Boys Basketball
Maddox Bird
Photo Taken By: Vivian L. PHS Yearbook Staff
Brock Henriksen (14), Jesse Vail (12), Ezra Fasthorse (21)
Photo Taken By: Vivian L. PHS Yearbook Staff
Jesse Vail
Photo Taken By: Vivian L. PHS Yearbook Staff
Results 2023-2024
Winter 2023-24 Boys Basketball Preview: NWA Polson Pirates
by John Heglie
Preceding season recap
Last season, the 2022-23 rendition of Pirate basketball finished in the midst of the NWA Conference standings with sweeps over Libby and Ronan along with a split with Whitefish. In their two point road loss to the Bulldogs at the Dog Pound, the Pirates held the lead most of the contest until a late Whitefish surge erased the deficit when they tied, then a waning seconds putback off an initial miss supplied the margin that capsized the Pirates. Beyond a pair of wins over Corvallis, the remainder of their nonconference slate fell on the short end of the scoreboard against state bound teams aside from their Rez roundball rivalry wrangle road loss to Mission at St. Ignatius.
Statebound teams: 2W Frenchtown (L), 3W Dillon (L), 4W Hamilton (0-2), 5W C-Falls (0-3), 1W 6B Loyola (L), 2W 7B Bigfork (L)
Adaptations: Graduation and attrition
The Pirates graduated seven seniors from last season. Among decorated departures include thrice all-state millennial marksman Jarrett Wilson and all-conference honorable mention Trent Wilson. Most of the outstanding quintet of grads were accomplished athletes in other disciplines - 2023 State A tennis team champions: doubles champions Owen McElwee (w/ Trent Wilson), State A 5th place Colter Wilson (w/ Tate Barentsen); 2023 State baseball champions Dawson Dumont, Cymian Kauley (incl. Jarrett Wilson). Tyler Wenderoth held an honorable mention credential in football on defense, but was also team second leading receiver.
The lone decorated non-grad among starters would have been all-conference honorable mention Espn Fisher, second leading scorer last season who also holds dual state championship credentials in both baseball as well as golf.
Roster R's: returnees, resources and reconstruction
Though the current roster of the Pirates will be called upon to recalibrate without starters reprising roles from last season, they do return a handful of reserves who not only contributed minutes, but also impacted the scoreboard by collaborating on multiple dozens of points. Among those include Brock Henriksen, Anthony Lichtenberg, Cason Graham and Ezra FastHorse. Henriksen missed large swaths of last season recovering from injury. Though a more favorable timetable experienced by FastHorse allowed for his availability at the beginning of last season, peak performance would have been impacted until a latter juncture of the schedule. Both will be itching to either make up for lost time or maximize skills to optimal effect from the very start of this new season. Others will be called upon to fill vacancies created by departures.
The Pirates will also benefit from Ronan transfer senior Uriah Ulutoa
Prognosis P's: Prospects, penchants and potential
The preceding mentioned quartet along with a handful of others among an anticipated pool of contributors hold all-conference credentials in other sports and/or were part of the roster of spring championship squads. Such a background underscores the breadth of athleticism along with transferrable skill sets infusing the new roster despite the absence of more seasoned hoops returnees.
Those coming from a soccer background will now be free to use their hands to score goals. Baseball players adept at delivering a ball to the target of a mitt or strikezone can readily adapt such techniques toward threading a basketball through a net. Golfers periodically called upon to make adjustments to their strokes to compensate for differing conditions on a green can now refine techniques on the environment of a court with different iron in mind: putting shots through the hole on a rim of a backboard. Footballers can readily implement assorted cross-disciplinary capabilities: blocking to screen out defenders, spacing to optimize passing lanes, recognition of the value of delivering crisp passes to advance the ball and so on.
Head coach Jacob Halgren embarks upon his second season at the helm of the Pirates, assisted by Chris Evenson and James Bible.
With no skyscrapers dotting their horizon, the Pirates will rely on a stringent defense to limit incursions attempted by taller opponents as well as will need to compensate for an absence of distinctive height advantages by optimizing teamwork in conjunction with shot selection. The Polson coaching staff will endeavor to retool the current influx of Pirates to get them to cook at just the right temperature so that they sizzle on the court while avoiding getting burned by the heat of competition.
Polson inaugurates their season at the Western A Tip-Off in Frenchtown the weekend of December 8-9, where they will face 6B Loyola and SWA Corvallis. Their first home stand is against Stevensville on Tuesday, December 19.
Wtr2022-23 Polson Pirates (7-13), NWA(5-5), nonconf(2-6), Div (0-2)
2022-23bbb Pirates (1150p,696r,219a,175s,24b) – Jarrett Wilson (424p,154r,61a,60s,7b), Espn Fisher (197p,87r,33a,21s,2b), Trent Wilson (138p,81r,31a,22s), Dawson DuMont (110p,103r,25a,21s,6b), Cymian Kauley (104p,100r,13a,11s,2b), Tyler Wenderoth (51p,30r,20a,10s), Owen McElwee (50p,60r,10a,9s,4b), Colter Wilson (32p, 33r,20a,10s,1b), Brock Henriksen (21p,28r,5a,7s,2b), Jabez Madplume (8p,5r), Anthony Lichtenberg (7p,6r,1s), Cason Graham (4p,3r,1a,2s), Ezra FastHorse (4p,4r,1s), Hunter Emerson (2r). MtHSAth
Accrued athletic accolade acknowledgements
Brock Henriksen (FB 2x a-c 2nd-tm DE 2023/LB 2022), Ezra FastHorse (FB a-c hm DL), Trey Lichtenberg (BSC a-s, a-c 1st-tm), Cason Graham (BB state champion), Torrin Ellis (TN-S 2x a-s: 2nd 2023, 5th 2022; 2x a-c: 2nd 2022-23; GLF a-s t13 2022, 2x a-c t5 2022, 8th 2021, team state champion 2023), Cruz Lies (BSC 2x a-c: 2nd-tm 2023, hm 2022), Maddox Bird (BSC a-c 1st-tm), Cody Haggard (BB State A champion 2023);
Grads: Jarrett Wilson (BBB 3x a-s, 3x a-c 1st-tm; FB MVP-O 2022, co-MVP-O 2021, 3x a-s QB, 3x a-c 1st-tm/2nd-tm S 2022; BB-mhsa a-s, a-c 1st-tm State A champion 2023), Trent Wilson (BBB a-c hm; FB a-s, 3x a-c: 1st-tm WR/S 2022, 2x 2nd-tm ILB 2020-21; TN-D a-s 1st, 2x a-c 2nd 2022-23 State A doubles champion), Dawson DuMont (FB 2x a-s; 3x a-c: NWA 1st-tm OLB 2021-22, W8M 2nd-tm DE 2020; TF 2021 a-s 4x100 6th, 3x a-c 4x100 3rd, 4x400 5th, 100 6th; BB-mhsa a-s, a-c 1st-tm State A champion 2023, LegionA a-s 2023, 4x a-c 20-23), Cymian Kauley (BB-mhsa a-c 1st-tm UT, State A champion 2023, LegionA hm 2023), Tyler Wenderoth (FB a-c hm S), Owen McElwee (TN-D a-s 1st, 2x a-c 2nd 2022-23, State A doubles champion), Colter Wilson (TN-D a-s 5th, a-c 3rd 2023), Espn Fisher (BBB a-c hm; BB-mhsa a-s, a-c 1st-tm State A champion 2023, LegionA a-s 2023, 4x a-c 2020-23; GLF 2x a-s: t13 2023, t15 2022, 2x a-c: 6th 2023, t5 2022).
Other preview by Brandon Hansen featured in the December 7 issue of the Lake County Leader.
Pirates trucked, don't dodge Rams
by John Heglie
At the NWA/SWA Tip-Off Tournament held in Frenchtown, the defending State B champion Rams of Loyola picked up where they left off as their reloaded roster rolled past the rebuilding Pirates. Polson had four players score multiple times, but wasn't going to be enough to offset a Loyola quartet that each scored in double figures. If misery seeks company, the largely senior-laden squad of the Pirates last season fell as well, 49-68.
Loyola 79, Polson 38
NWA Pirates (0-1), 6B Rams (1-0)
Loyola 22 28 20 9 – 79
Polson 4 16 9 9 – 38
LOYOLA SACRED HEART – Reynolds Johnston 11 2-2 24, Ethan Stack 9 2-4 20, Jack Clevenger 6 0-0 14, Jamo Kendrick 4 1-2 10, Noah Haffey 2 2-2 7, Taylor Jones 2, Finn Haffey 0 2-4 2. 33 9-14 79
POLSON – Anthony Lichtenberg 3 0-0 9(4r), Cason Graham 3 1-2 8(5r,2a), Ezra FastHorse 3 0-0 6(5r,3a), Brenden Griffin 2 0-0 5(1r), Landon Desjarlais 3(1r,1a,1s), Cody Haggard 1 1-1 3(2r), Maddox Bird 2(1r), Jesse Vail 2(1r,2a), Brock Henriksen 0(4r,2a,1s), Torrin Ellis 0(1r,2a,1s), Uriah Ulutoa 0(1r), Dion Lichtenberg 0. 15 2-3 38(26r,12a,3s)
3FGs – LSH4 (Clevenger 2, Kendrick, N.Haffey), P6-24 (A.Lichtenberg 3-6, Griffin 1-3, Desjarlais 1-3, Graham 1-4). (Fr08Dec23)
IMG_2691.HEIC/IMG_2692.HEIC
Pirate barely bedeviled, rally falls one shy
by John Heglie
In second day action at the NWA/SWA Tip-Off held in Frenchtown, the Pirates outscored the Blue Devils of Corvallis both quarters of the second half, but were unable to net the one critical basket that would have completed the roar back rally. Polson placed two players in double figures with Anthony Lichtenberg among the high teens and Cason Graham netting low teens as the two combined for 31 points. In contrast to Corvallis trends of seasons prior, the Pirates were more efficient from beyond the arc with triples, outscoring the Blue Devils ten to six.
Corvallis 57, Polson 56
NWA Pirates (0-2), SWA Blue Devils (2-1)
Polson 13 12 11 20 – 56
Corvallis 18 15 9 15 – 57
POLSON – Anthony Lichtenberg 7 0-0 18(3r,2a), Cason Graham 5 2-3 13(6r,2a,3s), Jesse Vail 3 0-0 9(1a,1s), Ezra FastHorse 2 0-0 5(3r,1a), Landon Desjarlais 2 0-0 5, Brock Henriksen 1 2-6 4(2r,2a), Cody Haggard 0 2-4 2(2r), Torrin Ellis 0(2r,3a,1s), Brenden Griffin 0(1r,2a), Dion Lichtenberg 0. 20 6-13 56(19r,13a,5s)
CORVALLIS – Derek Criddle 9 3-3 22(4s), Ryan Hutchison 6 1-2 15(11r), Cameron Whiteley 5 2-4 14(4a), Ledge Conner 3, Bennett Boelman 2, Drew Lewis 1. 22 7-11 57(28r,8a,12s,1b)
3FGs – P10-24 (A.Lichtenberg 4-6, Vail 3-6, FastHorse 1-2, Graham 1-5, Desjarlais 1-1), C6-15 (Hutchison 2-5, Whiteley 2-3, Conner 1-1, Criddle 1-4). (Sa09Dec23) venue:FHS
IMG_2730.HEIC/IMG_2731.HEIC
Bigfork bests Bucs in battle of bays
by John Heglie
At Bigfork, the first round of the battle of the bays on Flathead Lake between mariner marauder mascots would gravitated in favor of the home team. The second-seeded Western B rep and State B third placeVikings got off to a strong start with an opening frame among the low twenties. The Pirates kept the deficit within the single digit range an even managed to carve into the deficit before the half, closing within two scores. But the Vikings stepped on the gas pedal during second half action as they opened up and extended a double figure lead. Both Anthony Lichtenberg and Cason Graham delved into the domain of double digits with a combination of 26 points. The Pirates outshot the Vikings by a 4:1 ratio from beyond the arc, but were outdueled by deuces with their higher percentage return rate.
Bigfork 81, Polson 49
Pirates (0-1, 0-3), Vikings (1-0, 1-2)
Polson 13 16 11 9 – 49
Bigfork 22 12 25 22 – 81
POLSON – Anthony Lichtenberg 4 3-6 14(6r,2s,1b), Cason Graham 4 2-4 12(6r,3a,1s,1b), Jesse Vail 2 1-2 7(1r,1a,5s), Torrin Ellis 2 0-2 6(1r,1a,3s,1b), Maddox Bird 2 0-0 4(1s), Ezra FastHorse 2(1r), Brenden Griffin 2(3r,1a,1s), Cody Haggard 2(3r), Brock Henriksen 0(2r,1s), Uriah Ulutoa 0(1r). 17 6-16 49(24r,7a,14s,3b)
BIGFORK – Eli Thorness 7 3-6 17, Asher Knopik 13(6a,3s), Cole Knopik 12, Wyatt Johnson 4 1-1 9, Austin Savik 8, Jack Jensen 2 2-4 6, Jack Lucke 8, Colin Wade 6, Dylan Porrovecchio 2. 34 11-20 81(32r,18a,11s,1b)
3FGs – P9-28 (A.Lichtenberg 3-6, Ellis 2-3, Vail 2-7, Graham 2-9), B2-11 (Wade 1-1, A.Knopik 1-4) (Tu12Dec23)
variants – B: #10Jensen(406mtsports:8p, MtHSAth:6p), #0Johnson(406mtsports:7p, MtHSAth:9p)
Maroon marauders plank Pirates
by John Heglie
At Butte, the last season Western A top-seed and State A third-place Maroons maximized their home court advantage by outdueling the Pirates in two strategic categories: free throws and from beyond the arc. Polson's Jesse Vail countered the triple output of Butte Central's Owen McPartland as both splashed a quartet of treys. But McPartland and company netted twice as many three's than their visitors and shot in the 70th percentile from the charity stripe with a sizeable differential in trips to the line. Vail and Cason Graham both scored in double figures. Torrin Ellis dished seven assists.
Butte Central 74, Polson 43
NWA Pirates (0-4), SWA Maroons (5-0)
Polson 8 10 11 14 – 43
ButteC 23 16 19 16 – 74
POLSON – Jesse Vail 5 0-0 14(1r), Cason Graham 5 1-2 11(7r,3a,1s,1b), Brock Henriksen 6, Anthony Lichtenberg 4(3r,1a), Maddox Bird 4(2r,1s), Ezra FastHorse 1 0-2 2(2r,2a,1s), Kyler Gage 2(1r,1s), Torrin Ellis 0(2r,7a,1s), Cruz Lies 0, Dion Lichtenberg 0, Uriah Ulutoa (3r), Cody Haggard (1r). 19 1-4 43(22r,12a,6s,1b)
BUTTE CENTRAL – Owen McPartland 8 11-14 31, Jack Keeley 5 3-3 15(12r), Ryan Peoples 8, Joshua Sutton 7(4a,3s), Zane Moodry 5, GG Fantini 4, Parker Robertson 4. 22 21-27 74(28r,11a,8s)
3FGs – P4-15 (Vail 4-6), BC 9-22 (McPartland 4-8, Keeley 2-3, R.Peoples 2-5, Sutton 1-1). (Sa16Dec23)
variants – P(buttesports:2Q-11p=44p, MtHSAth:2Q-10p=43p)
Pirates debug Yellowjackets for first win of new season
by John Heglie
At Linderman Gym in Polson, the Pirates were able to sail into their home port after two weeks of roaming the seismic seas in the role of road warriors as they secured their first win of the nascent season against the visiting Yellowjackets of Stevensville. Three of their four preceding opponents prior to this contest had not only secured berths to state tournaments last season, but were holders of harvested hardware: defending State B champion Loyola, State B consolation third place Bigfork and State A consolation third place Butte Central. Only Corvallis deviated from such heights of opponent difficulty level and Polson made a game of that contest, falling just shy by a single point, 56-57.
In this contest, the Pirates would erupt with a vengance in the opening frame against Stevensville, going on a 26-0 run as eight different Pirates ruffled the net. By halftime, the outcome was a foregone conclusion with the contest culminating with a trio of Pirates scoring in double figures as Cason Graham, Anthony Lichtenberg and Brenden Griffin collaborated on just under three dozen points. Graham and Brock Henriksen gleaned the glass for 14 combined rebounds, while Maddox Bird along with Torrin Ellis dished out a collaboration of seven assists. Ellis and Lichtenberg were the chief pick pockets as they split their combined loot of eight steals, while Griffin and Ezra Fasthorse divided down the middle another half dozen pilfers.
