Wildcats top 'Dogs, edged by Ronan

By CHRIS PETERSON - Hungry Horse News

Oh so close.

After a fiery win on Thursday against Whitefish, 57-49, the Columbia Falls boys basketball team battled back from a first-half deficit against Ronan, only to lose on a 3-point buzzer beater, 56-54, by the Chiefs' Nolan Harris.

Against Whitefish, Columbia Falls jumped out to an early lead against the Bulldogs and it looked like it might be a blowout.

But Whitefish had a run of its own in the third quarter and then took the lead after Chase Grilley was called for a foul underneath on Bulldog Colt Idol. Cats Coach Cary Finberg didn't like the call, as Grilley took an elbow in the mouth. Finberg argued with the refs and was given a technical foul. Whitefish took the lead after Idol sunk the free throws.

Momentum Bulldogs, right?

Wrong.

The Cats took back the lead at the 3:02-mark of the third and never trailed again.

Mackey Nolan led the team with 19 points, followed by Grilley with 12, Grant Getts and Mitchell Wassam seven each, Zane Ridings four, Chase Fairbank and Michael Williams three each, and Cody Bowman two.

The Cats out-rebounded the Dogs, 35-22. Getts had eight boards to lead the team. Grilley and Nolan had seven apiece.

In the third, Finberg said the team's intensity picked back up after Whitefish's run.

"We did a good job of answering right back with our own run," Finberg said.

Finberg also gave kudos to Nolan, who has a stellar game.

"Mackey played his most aggressive game of the year," Finberg said.

Against Ronan, the Cats were down 25-19 at the half, but scored 19 in the third to tie it at 38 apiece. The lead went back and forth. With about 13 seconds left, Getts made a shot and was fouled. He drained the free throw to put the Cats up by one. Ronan got the ball back and Harris' final shot from 24 feet out dropped as time expired.

Finberg noted that while everyone remembers the last shot, it was the first half that did in the Cats. It's tough to win against Ronan when you only have 19 points in two quarters. He said the team came out flat after an emotional win against Whitefish. Not that it should be an excuse. Still, the coach was pleased the team battled back.

Grilley led the Cats with 24, Nolan had 10, Getts seven, Fairbank and Bowman four each, Ridings three and Wassam two.

The Wildcats are now 4-1 in conference play and have two non-conference games this week, an away game against Eureka tonight (Thursday) at 7:30 and a game at Glacier High School Friday at 6 p.m.

Glacier High School — a new school since the split of Kalispell into two high schools — has no seniors.

Finberg isn't taking either match-up lightly. Players will see a lot of playing time and the non-conference games will be a good way to get the team playing better, according to the coach. The ultimate goal is a trip to the state tournament and Finberg said the team needs to build on its successes and work on its weaknesses in the coming weeks.

They also have another non-conference game Jan. 24 at Big Sky and then they come back and finish the conference schedule. Big Sky should be tough, too. They beat Flathead last week.

COLUMBIA FALLS (4-0, 7-3)

Fairbank 1 1-2 3, Bowman 0 2-4 2, Ridings 1 2-2 4, Nolan 8 2-3 19, Grilley 5 1-6 12, Wassam 2 3-4 7, Getts 3 1-2 7, Williams 1 1-2 3. Totals 21 13-25 57.

WHITEFISH

Whitehead 1 1-2 4, ATkachyk 1 0-0 3, Watterud 3 5-7 13, Backer 0 0-0 0, Hotzfield 1 0-1 3, Flickinger 0 1-2 1, Idol 9 4-6 23, Smith 0 1-3 1, FauntLeRoy 0 1-2 1. Totals 15 13-23 49.

Columbia Falls 21 8 12 16 — 57

Whitefish 10 9 19 11 — 49

3-point goals — CF 2-12 (Nolan 1-3, Grilley 1-5), WF 5-12 (Watterud 2-4, Hotzfield 1-1, Idol 1-3, Tkachyk 1-4). Rebounds — CF 39 (Getts 9, Grilley 8, Nolan 7, Ridings 5, WF 27 (FauntLeRoy 6, Watterud 5, Idol 5, Smith 5). Assists — CF 9 (Nolan 3, Grilley 2, Bowman 2), WF 4 (Idol 2). Steals — CF 11 (Ridings 4, Grilley 3, Fairbank 2, Getts, Bowman), WF 4 (Smith 2, Idol, Watterud). Turnovers — CF 17, WF 19. Team fouls — CF 20, WF 19. Fouled out — None. Technicals — CF coach Finberg.

COLUMBIA FALLS (4-1, 7-4)

Fairbank 4, Bowman 4, Ridings 3, Nolan 10, Grilley 24, Wassam 2, Getts 7.

RONAN

Tanner 17, Fisher 2, Hesselgesser 9, Kelch 2, St. Clair 10, Ness 2, Harris 14.

Columbia Falls 9 10 19 16 — 54

Ronan 13 12 13 18 — 56