Boys are Butte bound: Photos of tourney in Photo Gallery
The Columbia Falls boys basketball team took the Northwest A divisional crown on Saturday.
While the team was happy, there were no jubilant celebrations. Everyone knows this is just another step in pursuit of a second state title in the past three seasons.
The Cats beat Libby for the divisional crown 62-52 in a game that was a lot tighter than the final score would suggest.
Senior Anthony Minson came up huge in the second half against Libby, scoring 22 for the game and 14 in the second half.
It was a big game for the Cats' big man, who didn't score any in the Bigfork win earlier in the tourney.
But that's been the Cats' mantra all year long. If someone is having an off night, someone else steps up. Saturday night was Minson's time to step up big, and he delivered.
Jace Ladenburg also had a great game, scoring 11. Ladenburg hit some clutch free throws in the first half that kept the Cats close to the Loggers, who led most of the first half.
Also scoring against Libby were Kevin Boyer with 10, Drew Perry with nine, J.D. Fields with five, Guy Smith with four and Greg Macijunas with one.
Boyer had a huge steal in the fourth. With a little more than a minute left and the Cats up 55-47, they switched from a zone to a man-to-man defense.
Boyer stole the ball from Libby's Aaron Sutton as he drove down the left side. Boyer streaked toward the basket but was fouled on the layup. He drained both free throws to put the Cats up by 10 and to pretty much seal the win.
Libby kept the game tight and led after the first quarter 14-12 and at the half 29-24. The Loggers were actually up 29-22, but Ladenburg was fouled just as the half ended. He drained both free throws with no time on the clock to cut the margin to five.
The Cats shook off their poor shooting in the first half and had big third and fourth quarters, scoring 17 and 21.
Ladenburg had a great weekend.
"When he entered the game both nights, he came in with an aggressive physical presence that set the tone," coach Cary Finberg said.
Against Bigfork, it was the Cats' guards that had big games. Drew Perry led the scoring with 16, followed by Fields with 14, Ladenburg with 13, Boyer with 11, Smith with nine, Heinrichs with two and Nick Beckwith with two as they won 67-55.
The game started out slow with both teams tied at 13 after the first stanza.
But the Cats had one of their trademark second quarters, scoring 27.
The difference in the past two weeks for Columbia falls has been defense, Finberg said.
"Defensively, we're just playing so much better," Finberg said. That, in turn, has made the Cats scoring chances that much easier.
The Cats now face Browning in the first round of the state tourney at 8 p.m. at the Civic Center March 10. (See bracket on page A11). Browning is coming off a huge divisional tourney in the Central to get a state berth, knocking out top-ranked Havre.
Finberg isn't taking them lightly.
"Our goal all year was to get to the state tourney," Finberg said. "Now we have to readjust. Our goal now is to win that first game."
Columbia Falls 67, Bigfork 55
Columbia Falls 13 27 12 15 67
Bigfork 13 11 10 21 55
Columbia Falls 62, Libby 52
Columbia Falls 12 12 17 21 62
Libby 14 15 9 14 52