Polson 65, Stevensville 24
NWA Pirates (1-4), SWA Yellowjackets (0-5)
S-ville 5 4 5 10 – 24
Polson 26 18 12 9 – 65
STEVENSVILLE – Kaden Wyant 4 2-2 13(2a), Kaeden Gum 4(3r,3s), Treyton Patzer 4, Gage Bierer 3, Easton Hollis 0(2a). 8 4-8 24(8r,6a,7s,1b)
POLSON – Cason Graham 5 2-4 13(7r,4a,1s), Brenden Griffin 4 0-0 11(2r,3s), Anthony Lichtenberg 5 1-4 11(5r,4s), Brock Henriksen 3 0-0 6(7r,1a,1s), Ezra FastHorse 3 0-0 6(3r,2a,3s), Maddox Bird 2 1-2 5(2r,4a,2s), Kyler Gage 4, Jesse Vail 3(1a,3s), Torrin Ellis 2(1a,3s), Cody Haggard 2(1r,3a), Dion Lichtenberg 0 2-2 2(1s). 27 6-12 65(27r,15a,21s)
3FGs – S4-12 (Wyant 3-5, Bierer 1-1), P5-19 (Griffin 3-6, Vail 1-2, Graham 1-5). (Tu19Dec23)
variants – P(jh:27r15a21s, MtHSAth:30r16a21s): Bird(jh:3a, MtHSAth:4a), Graham(jh:4a, MtHSAth:2a), A.Lichtenberg(jh:0a, MtHSAth:1a), Ellis(jh:1a3s, MtHSAth:3a4s), Vail(jh:3s, MtHSAth:2s), Haggard(jh:1r3a, MtHSAth:3r2a),
Unofficial gm rendition. Some details may vary from official summary.
Dillon 65, Polson 19
NWA Pirates (1-5), SWA Beavers (5-1)
Polson 8 1 1 9 – 19
Dillon 28 24 11 2 – 65
POLSON – Cason Graham 2 2-2 7(3r,1a,1b), Maddox Bird 1 2-3 4(5r,2a,1s), Ezra FastHorse 1 2-4 4(5r,1s), Brenden Griffin 1 1-2 4(2r), Brock Henriksen 0(4r), Jesse Vail 0(1r,1a,2s), Uriah Ulutoa 0(1r,1s), Torrin Ellis 0(1r), Landon Pablo (1r), Cody Haggard 0. 5 7-11 19(23r,4a,5a,1b)
DILLON – Kyler Engellant 19(6r), Carter Curnow 13(6r,5a,7s), Cohen Hartman 12, Max Davis 11, Will Hansen 4, Braxtyn Lagge 3, Keyen Nash 2, Kee Christiansen 1, Keyen Nash 0(5r,1a,1s). 26 6-12 65(31r,15a,14s,1b)
3FGs – P2-11 (Griffin 1-3, Graham 1-4), D7-16 (Engellant 3-5, Curnow 1-1, Lagge 1-2, Hartman 1-3, Davis 1-4). (Th21Dec23)
surname variations: Braxtyn Lagge = B.Turney
Hamilton 78, Polson 49
NWA Pirates (1-6), SWA Broncs (8-0)
Hamilton 19 19 23 17 – 78
Polson 12 9 13 15 – 49
HAMILTON – Canaan Magness 9 5-6 25(3a,6s), Tyler Jette 8 3-4 21(7r,3a), Landen Wetzel 3 0-1 8, Cole Dickemore 2 2-2 7(5a,4s,2b), Jesse Villigan 5, Tristan Koerner 1 3-3 5, Jackson Jessop 5, Hunter Stewart 0 2-2 2. 27 15-18 78(28r,14a,14s,2b)
POLSON – Cason Graham 7 5-6 21(3r,3a,5s,1b), Anthony Lichtenberg 4 0-2 8(9r,3a,1s), Ezra FastHorse 8(6r,2a,2s), Maddox Bird 6(3r,1a,2s), Brock Henriksen 2(6r,2a,2s,1b), Jesse Vail 2(1r,1a,1s,1b), Brenden Griffin 2(2r), Cody Haggard 0(1r,1s). 21 5-8 49(31r,12a,14s,3b)
3FGs – H9-25 (Jette 2-4, Wetzel 2-4, C.Magness 2-6, Jessop 1-1, Villegan 1-4, Dickemore 1-6), P2-15 (Graham 2-8). (Tu02Jan24)
variants – 406mtsports(H only); P(MtHSAth:31r12a13s3b, jh:29r10a14s2b): #3Anthony(MtHSAth:1s, jh:0s), #12Jesse(MtHSAth:0s, jh:1s), #14Brock(MtHSAth:2s, jh:3s) diff evals - stl: poke vs pocket, reb: tip vs tuck.
Browning 74, Polson 61
Pirates (0-2, 1-7), Indians (1-0, 5-2)
Browning 19 26 16 13 – 74
Polson 14 8 24 15 – 61
BROWNING – Maurice Redhorn 6 1-2 16, Mahkia Ehlers 4 3-5 11, Jude Reevis 5 1-1 11, Tommy RunningRabbit 9, Tristan Crawford 8(2b), Joshua Skunkcap 7(5a,4s), Delbert Blackman 5, Isiah RunningRabbit 5, Noah Butterfly 2. 31 9-18 74(34r,17a,20s,4b)
POLSON – Jesse Vail 4 6-7 17(3r,1a,2s), Anthony Lichtenberg 4 3-4 11(8r,1a,2s,2b), Cason Graham 4 1-4 11(2r,2a,2s), Brenden Griffin 3 0-0 9(5r,1s), Brock Henriksen 2 1-1 5(9r,3a,3s), Maddox Bird 2 1-2 5(5r,2a,1s), Ezra FastHorse 0 3-4 3(1r,1a). 19 15-22 61(37r,10a,11s,2b)
3FGs – B3-14 (Redhorn 3-5), P8-24 (Griffin 3-6, Vail 3-9, Graham 2-4). (Fr05Jan24)
Some details may vary from official summaries.
variants – B(scoreboard:2Q-26p, jh:2Q-28p; scoreboard:3Q-16p, jh:14p), P(MtHSAth:37r9a10s2b, jh:33r10a11s2b): #33Cason(MtHSAth:1r1a2s, jh:2r2a2s), #3Anthony(MtHSath:2a, jh:1a), #14Brock(MtHSAth:12r, jh:9r), #20Maddox(MtHSAth:7r, jh:5r), #33Cason(MtHSAth:1r1a), jh:2r2a), No QxQ/indiv scoring results reported on 406mtsports/myteamscoops other than final score. Unable to locate hudl film for review to resolve discrepancies.
Dogs nip Pirates in tight contest
by John Heglie
At Linderman Gym in Polson, the visiting Bulldogs of Whitefish and the host Pirates engaged one another in a tightly played contest that seldom drifted from a handful of possessions advantage for either side. Unfortunately, the idiomatic expression "every dog has its day" played out in detrimental fashion on the hardcourt as Bulldog Carson Gulick posted a career high 29 at the expense of the purple & gold home team. Polson outscored their opponent during the even quarters and had a precarious one point advantage to start the second half. But Whitefish would capitalize upon a string of third quarter possession hiccups that would gravitate in their favor with transition baskets. The Pirates twice pulled within a single possession in the latter stages of the final frame on an Anthony Lichtenberg triple that tightened the deficit within 49-48 and again after an Ezra FastHorse steal and deuce to close within 57-56 at the two minute mark. But the home team was unable to culminate the rally further.
Two Pirates scored in double digits with Anthony Lichtenberg netting a career high 22, while Cason Graham splashed 17. Lichtenberg gleaned the glass for ten boards to post a double-double.
Whitefish 64, Polson 60
Pirates (0-3, 1-8), Bulldogs (1-0, 5-2)
Whitefish 19 11 19 15 – 64
Polson 16 15 12 17 – 60
WHITEFISH – Carson Gulick 12 3-4 29, Mason Kelch 2 4-4 9(10r,12a), Mason Genovese 8, Carson Krack 8, CJ Thew 7, Scott Dalen 0 4-6 4. 24 11-14 64(31r,15a,7s,4b)
POLSON – Anthony Lichtenberg 9 2-5 22(10r,3a,3s), Cason Graham 7 2-2 17(8r,3a,1s), Ezra FastHorse 4 0-0 8(4r,2a,1s), Maddox Bird 3 0-0 6(4r,1a), Brenden Griffin 3(1r,1s), Brock Henriksen 2(3r,4a,4s,1b), Cruz Lies 2(1r,1s), Jesse Vail 0(3r,3a). 26 4-7 60(29r,16a,11s,1b)
3FGs – W5-18 (Gulick 2-5, Genovese 2-7, Kelch 1-4), P4-24 (A.Lichtenberg 2-6, Griffin 1-4, Graham 1-9). (Tu09Jan24)
variants – W#11Thew(MtHSAth:1a, jh:3a), W#55Kelch(MtHSAth:12a, jh:8a), W#22Krack(MtHSAth:0a, jh:1a); P(MtHSAth:34r14a9s1b, jh:31r16a11s): #12Jesse(MtHSAth:1a, jh:3a), #14Brock(MtHSAth:3a, jh:4a), #21Ezra(MtHSAth:0s, jh:1s)
Cason Graham minted a new varsity career high (3FG 3-8, 2FG 5-9, FT 3-3)22p
Ronan 73, Polson 56
Pirates (0-4, 1-9), Chiefs (3-0, 6-3)
Polson 10 7 [25] 14 – [56]
Ronan 23 19 20 11 – 73
POLSON – Cason Graham 8 3-3 22(9r,1a,1s), Ezra FastHorse [6] 0-0 [12](6r,2a,3s), Brenden Griffin 3 0-0 8(2r), Anthony Lichtenberg [3] 0-0 [6](3r,1a,2s), Jesse Vail 3(2r,2a), Brock Henriksen 1 1-2 3(6r,1a), Maddox Bird 0(1r,2a), Uriah Ulutoa 0(1r), rogue [2]. [22]/23 4-6 [54]/56(30r,9a,6s)
RONAN – Josiah Misa 6 3-4 19(3r,2a,1s), Kolby Finley 6 2-2 14(4r,6a,1s), Laurance Lozeau 3 4-4 10(3r,2s), Marlo Tonasket 3 0-0 6(5r,2a,2s), Sean Small 1 3-6 5(4r,2s), Tayen Edmo 2 0-0 5(2r,1a,1s), Ted Coffman 2 0-0 4(2r,3a), Keyan PrettyOnTop 3(2r1a), DaVonne Curley 2(1a), Trey Samsel 2, Teddy SpottedEagle 2, Wade Qualtier 0 1-4 1(2r,1a,6s), Chad Higgins 0(1r). 27 13-19 73 (28r,17a,15s,1b)
3FGs – P6-24 (Graham 3-9, Griffin 2-5, Vail 1-4), R6-15 (Misa 4-7, Edmo 1-1, K.POT 1-1). (Tu16Jan24)
Some details of this informal rendition may vary from official summaries.
variants – P(MtHSAth:29r8a5s, jh:33r10a6s): #33Graham (Rhudl:20p1s, MtHSAth:20p0s)2Q:5+3Q:10+4Q:7=22p, #21EzraFH(406mtsports:14p, MtHSAth:14p5r, Rhudl:12p9r/jh:12p7r)1Q:2+2Q:2+3Q:4+4Q:4=12p, #3A.Lichtenberg(406mtsports/MtHSAth:8p, Rhudl/jh:6p)1Q:4+3Q:2=6p, P#12Vail(406mtsports/MtHSAth/jh:3p, Rhudl:5p)3Q-p19 mistagP#12FGm=P#33, #14Henriksen(MtHSAth:8r0a, Rhudl/jh:6r1a), #20Bird(MtHSAth:1a, Rhudl/jh:1r2a).
Hudl problem report: "There is a video cut in the film. Game stats might be incorrect due to this incident."
Hudl notation: stats may be off due to this incident. [endofgm] "The final score does not match what was submitted. We have reviewed the video to make sure we have not missed a play."
Problem report 31:12: "Team scored on themselves. We have tagged the scoring player as an unknown athlete." Upon review of film as well as box score examination, the alleged athlete may have been initially tagged as unknown, but is presently mistagged as P#12, who was not involved in the play.
This reviewer has combed thru Hudl film a handful of times and catalogued the second half in an effort to trace discrepancies for resolution. Have been unable to resolve a two point discrepancy that arises during a third quarter timeout when the Polson score changes from 36 to 38. Having been in attendance at the game keeping an independent tally of stat specs, no notation exists among this version to account for the change. My suspicion is that it traces to an early third quarter scoring event of Polson point 19 in which (P#33) Cason Graham, (P#14) Brock Henriksen and (R#4) Kolby Finley converge upon a rebound after an initial Graham miss. Hudl cites team scored on themselves, an assessment which begs to differ. Graham had the optimal angle for the offensive rebound tip-in. Henriksen was contending for the offensive rebound, while Finley was defending. Henriksen claimed in a subsequent conversation at a following day practive that he was unable to get a hand on the ball to affect its trajectory. Finley may have gotten a piece of the ball, but was facing away from the basket toward Graham.
From my perspective, (P#33) Graham merits credit for the 2FG deuce putback. The scoring distribution reported by the venue has Graham 20, (P#33) A.Lichtenberg 8. Ground level perspective of the play may have misassigned the play to Lichtenberg rather than Graham due to the similarity between their jersey numbers in addition to the fact that Lichtenberg was crashing the board on the play, which would account for factors behind the scoring credit decision. Ground level perspective in traffic versus an unobstructed higher elevation perspective partially explains the difference in assessment outcomes, especially when real time transpiring of events lack the benefits of slo-mo film review.
As for the two point change in the scoreboard after the timeout at just under the two minute mark of the third quarter, that instance remains unable to be resolved. One suspicion suggests that the previously mentioned play of p19 may be a factor as there may have been residual uncertainty about who to credit with the earlier 2FG deuce. The timeout would have been the first break in the action since the p19 incident and an inadvertent doubling up may explain the change in the scoreboard reading. While this may be a plausible explanation, there is simply not enough information to make a definitive interpretation of events. How (P#21) Ezra FastHorse got credited with seven deuces for 14 points instead of a half dozen deuces for a dozen points is unable to be ascertained. Review of film only comes up with a half dozen conversions, which are documented among notations below.
Care is being taken in an attempt to unravel these conundrums for multiple reasons. The scoring credits will affect three players regarding their cumulative tally totals at the end of the season. In Graham's case, the difference between 20 and 22 is the difference between a new career high versus a second best of the season.
These kinds of things sometimes take place despite the level of care taken by conscientious folk documenting an event. Prep sports lack the benefit of the pros who have challenge flags they can throw and multiple officials stopping the game to review an instance with the benefit of multiple camera angles with high resolution. Most prep sporting events lack such tools at their disposal, leaving conundrums to be unraveled as best as can be expected under the constraints of uncertainties elapsing in real time
Film review: Scoreboard operator modifies Polson portion of scoreboard during timeout (P36p before timeout/P38p after timeout). Ronan had possession when they called the timeout. Play resumed with them inbounding the ball from sideline. MIA: 1Q-p10
Modifications to Hudl film breakdown:
P#14Brock +1a dish to Ezra deuce
2Q-p14 mistagP#20FGm=P#33Cason
3Q-p19mistagP#12FGm=P#33 tip-in off miss +Oreb(Brock says he didn't touch it, thought R#14 might have aided like own goal in soccer)
3Q-mistagR#22FTp41/FTp42=R#23
4Q-p[44]/42 0reb #21mistag = #20sv off FGa+1a
4Q-p[46]/44 Cason +1s+FGm&1FT=p[47]/45
4Q-P#33FG finale might have been misassigned in Pbk to P#3
3Q-23p: Cason(FGm tip-in=p19, 3FGm=p22, FGm=p24), Ezra(FGm=p26), Cason(3FGm=p29), Brock(FGm=p31),Grif(3FGm=p34), Anthony(FGm=p36), //rogue2FGm timeout scoreboard changes from 36 to 38 3Q-1:54//, Grif(FGm=p38/[40]), Ezra(FGm=p40/[42]);
4Q-14p: Ezra(FGm=p42/[44]), Cason(FGm=p44/[46]+FTm=p45/[47], FTm=p46/[48]+FTm=p47/[49]), Grif(3FGm=p50/[52]), Ezra(FGm=p52/[54]), Cason(FGm=p54/[56])
#33Cason: 2Q(FG=p14, 3FG=p17)5, 3Q(p19 tip-in, 3FG=p22, FG=p24, 3FG=p29)10, 4Q(FGm&1FT=p47, FTp48,FTp49, FG=p56)7 =22p
#21Ezra: 1Q(FGm=p10)2, 2Q(FGm=p12)2, 3Q(FGm=p26, FGm=p[42]/40)4, 4Q(FGm = p[44]/42, FGm = p[54]/52)4 = 12p
Columbia Falls 61, Polson 41
Pirates (0-5, 1-10), Wildcats (3-1, 5-5)
C-Falls 17 19 11 14 – 61
Polson 10 7 14 10 – 41
COLUMBIA FALLS – Alihn Anderson 17, Dayne Tu 16(9r), Jace Hill 13(7r,9a), Chance Miller 9, Mark Robison 3, Hunter Hoerner 3. 24 7-10 61(30r,13a,5s,1b)
POLSON – Anthony Lichtenberg 14(4r,2a,1s), Cason Graham 1 6-7 8(5r,3a,1s,1b), Brenden Griffin 5(1r,1a,1s), Jesse Vail 4(4r,1a,2s), Brock Henriksen 4(9r,1s), Maddox Bird 1 1-2 3(2r,1a), Ezra FastHorse 0 2-2 2(3r,2a), Uriah Ulutoa 0 1-2 1(1r,1s). 14 10-13 41(29r,9a,6s,2b)
3FGs – CF6-17 (Tu 2-2, Hoerner 1-1, Miller 1-1, Robison 1-5, Anderson 1-5), P3-20 (A.Lichtenberg 2-7, Griffin 1-5). (Sa20Jan24)
Pirates stave off rally for first conference win
by John Heglie
At Linderman Gym in Polson, the visiting Loggers of Libby and the host Pirates played a closely matched contest. Polson used a strong third quarter to break a halftime deadlock. Just before the midway juncture of the final frame, the Pirates had forged a dozen lead 31-43 that precipitated a Logger timeout. Thereafter, the Loggers mounted a hardcourt rally that emulated aspects extrapolated from a Matrix sci-fi movie as their Mr. Andersen (Tyler) netted 11 of his game high tally after the timeout as Libby carved into the deficit to close to within a single possession 46-49 with 6.2 seconds remaining. But Pirate Brenden Griffin would be fouled after securing the inbound and splashed both free-throws from the charity stripe to solidify the outcome.
