Taking a Break: How leagues are shaping up after early play

The winter sports season always heats up after Christmas break, but the holidays do give the state a chance to look around and see how the early season is going for teams. While a handful of games isn’t enough of a sample size to plot out the rest of the year, it does give us some glimpses into how the basketball season could shape up.

CLASS A BOYS

Polson’s Jarret Wilson has been on a tear to begin the season, averaging 24.2 points per game and 8.2 rebounds while shooting 52 percent from the field. He is the top scorer in the conference and the second highest-scoring player in the entire state for Class A and third in the state for rebounds and second for steals.

The Pirates were able to squeeze in a non-conference matchup against Missoula Loyola last Tuesday before an Arctic blast shut down the state. Wilson notched 30 points in the game on 13-of-20 shooting, but Polson fell 68-49 to the 4-0 Rams. The Pirates go into the break with a 2-3 record. They do have the most powerful offense in the Northwest A Conference with 279 points scored and they did pick up a conference victory over Libby.

Columbia Falls leads the conference with a 3-1 record and a balanced attack. Jace Hill is the only Wildkat averaging double-digit points with 13 points per game. But there are three other players averaging nine points a contest as well. The offense is humming for Columbia Falls as they are averaging 65.2 points per game.

Ronan has only played three games so far this year. The season opener was against last year’s fourth place state team, Hamilton, and the Chiefs played the game close, losing by a score of 67-59. They then continued to operate well on offense, beating East Helena 61-45.

Their first conference game was a 50-36 loss to Libby to fall to 1-2 and their home matchup against Browning was changed due to the weather.

Elijah Tonasket is averaging 10.3 points per game, while Marlo Tonasket is notching 11 points before game. Both of them are averaging about five rebounds per game. Marlo is ranked eighth in the state for free throw percentage at 85.7 percent.

Last year, Polson won the conference championship with an 8-2 record and placed third in state, while Ronan was fifth with a 4-6 record. Four of the five teams in the Northwest A league had a winning record in 2021-22, showcasing an extremely difficult league to play in.

CLASS A GIRLS

Ronan picked up their first win of the season on Dec. 15 with a 43-21 conference victory over Libby after losses to Hamilton and East Helena. The Maidens are led by the conference’s top leading scorers: Olivia Heiner and Leina Ulutoa, who are each averaging 13.3 points per game. This also puts them in the top ten for Class A in the entire state. Ulutoa is also averaging nine rebounds a game which is sixth in the state for Class A and second in the conference.

Last year, Ronan was third in the conference with a 13-5 record behind Browning and Columbia Falls.

Polson was fourth in the conference with a 4-14 record, but the Lady Pirates already have put in a solid 3-2 start. Under former MSU player and Ronan standout Brandie Buckless, Polson has picked up wins over Corvallis, Libby and Missoula Loyola.

Addyson Gallatin has been leading Polson with 9.2 points per game and 9.6 rebounds a game. That ranks her fourth in the conference in scoring and No. 1 in the conference in rebounding. Mila Hawk is averaging 7.6 points per game and six rebounds a game as well, which is sixth in the conference for scoring and fourth in rebounding.

Last year, Browning and Columbia Falls were the powers with identical 9-1 league records and 14-4 overall records.

CLASS B BOYS

Arlee has scored the most out of anyone in the Western 6B league with 370 points in six games. With a 4-2 record, two of those losses have unfortunately come at the hand of 4-0 league foes Missoula Loyola and Anaconda.

Jace Arca and Ben Old Person-Harlow have shown they can be double-digit scoring threats. Team captain Dallas Swab suffered a thigh contusion and could miss a few games in the meat of Arlee’s schedule.

Over in the Western 7B League, Bigfork has once again proven to be the area’s powerhouse on the hardwood with a 3-0 league start and 4-2 overall record. The Vikings have notched a whopping 346 points in six games.

Thompson Falls is sitting in second place with a 2-0 league record and 4-0 overall record. Mission is currently in third place with a 1-1 league record and a 1-3 overall record. In a Dec. 13 matchup against Troy, the Bulldogs’ Zoran LaFrombois popped up for 42 points and is averaging 29 points per game.

CLASS B GIRLS

Mission has started the season hot with a 3-1 record after wins over Fairfield, Cut Bank and Troy. Their offense has been powerful with 205 points scored in four games, the third best in the Western 7B. Kason Page, Izzy Evans, Kooper Page, Cora Matt and Elannah Flat Lip have all scored double digit points this year, showing a very balanced attack for the Lady Bulldogs.

They’re sitting behind Bigfork and Thompson Falls in the standings.

The Bigfork girls are 6-0 and coming off a third place finish in the state tournament last year and look very powerful with 432 points scored in six games. They have been rolling through the schedule, holding four teams in the teens and one team in single digits.

In the Western 6B, Arlee is 1-5 but has a solid offense with 257 points in six games. The league has been competitive with Florence-Carlton in first place with a 2-1 league record. Anaconda has the best overall record in the league with a 3-1 mark and has an offense that has scored the most (260 points) and the defense has given up the second least (180 points).

Arlee’s Raven Parson and Princess Bolen have been top scorers for the Scarlets with double digit games to their name.

CLASS C BOYS

St. Regis sits atop the Western 14C League with a 6-0 overall record and 2-0 league record and has the top offense with 387 points scored.

Charlo is sitting in second place with 3-2 overall record and 1-0 league mark. They have the second most powerful offense with 295 points scored. Tucker Love, Keaton Piedalue, Stetson Reum, Hayden Hollow and Wesley Anderson have led the balanced attack for the Vikings, all notching double digit point games.

Two Eagle is perched in third with a 2-3 overall record and has the third-most powerful offense with 265 points scored. The trio of Devon Arlee, Thomas Spotted Eagle and Riley After Buffalo has been extremely explosive as the Eagles have scored over 50 points in four games this year.

CLASS C GIRLS

Charlo is off to a 3-2 start in the Western 14C and is one of four teams with a league win. The Lady Vikings have the third-most powerful offense in the league with 198 points in five games, led by double digit performances by Hayleigh Smith, Sheridan Kain, Seeley McDonald and Darcy Coleman. Sitting atop the league is Superior with a 4-1 overall record and an average of 50 points per game scored.

Two Eagle River is 1-4 overall but has a league win under their belt. The Lady Eagles picked up their first win of the season on Dec. 17 with a 41-25 victory. Sarah Gardipe led Two Eagle with 21 points in that matchup.