Underdog Arlee takes divisional title
Out of nowhere, the Arlee Warriors are 2019-20 divisional champions.
The Warriors have a strong history making the state tournament, but after they finished the regular season with a 6-10 record, going 0-8 in conference play, a playoff berth didn’t seem likely.
After sneaking into divisionals by fighting past Florence-Carlton in overtime for the District 6B play-in game, Arlee was 3-0 to over the past weekend during the Western B Divisional tournament in Hamilton.
The Warriors got past Eureka and Bigfork to set up the championship game verses Deer Lodge. Arlee recorded a massive 21-point fourth quarter to propel them past the Wardens 55-48.
Arlee senior Cody Tanner led all scoring with 22 points, including going 11 of 11 from the free throw line. He surpassed 500 points for season scoring, while also nabbing seven steals.
David Haynes netted 17 points for Arlee, while Zach Running Crane nearly recorded a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds.
Arlee shot 35 percent from beyond the arc, making some key shots in the fourth quarter. Haynes scored four 3-pointers on the night.
It’s the sixth straight year the Warriors qualified for state and they won it all in back-to-back seasons, 2016-17 and 2017-18. They were runners-up in 2016 and 2019.
However this season they transitioned to a larger class, previously being in Class C.
During divisionals, playing in a larger class did not seem to affect the Warriors as they picked up where they left off exhibiting excellent playoff basketball.
This last offseason was also rocky for the Warriors with drama surrounding former head coach Zanen Pitts. The former coach resigned after the Arlee School District and Pitts seemed to fail to resolve their differences.
Zachary Conko Camel took over as head coach and the Warriors appeared to have put all this behind them.
Arlee dropped several close games throughout the season, often losing by fewer than 10 points.
Arlee did not face Eureka or Bigfork in the regular season, however lost both regular season games against Deer Lodge.
Next the Warriors will head to the Class B State Tournament in Butte and play over the weekend of March 12-14.
Western B championship
Arlee 55, Deer Lodge 48
Cody Tanner surpassed the half millennial (500) mark for season scoring, Levi Fullerton crossed the double century (200) demarcation for season scoring, while Zach RunningCrane crested the double century point plateau for varsity career scoring.
Arlee (10-14), Deer Lodge (17-6)
Deer Lodge 9 12 12 15 – 48
Arlee 10 14 10 21 – 55
DEER LODGE – Logan Nicholson 21, *Aiden Thompson 4 6-9 14, *Ben Anderson 2 4-6 8, *Brodey Freeman 3, Ethan Bossert 2. 17-40 12-25
ARLEE – Cody Tanner 5 11-11 22, David Haynes 6 1-2 17, *Zach RunningCrane 4 1-3 10, Levi Fullerton 1 3-4 5, Billy Fisher 1. 16-39 17-22
3FG – DL2-8 (Nicholson, Freeman), A6-17 (Haynes 4, C.Tanner, Z.RunningCrane). REB – DL23 (Thompson 5, Bossert 4, noID3), A28 (Z.RC 9, B.Fisher 5, C.Tanner 4, Fullerton 3, Haynes 2, Jace Arca). AST – DL5 (Bossert 2, Nicholson 2), A9 (Haynes 3, Fullerton 2, Z.RC 2, C.Tanner, Arca). STL – DL13 (Bossert 4, Nicholson 3), A11 (C.Tanner 7, Haynes 3, Fullerton). BLK – DL1 (Anderson), A4 (Z.RC 3, B.Fisher). (Sa29Feb20gm23div)