Jesse Vail paced the Pirates with 14, tying his second best tally of the season, while Ezra FastHorse netted ten. Anthony Lichtenberg just missed a double-double with ten boards that coincided with nine points he matched with Griffin.
Polson 51, Libby 46
Pirates (1-5, 2-10), Loggers (0-4, 2-8)
Libby 12 13 6 15 – 46
Polson 13 12 13 13 – 51
LIBBY – Tyler Andersen 6 7-11 20(7r,3a), Ryan Beagle 4 1-4 11(3a), Alderic Martineau 2 1-2 6, Cy Williams 4(7r), Tristan Andersen 2, Chayse Hartley 2, David Beck 0 1-2 1. 17 8-15 46(31r,7a,3s,3b)
POLSON – Jesse Vail 5 0-2 14(6r,1b), Ezra FastHorse 10(7r,2a,1s,1b), Anthony Lichtenberg 3 1-2 9(10r,5a,2s,2b), Brenden Griffin 2 3-4 9(3r,1a), Brock Henriksen 5(6r,1a,1s), Maddox Bird 4(6r,2a), Cody Haggard 0(2r). 19 4-8 51(37r,7a,4s,4b)
3FGs – L4-18 (Beagle 2-8, Martineau 1-1, Ty.Andersen 1-6), P9-31 (Vail 4-12, A.Lichtenberg 2-5, Griffin 2-5, Henriksen 1-2). (Tu23Jan24)
variants – Beck (3Q-ft), Ty.Anderson(3Q-ft), Wms (4Q-FG?). #20Maddox(jh:6r2a, MtHSAth:3r0a)
Browning 82, Polson 54
Pirates (1-6, 2-11), Indians (3-2, 7-4)
Polson 7 15 13 19 – 54
Browning 20 21 25 19 – 82
POLSON – Anthony Lichtenberg 13(7r,3b), Ezra FastHorse 10(4r,2a,1b), Brock Henriksen 4 1-6 9(6r,1b), Brenden Griffin 1 3-6 6(4r), Cason Graham 2 1-2 5(6r,3a,1s), Kyler Gage 4(1r,4s), Maddox Bird 1 1-2 3(2r,2a,4s), Jesse Vail 2(2r,1a,2s), Landon DesJarLais 2, Cody Haggard 0(5r), Uriah Ulutoa 0 0-2 0, Cruz Lies (1r). 22 6-18 54(38r,8a,11s,5b)
BROWNING – Maurice Redhorn III 7 2-4 17(7r,6a,3s), Mahkia Ehlers 5 3-5 14, Isiah RunningRabbit 10, Tommy RunningRabbit 10, Tristan Crawford 10, Jude Reevis 8, Joshua Skunkcap 5, Delbert Blackman 4, Randy RunningRabbit 2, Roy Madplume 2. 33 14-28 82(42r,18a,25s,5b)
3FGs – P4-20 (FastHorse 2-3, A.Lichtenberg 1-4, Griffin 1-7), B2-19 (Ehlers 1-2, Redhorn 1-4). (Fr26Jan24)
variants – 406mtsports(P:shy 31p, B:shy21p)
Bigfork 61, Polson 41
Pirates (1-7, 2-12), Vikings (5-4, 7-8)
Bigfork 16 17 14 14 – 61
Polson 11 10 8 12 – 41
BIGFORK – Eli Thorness 8 3-4 19(6r), Asher Knopik 6 2-2 16(8r), Cole Knopik 6, Jack Jensen 2 1-2 6(6r,6a), Austin Savik 2 1-2 6, Wyatt Johnson 3(5a), Colin Wade 3, Quinn Herring 1 0-1 2, Jack Lucke 0 0-2 0(3r,1a), Treker Hickey (3s). 23 7-13 61(36r,19a,6s,1b)
POLSON – Cason Graham 12(4r,1a,3s,1b), Jesse Vail 9(1r,2s,1b), Brock Henriksen 3 1-4 7(9r,3a), Anthony Lichtenberg 1 4-6 6(3r,4a,3s), Cody Haggard 4(4r,2a,1s), Maddox Bird 1 1-2 3(3r,1a,1s), Ezra FastHorse 0(3r). 15 6-12 41(25r,11a,8s,1b)
3FGs – B8-18 (C.Knopik 2-4, A.Knopik 2-6, Jensen 1-1, A.Savik 1-1, Johnson 1-2, Wade 1-2), P5-23 (Vail 3-8, Graham 2-8). (Tu30Jan24)
Bucs bounced by buzzer-beater
by John Heglie
At Libby, there was no dodging of a figurative bullet like in Matrix movies for the visiting Pirates as Mr. Andersen, in this instance Tyler, hit a buzzer-beater triple with 1.2 seconds remaining to give the host Loggers a split of their conference series with their visitors. Polson held a two possession five point advantage late in the final frame before Libby closed out the contest on a 6-0 run.
Anthony Lichtenberg and Cason Graham paced the Pirates as both notched double figures as they collaborated on 27 points.
Libby 42, Polson 41
Pirates (1-8, 2-13), Loggers (1-8, 3-12)
Polson 9 8 15 9 – 41
Libby 8 19 4 11 – 42
POLSON – Anthony Lichtenberg 7 2-5 16(6r,1a,1s,1b), Cason Graham 4 1-2 11(5r,1a), Brock Henriksen 2 2-2 6(8r,2a), Maddox Bird 4(7r,1s), Ezra FastHorse 3(2r,1s), Jesse Vail 1(2r,1a,4s), Cody Haggard 0(2r), Brenden Griffin 0(1r). 16 6-11 41(33r,5a,7s,1b)
LIBBY – Tyler Andersen 6 5-7 19(9r), Ryan Beagle 8, Tristan Andersen 6, Cy Williams 2 1-4 5(3b), Alderic Martineau 2, Talan Glenn-Woody 2. 16 6-11 42(29r,3a,2s,4b)
3FGs – P3-22 (Graham 2-5, FastHorse 1-3), L4-21 (Ty.Andersen 2-7, Beagle 2-8). (Sa03Feb24)
variants – #30Cody(MtHSAth/406mtsports:0p, DIL:11p)dns, #33Cason(MtHSAth/406mtsports:11p, DIL:0p) likely palaeographic parablepsis, skipped a line.
Columbia Falls 55, Polson 34
Pirates (1-9, 2-14), Wildcats (9-2, 11-6)
Polson 12 9 2 11 – 34
C-Falls 22 13 12 8 – 55
POLSON – Anthony Lichtenberg 10(2r,2a,1s), Cason Graham 8(9r), Ezra FastHorse 2 2-2 7(2r,1s), Brock Henriksen 1 2-4 4(5r,2a), Maddox Bird 1 1-2 3(4r,1b), Cody Haggard 2(2r), Brenden Griffin 0(1r,2s), Jesse Vail 0(1r,1a). 13 5-8 34(28r,5a,4s,1b)
COLUMBIA FALLS – Jace Hill 16(6r,7a,4s,2b), Cody Schweikert 11(10r), Dayne Tu 6, Mark Robison 6, Alihn Anderson 5, Easton Brooks 4, Hunter Goodman 4, Reggie Sapa 3. 24 2-6 55(35r,15a,8s,3b)
3FGs – P3-15 (Graham 2-5, FastHorse 1-2), CF5-21 (Robison 2-4, Hill 2-8, Anderson 1-6). (Tu06Feb24)
Ronan 44, Polson 32
Pirates (1-10, 2-15), Chiefs (7-4, 10-7)
Ronan 15 3 11 15 – 44
Polson 0 15 7 10 – 32
RONAN – Ted Coffman 5 2-2 15(1r,1a,3s), Kolby Finley 4 3-7 12(8r,3a,2s), Tayen Edmo 2 3-4 8(5r,1a,1s), Sean Small 6(4r,1s,2b), DaVonne Curley 1 1-2 3(1r,1s), Wade Qualtier 0(7r,4a,3s), Laurance Lozeau 0(3r,1s), Josiah Misa 0(2r,1a). 15 9-15 44(31r,9a,10s,2b)
POLSON – Brenden Griffin 14(4r,1s), Maddox Bird 8(2r), Landon DesJarlais 3(1r,1a,1s), Anthony Lichtenberg 1 2-4 2(5r,1s,1b), Brock Henriksen 1 0-2 2(4r,3a,1b), Ezra FastHorse 2(3r,1a), Cason Graham 1(3r), Jesse Vail 0(4r,5a,1s), Uriah Ulutoa (1r), 12 3-8 32(26r,10a,4s,2b)
3FGs – R5-21 (Coffman 3-11, Edmo 1-2, Finley 1-2), P5-21 (Griffin 4-6, DesJarlais 1-2). (Sa10Feb24)
Some details may vary from official summaries
variants – #2Tayen (MtHSAth:4r, jh:5r), #5Laurance(MtHSAth:4r0s, jh:3r1s), #11Wade(MtHSAth:2s, jh:3s); P(MtHSAth:26r10a4s0b, jh:26r2b): #2Uriah(MtHSAth:0r, jh:1r), #14Brock(MtHSAth:6r0b, jh:4r1b)rec vs snare; #3Anthony(MtHSAth:4r0b, jh:5r1b), #12Jesse(MtHSAth:3r, jh:4r), #20Mado(MtHSAth:3r1s, jh:2r0s)def vs rec?, #22Brenden(MtHSAth:3r0s, jh:4r2s)def vs rec?, #24L.DJL(MtHSAth:0r, jh:1r)
Ezra FastHorse crested the century point plateau for varsity career scoring.
Anthony Lichtenberg crested the double century point plateau for season scoring.
Whitefish 53, Polson 42
#6 Pirates (2-17), #5 Bulldogs (11-8)
Polson 7 12 12 11 – 42
Whitefish 16 12 16 9 – 53
POLSON – Anthony Lichtenberg 6 6-8 18(6r,3s), Brenden Griffin 11(2r,1a,1s), Maddox Bird 1 4-4 6(4r,1s,1b), Cason Graham 3(5r,2a,1s,1v), Jesse Vail 2(4r,1a,2s), Ezra FastHorse 2(1r,1a), Brock Henriksen 0(5r,1a,1s,1b), Torrin Ellis 0(1r,1a,1s). 14 10-12 42(28r,7a,10s,3b)
WHITEFISH – Mason Kelch 7 1-2 18(9r,5a,6s), Carson Krack 7 1-2 16(8r,2b), Carson Gulick 7, CJ Thew 2 2-2 6(5a,4s), Ryan Conklin 1 1-2 4, Mason Genovese 2. 21 5-8 53(36r,12a,15s,3b)
3FGs – P4-21 (Griffin 3-7, Graham 1-6), W6-20 (Kelch 3-11, Krack 1-1, Gulick 1-2, Conklin 1-3). (Th15Feb24play-in)
Whitefish 61, Polson 45
Pirates (1-11, 2-16), Bulldogs (6-6, 10-8)
Polson 9 15 6 15 – 45
Whitefish 11 18 12 20 – 61
POLSON – Anthony Lichtenberg 4 5-5 14(2r,2a,1s), Jesse Vail 6(1r,1a,1s), Maddox Bird 6(7r,1a,4s), Ezra FastHorse 4(1r,1a,1s), Brenden Griffin 4(4r,1a,2s), Landon Pablo 1 1-1 3, Landon DesJarLais 3, Torrin Ellis 2(1r), Cason Graham 2(1r,1a), Brock Henriksen 1(10r,1a,1s). 17 7-10 45(27r,8a,10s,1b)
WHITEFISH – Mason Kelch 7 4-4 22(13r,3a,6s), Mason Genovese 14, CJ Thew 4 4-4 12, Carson Gulick 4(3a), Calvin Eisenbarth 4, Dane Hunt 2. 22 8-8 61(32r,9a,15s,2b)
3FGs – P4-17 (Vail 2-5, Desjarlais 1-3, A.Lichtenberg 1-4), W9-21 (Genovese 5-8, Kelch 4-10). (Tu13Feb24)
variants – W(406mtsports:shy1p): #55 Kelch(406mtsports:25p, MtHSAth:22p), #2Genovese(406mtsports:14p, MtHSAth:17p), #11Thew(406mtsports:11p, MtHSAth:12p)
Results 2022-2023
Friday, December 9, 2022
Beavers thump Pirates in season opener
Dillon 78, Polson 42
Treyton Graham led four players in double figures as the Beavers jumped out to a 25-9 first-quarter lead. Graham netted 17 points, Carter Curnow 13, Tyler Lagunas 11 and Caden Hansen 10. Jarrett Wilson had a big night for Polson with 25 points.
The game was a rematch of a contest Polson won 53-52 in overtime at the State A Tournament.
Dillon 78, Polson 42
Polson 9 13 10 10 — 42
Dillon 25 22 19 12 — 78
POLSON: Jarrett Wilson 25; JabeZ Moaplome 6; Trent Wilson 4; Espn Fisher 4; Colter Wilson 2; Dawson Dumont 1.
DILLON: Treyton Graham 17; Carter Curnow 13; Tyler Lagunas 11; Caden Hansen 10; Kyler Engellant 9; Parker Puryear 7; Max Davis 4; Eli Nourse 4; Damon Skradski 3.
Saturday, December 10, 2022
Pirates comeback, win at Tip Off
Polson 63, Corvallis 56
Jarrett Wilson's 21 points and Espen Fisher's 19 helped make the difference for Polson at the Western A Shootout. Trent Wilson added 14. Polson outscored Corvallis 24-15 during the fourth quarter. Leif Jessup had 12 points for Corvallis and Aaron Powell added 10.
Polson: 12 21 6 24 - 63
Corvallis: 16 15 10 15 - 56
Polson: Colter Wilson 2; Tyler Wenderoth 1; Dawson Dumont 2; Owen McElwee 1; Jarrett Wilson 21; Trent Wilson 14; Espn Fisher 19; Jabez Madplume 2
Corvallis: Dillen Potter 4; Aaron Powell 10; Tyler Weis 9; Cameron Whiteley 5; Ryan Hutchison 8; Bennett Buelman 2; Leif Jessop 12; Derek Criddle 4
Tuesday, December 13, 2022
Bitterroot Broncs beleaguer bouyant Bucs
by John Heglie
At Linderman Gym in Polson, the host Pirates sought to ride herd on the visiting Broncs of Hamilton, but early visitor sharpshooting would forestall efforts to rein in their resourcefulness. The game played out like a tale of two halves. The Magness combo of Asher and Canaan collaborated on almost two dozen of their team first half points. Polson made defensive adjustments that toned them down during second half action. But in their absence, Eli Taylor erupted for close to half of team scoring, supplemented by three different sharpshooters that further taxed Pirate containment efforts.
On the bright side, Pirates deuces outdueled the Broncs around the paint 16 to13. But Hamilton sharpshooters from beyond the arc forged a better than 2:1 ratio advantage to negate inside game edge. Polson likewise held a slight advantage at the free throw line. But visitor charity stripe conversions only needed to stay close to maintain their margin.
Twice the Pirates closed the gap within two possessions in the latter going after trailing by double digits, 57-52 and 60-55. But empty trips down the floor would force Polson to foul in an effort to preserve time on the clock. Hamilton mid-60th percentile free-throw shooting would suffice to hold at bay any Pirate rally attempt.
Jarrett Wilson and Espn Fisher combined for 30 points and 14 rebounds, while Tyler Wenderoth along with Trent Wilson chipped in another 17 points that included three of the four triples from beyond the arc. Broncs Asher and Canaan Magness collaborated on 32 points, while Eli Taylor splashed 19.
The Pirates travel to Libby this weekend to open conference play, then continue their road trip against Loyola and Columbia Falls next week to close out the calendar before they break for the holidays.
