Arlee BB: Showing their focus

ARLEE - The Warriors took down District 14-C opponent Hot

Springs 62-49 on Saturday and will go into the district tournament

with the five seed, but more importantly, they showed focus in the

victory even though it was their third straight game.

ARLEE - The Warriors took down District 14-C opponent Hot Springs 62-49 on Saturday and will go into the district tournament with the five seed, but more importantly, they showed focus in the victory even though it was their third straight game.

"It's really tough," Arlee head coach Dustin Keltner said of the three-game stretch. "It helps us prepare for the rigors of tournament play."

Against Hot Springs, the Warriors came back from a one-point deficit in the first quarter to lead 30-25 at halftime.

After the Savage Heat pulled to within four points in the third quarter, Arlee finished the game on a 22-13 run - impressive considering they had been running the two previous nights against Two Eagle and Charlo.

"The kids shared the ball well and we shot the ball well," Keltner said.

Leading the way was Brandon Hergett with 16 points, who since joining the Warriors late in the season has provided tremedous post play and creates a one-two punch with fellow post Josh Reed.

"They complement each other," Keltner said. "They tighten up the defense inside and give us a chance to hold opponents to just one shot."

Mark Fullerton had 13 points while Christian Haynes and Junior Sansavere both notched 11.

"With it being the third game, the kids showed a lot of physical and mental toughness battling through the fatigue," Keltner said.

The night before they had a real donnybrook with Mission Valley rival Charlo, a matchup that is always fun for the fans. While the first half belonged to the Vikings, who ran up a 32-14 lead at halftime, the Warriors outscored them by nine points in the second half and fell in a close 59-49 loss.

"We missed a couple of easy shots to begin with," Keltner said adding that defensive breakdowns led to Charlo's lead at the half. "I think in the second half against Charlo the kids game out focused. They refocused in the locker room. I think they've had that mindset the last four halves we've played."

Arlee outscored Charlo 16-14 in the third quarter and 19-13 in the fourth quarter. Sansavere led the Warriors with 18 points. Fullerton added 10.

On Friday, Arlee began the weekend with a showdown against Two Eagle in Pablo and a second-half surge by the Eagles allowed them to get by the Warriors 59-51.

"They are a really good-shooting basketball team," Keltner said. "Their pressure is what bothered us, we didn't shoot the ball in Pablo."

After the teams battled to a 12-12 tie in the first quarter and after Two Eagle went on a 9-3 run to begin the second quarter, Arlee finished the first half with a 12-3 run to take the 30-28 halftime lead thanks to a buzzer-beater by Sansavere.

Two Eagle started the second half on an 11-3 run and would eventually lead 47-41 going into the fourth quarter. They were able to keep the gap in the fourth quarter and pick up the win.

Keltner liked the play from Justyn Adams, who was 6-for-8 from the field. He led the Warriors with 13 points.

"Justyn had a really nice game," Keltner said. "He let the game come to him, and played calm and collective."

Keltner also liked the efforts of Hergett, who collected 15 rebounds and 11 points. Reed also scored 11 points.

With a regular-season record of 8-10 and a 5-7 district record, the Warriors go into the district tournament knowing it's going to be a dogfight.

"It's going to be whoever is hot that weekend," Keltner said. "You could have this tournament for five different weeks and have five different winners. It's going to be very entertaining to watch. It will be fun for the fans, the players and the coaches."

ARLEE @ TERS

Arlee - 12 - 18 - 13 - 10 - 51

TERS - 12 - 16 - 17 - 12 - 59

Warriors scoring - Christian Haynes 5, Mark Fullerton 2, Junior Sansavere 7, Dominic Burland 1, Justyn Adams 13, Brandon Hergett 12, Josh Reed 11

CHARLO @ ARLEE

Charlo - 18 - 14 - 14 - 13 - 59

Arlee - 4 - 10 - 16 - 19 - 49

Warriors scoring - Christian Haynes 5, Mark Fullerton 10, Junior Sansavere 18, Brandon Hergett 3, Justyn Adams 5, Josh Reed 5, P.J. Haynes 1, Poncho Torres 2

H.S. @ ARLEE

H.S. - 17 - 8 - 11 - 13 - 49

Arlee - 16 - 14 - 10 - 22 - 62

Warriors scoring - Christian Haynes 11, Mark Fullerton 13, Pancho Torres 2, Junior Sansavere 11, Brandon Hergett 16, Camas McClure 2, Josh Reed 7