Boys drop Vikes, but nipped by Chiefs

The Columbia Falls boys basketball team split last week, losing to Ronan on the road 60-56, but coming back to beat Bigfork Saturday at home, 58-46.

The Wildcats pulled away against the Vikings in the second half after both teams didn’t play particularly well in the first half.

Cody Schweikert led the team with 23 points and 8 rebounds, while Jace Hill had 17 points.

The Cats had just four turnovers. They stole the ball nine times against Bigfork — Hill had five steals.

Dayne Tu had four points, including a steal and a layup that sealed the win for the Cats in the fourth. The play got a roar from the crowd and high-fives from teammates.

Overall, coach Chris Finberg was pleased with the play in the second half.

“Very good second half, especially defensively ... we got our offense going from our defense. I liked our ball movement and we took high percentage shots for the most part,” he said.

Against Ronan, Hill had 22 and Schweikert had 18 in the loss.

Finberg said they didn’t defend Ronan’s best player, Marlo Tonasket, very well and it cost them.

The boys play Libby at home Thursday night and then rival Whitefish at home Saturday. Game times are 7:15 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. respectively.

The Cats will look to slow down Libby’s Tyler Anderson and against Whitefish, they’ll need to slow down Carson Gulick. The Cats are now 3-5 overall and 1-1 in conference.