Hamilton 65, Polson 58
NWA Polson (1-2), SWA Hamilton (3-0)
Hamilton 14 22 14 15 – 65
Polson 11 17 12 18 – 58
HAMILTON – Asher Magness 6 5-6 20, Eli Taylor 6 6-8 19(7r), Canaan Magness 12, Cole Dickemore 3, Jackson Jessop 3, Max Cianflone 3, Liam O'Connell 2(7r), Andrew Burrows 2, Tyler Jette 1. 22 12-18 65(37r,11a,4s)
POLSON – Jarrett Wilson 6 5-6 17(7r,2a,1s), Espn Fisher 6 0-2 13(7r,1a,2s), Tyler Wenderoth 3 1-4 9(2r), Trent Wilson 1 5-7 8(8r,3a,1s), Dawson DuMont 2 1-1 5(6r,1s), Owen McElwee 2 0-1 4(5r,2s), Colter Wilson 0 2-4 2(1r,3a), 20 14-25 58(35r,9a,7s)
3FG – H9-22 (A.Magness 3, C.Magness 2, Dickemore, Taylor, Jessop, Cianflone), P4-14 (T.Wenderoth 2, E.Fisher, T.Wilson).
Saturday, December 17, 2022
Pirates win NWA conference opener
Polson 67, Libby 48: Jarrett Wilson had a big night with 28 points as the Pirates evened their record at 2-2. Owen McElwee, Trent Wilson and Cymian Kauley netted eight points apiece. Tyler Anderson scored 21 points for the Loggers, with Ryan Beagle contributing eight.
Polson 67, Libby 48
Polson 15 19 18 15 — 67
Libby 9 16 9 14 — 48
POLSON: Jarrett Wilson 28; Owen McElwee 8; Trent Wilson 8; Cymian Kauley 8; Espn Fisher 7; Tyler Wenderoth 4; Anthony Lichenberg 2; Cason Graham 2.
LIBBY: Tyler Anderson 21; Ryan Beagle 8; Cy Stevenson 8; Trevor Collins 7; Cy Williams 4.
Tuesday, December 20, 2022
Pirates fall to Rams in Missoula
The Loyola Sacred Heart boys basketball team improved to 6-0 with a win over Polson Tuesday, 68-49. Reynolds Johnston led the Rams with 22 points.
Jarrett Wilson was the only Pirate that consistently put the ball in the basket dropping 30 points on 13 for 20 shooting from the field. Espn Fisher reached double figures with 12 points. Polson dropped to 2-3 overall.
Missoula Loyola 68, Polson 49
POLSON: Dawson Dumont 0; Ezra Fasthorse 0; Espn Fisher 12; Cason Graham 2; Owen McElwee 0; Tyler Wenderoth 3; Jarrett Wilson 30; Colter Wilson 0; Trent Wilson 2
MISSOULA LOYOLA: no stats available
No other information available.
Thursday, January 6, 2023
Pirates down Dogs
Polson broke open a close game after halftime and pounded the Dogs in the third and fourth quarters. Jarrett Wilson crested the octuple century point plateau for varsity career scoring.
Polson 65, Whitefish 45
Pirates (2-0, 3-3), Bulldogs (0-3, 1-6)
Whitefish 16 15 7 7 – 45
Polson 12 23 13 17 – 65
WHITEFISH – Mason Genovese 17, Jack Sears 11(9r,3s), Josh Downie 8, Mason Kelch 5(9r,3a), CJ Thew 2, Daniel To 2. 17 3-5 45(27r,9a,6s,1b)
POLSON – Jarrett Wilson 11 2-7 24(7r,3a,3s,1b), Dawson DuMont 4 0-1 10(7r,3a,1s). Colter Wilson 3 1-2 8(7r,2a), Espn Fisher 3 0-1 7(1r,1a,1s), Cymian Kauley 3 0-0 6(6r,1a), Tyler Wenderoth 2 0-0 5(4r,1a,1s), Trent Wilson 2 0-0 5(1r,2a), Owen McElwee 0 0-2 0(3r,1s), Cason Graham (1a), Anthony Lichtenberg (1r), noID(2a).
3FGs – W8 (Genovese 5, Downie 2, Kelch), P6 (DuMont 2, C.Wilson, Wenderoth, T.Wilson, E.Fisher).
(Th05Jan23)
Some details of informal game rendition may vary from official summary
Saturday, January 7, 2023
Pirate comeback falls short
Browning 76, Polson 71
Maurice Redhorn led four players in double figures with 25 points as the Indians (3-3) held off the Pirates. Brayds Vielle hit for 16 points, Robert Reagan tallied 14 and Tommy Running Rabbit 13. Jarrett Wilson was unstoppable for Polson, pouring in 41 points. Cymian Kauley added eight.
Polson 12 20 19 20 — 71
Browning 21 16 28 11 — 76
POLSON: Jarrett Wilson 41; Cymian Kauley 8; Colter Wilson 6; Owen McElwee 6; Espn Fisher 6; Dawson DuMont 3; Tyler Wenderoth 1.
BROWNING: Maurice Redhorn 25; Brayds Vielle 16; Robert Reagan 14; Tommy Running Rabbit 13; Payton Grant 8.
Friday, January 13, 2023
Broncs stomp Pirates
Frenchtown 77, Polson 49
Connor Michaud and Eli Quinn led eight players in the scoring column with 17 points each for the Broncs (8-2). Kellen Klimpel drained 13 points and Carter Anciaux scored 12. Jarrett Wilson hit for 17 points and Tyler Wenderoth added nine for the Pirates (3-5).
Polson 8 13 14 14 — 49
Frenchtown 22 21 20 14 — 77
POLSON: Jarrett Wilson 17; Tyler Wenderoth 9; Anthony Lichenberg 5; Dawson DuMont 4; Espn Fisher 4; Cymian Kavely 3; Colter Wilson 2; Owen McElwee 2.
FRENCHTOWN: Connor Michaud 17; Eli Quinn 17; Kellen Klimpel 13; Carter Anciaux 12; Sully Belcourt 8; Joshua Lucier 5; Dugan Yonce 3; Brock Henriksen 3; Leighton Cyr 2.
Saturday, January 14, 2023
Early Pirate surge planks Ronan rally aspirations
by John Heglie
At reconstructed Linderman Gym in Polson, the nightcap of the first round of the annual Rez roundball rivalry wrangle between the Pirates and the Chiefs would play out as a tale of two halves. The first half saw the host Pirates double up the Chiefs by intermission, relegating Ronan to make adjustments in an effort to carve into a high teen deficit. The second half would belong to the Chiefs, who outscored Polson to close the gap to within two possessions. Forced to foul down the stretch in an effort to preserve precious time from evaporating off the clock, the Pirates would make six of nine from the charity stripe to hold a Chief rally attempt at bay.
Pirate Jarrett Wilson led all scorers with over two dozen with Espn Fisher supplementing the swashbuckler scoring coffers with a mid-teen tally that combined to account for two thirds of Polson point productivity. The Chiefs countered by placing two players in double digits with Marlo Tonasket and Kolby Finley combining for just under two dozen. The Chiefs held a slight edge from beyond the arc in triples. Had they been able to dial the operator long distance and complete the call on a couple more, the waning minutes of the cross-county clash might have found itself hanging in the balance.
Jarrett Wilson crested the nonuple century point plateau for varsity career scoring with his lone deuce during final frame action. Espn Fisher crested the century point plateau for varsity career scoring.
Polson 61, Ronan 55
Pirates (3-1, 4-5), Chiefs (1-4, 3-5)
Ronan 10 7 16 22 – 55
Polson 15 19 9 18 – 61
RONAN – Marlo Tonasket 5 1-1 12(4r,2b), Kolby Finley 5 0-0 10(3r,2a,2s), Josiah Misa 3 1-1 7(6r,1a,1s,1b), Laurance Lozeau 2 2-4 7(5r,2s), Ted Coffman 2 0-2 6(2r,3a,4s), Drake Finley 2 0-0 5, Jordan Gatch 1 2-2 4(4r,2a,1s), Robbie McCrea 2 0-0 4(4r,1s), Jesse Zepeda (1r,1a). 22 6-10 55(29r,9a,10s,3b)
POLSON – Jarrett Wilson 11 3-8 25(8r,5a,3s), Espn Fisher 4 6-8 16(3r,1a,1s), Tyler Wenderoth 2 0-2 6(1r,1a), Trent Wilson 2 2-4 6(7r), Owen McElwee 2 0-0 4(5r,2a,2s), Colter Wilson 0 2-2 2(2a,2s), Cymian Kauley 2(1r,1a,1s), Dawson DuMont 0(4r,1a,1b), Brock Henriksen 0(4r). 22 13-22 61(33r,13a,9s,1b)
3FGs – R5 (Coffman 2, M.Tonasket, D.Finley, Lozeau), P4 (Wenderoth 2, E.Fisher 2).
Friday, January 20, 2023
Polson defeate Corvallis
No other info available
Saturday, January 21, 2023
Pirates finish with a flurry
Polson 71, Libby 59
Jarrett Wilson and Trent Wilson led the Pirates (4-1, 6-5) past the Loggers at home. Jarrett led the way with 34 points and Trent added 16. The Loggers (1-5, 6-6) were led by Tyler Anderson's 25.
Libby 14 17 15 13 — 59
Polson 12 19 23 17 — 71
LIBBY: Tyler Anderson 25; Caleb Moeller 9; Cy Williams 8; Connor Hartley 8; Trevor Collins 6; Ryan Beagle 3.
POLSON: Jarrett Wilson 34; Trent Wilson 16; Espn Fisher 8; Cymian Kauley 6; Tyler Wenderoth 3; Colter Wilson 2; Owen McElwee 2.
January 24, 2023
One man show too much for the Pirates
Following a 23-23 halftime score, the Class B Bulldogs outscored the Class A Pirates 35-29 in the second half, improving to 7-5 overall and 6-2 in conference play. Zoran LaFrombois could not be stopped, pouring in 47 points. Kellen McClure added 10 and Landon Walks Over Ice five. Jarrett Wilson buried 22 points to lead the Pirates. Trent WIlson tallied 13 and Espn Fisher 10.
St. Ignatius 68, Polson 62
Polson 16 17 10 19 — 62
St. Ignatius 17 16 13 22 — 68
POLSON: Jarrett Wilson 22; Trent Wilson 13; Espn Fisher 10; Cymian Kauley 9; Dawson DuMont 5; Tyler Wenderoth 3.
ST. IGNATIUS: Zoran LaFrombois 47; Kellen McClure 10; Landon WalksOverIce 5; Carmine Adams 4; Leo Pierce 2.
Thursday, January 26, 2023
Pirates can't contain Cats in key conference clash
by John Heglie
On Senior Night at refurbished Linderman Gym in Polson, what started well did not end as well for the purple & gold home team. Prior to the tip-off of the contest, Polson honored ten seniors among both team and staff, seven players along with three managers. Pirate players then parlayed the merit behind those tributes into an initial first frame surge of playmaking to forge an early two possession lead. League scoring leader Jarrett Wilson would net 11 of his game high 16 that included his becoming a millennial in the scoring sense of the term as he surpassed the career 1000 mark.
But thereafter, visiting Columbia Falls would dampen Pirate prospects to not only catch a Cat by the tail, but also remain in contention among the standings with conference leaders as the visitors scratched their way past their hosts.
After Polson's initial surge, C-Town flipped the script to overtake the lead before intermission, fueled by crisp playmaking from Jace Hill and Cody Schweikert. Both teams matched the output of the other during the third period, setting up a scramble down the stretch to see who would emerge victor.
Early into final frame action, Pirate Owen McElwee would set the stage when he dialed the operator long distance and completed the call from beyond the arc with his first triple of the season off a dish from Jarrett Wilson to pull the Pirates within one, 47-46. But that would be as close as Polson would get. Empty trips down the floor exacerbated by untimely turnovers would swing the pendulum away from culminating a rally as the visitors outscored the hosts by double figures to capture the contest.
In addition to Jarrett Wilson's game leading mid-teen tally, Trent Wilson joined him in double digits with 11. Fellow seniors Cymian Kauley, Owen McElwee and Dawson DuMont combined to chip in another 13.
The Pirates and the Cats will get a rematch this Saturday at Columbia Falls in a make up of the game that was frozen out prior to the Christmas holiday.
Columbia Falls 63, Polson 48
Pirates (4-2, 6-7), Wildcats (5-1, 10-3)
C-Falls 15 16 16 16 – 63 Polson 19 8 16 5 – 48
COLUMBIA FALLS – Jace Hill 15(7r,7a), Hunter Goodman 14, Cody Schweikert 13(6r,3a,2s,1b), Alihn Anderson 9(4a), Reggie Sapa 8(2r,1a,2s), Bryce Dunham 2(6r), Mark Robison 0 2-2 2(2s). 25 10-13 63(28r,15a,8s,1b)
POLSON – Jarrett Wilson 7 2-3 16(7r,3a,1s,1b), Trent Wilson 4 1-2 11(3r,2s), Cymian Kauley 3 0-2 6(7r,2s), Espn Fisher 2 0-0 5(1r), Owen McElwee 1 1-2 4(4r,1b), Dawson DuMont 1 1-2 3(3r,3a,1s), Brock Henriksen 3(3r,2a,1s), Tyler Wenderoth 0(1a,1s), Colter Wilson 0(1a). 19 5-11 48(28r,10,7s,2b)
3FGs – CF3 (Anderson 2, Hill), P5 (T.Wilson 2, E.Fisher, Henriksen, McElwee).
Saturday, January 28, 2023
Wildcats beat Pirates, again
By Daily Inter Lake
COLUMBIA FALLS — Jace Hill scored 21 points and Columbia Falls pulled away over the final five minutes Saturday to beat Northwest A rival Polson 64-48.
Alihn Anderson added 12 points and Cody Schweikert had nine points and nine rebounds as the Wildcats (11-3 overall, 6-1 in Northwest A games) beat the Pirates (6-8, 4-3) for the second time in three days — by nearly identical scores.
Jarrett Wilson and Cymian Kauley scored 10 points each for Polson, which scored the first five points of the fourth quarter to draw to 49-46.
Polson 13 10 18 7 - 48 CFalls 18 14 17 15 - 64
POLSON — Tyler Wenderoth 2, Dawson DuMont 9, Owen McElwee 3, Jarrett Wilson 10, Trent Wilson 9, Espn Fisher 5, Cymian Kauley 10.
COLUMBIA FALLS — Mark Robison 4, Alihn Anderson 12, Jace Hill 21, Bryce Dunham 8, Reggie Sapa 4, Cody Schweikert 9, Hunter Goodman 6.
Tuesday, January 31, 2023
Late bucket lifts Whitefish over Polson boys
By Daily Inter Lake
WHITEFISH — Mason Kelch scored 10 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter, and Carson Krack followed up his own miss with 5.2 seconds left to lift Whitefish over Polson 47-45 in boys basketball Tuesday.
Kelch hit two corner 3-pointers as the Bulldogs (3-9 overall, 2-5 in the Northwest A) battled back from a 36-31 deficit after three quarters. They trailed by 10 at the half.
Mason Genovese added 12 points for Whitefish, all on threes; Kruck scored four points, all in the fourth.
Dawson DuMont led Polson (6-9, 4-4) with 11 points and Jarrett Wilson added 10.
Polson 11 13 12 9 - 45 Whitefish 7 7 19 16 - 47
POLSON — Dawson DuMont 11, Jarrett Wilson 10, Trent Wilson 8, Espn Fisher 5, Cymian Kauley 2, Owen McElwee 4, Brock Henriksen 2, Tyler Wenderoth 1, Coler Wilson 2.
WHITEFISH — Mason Genovese 12, CJ Thew 5, Dane Hunt 3, Mason Kelch 16, Jack Sears 7, Carson Krack 4.
Friday, February 3, 2023
Running Indians sink Pirates
Robert Reagan scored 30 points to lead the Indians (7-1, 10-5) in a high-scoring affair against the Pirates (4-6, 6-10). Maurice Redhorn had 21 and Brayds Viellehad 20 for Browning. Dawson DuMont scored 28 points for the Pirates, Jarrett Wilson had 19 and Espn Fisher had 13.
Browning 93, Polson 80
Polson 9 23 23 25 — 80
Browning 25 21 21 26 — 93
POLSON: Dawson DuMont 28; Jarrett Wilson 19; Espn Fisher 13; Cymian Kauley 9; Trent Wilson 6; Colter Wilson 2; Owen McElwee 2; Brock Henriksen 1.
BROWNING: Robert Reagan 30; Maurice Redhorn 21; Brayds Vielle 20; Jamerson Lazy Boy 8; Payton Grant 4; Delbert Blackman 4; Randon Boyce 4; Tristen Crawford 2
Tuesday, February 7, 2023
Viking bombs sink Pirates
By Daily Inter Lake
BIGFORK — Nick Walker had 23 points and 12 rebounds — and a big first half — as Bigfork downed Polson 58-43 for a non-conference boys basketball win Tuesday.
Walker hit five 3-pointers in the first half and scored 17 points as the District 7-B Vikings (14-3) took a 34-22 halftime lead.
Wyatt Johnson and Jensen combined for 24 points, eight assists and five steals for Bigfork; Bryce Gilliard had nine boards.
Jarrett Wilson hit a pair of 3-pointers and scored 18 to lead the Northwest A Pirates (6-11).
