Wildcats fall to Dillon in OT to open season, fall to Frenchtown and Glacier
Austin Green goes up for a tough shot against the Dillon defense at the Class A Tip-Off Tournament in Missoula Friday. Green scored eight in the contest. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Wildcat Matthew Morrison goes up for two of his game-high 14 points against Dillon in the Western A Tip-Off Tournament in Missoula Friday. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Austin Green goes up for a tough shot against the Beavers. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Austin Green goes inside against Dillon. (Jeremy Weber photo)
The Wildcat defense knocks the ball away from a Dillon dribbler. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Matthew Morrison looks for an open teammate. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Matthew Morrison goes up for a shot in the first half againt Dillon. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Matthew Morrison goes up for a basket against the Dillon defense. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Matthew Morrison drives to the basket against the Dillon defense. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Matthew Morrison drives to the basket against the Dillon defense. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Austin Green knocks down a three over the Dillon defense. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Quintin Schriver takes the ball inside against the Dillon Beavers. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Austin Green is hit in the head while going in for a layup against the Beavers. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Matthew Morrison posts up against the Dillon defense. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Quintin Schriver looks to make a pass. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Lowell Panasuk looks to make a move against Dillon. (Jeremy Weber photo)
Strong defense and double-digit second-quarter lead were not enough for the Wildcats Friday as they opened the season with an overtime loss to Dillon at the Northwest A Tip-Off Tournament in Missoula.
The team also fell to Frenchtown in their second game of the tournament Saturday, 38-52.
“I thought we played very well on the defensive end, especially against Dillon. Holding that team to 37 points at the end of regulation is pretty good. If we can play defense like that in the majority of our games, we should be competitive,” head coach Chris Finberg said. “I was happy with how we played against Dillon. I was not pleased that we lost, but we took a pretty good team to overtime and competed with them. I thought we should have won, but we gave it away at the end with a few turnovers.”
The Wildcats held a 25-18 lead at the half against the Beavers, but saw that lead disappear midway through the third quarter. After trailing briefly in the third, Columbia Falls came back to take a 30-28 lead into the fourth.
Both teams had chances to go ahead in the closing minutes of the game, but a pair of blocked shots by Wildcat senior forward Matthew Morrison kept the game knotted at 37-37.
The Wildcats had a chance to win in the closing seconds, but an inbounds pass sailed over the head of Morrison, giving the ball back to Dillon with under a second left in regulation. A desperation three by the Beavers bounced off the front of the rim and the game went to overtime.
In the extra period, the close battle continued as neither side was able to take a sizeable lead.
Trailing by two in the closing seconds, the Wildcats looked to work the ball inside, but were stymied by the Dillon defense. A last-second shot by Austin Green was blocked and the Beavers held on for the victory.
Morrison led the Wildcats with 14 points, eight rebounds and three blocks in the loss while Green added eight points, four rebounds and three assists. Lowell Panasuk had six points, Logan Bechtel had five, Quintin Schriver scored four and Drew Morgan added two.
The Wildcats struggled against the height of Frenchtown in the second game of the tournament Saturday, shooting just 9 for 28 from the field in a 38-52 loss.
“We just couldn’t put the ball in the hoop,” Finberg said. “It was a tough day for us.”
The Wildcats kept the game close in the opening quarter and trailed only 5-6 after eight minutes of play, but the Broncs outscored Columbia Falls 23-10 in the second quarter to build a lead they would not relinquish.
Green was the leading scorer in for the Wildcats in the contest, as he scored 14 points and added five steals and two rebounds. Shriver added eight points, five rebounds and two steals. Morrison led the team in rebounds with seven.
A strong fourth quarter was not enough for the Wildcats at Glacier Tuesday as they fell to the Wolfpack, 43-56.
Columbia Falls struggled to find the basket in the first half, scoring only nine points, but four ther footing in the fourth as they outscored Glacier 21-12 in the frame. The Wildcats outscored the Wolfpack 34-29 in the second half, but could not overcome a 22-point third-quarter deficit.
Morrison led the Wildcats with 12 points and Schriver scored all eight of his points in the fourth quarter. Lowell Panasuk scored seven points, Drew Morgan had six, Logan Bechtel and Billy Barrett each scored four and Green added two.
The Wildcats will be back in action at Stevensville Friday before hosting Flathead Saturday.