core of seniors.
Record: 11-7 (5-5 conference)
Coach: Cary Finberg
Key players: Mackey Nolan, Sr., (11 points, 5.6 assists); Grant Getts, Sr., (5.4 rebounds, 80.4 % free-throws) Mitchell Wassam, Jr., (5.4 rebounds)
Defending champion Ronan is the No. 5 seed. The Chiefs lost last year’s tournament MVP Moss Tanner to graduation. But they return multiple starters from that team. Ronan makes more than five three-pointers per game, best in the conference. The Chiefs are also tops in steals at 11 per game. Their average of nearly 16 assists per game is second in Northwestern A.
Record: 11-7 (4-6 conference)
Coach: Steve Woll
Key players: Nolan Harris, Sr., (11 points, 30 made three-pointers); Mike Fisher, Sr., (11.5 points, 81% free throws); Dallas Cordier, Sr., (5.3 assists)
Though they are the last seed, the Bigfork Vikings can’t be overlooked. The Vikings lost a number of close games this year and closed out the season strong, beating Polson 59-55 on Feb. 17. Led by 6-foot-5 senior post Scott Taylor, Bigfork leads the conference in rebounds (36.8) and blocks (3.2). Taylor recently pulled down a school-record 27 boards in a game.
Record: 3-15 (1-9)
Coach: Lyle Whiteman
Key players: Brock Boll, Sr., (13.1 points, 7.8 rebounds); Scott Taylor, Sr., (11.6 rebounds); Garrett Pewe (4.1 assists, 2.6 steals)
Girls:
Last Year’s Recap: Bigfork, the tournament favorite, used a second-half rally to come back from behind and defeat Whitefish 49-40 in the championship game. The Valkyries were led by an imposing trio of seniors: Alyssa Fierro, Avery Vogel and Hattie Bowen. They finished the season with a perfect 12-0 conference record. The title game was the last Northwestern A game of Whitefish star Ashley Ferda’s career.
With a 9-1 conference record, the Columbia Falls Wildkats are the team to beat at this year’s tourney. They are led by the talented 6-foot DeWit sisters, Kelsey and Kayla. The ‘Kats play solid team defense and regularly hold opponents to fewer than 40 points. They lead the conference by a wide margin in rebounds with 35.9 per game.
Record: 11-7 (9-1 conference)
Coach: Dan Fairbank
Key players: Kayla DeWit, So., (14 points, 10.3 rebounds); Kelsey DeWit, Jr., (11 points, 9.6 rebounds); Alyssa Ladenburg, Sr., (9.5 points, 5.4 assists, 3.3 steals)
Libby, the No. 2 seed, is the second-highest scoring team in the league at 49 points per game. Led by junior Jackie Mee, the Lady Loggers have made 74 three-pointers this year, best in the conference. Libby distributes the ball nicely on offense, averaging a league-best 14.6 assists per game.
Record: 13-5 (8-2 conference)
Coach: Jim May
Key players: Jackie Mee, Jr., (19.2 points, 7.6 rebounds); Brittany Martin, Sr., (11.7 points, 32 three-pointers made, 3.6 steals)
Bigfork, the third seed, has been a sleeper this year. After losing the heart of its starting lineup from last year’s divisional champion team, the Valkyries have used a potent scoring attack to emerge as a contender. The Vals average a conference-best 51.3 points per game. They are a solid rebounding team with talent both down low and on the wings.
Record: 12-6 (6-4 conference)
Coach: Mark Hansen
Key players: Roxy Thurman, Sr., (14.1 points, 3.9 steals); Kailey Fierro, So., (7.5 rebounds, 2.2 blocks); Mallery Knoll, So., (10.2 points)
The Lady Pirates of Polson have proven they can beat any team on any given night this season. They are the only team to have defeated Columbia Falls, winning 37-33 on Feb. 7. They are quick on defense, leading Northwestern A with 14.9 steals per game. Their balanced scoring attack is led by dynamic sophomore Breanne Kelley.
Record: 8-10 (5-5 conference)
Coach: Randy Kelley
Key players: Breanne Kelley, So., (11.3 points, 3.4 steals) Nicole Davey, Jr., (6.7 rebounds)
Fifth-seeded Whitefish is a much better team than its 2-8 conference record suggests. The Lady Bulldogs have built numerous leads this year, only to let them slip away in the second half. Led by senior standout Kate Klundt, arguably the league MVP this year, Whitefish is a solid rebounding team with the potential for upset.
Record: 5-13 (2-8 conference)
Coach: Tim Olson
Key players: Kate Klundt, Sr., (19.4 points, 11 rebounds); Jessie Slaybaugh, Jr., (13 made three-pointers)
Winless Ronan has an uphill battle this tournament, but the Maidens, like Whitefish, have let a few games slip away after solid starts. The Maidens have struggled putting points on the board this year, though not from long-range. Their 62 made three-pointers are second best in the conference this year.
Record: 0-18 (0-10 conference)
Coach: Jami Schall
Key players: Carli Starkel (10.7 points, 25 made three-pointers); Morgan Belgrade (7.7 rebounds)