Polson 12 10 9 12 - 43 Bigfork 19 15 11 13 - 58
POLSON — Dawson DuMont 9, Brock Henriksen 4, Jarrett Wilson 18, Trent Wilson 3, Espn Fisher 6, Cymian Kauley 2, Owen McElwee 1.
BIGFORK — Nick Walker 23, Wyatt Johnson 13, Jack Jensen 11, Eli Thorness 9, Landon Byerman 2.
Saturday, February 11, 2023
Pirates down Chiefs, take third in NWA
Jarrett Wilson crested the quadruple century point plateau for season scoring. Cymian Kauley turned in a double-double, while Trent Wilson had sharp eagle eyes for the open player by dishing out a half dozen assists.
Polson 49, Ronan 45
Polson (7-11, 5-5) Ronan (6-12, 2-8)
Polson 12 13 11 13 — 49 Ronan 12 11 4 18 — 45
POLSON – Jarrett Wilson 6 2-2 14(8r,2a,5s), Espn Fisher 3 4-4 11(5r,1a,1s,1b), Cymian Kauley 5 1-3 11(10r,2a,1s), Dawson DuMont 3 0-3 7(9r,1a,1s), Trent Wilson 1 2-2 4(1r,6a,3s), Owen McElwee 2(3r), Ezra Fasthorse (1r), Colter Wilson, Brock Henriksen. 19 9-14 49(37r,12a,11s,1b)
RONAN – Marlo Tonasket 5 0-0 11(6r,3b), Josiah Misa 3 0-0 9, Jordan Gatch 3 1-2 9, Ted Coffman 2 1-2 6(5a), Kolby Finley 1 2-2 4, Laurance Lozeau 1 1-2 4, Jesse Zepeda 1 0-2 2, Robbie McCrea 0(1r,1a,1s,1b), Elijah Tonasket. 16 5-10 45(18r,11a,7s,6b)
3FGs – P2 (DuMont, E.Fisher), R8 (Misa 3, Gatch 2, M.Tonasket, Coffman, Lozeau).
Thursday/Friday/Saturday, February 23-25, 2023
Broncs bounce Pirates
Hamilton 54, Polson 44
Eli Taylor scored 19 points and Asher Magness added 16 for the Hamilton Broncs (15-3), who pulled away in the fourth quarter to beat Polson (7-12).
Taylor and Magness each hit two 3-pointers.
Espn Fisher and Cymian Kauley had 12 points each for the Pirates, who went 0-2 against the Wildcats during the regular season, 63-48 and 64-48.
Polson 13 10 14 7 - 44 Hamilton 15 12 11 16 - 54
POLSON — Espn Fisher 12, Cymian Kauley 12, Jarrett Wilson 9, Trent Wison 6, Brock Henriksen 4, Owen McElwee 1.
HAMILTON — Eli Taylor 19, Asher Magness 16, Liam O’Connell 7, Andrew Burrows 3, Max Cianflone 5, Canaan Magness 4.
Friday, February 24, 2023
Wildcats end Pirates season
Columbia Falls 66, Polson 61
Jace Hill scored 18 points, leading four Columbia Falls players in double figures.
Down 25-21, the Wildcats launched a 13-2 surge to close the first half. Mark Robison’s 3-pointer — his only points — broke a 27-27 tie, and two Cody Schweikert free throws plus a Reggie Sapa bucket down low put Columbia Falls up 34-27 at intermission.
The Wildcats kept at least a two-possession lead the rest of the game, and led by 10 early in the fourth quarter.
Alihn Anderson added 13 points and Schweikert finished with 12 for the Cats. Hunter Goodman had 10 points and six rebounds.
Espn Fisher scored a game-high 20 for Polson, which ended up 7-13.
C.Falls 17 17 13 19 - 66 Polson 20 7 13 21 - 61
COLUMBIA FALLS — Jace Hill 18, Alihn Anderson 13, Cody Schweikert 12, Hunter Goodman 10, Reggie Sapa 6, Bryce Dunham 4, Mark Robison 3.
POLSON — Espn Fisher 20, Trent Wilson 15, Jarrett Wilson 9, Dawson DuMont 7, Brock Henriksen 2, Owen McElwee 2, Cymian Kauley 2.
RESULTS 2021-2022
Friday, December 10, 2021
Central downs shorthanded Pirates
Kyle Holter led four players in double figures with 18 points and the Maroons sprinted to a 28-11 first-quarter lead on the way to a romp over the Pirates in Frenchtown. Dougie Peoples scored 15, Bryson Sestrich 13 and Eric Loos 10 for Butte Central. Colton Graham led with 15 points and Trent Wilson provided 11 for Polson.
Butte Central 66, Polson 45
Polson 11 9 10 15 — 45
Butte Central 28 12 17 9 — 66
POLSON: Colton Graham 15; Trent Wilson 11; Zavier Fisher 7; Brock Hendriksen 4; Lucas Targerson 2; Robert Perez 2; Espen Fisher 2.
BUTTE CENTRAL: Kyle Holter 18; Dougie Peoples 15; Bryson Sestrich 13; Eric Loos 10; Drew Badovinac 3; Jack Keeley 3; Zane Moodry 2; Gage Guidseth 2.
Saturday, December 11, 2021
Fergus surges by Polson in 2nd half
Lewistown 65, Polson 47: Royce Robinson's 20 points led three Golden Eagles in double figures en route to a win over the Pirates at the Western A Tournament in Frenchtown. Bryce Graham tossed in 14 and Fischer Brown 13 for Lewistown. Colton Graham had 17 for Polson, which led 26-25 at the half. Lewistown outscored Polson 40-20 after halftime.
Lewistown 65, Polson 47
Polson 12 14 11 10 — 47
Lewistown 13 12 23 17 — 65
POLSON: Colton Graham 17; Zavier Fisher 11; Trent Wilson 10; Nik Figaro 4; Brock Hendriksen 1; Dawson Dumont 1.
LEWISTOWN: Royce Robinson 20; Bryce Graham 14; Fischer Brown 13; Christian Karhi 7; Luke Clinton 6; Gage Norslien 2; Nolan Fry 2.
Thursday, December 16, 2021
Broncs topple Pirates in seesaw contest
Asher Magness paced the Broncs with 17 points and Cole Dickemore provided nine in a tight win over the Pirates. Colter Kirkland scored eight points for Hamilton, which led by three at halftime and six after three quarters. Colton Graham had a double-double with 18 points and 14 rebounds for Polson, which also received 18 points from Xavier Fisher. Tyson Rostad hauled down 11 rebounds and dished five assists for the Broncs.
Hamilton 56, Polson 52
Polson 7 11 16 18 — 52
Hamilton 6 15 19 16 — 56
POLSON: Colton Graham 18; Zavier Fisher 18; Trent Wilson 7; Brock Hendriksen 3.
HAMILTON: Asher Magness 17; Cole Dickemore 9; Colter Kirkland 8; Liam O'Connell 7; Eli Taylor 6; Tyson Rostad 4; Max Cianflone 3.
Saturday, December 18, 2021
Pirates hit the win column
Colton Graham had the hot hand with 22 points and the Pirates turned a one-point deficit after three quarters into an eight-point triumph over the Loggers. Jarrett Wilson scored 12 for Polson. Caden Williams popped in 21 points adn TJ Anderson 15 for Libby.
Polson 59, Libby 51
Polson 14 16 10 19 — 59
Libby 11 16 14 10 — 51
POLSON: Colton Graham 22; Jarrett Wilson 12; Xavier Fisher 7; Nik Figaro 7; Trent Wilson 3; Alex Muzquiz 3; Dawson Mumont 2; Brock Hendriksen 2; Ethan McCauley 1.
LIBBY: Caden Williams 21; TJ Andersen 15; Ryan Collins 6; Tyler Andersen 5; Cy Stevenson 4.
Monday, December 20, 2021
Polson opens with a win at the new Linderman gym
The Pirates were successful in their home opener downing Missoula Loyola 62 to 48. Jarrett Wilson led Polson with 22 points, 19 coming in the first half when the Pirates surged to a 43-26 lead. Colten Graham added 16 points, Dawson Dumont and Trent Wilson 8. Polson utilized a 1-3-1 press to force Loyola into numerous first half turnovers which led to quick points. The Pirates substituted freely in the second half once their lead exceeded 20 points. Polson travels to Columbia Falls on Thursday.
Polson 23 21 11 7 - 62
Loyola 16 10 10 12 - 48
POLSON: Colton Graham 16; Jarrett Wilson 22; Xavier Fisher 3; Nik Figaro 0; Trent Wilson 8; Alex Muzquiz 0; Dawson Dumont 8; Brock Hendriksen 5; Ethan McCauley 0; Robert Perez 0.
MISSOULA LOYOLA: Clayton Ogilvie 0; Raef Konzen 2; Bryce Lamphain 3; Talin Raymolds 2; Troy Alford 2; Kaylor Hall 0; Ethan Stack 16; Jack Fines 2; Declan Harrington 8; Noah Haffey 11; Raynolds Johnston 2.
Thursday, December 23, 2021
Wildcats use free throws down the stretch to down Pirates
Columbia Falls, hitting six 3's and 15 for 19 from the foul line, downed Polson in the Linderman gym 67-60 on Thursday night. Jace Hill and Cody Schweikert led the way for the Wildcats with 22 and 18 points respectively. The Pirates were led by Colton Graham with 20 points and Jarrett Wilson with 15. The Pirates hit six 3's of their own but were only 9 for 19 from the foul line. The game was close and the Pirates trailing at the end were forced to send the Wildcats to the foul line. The Cats nailed 11 of 14 free throws in the fourth quarter to secure the win.
Columbia Falls 67, Polson 60
Columbia Falls 13 15 18 21 - 67
Polson 14 13 21 12 - 60
POLSON: Colton Graham 20; Jarrett Wilson 15; Xavier Fisher 12; Trent Wilson 3; Alex Muzquiz 2; Dawson Dumont 4; Braunson Hendriksen 4; Ethan McCauley 0; Robert Perez 0; Espn Fisher 0.
COLUMBIA FALLS: Cade Morgan 8; Mark Robison 7; Mason Peters 0; Alihn Anderson 6; Jace Hill 22; Bryce Dunham 6; John Dyon 0; Cody Schweikert 18; Hunter Goodman 0.
Friday, January 7, 2022
Pirates sink Chiefs in key conference clash
by John Heglie
At Polson, the host Pirates held the Chiefs to well below their seasonal average in a key cross county conference clash during round one of their annual Rez roundball rivalry wrangle. Colton Graham scored two dozen, while supplemental reserve Espn Fisher turned in his first varsity dabble among double digits. The Chiefs were denied multiple second chance opportunities as Polson reeled in twice as many rebounds as their visitors, Braunson Henriksen raking in a tally among the teens.
The Chiefs were led by Elijah Tonasket and Ted Coffman, who collaborated on 15 points. But the remainder of the Ronan roster were relegated to handful contributions.
Colton Graham closed to within his ppg average of cresting the millennial mark for varsity career scoring.
Polson (2-1, 3-4), Ronan (3-1, 3-4)
Polson 56, Ronan 35
Ronan 7 7 8 13 – 35
Polson 10 16 14 14 – 65
RONAN – *Elijah Tonasket 3 1-2 9(2r), Ted Coffman 2 2-2 6(5r,1a,2s,1b), Dillon PrettyOnTop 2 0-0 5(1r,1a), *Payton Cates 2 1-2 5(5r), Marlo Tonasket 1 3-4 5(3r,2a), *Ruben Couture 1 3-7 5(6r,2b), Mason Clairmont (1s). 11 10-17 35(22r,4a,4s,3b)
POLSON – Colton Graham 7 10-14 24(5r,1s), Espn Fisher 2 4-4 10(2r,1s), Trent Wilson 3 1-4 8(5r,1a,1s), Jarrett Wilson 1 3-4 5(8r,3a,2s), Braunson Henriksen 2 0-0 4(15r,2a), Xavier Fisher 2(4r,1a,1b), Alex Muzquiz 2(1a,1s,1b), Robert Perez 1(1r,1a,1s), Dawson DuMont 0(4r,1a), Nikolai Figaro (1r), Ethan McCauley (1r), Tyler Wenderoth (1s). 17 19-28 65(46r,10a,8s,2b)
3FGs – R3 (E.Tonasket 2, D.POT), P3-14 (E.Fisher 2-5,T.Wilson 1-1).
Tuesday, January 11, 2022
Pirates down Broncs in overtime
Polson 56, Frenchtown 53 (OT): Colton Graham scored 17 points — including four of his team's five points in overtime — as the Pirates topped the Broncs after letting a big fourth-quarter lead slip away. Jarrett Wilson scored 13 for Polson, which led by eight entering the final eight minutes. Eli Quinn scored 16, and Kellen Klimpel and Devin Shelton added nine for Frenchtown.
Polson 56, Frenchtown 53 (OT)
Polson 14 14 14 9 5 — 56
Frenchtown 13 11 10 17 2 — 53
POLSON: Colton Graham 17; Jarrett Wilson 13; Nik Figaro 8; Brock Hendriksen 8; Xavier Fisher 6; Trent Wilson 3; Alex Muzquiz 1.
FRENCHTOWN: Eli Quinn 16; Kellen Klimpel 9; Devin Shelton 9; Sully Belcourt 8; Keaton Simpson 8; Garrett Schmill 2; Carter White 1.
Saturday, January 15,2022
Browning runs by Pirates
Maurice Redhorn III led a balanced attack with 15 points, Brayds Vielle added 13 and Jesse Carlson 12 as the Runnin' Indians survived a 30-point onslaught by the Pirates' Colton Graham. Tommy Running Rabbit added nine for Browning, which led 26-19 after one quarter and saw Polson inch back. Jarrett Wilson added 11 points for Polson.
Browning 70, Polson 65
Polson 19 15 11 20 — 65
Browning 26 13 12 19 — 70
POLSON: Colton Graham 30; Jarrett Wilson 11; Xavier Fisher 8; Dawson Dumont 5; Trent Wilson 3; Brauson Henriksen 3; Nik Figaro 3; Robert Perez 2.
BROWNING: Maurice Redhorn III 15; Brayds Vielle 13; Jesse Carlson 12; Tommy Running Rabbit 9; Tayron Burdeau 7; Joseph Bullshoe 6; Payton Grant 4; Justice Johnson 3; Jamerson Lazyboy 1.
Thursday, January 20, 2022
Running Pirates trample Blue Devils
An aggressive full court press and harassing man to man half court defense propelled Polson to a 79-43 victory in the Linderman gym Thursday evening. The Pirates also displayed some sharp passing in the full court that led to numerous layups in the contest. Trent Wilson led Polson with a season and personal high 19 points. Thirteen Pirates entered the scoring column in the lopsided victory.
Polson 79, Corvallis 43
Corvallis 2 17 11 13 - 43
Polson 20 20 26 13 - 79
POLSON: Xavier Fisher 7; Robert Perez 2; Alex Muzquiz 6; Tyler Wenderoth 2; Jarrett Wilson 10; Trent Wilson 19; Espn Fisher 3; Dawson Dumont 8; Brock Henriksen 0; Ethan McCauley 2; Colton Graham 11; Braunson Henriksen 4; Nik Figaro 3; Cymian Kauley 2.
CORVALLIS: Dillon Potter 7; Aaron Powell 2; Tyler Weis 8; David Broch 3; Lucas Jessop 0; Ryan Hutchison 0; Wyatt Miles 0; Donovan Potter 19; Trey Joseph 0; Derek Criddlek 3; Bennett Bockman 1; Cameron Whitley 0.
Saturday, January 22, 2022
Pirates aggressive defense buries Loggers
Polson opened up a 19 point lead in the first half and cruised from there downing Libby in a Northwest A matchup Saturday. Trent Wilson continued where he left off Tuesday against Corvallis with 16 points. Colton Graham also had 16 to add to his career point total. Kaleb Fok and TJ Anderson each scored 11 for the Loggers. Polson continues to utilize an aggressive full court press to unsettle their opponents and force numerous turnovers. The Pirates are 6-5 overall and 3-2 in the Northwest A.
Polson 57, Libby 40
Libby 8 9 10 13 — 40
Polson 14 22 8 13 — 57
LIBBY: Ivan Cano 0;Ryder Davis 0; Trevor Collins 0; Tyler Andersen 5; Cy Stevenson 3; Ryan Collins 3; Kaleb Folk 11; Caden Williams 7; TJ Andersen 11; Caleb Moeller 0; Conner Hartley 0; JR Delmas 0.
POLSON: Xavier Fisher 10;Robert Perez 0; Alex Muzquiz 3; Tyler Wenderoth 0; Jarrett Wilson 10; Trent Wilson 16; Espn Fisher 0; Dawson Dumont 2; Brock Henriksen 0; Ethan McCauley 0; Colton Graham 16; Braunson Henriksen 0; Nik Figaro 0; Cymian Kauley 0.
