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Polson Pirates defeat Libby, Bigfork

by BRANDON HANSEN For the Leader
| January 30, 2025 12:00 AM

Pirates defeat Libby

The Polson Pirates opened the second half with a 20-9 run and defeated Libby in Northwestern A Conference action by a score of 66-50 on Saturday, Jan. 25.

Cason Graham led the way with nine field goals for 21 points and nine rebounds, while Malakia Curley added seven buckets and 20 points while posting seven rebounds and two blocks.

Polson trailed 12-11 after one quarter but went into halftime with a 23-20 lead before their big run in the third quarter. Maddox Bird also had five rebounds and 11 points, while Kyson Michel scored nine points.

The win improved Polson to 3-1 in conference play and 6-4 overall while Libby fell to 0-4 in conference play.

At Libby

POLSON 66, LIBBY 50

Polson - 11 - 12 - 20 - 23 - 66

Libby - 12 - 8 - 9 - 21 - 50

POLSON SCORING: Cason Graham 21, Malakai Curley 20, Maddox Bird 11, Kyson Michel 9, Cody Haggard 5

Haggard and Curley come up big in Bigfork win 

Cody Haggard was fouled when he scored with 19 seconds left in overtime and hit a free throw to pull off an impactful three-point play to help lift Polson past Bigfork in overtime 62-59 in Northwestern A Conference play. Malakai Curley then closed out the contest in Polson with two free throws on Tuesday, Jan. 21.

Bigfork had led 26-22 at halftime, but Polson pulled ahead 34-33 in the third quarter. Trailing in the fourth, Polson’s Curley was fouled on a three-point attempt with 2.1 seconds left and hit all three shots to force overtime.

Curley finished the game with 20 points and five assists, hitting 7-of-9 free throws. Cason Graham added another 17 points off seven field goals to go along with five steals. Kyson Michel had nine points, while Cody Haggard added seven.

The loss dropped Bigfork to 1-2 in conference play and 3-6 overall.

At Polson

POLSON 62, BIGFORK 59

Bigfork - 15 - 11 - 7 - 18 - 8 - 59

Polson - 8 - 14 - 12 - 17 - 11 - 62

POLSON SCORING: Malakai Curley 20, Cason Graham 17, Kyson Michel 9, Cody Haggard 7, Maddox Bird 5, Jesse Vail 2, Holden Emerson 2.


Browning drops Ronan

Browning stayed undefeated in Northwestern A Conference play, making the best of a 22-9 run in the second quarter for a 64-54 victory over Ronan on Saturday, Jan. 25.

Ronan led 17-14 after one quarter, but the Indians jumped ahead in the second for a 36-26 halftime lead. Browning added three more points to that lead in the third and held the Chiefs back in the fourth.

The win improved Browning to 5-3 on the season overall and 3-0 in conference action. Ronan fell to 3-1 in conference play and 7-3 overall.

Kolby Finley led the Chiefs with 20 points, while Tayen Edmo and Jhett McDonald each had six points.

At Browning

BROWNING 64, RONAN 53

Ronan - 17 - 9 - 13 - 14 - 53

Browning - 14 - 22 - 16 - 12 - 64

RONAN SCORING: Kolby Finley 20, Tayen Edmo 6, Jhett McDonald 6, Laurance Lozeau 5, Teddy SpottedEagle 5, Wade Qualtier 4, Chad Higgins 4, Sean Small 3


Chiefs kennel Whitefish Bulldogs

The Chiefs jumped out to a strong start and cruised to a 61-48 victory over Whitefish in Northwestern A Conference basketball action on Thursday, Jan. 23.

Kolby Finley led Ronan with 16 points and four assists as the Chiefs won their third straight conference game. Sean Small posted a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.

After one quarter, Ronan led 20-11 and pushed their advantage to 32-20 at halftime. While Whitefish shaved one point off the Chiefs’ lead in the third, Ronan outscored the Bulldogs by two points in the fourth.

Whitefish dropped to 0-2 in conference play and 3-4 overall.

At Whitefish

RONAN 61, WHITEFISH 48

Ronan - 20 - 12 - 18 - 11 - 61

Whitefish - 11 - 9 - 19 - 9 - 48

RONAN SCORING: Kolby Finley 16, Laurance Lozeau 15, Sean Small 14, Jhett McDonald 7, Tayen Edmo 3, Wade Qualtier 2, Chad Higgins 2, Teddy SpottedEagle 2


Superior comes back against Mission

Lex LaFrombois crossed the 300-point mark in the season, but the Bulldogs lost to Superior 52-44 in Western 7B basketball action on Friday, Jan. 24.

The Bulldogs led 24-21, but Superior outscored Mission 18-11 in the third quarter to pull ahead.

LaFrombois finished with 28 points, while Jason Leishman added eight.

Mission fell to 3-7 overall and 1-2 in Western 7B play, while Superior improved to 6-4 overall.

