Bulldogs drop two teeth-clenchers

The difference between two confidence-building victories and two momentum-crushing losses turned out to consist of a combined total of two points for the Whitefish boys basketball team over the weekend.

Unfortunately, the Bulldogs were on the wrong end of that difference, as they lost to Class AA Flathead by a point on Friday and then fell to Libby by the same margin the next day.

In Friday’s contest, the Bulldogs were ahead until the final eight seconds of the game, when Flathead’s Danny Salois hit the game-winning trey to give his team a 67-66 come-from-behind victory.

The Bulldogs let the Braves score 20 points in the fourth quarter after leading most of the game.

Whitefish’s Colt Idol took a jump shot in the final seconds to try to win it, but the ball bounced off the rim and the visiting fans went crazy.

Idol scored a game-high 23 points. Aaron Tkachyk added 12, and David FauntLeRoy had nine for Whitefish.

It was the second blown lead and one-point loss to a Class AA team for the ‘Dogs this season. In December, they watched a big lead slip away and lost by a point to Glacier.

“We just need to finish a game,” said head coach Eric Stang. “We need to start playing smarter and be more consistent.

In Saturday’s match-up against Northwestern A nemesis Libby, the Bulldogs went into halftime tied with the Loggers. They took a lead in the third quarter, but Libby made some clutch free throws down the stretch. It was a defensive struggle the whole game, but Whitefish fell 45-46.

Cold Idol led the way with 20 points. Willie Roche had three, Marc Hotzfield had five, and Connor Silliker had a bucket. Tkachyk had 10 points, and FauntLeRoy had five.

It was the fourth loss in a row for Whitefish.

The ‘Dogs host Eureka on Friday, then travel to Flathead for a rematch with the Braves on Saturday.

Flathead   19 11 17 20  - 67

Whitefish  18 19 15 14  - 66

FLATHEAD — Danny Salois 3 0-0 8, Tanner Salois 3 0-0 7, Cody Bouley 2 1-1 5, Ian Gillespie 1 0-0 3, Karl Ingram 7 2-2 16, George Sherwood 4 1-1 10, Mike Vanarendonk 3 1-3 7, Tyler Hawkins 4 3-5 11. Totals 27 8-12 67.

WHITEFISH — Matt Whitehead 1 0-0 2, Aaron Tkaychk 3 3-5 12, Willie Roche 2 2-3 7, Marc Hotzfield 2 2-2 7, Connor Silliker 2 2-3 6, Colt Idol 9 3-4 23, David FauntLeRoy 3 3-5 9. Totals 22 15-22 66

3-pointers — Flathead 5 (D. Salois 2, T. Salois, Sherwood, Gillespie); Whitefish 7 (Tkaychk 3, Idol 2, Roche, Hotzfield); Totals fouls — Flathead 22, Whitefish 11; Fouled out — Flathead (Sherwood); Technicals — Whitefish (Tkaychk)

Whitefish  8 15 13  9    - 45

Libby        6 17 10 13   - 46

Whitefish — Matt Whitehead 0, Aaron Tkaychk 10, Willie Roche 3, Marc Hotzfield 5, Connor Silliker 2, Colt Idol 20, David FauntLeRoy 5

Libby — TJ Benson 4, Connor Benson 13, Kelly May 1, Joel Fuller 8, Colton Cannon 10, Alex Cislo 8