Tuesday, January 25, 2022
Pirates move up in standings with victory
Polson continues it's momentum cruising to a 69-52 victory at Whitefish on Tuesday evening in Whitefish. The Pirates jumped out to a 21-11 lead in the first quarter. A pressing defense and a methodical motion offense were keys to the Pirate attack. Colton Graham led the way with 12 2-pointers, 2 3-pointers and 2/2 freethrows for a total of 32 points. Also, in double figures, was Jarrett Wilson with 13 points. Talan Homquist played tough for Whitefish accounting for 21 points, most coming from inside the paint. Polson is 7-5 overall and tied for the top spot with Browning at 4-2 in the Northwest A. This was a makeup game that had been canceled due to COVID protocols in Whitefish.
Polson 69, Whitefish 52
Polson 21 18 9 21 — 69
Whitefish 11 21 8 12 — 52
POLSON: Xavier Fisher 12; Robert Perez 0; Alex Muzquiz 0; Tyler Wenderoth 0; Jarrett Wilson 13; Trent Wilson 8; Espn Fisher 0; Dawson Dumont 0; Brock Henriksen 0; Ethan McCauley 0; Colton Graham 32; Braunson Henriksen 2; Nik Figaro 2; Cymian Kauley 0.
WHITEFISH: Highland Lee-Franch 0; Bodie Smith 8; Mason Kelch 0; Jaxon Schloars 1; Josh Dowhie 0; Logan Conklin 12; Jack Sears 2; Fynn Ridgeway 2; Cody Berry 0; Gabe Lund 6; Daniel Tu 0; Talon Holmquist 21.
Thursday, January 27, 2022
Pirates win fourth in a row
At Columbia Falls, Polson won their fourth game in a row and sixth out of the last seven. Trent Wilson dropped in 15 points, Colton Graham added 11 and the Pirates rallied past the Wildcats after trailing by four at halftime. Polson outscored Whitefish 38-23 in the second half. For the game, Jarrett Wilson chipped in with 10 and Nik Figaro eight for Polson. Jace Hill scored 14 points and Cody Schweikert 12 for Columbia Falls. Polson is 8-5 overall and moved to the top spot in the Northwest A at 5-2, 1/2 game over Browning.
Polson 58, Columbia Falls 47
Polson 16 4 21 17 — 58
Columbia Falls 18 6 9 14 — 47
POLSON: Trent Wilson 15; Colton Graham 11; Jarrett Wilson 10; Nik Figaro 8; Xavier Fisher 6; Brock Hendriksen 6; Dawson Dumont 2.
COLUMBIA FALLS: Jace Hill 14; Cody Schweikert 12; Cade Morgan 7; Mark Robison 6; Alihn Anderson 4; Mason Peters 2; John Dyon 2.
Saturday, January 29, 2022
Frenchtown downs Polson in OT
At Polson, the Pirates and the Broncs battled to a draw in 4 quarters for the second time this season. The Broncs came out on top this time 57-54. Connor Michaud led Frenchtown with 16 points and Devin Schelton added 14. Xavier Fisher had a season high 18 points for the Pirates and team mate Colton Graham dropped in 16. Neither team gained any sepparation on the scoreboard during the game. A couple of key calls went Frenchtown's way in the last minute as they grabbed a 3 point lead. The Pirates missed a 3 pt shot at the buzzer.
Frenchtown 57, Polson 54
Frenchtown 9 12 15 13 (8) — 69
Polson 9 14 14 12 (5) — 52
FRENCHTOWN: Kellen Klimpel 12; Sully Belcourt 4; Connor Michaud 16; Jeremy Velasquez 1; Devin Schelton 14; Eli Quinn 8; Kamas Romney 2.
POLSON: Xavier Fisher 18; Robert Perez 0; Alex Muzquiz 0; Tyler Wenderoth 0; Jarrett Wilson 13; Trent Wilson 4; Espn Fisher 0; Dawson Dumont 2; Brock Henriksen 0; Ethan McCauley 0; Colton Graham 16; Braunson Henriksen 1; Nik Figaro 0; Cymian Kauley 0.
Tuesday, February 1, 2022
Pirates down dogs
At Polson, the Pirates jumped out to an early lead and maintained the margin throughout the game. Colton Graham led Polson with 22 points followed by Trent Wilson in double figures with 13 points. Bodie Smith was the only double figure scorer for Whitefish. He dropped in 14 points. Polson moved to 9-6 overall and 6-2 in the Northwest A.
Polson 51, Frenchtown 36
Whitefish 7 12 3 14 — 69
Polson 18 8 10 15 — 52
WHITEFISH: Bodie Smith 14; Mason Kelch 3; Jaxsen Schlauch 4; Fynn Ridgeway 4; Gabe Lund 4; Talon Holmquist 7.
POLSON: Xavier Fisher 3; Robert Perez 0; Alex Muzquiz 1; Tyler Wenderoth 0; Jarrett Wilson 4; Trent Wilson 13; Espn Fisher 2; Dawson Dumont 4; Brock Henriksen 0; Ethan McCauley 0; Colton Graham 22; Nik Figaro 2; Cymian Kauley 0.
Friday, February 4, 2022
Polson fights back, downs Ronan in valley rivalry
at Ronan Event Center
After an early 8-4 Polson lead, Ronan outscored Polson 14-0 to lead 18-8 early in the second quarter. The Pirates regrouped and increased the defensive pressure to cut the Chief's margin to 29-26 at half time. Polson grabbed the lead half way through the third quarter and then continued to increase it through the rest of the game. Jarrett Wilson's 16 points led the Pirates and Xavier Fisher also reached double figures with 10 points. Ronan was led by Peyton Cates with 17 points followed by Marlo Tonasket with 13. Colton Graham led the Pirates in rebounding and dished out numerous assists in the Polson victory.
Polson 56, Ronan 47
Polson 8 18 17 13 — 56
Ronan 14 15 10 8 — 47
POLSON: Xavier Fisher 10; Robert Perez 0; Alex Muzquiz 0; Tyler Wenderoth 0; Jarrett Wilson 16; Trent Wilson 9; Espn Fisher 6; Dawson Dumont 6; Ethan McCauley 0; Colton Graham 4; Nik Figaro 5; Cymian Kauley 0.
RONAN: Dillon Pretty On Top 2; Peyton Cates 17; Ted Coffman 7; Eligah Tonasket 5; Ruben Couture 3; Marlo Tonasket 13.
Tuesday, February 8, 2022
Pirates down good Bigfork team
In a game that was close throughout the Pirates opened up a lead late in the fourth quarter only to have Bigfork close with a barrage of 3's at the end. The Vikings hit 5 three pointers in the quarter with 3 by Collin Wade (23 points) and 2 by Bryce Gilliard (20 points). Polson was led by Colton Graham (31 points) and Jarrett Wilson (22 points). Polson moved to 11-6 overall and are 7-2 in the Northwest A. The Pirates host Browning on Saturday at 6:00 to determine the #1 seed in the Northwest A.
Polson 73, Bigfork 69
Bigfork 13 13 17 26 — 69
Polson 16 15 20 22 — 73
BIGFORK: Colin Wade 23; Bryce Gilliard 20; Isak Epperly 8; Wyatt Johnson 6; Levi Taylor 4; Nick Walker 4; George Brown 4.
POLSON: Xavier Fisher 8; Robert Perez 0; Alex Muzquiz 1; Tyler Wenderoth 0; Jarrett Wilson 22; Trent Wilson 6; Espn Fisher 0; Dawson Dumont 4; Brock Henriksen 0; Ethan McCauley 0; Colton Graham 31; Nik Figaro 1; Cymian Kauley 0.
Saturday, February 12, 2022
Polson secures Northwest A number 1 seed
Polson opened up with a suffocating full press and out ran the Running Indians for 25 first quarter points. The Pirates never looked back keeping up the pressure and converting on numerous fast break opportunities. Jarrett Wilson had a personal best 28 points and Colton Graham tossed down 21 points along with numerous rebounds and assists.Tommy Running Rabbit led Browning with 11 points. The Pirates finished the season with an overall record of 12-6 and secured the conference crown and #1 seed from the NWA at the divisional tournament with a record of 8-2. They will play the 4th seed from the Southwest Conference, Hamilton, at 5pm Thursday, February 24, in Hamilton.
Polson 67, Browning 37
Browning 9 10 13 5 — 37
Polson 25 17 13 12 — 67
BROWNING: Justice Johnson 8; Tayron Bordeau 2; Joe Blueshoe 4; Brayds Vielle 6; Maurice Redhorn 3; Preston Iron Heart 3; Tommy Running Rabbit 11;
POLSON: Xavier Fisher 7; Jarrett Wilson 28; Trent Wilson 7; Dawson Dumont 2; Colton Graham 21; Nik Figaro 2.
Thursday, February 24, 2022
Pirates win, semifinals next
Colton Graham popped in 18 pints, Trent Wilson added 15 and the Pirates survived a fourth-quarter rally to get past the Broncs. Jarrett Wilson added 11 for Polson, which led by 14 points before Hamilton closed with a 17-6 flourish over the final eight minutes. Eli Taylor scored 18 and Asher Magness 14 for the Broncs. The Pirates next face Dillon at 5:00 in Hamilton in the semifinals.
Polson 50, Hamilton 47
Polson 15 13 16 6 — 50
Hamilton 5 15 10 17 — 47
POLSON: Colton Graham 18; Trent Wilson 15; Jarrett Wilson 11; Dawson Dumont 6.
HAMILTON: Eli Taylor 18; Asher Magness 14; Cole Dickemore 6; Tyson Rostad 5; Max Cianflone 4.
Friday, February 25, 2022
Dillon boys grind out win over No. 1 seed Polson
It probably isn't too big of a reach to think the Beavs had been craving a rematch with Butte Central since falling to the Maroons in heart-breaking fashion during the Southwestern A divisional tournament.
But in order to get that chance, No. 2 Dillon had to take down top-seeded Polson, which it did 58-51 to also earn a spot in the state tournament.
"It was hard-fought game, start-to-finish," said Beavers coach Terry Thomas. "I thought our guys did a really nice job of trying to make make them work hard for their shots. In the first half, they were able to knock down some really tough shots. And the game was just back-and-forth, and it was really competitive. And then in the second half, then a few of those shots didn't go down, and we were able to get some rebounds. Then we started to get a little bit of momentum in the fast break. And that gave us a few real important buckets to try to hold on. And then we made some free throws down the stretch that always helps to try to secure a win."
Dillon was led by its captains, Connor Curnow and Jonathan Kirkley, who had 24 and 21 points. Callahan Hoffman added nine points.
Jarrett Wilson paced the Pirates with 17 points while Colton Graham had 13.
Polson will play a loser-out game at Hamilton Middle School Gym on Saturday at 9:30 a.m. against Browning, each team still with a chance to qualify for state. Dillon gets its rematch with Butte Central.
"It kind of sets the stage for another great game against Butte central where we've been fairly evenly matched and the games have been just very exciting and athletic," Thomas said. "It's just what high school basketball supposed to be."
Dillon 58, Polson 51
Polson 11 18 9 13 — 51
Dillon 9 21 15 13 — 58
POLSON: Jarrett Wilson 17; Colton Graham 13; Dawson Dumont 7; Xavier Fisher 6; Trent Wilson 6; Brock Hendriksen 2.
DILLON: Connor Curnow 24; Jonathan Kirkley 21; Callahan Hoffman 9; Max Davis 2; Eli Nourse 2.
The Pirates play Browning at the Hamilton Middle School Saturday at 9:30AM,
Thursday, March 10, 2022
Glendive nips Polson, 52-49
MISSOULA — There was foul trouble for their best player, a lack of 3-point shooting and still, the Polson Pirates were right there.
Riley Basta’s 16 points included a driving layup that gave Glendive the lead with a minute left, and the Red Devils downed Polson 52-49 at the State A boys basketball tournament Thursday.
The Red Devils (17-5) advanced to Friday’s 5 p.m. semifinal against Butte Central (24-1). The Maroons built a 55-34 fourth-quarter lead on Havre on the way to a 61-49 win.
Polson (16-7) will take on Havre (10-13) in a loser-out game Friday at 9 a.m.
Glendive 52, Polson 49
A vocal Dahlberg Arena crowd saw Polson run out to a 25-17 lead, before Glendive scored the last nine points of the half. Polson standout Colton Graham picked up his third foul at 2:54 of the second quarter, when it was 25-19; Parker Buckley’s bucket put Glendive up 26-25 at intermission.
Things looked worse for the Pirates when Graham was called for an offensive foul just a few seconds into the third quarter. Then Polson responded, going on a 7-0 run and leading 32-28 on two Xavier Fisher free throws at the 3:29 mark.
“I thought we scrambled around pretty well,” Polson coach Randy Kelley said. “We haven’t had to do that all year — Graham hasn’t been in foul trouble all year. We put kids in some situations they’d never been in and I thought they weathered that.”
Nine lead changes followed, and it looked like a 6-0 burst in the fourth quarter — Braunson Henrickson scored on an up-and-under and Jarrett Wilson converted twice down low — that gave Polson a 47-44 lead might turn the tide.
“And then they kind of took to us inside a little bit and we didn’t respond to that,” Kelley said.
“This time of year is the little things that get you.”
Buckley (10 points) and Michael Murphy (13) scored down low and Glendive led 48-47 with 2:45 remaining. After Graham hit two free throws for a 49-48 Polson lead at 2:30, a Max Eaton free throw tied it for Glendive.
Then Polson went cold: Jarrett Wilson missed a free throw ahead of Buckley’s layup; then Graham took two mid-range bank shots that didn’t fall. At the end, after another Eaton free throw, Graham was short on a contested three.
“We had our shots,” Kelley said. “We had the ball in the right hands at the right moment. Sometimes they go in and sometimes they don’t.”
Wilson led Polson with 17 points and Graham added 11, including the Pirates’ only three in nine attempts. Trent Wilson had eight points and six rebounds; Fisher had eight points.
First round
Polson 15 10 11 13 - 49
Glendive 9 17 11 15 - 52
POLSON — Xavier Fisher 2-9 4-5 8, Jarrett Wilson 8-10 1-5 17, Trent Wilson 3-10 2-2 6, Dawson DuMont 0-4 0-0 0, Colton Graham 4-9 2-2 11, Nikolai Figaro 0-1 0-0 0, Braunson Henriksen 1-4 3-4 5, Alex Muzquiz 0-0 0-0 0, Tyler Wenderoth 0-0 0-0 0, Espn Fisher 0-0 0-0 0, Ethan McCauley 0-0 0-0 0, Robert Perez 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-47 12-18 49.
GLENDIVE — Michael Murphy 5-12 2-3 7, Taven Coon 1-3 2-2 4, Max eaton 2-8 3-7 7, Riley Basta 5-10 5-5 16, Parker Buckley 4-5 0-1 10, Chase Crockett 1-1 0-0 0, Rhett Hoffer 0-0 0-0 0, Kobe Kutzler 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-39 12-18 52.
3-point goals — Polson 1-9 (Graham 1-2, T.Wilson 0-1, DuMont 0-1, X.Fisher 0-5), Glendive 4-10 (Buckley 2-2, Murphy 1-3, Basta 1-3, Coon 0-2). Rebounds — Polson 30 (Graham 6, T.Wilson 6), Glendive 24 (Murphy 7). Fouls — Polson 21, Glendive 16. Fouled out — DuMont. Blocks — Polson 1 (Figaro), Glendive 4 (Murphy 2, Eaton, Coon). Steals — Polson 7 (J.Wilson 3), Glendive 6 (Basta 2, Murphy 2). Turnovers — Polson 12, Glendive 13.
Friday, March 11, 2022
Pirates balanced scoring too much for Ponies
Four double-digit scorers and a 13-point advantage from the foul line gave the Polson Pirates claim to the first spot in the State A consolation semis Friday morning with a 74-58 win over Havre in Missoula.
The Pirates offense was paced by Colton Graham's 19 points on 50% shooting from the field and 75% from the foul line (6 of 8). Jarrett Wilson went 5-for-8 from the field and 7-for-10 from the line on his way to 17 points. Xavier Fisher's 15 points came from 4-for-9 3-point shooting and three free throws. Trent Wilson shot 6-for-15 on 2-pointers and hit 3-of-4 free throws to score 15 as well.
Havre's Xavier Butler scored a game-high 23 points on 10-for-13 shooting, including 3-for-5 from deep. Butler did not attempt a free throw.
The Pirates were 19-for-26 from the line while Havre went 6-for-11.
Havre took a one-point lead into the second quarter but a 24-point outburst from Polson gave the Pirates a lead they would never relinquish.
Butler hit two threes and Tre Gary (five points, two rebounds) made a floater in the lane early in the fourth quarter to briefly cut the Pirates lead to 63-55, but Trent Wilson answered on Polson's next possession to reestablish the double-digit difference.
Down 42-34 at the half, Havre scored the first five points of the third quarter to bring the Blue Ponies within three before Graham went on a run, punctuated by a 3-poitner from the left wing that had Polson up 53-41.
Isaac Pedraza had nine points and four rebounds for Havre. Caleb Spangler added eight points and a team-high six rebounds. Shane Patascil scored seven.
Graham led the Pirates with six rebounds, Jarrett Wilson had five, as did Braunson Henriksen, and Trent Wilson tallied four.