At St. Ignatius

SUPERIOR 52, MISSION 44

Superior - 16 -5 - 18 - 13 - 52

Mission - 16 - 8 - 11 - 9 - 44

MISSION SCORING: Lex LaFrombois 28, Jason Leishman 8, Vinny Shepard 3, Jake Helser 3, Harlon Leishman 2


LaFrombois scores 40 in win over Plains

Lex LaFrombois scored a career-high 40 points as Mission defeated Plains 73-66 in Western 7B basketball action on Thursday, Jan. 23. He also crossed 700 points scored for his career.

The Bulldogs led 32-31 at halftime and then increased their advantage by seven more points in the third quarter.

Vinny Shepard added 16 points to Mission’s total, while Jason Leishman notched six.

Plains fell to 4-6 on the season with the loss.

At Plains

MISSION 73, PLAINS 66

Mission - 12 - 20 - 23 - 18 - 73

Plains - 14 - 17 - 16 - 19 - 66

MISSION SCORING: Lex LaFrombois 40, Vinny Shepard 16, Jason Leishman 6, Jake Helser 5, Harlon Leishman 4, Macklen McDonald 2


Hot Springs nets win over Charlo

Hot Springs had a quick start to their Western 13C matchup against Charlo en route to a 75-48 victory on Saturday, Jan. 25.

Karsen Cox scored 31 points and crossed 300 points on the season. The Vikings, however, trailed 23-8 after one quarter and 37-20 at halftime.

Charlo fell to 3-9 overall and 1-6 in league action while Hot Springs improved to 4-3 in league play and 5-8 overall.

At Hot Springs

HOT SPRINGS 75, CHARLO 48

Charlo - 8 - 12 - 17 - 11 - 48

H-Springs - 23 - 14 - 22 - 16 - 75


Vikings take down Alberton

Charlo outscored Alberton by nine points in the second quarter and went on a 15-9 run in the third quarter of a 57-44 Western 13C victory on Friday, Jan. 24.

Karson Cox hit 10 shots for 22 points while hauling down 16 rebounds and collecting four steals for the Vikings. Ranson Hout added 15 points and six rebounds.

Tasker Brown was the third Viking in double digits, scoring 12 points and 11 rebounds. He was also the second with a double-double.

Alberton fell to 2-9 on the season with the loss and 1-5 in league play.

At Alberton

CHARLO 57, ALBERTON 44

Alberton - 12 - 10 - 6 - 16 - 44

Charlo - 12 - 19 - 15 - 11 - 57

CHARLO SCORING: Karsen Cox 22, Ranson Hout 15, Tasker Brown 12, AJ Kobilansky 3, Avery Long 3, Kenyan DuMont 2.


Two Eagle Defeats Alberton

Two Eagle started strong and flew to a 57-42 Western 13C victory over Alberton on Saturday, Jan. 25, winning their third league game of the year.

Jayvian Burke led the Eagles with 13 points, while Talon Addison added 11 points. In all, nine different Two Eagle players scored in the matchup.

Two Eagle led 19-6 after one quarter and expanded the lead to 30-15 at halftime. The Eagles then went on a 17-9 run in the third quarter.

Alberton fell to 2-10 on the year with the loss, while Two Eagle improved to 6-7 overall and 3-4 in league play.

At Pablo

TWO EAGLE 57, ALBERTON 42

Alberton - 6 - 9 - 9 - 18 - 42

TERS - 19 - 11 - 17 - 10 - 57

TWO EAGLE SCORING: Jayvian Burke 13, Talon Addison 11, Lathan PrettyWeasel 8, Wyatt Thomas 7, Jamian Adams 6, Thomas Addison 6, Rhiley Gates 2, Kayson Gates 2, Iggy Quequesah 2

Eagles drop game to undefeated St. Regis

Two Eagle couldn’t crack the code against undefeated St. Regis as the Tigers picked up a 62-46 Western 13C victory to improve to 11-0 on the year on Friday, Jan. 24.

Talon Addison led the Eagles with 16 points, and Two Eagle had a 13-11 lead in the first quarter. St. Regis went on a 20-9 run in the second quarter for a 31-22 halftime lead. Both offenses combined for 41 points in the third quarter but the Tigers finished the game on a 10-4 run.

Jamian Adams added seven points to the Eagles total, while Thomas Addison added six.

At St. Regis

ST. REGIS 62, TWO EAGLE 46

TERS - 13 - 9 - 20 - 4 - 46

St.Regis - 11 - 20 - 21 - 10 - 62

TWO EAGLE SCORING: Talon Addison 16, Jamian Adams 7, Thomas Addison 6, Rhiley Gates 5, Kayson Gates 3, Jayvian Burke 2

    Polson's Carson Graham led the way against Libby last week with nine field goals for 21 points. (Niki Graham photo)
 
 
    Chief Sean Small tips the ball to set the tone for Ronan's win over the Whitefish Bulldogs. (Susan Lake photo)
 
 
    Mission's Lex LaFrombois scored a career-high 40 points against Plains last Thursday, while also topping 700 points scored for his career. (Christa Umphrey photo)