Valley AA Teams Bring Home Basketball Hardware

The Flathead Bravettes improved on last year’s third place finish, losing a tight title game to Billings West in the final minutes. The Bravettes entered the last eight minutes with a single-point lead but came up just short of winning their first state title in 22 years.

The championship game was close throughout, but the Bravettes pushed into a five-point lead in the third quarter, looking for enough momentum to carry through to the final buzzer. Instead, West’s Kourtney Grossman nailed a three-pointer to give the Golden Bears a one-point lead with just over two minutes left, starting a 7-1 scoring run which ended the game.

Flathead’s Kennedy Moore lead all scorers with 17 points and Avery Chouinard added another 14.

“I felt like it could have gone our way, we were right there until the bitter end. Give credit to Billings West, they are a great and athletic team,” Flathead head coach Sam Tudor told 406mtsports.com. “To get by them would have been a tall order but the girls gave it their best and I couldn’t ask for any more.”

 FLATHEAD              11        13        11        8 — 43

 BILLINGS                 16        11        7         14 —48

Wolfpack Boys Bring Home Third-Place Trophy

The Glacier Wolfpack didn’t win the Class AA boys state title as they set out to do this weekend, but on Saturday night at the Butte Civic Center, they did the next best thing — defeating Bozeman 53-43 to take home the third-place trophy.

“These kids, they’re amazing,” Glacier head coach Mark Harkins said. “We’ve got nine seniors and they put in so much time. It’s tough to lose in the semifinal, but I’m just proud of the way they responded. They stayed together and they competed.”

“Just incredibly proud.”

Glacier set the tone right away, scoring the first nine points of the game, causing Bozeman to take a timeout. The Hawks trimmed the lead to three by the end of the opening stanza, yet a 17-9 run in the second sent the Wolfpack into halftime up 11.

In the third quarter, Bozeman trimmed the deficit to five at one point, thanks to a 3-point play by Jake Casagranda, however, that’s as close as they would get. Glacier, meanwhile, never trailed in a wire-to-wire win — their 17th of the 2022-23 season.

The Wolfpack (17-8) will also bring home some state tournament hardware for the first time since the 2016-17 season, sending out a big senior class on a high note, and a standing ovation.

“That’s an awesome feeling,” said Harkins of being able to pull his seniors one last time. “It’s kind of like the victory formation for football. It’s great to be able to get those guys that recognition. They’re a great group.”

Kaid Buls continued his stellar shooting and made multiple 3-pointers for the fourth straight game. This time, he made three from beyond the arc on his way to a game-high 16. Cohen Kastelitz pitched in with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Noah Dowler also tacked on nine points while grabbing 12 rebounds.

GLACIER                   17        17        9          10 — 53

BOZEMAN                14        9          13        7    —43