Polson will play at 9 a.m. Saturday against the loser of Friday afternoon's semifinal between Lewistown and Dillon. Both games will be at Dahlberg Arena in Missoula.
Polson 74, Havre 58
Polson 18 24 19 13 — 74
Havre 19 15 13 11 — 58
POLSON: Colton Graham 19; Jarrett Wilson 17; Xavier Fisher 15; Trent Wilson 15; Brauson Henriksen 8.
HAVRE: Xavier Butler 23; Isaac Pedraza 9; Caleb Spangler 8; Shane Patascil 7; Tre Gary 5; Caden Jenkins 4; Crawford Terry 2.
Saturday, March 12, 2022
Polson nips Dillon in OT
By FRITZ NEIGHBOR
Daily Inter Lake
MISSOULA — Colton Graham fueled a fourth-quarter comeback, Jarrett Wilson cashed in two steals for four overtime free throws, and Polson beat Dillon 53-52 in State A loser-out that ended on a miss from the line.
Down 53-50, Dillon’s Jonathan Kirkley drew a 3-shot foul with .2 seconds left. He made the first two, Polson called a full time out, and the guard missed the third.
Graham had 20 points, including all 13 of Polson’s points in the fourth. After Connor Curnow got an offensive rebound and fed Kirkley for a hoop, Dillon led 42-35 with 3:20 left in regulation.
Graham knocked threes at 2:55, 1:22 (cutting the gap to 44-43) and with 22 seconds left to knot the game at 46-all.
Dillon held for the final shot, but a held ball left 4 seconds left the Beavers didn’t get a good look.
After Curnow, who had 22 points, spun inside for two the Beavers led 50-48 with a minute left.
Polson came back with a Graham free throw with 37 seconds left. When he missed the second Wilson stole the rebound away and nearly got the hoop and harm.
He hit two free throws instead, for a 51-50 Polson lead. Then he made another steal, was fouled, and hit two more with :09 left.
Then came the foul, which was on Wilson, The junior guard had 12 points, five steals and four assists. Xavier Fisher hit two 3-pointers and had 10 points. Braunsen Henriksen added nine points and five boards for the Pirates, who advanced to play Hamilton in the consolation game. The Broncs beat Glendive 68-66, also in OT, in Saturday's other early game.
Polson 13 6 14 13 7 - 53
Dillon 15 7 12 12 6 - 52
POLSON — Colton Graham 6-21 3-4 8, Dawson Dumont 0-2 0-0 0, Trent Wilson 1-6 0-0 2, Jarrett Wilson 4-10 4-4 12, Xavier Fisher 3-6 2-6 10, Robert Perez 0-0 0-0 0, Brock Henriksen 0-1 0-0 0, Braunson Henriksen 4-6 1-1 9, Nikolai Figuaro 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-52 10-15 53.
DILLON — Connor Cunrow 8-11 4-6 22, Jonathan Kirkley 2-6 4-8 10, Callahan Hoffman 3-10 3-4 9, Caden Hansen 3-9 0-0 8, Eli Nourse 2-2 0-0 4, Kee Christiansen 0-1 0-0 0, Max Davis 0-0 0-0 0, Tyler Lagunus 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 18-42 11-18 52.
3-point goals — Polson 7-17 (Graham 5-11, Fisher 2-5, Brock Henriksen 0-1), Dillon 5-16 (Curnow 2-2, Hansen 2-7, Kirkley 1-4, Christiansen 0-1, Lagunas 0-2). Rebounds — Polson 29 (Graham 8), Dillon 31 (Kirkley 10). Fouls — Plson 16, Dillon 17. Blocks — Polson 1 (Bra.Henriksen), Dillon 4 (Hoffman 2, Kirkley, Nourse). Steals — Polson 11 (J.Wilson 5), Dillon 6 (Kirkley 2), Turnovers — Polson 15, Dillon 19.
Pirates bring home third-place trophy
By FRITZ NEIGHBOR
Daily Inter Lake
MISSOULA — First, Colton Graham got hot; second, Jarrett Wilson got hotter. Finally, thanks to a couple good bounces, Polson picked up a third-place trophy
Wilson’s 24-point afternoon was critical to the Pirates’ 57-52 win over Hamilton in the State A boys basketball consolation game, at Dahlberg Arena.
To get there they had to rally on Dillon in a loser-out game that went to overtime before they won, 53-52. Graham had a red-hot fourth quarter to force overtime, and Wilson came up big again late in that one.
The Pirates finished 18-8, earning their first trophy since back-to-back thirds in 2016-17.
Polson 57, Hamilton 52
Polson’s third win over the Broncs in four games this season wasn’t sealed until 11 seconds remained, when Graham missed a free throw and Wilson swept through the lane to try for a jump ball.
It squirted loose, bounced off an official and Wilson — who also missed a free throw in the final half-minute — took it baseline for a layup with 3 seconds left.
“Might as well jump it,” Wilson, a junior, said. “They’re going to have to pass it and go try to hit a three, so I took a chance and it paid off.”
Wilson scored 14 points in the quarter-and-a-half, becoming the go-to option with Graham, who had 13 points, getting extra attention.
Graham’s bucket at 5:40 of the third quarter had Polson ahead 34-21; then Hamilton hit five 3-pointers over Polson’s zone to close to 43-42 going to the fourth.
“We tried to switch up defenses,” Polson coach Randy Kelley said. “We didn’t have our legs. Not like we did this morning.”
Tyson Rostad’s three-point play put the Broncs up 52-51 with 3:09 left — their first lead since early in the second quarter.
Enter Wilson.
“Everyone one was crashing down on (Graham), doubling him, and I was just able to get to the basket a lot easier,” he said. “I had a smaller guy on me. I mean, I just kind of took the shots they gave me.”
His fifth low-post bucket of the half got Polson back in front, and with 1:28 left he followed up a miss by brother Trent Wilson for a 55-52 lead with 1:28 left.
“Good for him,” Kelley said. “He’s the type of kid that… you trust him. He has a lot of knowledge, works his butt off and he made a difference in the fourth when we were looking for something.
“But my hat’s off to Hamilton. Five games they had to play? That’s a lot. I’m just glad we responded.”
Trent Wilson added eight points and eight rebounds for Polson. Graham also had eight rebounds. Xavier Fisher hit both the Pirates’ threes and had eight points.
Asher Magness hit four 3-pointers and scored 18 to lead the Broncs.
Hamilton 12 7 23 10 - 52
Polson 12 13 18 14 - 57
HAMILTON — Colter Kirkland 0-0 0-0 0, Tyson Rolstad 3-6 4-5 10, Eli Taylor 6-13 3-3 16, Liam O’Connell 0-2 0-0 0, Asher Magness 7-19 0-0 18, Cole Dickemore 1-6 0-0 3, Max Cianflone 1-2 2-2 5, Hudson Bain 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-48 9-10 52.
POLSON — Xavier Fisher 3-9 0-0 8, Dawson DuMont 1-1 0-0 2, Colton Graham 6-17 1-3 13, Jarrett Wilson 12-14 0-2 24, Trent Wilson 4-5 0-0 8, Robert Perez 0-0 0-0 0, Braunsen Henriksen 1-5 0-0 2. Totals 27-51 1-5 57.
3-point goals — Hamilton 7-23 (Magness 4-11, Cianflone 1-2, Taylor 1-4, Dickemore 1-6), Polson 2-7 (Fisher 2-6, Graham 0-1). Rebounds — Hamilton 25 (Rostad 9), Pllson 34 (T.Wilson 8, Graham 8). Fouls — Hamilton 12, Polson 8. Blocks — Hamilton 4 (Cianflone 2, Rostad, Taylor), Polson 1 (Graham). Steals — Hamilton 4 (Taylor 2), Polson 4 (J.Wilson 2). Turnovers — Hamilton 6, Polson 5.
RESULTS 2020-2021
Thursday, January 7, 2021
Pirates nip Broncs in low scoring contest
Polson 30, Hamilton 29
At Salish Kootenai College in Pablo for the Polson boys basketball season opener Thursday, the host Pirates squeezed out a 30-29 win against Hamilton that went down to the wire. Trailing 28-29 with 25.6 seconds remaining, Polson’s Jarrett Wilson corralled the rebound of a narrowly missed Broncos shot at one end of the court and sailed coast to coast, scoring the winning basket with a three seconds remaining on the clock. Wilson finished with a team-high nine points.
Hamilton 3 13 5 8 — 29
Polson 6 11 6 7 — 30
HAMILTON: Tanner Hanson 9 Boston Drake 6 Tyler Buirrows 6 Liam O'Connell 3 Colter Kirkland 2 Eli Taylor 0.
POLSON: Jarrett Wilson 9 Colton Graham 6 JC Steele 5 Sam Fisher 4 Braunson Henriksen 4 Xavier Fisher 2.
Saturday, January 9, 2021
Pirates slam Cats
Polson 81, Columbia Falls 49
On Saturday at Columbia Falls, the Pirates turned in two huge middle frames on their way to a convincing 81-49 NWA conference win. Five Pirates scored in double figures. Colton Graham led the way with a team-high 22, while Jarrett Wilson and Xavier Fisher collaborated on 25 points. The Pirates generated 20 assists over the course of the contest with Wilson, Darian Wiliams and JC Steele dishing four each. Trevor Lake crested the double century point plateau for varsity career scoring.
Polson (1-0, 2-0), C-Falls (1-1, 2-1)
Polson 12 31 23 15 – 81
C-Falls 8 13 15 13 – 49
POLSON – Colton Graham 9 2-3 22(6r,3a,2s,1b), Jarrett Wilson 6 0-2 13(9r,4a,7s), Xavier Fisher 5 0-1 12(5r,2a,1s), Trevor Lake 3 5-6 11(4r,2s), Darian Williams 4 0-0 10(5r,4a,1s,1b), Braunson Henriksen 1 3-6 5(3r,1a,2b), Trent Wilson 2 1-1 5(3r,1s), Robert Perez 3(1r,2a), JC Steele (4r,4a,1s), Sam Fisher (2r). 31 11-22 81(42r,20a,15s,4b)
COLUMBIA FALLS – Jace Hill 12, Alihn Anderson 11, Allec Knapton 11, Cade Morgan 7, Aaron Trueblood 6, Mason Peters 2. 16 14-24 49(29r,10a,4s,2b)
3FG – P8-23 (Graham 2-4, Williams 2-5, X.Fisher 2-7, J.Wilson 1-1, R.Perez 1-1), CF 3-20 (Trueblood 1-2, Anderson 1-5, Morgan 1-6). (Sa09Jan21)
Thursday, January 14, 2021
Polson roars back, downs Frencthown
Polson overcame a 27-18 halftime deficit to score a 52-50 win over Frenchtown. Polson (3-0) stole a Frenchtown inbounds pass with 4.1 seconds left to secure the win after outscoring the Broncs 21-7 in the third quarter and 34-23 in the second half. Jarrett Wilson had 18 points for Polson, Darian Williams scored 10 and Colton Graham added nine. Brandon Finley led Frenchtown with 12 points, Devin Shelton scored 11 and Jeff Jacobs had 10.
Polson 52, Frenchtown 50
Frenchtown 16 11 7 16 — 50
Polson 8 10 21 13 — 52
FRENCHTOWN: Brandon FInley 12 Devin Shelton 11 Jeff Jacobs 10 Carson Shepard 9 Wyatt Hayes 4 Tel Arthur 2 Connor Michaud 2.
POLSON: Jarrett Wilson 18 Darian Williams 10 Colton Graham 9 JC Steele 5 Xavier Fisher 4 Braunson Henriksen 4 Trevor Lake 2.
Saturday, January 16, 2021
Pirates remain undefeated
Jarrett Wilson led with 16 points and Xavier Fisher backed him with 11 as Polson remained unbeaten with a 58-46 toppling of Libby. The Pirates led 19-10 after one quarter. Caden Williams scored 17, Jay Beagle 13 and Cy Stevenson 11 for the Loggers.
Polson 58, Libby 46
Libby 10 14 12 10 — 46
Polson 0 0 0 0 — 58
LIBBY: Caden Williams 17 Jay Beagle 13 Cy Stevenson 11 TJ Andersen 5.
POLSON: Jarrett Wilson 16; Xavier Fisher 11; Colton Graham 9; Braunson Henriksen 7; Darian Williams 5; JC Steele 4; Trevor Lake 4; Sam Fisher 2.
Thursday, January 21, 2021
Pirates swat Yellowjackets
Trevor Lake pumped and 17 points and Jarrett Wilson contributed 16 as No. 4 Polson celebrated its first week in the rankings by routing Stevensville 78-26. The Pirates (5-0), who also got 10 points from Colton Graham, led by 15 after one quarter and outscored the Yellowjackets 45-4 in the middle two quarters. Gus Turner did his part for Stevi with 14 points, and Gracen Trevino had seven.
Polson 78, Stevensville 26
Polson 25 26 19 8 — 78
Stevensville 10 4 0 12 — 26
POLSON: Trevor Lake 17 Jarrett Wilson 16 Colton Graham 10 Xavier Fisher 8 Robert Perez 7 Alex Muzquiz 7 JC Steele 6 Sam Fisher 3 Trent Wilson 2 Darian Williams 2.
STEVENSVILLE: Gus Turner 14 Gracen Trevino 7 Kellan Beller 2 Hunter Stewart 2 Tad Tackes 1.
Saturday, January 23, 2021
Pirates sink Bulldogs
Polson 72, Whitefish 52
WHITEFISH — The Polson Pirates defeated the Whitefish Bulldogs 72-52 in a Northwest A boys basketball game Saturday behind Colton Graham’s 26-point performance.
Jarrett Wilson and Tervor Lake each added 12 for the Pirates (6-0, 3-0).
For Whitefish (1-5, 0-3), Talon Holmquist scored 15.
Polson 24 25 11 12 – 72
Whitefish 7 14 19 12 – 52
POLSON – JC Steel 5, Xavier Fisher 5, Alex Muzquiz 2, Jarrett Wilson 12, Trent Wilson 2, Darien Williams 2, Colton Graham 26, Bronson Henricksen 6, Trevor Lake 12.
WHITEFISH – Bodie Smith 9, Jaxsen Schlauch 4, Marvin Kimera 4, Fynn Ridgeway 4, Jayce Cripe 16, Talon Holmquist 15.
Tuesday, January 26, 2021
Beavers paddle past Pirates in wrangle among the ranked
by John Heglie
Top-ranked Dillon got the best of third-ranked Polson in a battle between the lone remaining Class A unbeatens. The host Beavers held a slight edge in shots taken from the field, free throws, steals and blocks, a detrimental combination in conjunction with a sluggish second frame by the Pirates that would account for the differential on the scoreboard. Takeaways and rejections hampered Pirate efforts to close the gap for a chance to alter the trajectory of the outcome.
Pirates Jarrett Wilson and Colton Graham combined for 25points and 14 boards. The last time these two teams met was during the postseason Western Divisional two seasons ago. The two teams combined for 25 triples. The Pirates had packed the paint that denied access inside in that one. So Dillon simply started launching treys from beyond the arc and converted 17-21 for a surreal eightieth percentile conversion rate that would have been exceptional from the free throw line, let alone long range from beyond the arc.
Dillon 54, Polson 46
Colton Graham surpassed the triple century demarcation for varsity career rebounding while notching his one hundredth career steal.
NWA Polson (6-1), SWA Dillon (7-0)
Polson 11 4 13 18 – 46
Dillon 10 14 14 16 – 54
POLSON – Jarrett Wilson 7 0-0 14(6r,3a,3s,1b), Colton Graham 4 2-3 11(8r,5a,1s,1b), Trevor Lake 3 1-2 7(5r,1s,2b), Xavier Fisher 2 0-0 6(3r,4a), Darian Williams 2 0-0 5(3r,2a,1s), JC Steele 3(2r,1a), Braunson Henriksen (2r), Sam Fisher (1r). 19 3-5 46(30r,15a,6s,4b)
DILLON – Cole Truman 13(3b), Jonathan Kirkley 11(6a,3s), Connor Curnow 9(10r), Eli Nourse 8, Jace Fitzgerald 6(9r,3s), Daxon Graham 3, Callahan Hoffman 2(3b), Jonny Reiser 2. 21 9-21 54 (34r,8a,10s,7b)
3FGs – P5-21 (X.Fisher 2-7, Steele 1-2, Williams 1-4, C.Graham 1-7), D3-11 (D.Graham 1-1, Kirkley 1-2, Fitzgerald 1-5). (Tu26Jan21) P15to/D11to
Friday, January 29, 2021
Polson dominates valley rival
Polson 62, Ronan 40
by John Heglie
At the SKC gym in Pablo, the first round of the Rez roundball rivalry wrangle between Ronan and Polson would gravitate to the Pirates.
The visiting Chiefs found themselves hampered by atypical cold shooting from the field. Though they held a half dozen edge off the offensive glass, they converted less than their counterparts. By contrast, the host Pirates benefitted from a boomarang bounce coming off their recent shortfall encounter against top-ranked Dillon.
