Arlee works its way to fourth

BILLINGS - Arlee went into the Class C Boys State Basketball Tournament wanting to add an exclamation mark to its season.

After setting the school record for most wins in a season with 25, the Warriors wanted more.

"Our main goal was to make it to state," senior John Sansavere said.

When that goal was met, the Warriors weren't the only ones proud of the accomplishment.

As the team bus made its way out of the town on the way to Billings for the touranment, it was escorted by police. People, including students, lined up outside, lining the streets, to wish the team good luck.

"It was nice," senior Kyle Felsman said of the farewell. "I didn't expect that. It really gave the community something to be proud of."

Arlee beat Culbertson in the opening round and after losing to Power in the semifinals, Arlee worked its way to the consolation championship, facing Culbertson again.

The second time around was a different outcome as Arlee fell for only the fourth time this season to finish fourth at the state tournament.

"We played to our ability," head coach Clyde Tucker said. "It would have been nice to come home with a trophy though."

Opening round:

Arlee 59, Culbertson 56

Both Arlee and Culbertson entered the game with only two losses on the season.

The Cowboys jumped out to an early lead, but Arlee worked it down to a seven-point deficit at the half.

Sansavere said the Warriors came out tight and it took a while for them to loosen up.

The game intensified as Culbertson shot the ball to a 14-point lead early in the third quarter. Arlee pounded away at the lead and let its offense carry through. Arlee hit a couple 3-point shots and stole the ball in order to spark itself.

"[Culbertson] was trying to delay and we got some turnovers," Tucker said. "Kyle [Felsman] went inside and got a couple baskets, that was huge."

Junior Thomas McClure sealed the win with a blocked shot that would have tied the game.

Junior Jesse Pfau led with 17 points while senior Kody Morigeau added 12. Felsman grabbed six rebounds.

Power 59, Arlee 48

Entering the semifinal game, Arlee knew Power was a tall, physical team with three kids 6-foot-4 and taller that played inside.

Arlee held a one-point lead after eight minutes that was reversed entering halftime.

"We started off better," Felsman said. "We came out to play. We were doing good until the fourth quarter."

As the fourth quarter went on, Arlee started to rush its offense and Power pulled away. The Warriors shot 33% on the game.

"Our shooting was off the whole night," Pfau said.

Felsman led with 15 points and Pfau added 10. Sansavere made three 3-point shots.

Arlee 59, Drummond 55

Going into the loser-goes-home game, Arlee had a solid mind set.

"We were going to win because we want to come home for a trophy," Felsman said.

Drummond was the Western C divisional champion and Arlee was second, however, the two teams never met in the tournament since Arlee lost and won its way back.

"We knew we could beat them to prove we were the best in the west," Felsman said.

That's just what Arlee did.

The Warriors jumped out to an early lead behind better shooting from the whole team.

Even with a four-point lead at the half, Arlee watched as Drummond tied the game behind five 3-point baskets.

Arlee regrouped and held onto the lead.

"We played defense and hit some shots," Sansavere said.

Morigeau hit a couple crucial shots down the stretch on his way to a game-high 18 points and added nine rebounds. Sansavere and Bridgewater each added 11 points.

Culbertson 43, Arlee 41

Four hours after the Drummond win, Arlee returned to the court to face Culbertson again in a trophy-match.

"We knew we were going to be in for a challenge," Tucker said. "It was a similar game."

In between the two games, the team ate and napped to regain energy.

"I took a nap and felt good to go after that," Felsman said.

Before the game, Tucker reminded his seniors, Trevor Rubel, Morigeau, Sansavere and Felsman, that it was their last game, win or lose.

"We had to relax and play our game," Tucker said. "We had to run our offense with energy and be strong with the ball."

Energy might have been in short supply for Arlee. Not only was this game the second of the day, but it was the ninth in nine days.

"We came out and some people just said they were tired," Pfau said. "That's a lot of games but that's no excuse."

Arlee came out slow, allowing the Cowboys a 10-point lead at the half as Culbertson wanted revenge from the opening round.

"We knew we had to stop their 3-point shooter," Felsman said. "We just came out flat."

Arlee was in this position before against Culbertson during the early round. This time, the Warriors once again found a way to scrape back but it wasn't enough.

"It could have gone either way," Tucker said.

Bridgewater led with 17 points and five 3-point baskets. Felsman added 11 points and six rebounds.

Pfau thought that if the two teams played again, Arlee would take the game.

"[Rest] would have helped," he said. "If we both were rested up and played again this weekend, we would win because that's what happened the first time around."

As the team returned home, signs and balloons greeted them.

"The town really came to life," Felsman said. "There were signs all over the place. People were waving and honking."

Overall, Pfau, Sansavere and Felsman felt their season went great and held many highlights.

"Getting stuck with the ball twice at the end of the quarter," Pfau said.

"Getting beat," Felsman said. "Nah, I'm just joking. Almost dunking was cool."

"When [junior] Beau Couture got his ankles broken," Pfau added sparking laughter from Felsman and Sansavere. "He almost fell out of bounds. It was probably one of the funniest things I've seen."

A favorite game of the season?

"Any game we had a blow out in," Pfau said.

Arlee won at least 10 games during the regular season by 12 or more points.

"It was a statement," Felsman said of the large margin of victory. "Everybody was saying that there was no one in district 14C. They were talking up Charlo tough and they came in and we blew them away by 30."

Charlo was picked in the beginning of the season to take first in the district while Arlee was voted the runner-up.

"It was because we lost two good seniors," Pfau said. "We were underrated. We played Charlo four times and beat them every time. That's a statement. That's giving a team a lot of chances to beat us."

Felsman said Tucker and his teammates understood how good the team could be before the season started.

"We had a good team because we are constantly playing with each other in open gym and community center ball," he said.

Arlee will graduate four seniors from this year's squad.

Felsman, "the leaper," Tucker said, had a lot of rebounds and made the all-state team. Morigeau played hard on defense, Tucker said, and was a key in Arlee's offense.

"Trevor was key for us off the bench," Tucker said. "John was real consistent for us and played well."

Three juniors will need to step up and play bigger roles next year, Tucker said.

"I was pleased with how Thomas stepped up," he said. "Kasey shot the ball well from the 3-point range and Jesse ran our offense well and handled pressure great."

Pfau said the seniors will be hard to replace, but hard work will help replenish the talent that will be lost.

"I hope Beau gets in the gym," he said. "I hope the team gets going. There are some little guys coming up that are good."

Sansavere said the fourth-place finish can be the beginning of a strong basketball tradition for Arlee.

"We started something here," he said.

The feeling still hasn't sunk in for Felsman.

"It really hasn't until now," he said. "When you have random people coming up to you, congratulating you, telling you ‘good job at state.' It's like ‘thank you. I don't know who you are, but thank you.'"