Future looks brighter for boys basketball program

While the Columbia Falls boys basketball season came to a disappointing end, the future is looking brighter for the program and the Wildcats should have a solid core of players with varsity experience coming back next year.

The team will lose all its starters but one to graduation, but will return junior Allec Knapton, who averaged a double-double in his last five games of the year.

They’ll also return sophomores Cade Morgan and Mason Peters. Both players gave the team quality minutes off the bench.

“We’ll have three guys back with lots of varsity experience,” coach Chris Finberg said.

Finberg said he’s also hopeful with the incoming freshman class.

“I’m pretty excited about the freshman class,” he said.

The class includes Jace Hill, who helped lead the Deer Park 7th and 8th grade team to the small school championships this winter.

But success comes with hard work and Finberg notes it’s the players that put in the time during the offseason playing ball and hitting the weight room that make the difference.

Open gyms start in April and run through the second week of July. There’s also summer league tournaments in June.