The Chiefs placed a pair of players in double digits with a tandem of 10's from Leonard Burke and Girma Detwiler. Pirate Colton Graham led all scorers with 20 points, while the trio of Jarrett Wilson, Xavier Fisher and Trevor Lake also notched double figures as they combined for just under three dozen.
Lead rebounder tandems, Detwiler along with Ruben Couture for the Chiefs and Graham along with Trevor Lake for the Pirates, combined for 17 boards.
Pirates Jarrett Wilson passed the 200 point plateau for varsity career scoring, while Colton Graham surpassed the century mark for season scoring.
Chief Girma Detwiler crested the triple century point plateau for varsity career scoring.
Polson 62, Ronan 40
Polson (4-0, 7-1), Ronan (3-2, 6-3)
Ronan 8 11 8 13 – 40
Polson 12 24 14 12 – 62
RONAN – Girma Detwiler 3 4-5 10(9r,1b), Leonard Burke 3 3-4 10(2r,1a,1s), Zarec Couture 1 2-2 4(5r,1b), Payton Cates 2 0-0 4(3r,2b), Sage Coffman 2 0-0 4(2r,3s), Elijah Tonasket 1 1-2 3(5r,1s), Marlo Tonasket 0 3-4 3(4r,1s), Mason Clairmont 0 2-2 2, Ruben Couture (8r,3a,4s,3b), Troy Alford (1r). 12 15-21 40(45r,5a,8s,6b)
POLSON – Colton Graham 7 5-5 20(9r,3a,2s,1b), Jarrett Wilson 5 4-8 14(4r,2a,2s), Xavier Fisher 2 5-10 10(4r,1a,2s), Trevor Lake 4 2-3 10(8r,1s), JC Steele 3(2r,2a,2s), Trent Wilson 0 3-4 3(2r,1s), Darian Williams 2(5r,3a,1s), Sam Fisher (4r), Robert Perez (1r). 20 19-30 62(41r,11a,11s,1b)
3FGs – R1-24 (L.Burke 1-11), P3-16 (X.Fisher 1-3, Graham 1-4, Steele 1-4).
Thursday, February 4, 2021
Pirates down Cats again
Polson 64, Columbia Falls 47
POLSON — Colton Graham scored 26 points and led the Polson Pirates to a 64-47 win over Northwest A foe, the Columbia Falls Wildcats. It was the second time this season that the Pirates downed the Cats. They blitzed the Cats 81-49 in January. Polson is currently 8-1 for the season and 5-0 in the conference. They are ranked 2nd in the most recent state poll behind Dillon, a team that handed them their only loss of the season in a game at Dillon.
Xavier Fisher added 13 for the Pirates (8-1 overall, 5-0 conference).
For Columbia Falls (5-5, 3-3), Jace Hill poured in 20 points.
CFalls 9 8 18 12 – 47
Polson 14 11 23 16 – 64
COLUMBIA FALLS – Hayden Meehan 1, Mason Peters 2, Alihn Anderson 12, Jace Hill 20, Cooper Babcock 1, Allec Knapton 11.
POLSON – JC Steele 3, Xavier Fisher 13, Jarrett Wilson 7, Darian Williams 5, Colton Graham 26, Braunson Henricksen 4, Trevor Lake 6.
Tuesday, February 9, 2021
Pirate offense heats up in second half
Polson grabbed a 75-38 win over Class B St. Ignatius as Colton Graham scored 24 points. Polson led just 28-27 at halftime, but the Pirates erupted for a 29-point third quarter. Jarrett Wilson had 10 of his 19 points for Polson in the frame. Mission was led by 21 points from Zoran Lafromboise.
Polson 75, St. Ignatius 38
Polson 14 14 29 18 — 75
St. Ignatius 11 16 7 4 — 38
POLSON: Colton Graham 24; Jarrett Wilson 19; JC Steele 11; Xavier Fisher 7; Darian Williams 5; Braunson Henriksen 4; Trent Wilson 3; Sam Fisher 2.
ST. IGNATIUS: Zoran LaFrombois 21; Kellen McClure 6; Ross McPherson 4; John Komotios 3; Layne Spidel 2; Connor Burke 2.
Thursday, February 11, 2021
Pirates pound Dogs on senior night
The Pirates played their senior night game early unsure that the last home game of the season against Browning would be played because of COVID problems with the Browning team. Colton Graham's 14 points led the way and No. 2 Polson (9-1) kept rolling with a 59-42 romp over Whitefish. Senior Trevor Lake scored 13 and Jarrett Wilson 12 for the Pirates, who led 18-8 after one quarter. Jayce Cripe had 11 and Bodie Smith 10 points for the Bulldogs.
Polson 59, Whitefish 42
Whitefish 8 11 11 12 — 42
Polson 18 12 16 13 — 59
WHITEFISH: Jayce Cripe 11; Bodie Smith 10; Trey Hunt 7; Marvin Kimera 4; Barrett Scott 3; Jaxsen Schlauch 3; Cody Berry 2; Logan Conklin 2.
POLSON: Colton Graham 14; Trevor Lake 13; Jarrett Wilson 12; Braunson Henriksen 8; Xavier Fisher 6; Darian Williams 2; Sam Fisher 2; JC Steele 2.
Saturday, February 13, 2021
Pirates remain undefeated in conference play
Colton Graham's 19 points led the way and No. 2 Polson kept rolling with a 55-44 victory at Libby. A 17-6 second quarter was the difference for the Pirates, who received seven points apiece from Xavier Fisher and Darian Williams. Caden Williams scored 19 and Jay Beagle 10 for the Loggers.
Polson 55, Libby 44
Polson 14 17 14 10 — 55
Libby 10 6 15 13 — 44
POLSON: Colton Graham 19; Xavier Fisher 7; Darian Williams 7; JC Steele 6; Jarrett Wilson 5; Braunson Henriksen 5; Trevor Lake 4; Sam Fisher 2.
LIBBY: Caden Williams 19; Jay Beagle 10; TJ Andersen 6; Ryker McElmurry 4; Cy Stevenson 3; Ryder Davis 2.
Thursday, February 18, 2021
Pirates remain undefeated in conference play
Despite missing early opportunities to blow the game open, the Polson Pirate's continued their domination of the Northwest A Conference. Fouled many times by Browning down low in the paint and a number of missed freethrows kept the score closer than it should have been. The Pirates were led by their three pronged guard attack of Jarrett Wilson, Colton Graham, and Xavier Fisher. Wilson had the highest point total of his young career.
Polson 72, Browning 50
Browning 13 15 6 16 — 50
Polson 16 18 18 20 — 72
BROWNING: Luke Juneau 11; Maurice Redhorn 9; Thunder Smith 7; Brayds Vielle 7; Joseph Bullshoe 6; Justice Johnson 4; Cody Carlson 2; Jesse Carlson 2; Tommy Runningrabbit 2.
POLSON: Jarrett Wilson 24; Colton Graham 23; Xavier Fisher 16; Darian Williams 3; Braunson Henriksen 3; Trevor Lake 3.
Saturday, February 20, 2021
Pirates finish conference season undefeated
It was closer but with the same result. Polson defeated Ronan and ended the season as the #1 seed from the Northwest A and will play the lowest remaining qualifying seed from the the Southwest A in the divisional tournament at 1:00 PM on Thursday, February 25. All boys games will be at the Butte Civic Center.
Polson 51, Ronan 43
Polson 11 14 14 12 — 51
Ronan 14 9 7 13 — 43
RONAN: Leonard Burke 14; Elijah Tonasket 13; Marlo Tonasket 7; Girma Detwiler 5; Ruben Couture 2; Zarec Couture 2.
POLSON: no info available
Western Class A Divisional
Butte Civic Center
February 25-27, 2021
Polson Game 1
Thursday, February 25, 2021
Polson rallies, heads to semifinals
Colton Graham was tops with 17 points and No. 2 Polson dug out of an early hole to rally past Hamilton 40-37 in a first-round matchup. Jarrett Wilson scored nine for the Pirates, who trailed by nine after one quarter and six entering the final eight minutes. Austin Drake topped the Broncs with 10, and Tanner Hanson added eight.
Polson 40, Hamilton 37
Polson 6 11 10 13 — 40
Hamilton 15 8 10 4 — 37
POLSON: Colton Graham 17; Jarrett Wilson 9; Trevor Lake 6; Xavier Fisher 4; Darian Williams 3; JC Steele 1.
HAMILTON: Austin Drake 10; Tanner Hanson 8; Eli Taylor 6; Tyler Burrows 6; Liam O'Connell 5; Jack Ellis 2.
Polson Game 2
Friday, February 26, 2021
Pirates down Frenchtown in OT, reach Championship contest
Colton Graham drained 22 points as No. 2 Polson staved off a big challenge from Frenchtown, finally pulling away in overtime for a 51-45 semifinal victory. Darian Williams added 14 points for the Pirates, who outscored the Broncs 10-4 in the extra session in a game that was tied at halftime as well. Brandon Finley scored 16 points and Carson Shepard 13 for Frenchtown.
Polson 51, Frenchtown 45 (OT)
Polson 13 12 8 8 10 — 51
Frenchtown 17 8 10 6 4 — 45
POLSON: Colton Graham 22; Darian Williams 14; Jarrett Wilson 5; Trevor Lake 5; Xavier Fisher 3; Braunson Henriksen 2.
FRENCHTOWN: Brandon FInley 16; Carson Shepard 13; Wyatt Hayes 8; Devin Shelton 6; Jeff Jacobs 2.
Saturday, February 27,2021
Dillons tough 1-3-1 defense too much for Pirates
Jonathan Kirkley scored 15 points and top-ranked Dillon kept its perfect season rolling with a 42-32 victory over No. 2 Polson for the divisional championship. Cole Truman added eight for the Beavers, who led by one point entering the fourth quarter but outscored the Pirates 19-11 from there. Colton Graham scored 15 and Xavier Fisher nine for Polson.
Dillon 42, Polson 32
Dillon 11 5 7 19 — 42
Polson 6 8 7 11 — 32
DILLON: Jonathan Kirkley 15; Cole Truman 8; Daxon Graham 7; Connor Curnow 7; Jace Fitzgerald 5.
POLSON: Colton Graham 15; Xavier Fisher 9; Jarrett Wilson 6; Trevor Lake 2.
Thursday, March 4, 2021
Polson completes comeback over Lewistown to advance
Polson and Lewistown hit the court early Thursday morning where they traded the lead multiple times, yet it was Polson who held the lead at the final buzzer, winning 69-55.
Polson has moved on to the next round of the tournament and will face the winner of Butte Central and Billings Central tomorrow at 5:30 p.m..
"We looked at each other and said hey, we got to start playing as a team, and that's what we did in the second half," said Polson forward Colton Graham.
Fans from both schools were vocal and passionate, but no moment evoked a louder cheer than the four-minute mark in the first quarter. After stealing the ball, Lewistown's Luke Clinton drove down court where he finished a dunk while being fouled by Polson forward Colton Graham.
Polson began the game with a full-court defense, but soon drifted back to a half-court set as they had trouble securing the ball. Polson committed seven first-half turnovers which Lewistown often turned into points or free throws.
"We had to settle in. We were trying to make plays instead of letting the game come to us," said Polson coach Randy Kelley. "Once we settled in, we started grinding in on that 13-point lead they had."
Lewistown built their lead to 13 points in the second quarter, partially due to their hot shooting from the three-point line. Lewistown shot 71% from three and 69% from the free throw line in the first half.
Despite building a significant lead, Polson adjusted their scheme and drew within three at halftime. Lewistown led 36-33 at the half after they made a last-second lay-in.
While Polson looked a step slow in the first half, they came out strong in the second. Less than two minutes into the second half, Polson took the lead and held it through the entire third quarter. Polson led 49-42 at the end of the third.
Lewistown brought defensive pressure in the fourth quarter, where they trailed by nine points at the five-minute mark. Neither team had much momentum, as a defensive foul was called on more than half of the possessions in the fourth quarter.
"We saw how the game was called in the first half and it was tight, so we played to that," Kelley said . "I told them to attack the hoop like they were attacking us. It was definitely a game of two different halves."
Lewistown lost their stroke from the perimeter, which may have been the primary factor for their second-half slow down. They shot 0% from three in the second half, compared to 71% in the first half.
Colton Graham (Polson) led all scorers with 23 points and also grabbed eight rebounds. Jarrett Wilson had a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, while Braunson Henriksen added 14 points.
"You have to play your game and adjust to how it's called, and I think we did a good job of that in the second half," Kelley said. "This team is close-knit, it's special to see them so close and it was a great start, really great start."
For Lewistown, Bryce Graham led the way with 17 points and six rebounds. Royce Robinson added 16.
Polson 69, Lewistown 55
Lewistown 21 15 6 13 — 55
Polson 15 18 16 20 — 69
LEWISTOWN: Bryce Graham 17; Royce Robinson 16; Luke Clinton 9; Jalen Robinson 8; Fischer Brown 3; Nolan Fry 2.
POLSON: Colton Graham 23; Jarrett Wilson 17; Braunson Henriksen 14; Darian Williams 9; Xavier Fisher 6.
Friday, March 5, 2021
Billings Central beats Polson, advances to state final
GREAT FALLS — Just minutes after Dillon defeated Laurel in double-overtime to advance to the state final, Billings Central defeated Polson 58-49 to secure a spot in the final themselves.
Dillon and Billings Central are set to play Saturday at 7:30 p.m. to decide the state champion, while Polson has dropped to the loser-out bracket.
"Getting back to this game is important, it's an accomplishment for sure but there's one more left," said Billings Central coach Jim Stergar.
Billings Central trailed 14-12 at the end of the first quarter, but took the lead in the second thanks to an early three-pointer from Clarence Stewart. Jarrett Wilson (Polson) erased the lead on the next possession though, after drawing a foul and converting both free throw attempts.
Both teams appeared to focus on perimeter scoring in the second quarter. Xavier Fisher (Polson) had a great first half shooting the ball, where he scored 12 points on four three-pointers. Meanwhile for Billings Central, Malachai Stewart shot well from three as well, going three-for-seven from beyond the arc.
"We're just happy to have a state tournament, I'm proud of our guys for how they defended and rebounded the ball," Stergar said. "It comes down to old-fashioned basketball, just defense and rebounding the ball."
Polson’s Braunson Henriksen checked out of the game midway through the third quarter due to foul trouble, which seemed to correlate with the Billings Central run. Henriksen checked back into the game once the Rams held a seven point lead.
While Henriksen gave Polson size inside, it was Billings Central’s big man Brock Blatter that had a standout second half. In the final minutes of the third, he had five points and a crucial block. This gave Billings Central a 46-35 lead going into the fourth quarter.
"We made enough free throws down the stretch," Stergar said. "It was fun, it's always good to get back to the championship. Dillon is good. We know what they like to do and they know what we like to do, so it should be fun."
Billings Central maintained their lead, both by playing tight defense and using the clock well. The Rams also outrebounded Polson 33 to 29 for the game.
Jarrett Wilson led all scorers with 20 points, and also came down with eight rebounds for Polson. Xavier Fisher has 13 points on four three-pointers.
For Billings Central, Malachai Stewart led the way with 16 points and six rebounds, while Brock Blatter and Cayden Merchant added 11 points.
Billings Central 58, Polson 49
Billings Central 12 14 20 12 — 58
Polson 14 14 7 14 — 49
BILLINGS CENTRAL: Malachi Stewart 16; Brock Blatter 11; Cayden Merchant 11; Nate Sasich 8; Marcus Wittman 7; Logan Hill 3; Clarence Stewart 2.
POLSON: Jarrett Wilson 20; Xavier Fisher 13; Darian Williams 5; JC Steele 4; Braunson Henriksen 4; Colton Graham 3.
Saturday, March 6, 2021
Polson falls to Ronan at State A
Ronan 38, Polson 37
GREAT FALLS — The Ronan Chiefs scraped by the Polson Pirates 38-37 Saturday morning at the State A basketball tournament in a loser-out semifinal. The cold shooting Pirates shot 20% from 2 pt range and 10% from behind the arc to record their worst shooting night of the season. Their 13 for 18 freethrow shooting performance allowed them to stay close. Ronan also dominated the boards at a 41-26 clip. The Pirates had the ball with 10 seconds left but were unable to get a shot off before the buzzer sounded.
Girma Detwiler led Ronan with a double-double — 10 points, 11 rebounds — and six blocks. Ronan won the rebound battle, with 41 to Polson’s 26.
Polson’s Colton Graham also had a double-double, with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Ronan went on to face Laurel in the third place game. The Locomotives won 56-49.
Billings Central defeated unbeaten Dillon 49-39 in the championship game to take home the State A boy’s basketball title.
Ronan 9 13 8 8 – 38
Polson 8 6 12 11 – 37
RONAN – Ruben Couture 5, Girma Detwiler 10, Zarec Couture 5, Elijah Tonasket 2, Leonard Burke 3, Payton Cates 2, Sage Coffman 5, Marlo Tonasket 6.
POLSON – Xavier Fisher 4, Jarrett Wilson 7, Darian Williams 7, Colton Graham 10, Braunson Henricksen 6, Alex Muzquiz 1, Trevor Lake 2.