Dogs grind out win over Polson

The Whitefish boys basketball team took four charging calls in the final period of a gritty Northwest A victory over Polson on Saturday.

The key defensive stops, along with all-out hustle proved to be the difference in the narrow 40-37 contest.

“Anytime you can keep a team under 40 points in a game you should have a good chance to win,” said Whitefish coach Curtis Green. “I was very pleased with our defensive effort Saturday night.”

The Dogs jumped out to a 12-7 first-quarter lead, but Polson senior Andrew Curley caught fire from deep to cut the margin to 24-22 at half.

Whitefish responded with defensive adjustments to take away the three from Curley.

“We did a great job in the second half keeping them off the glass and limiting them to one shot per possession,” Green said.

A turning point came with three minutes left in the fourth. AJ Wetsch chased down a loose ball along the baseline and found Brian FauntLeRoy open for a jumper to tie it at 34-34.

A minute later, Wetsch crashed the boards for a tough putback to give the Dogs a slim 36-35 lead.

Cody Olson and Luke May hit free throws down the stretch to keep Polson at bay.

Offensively, Green said he liked the Dogs’ movement and shot selection.

Wetsch led the team with 11 points. FauntLeRoy added eight points and six rebounds. May tallied seven points, and Olson dished out three assists.

Whitefish (5-7, 2-2) next hosts Bigfork on Thursday before a conference rematch with Frenchtown on Saturday at home.

“We have two tough games ahead of us this week and need to just continue to improve every practice and game defensively and executing the offense,” Green said.

Whitefish 12 12 8 8 — 40

Polson 7 15 8 7 — 37

Whitefish — Brian FauntLeRoy 3-4 8, AJ Wetsch 5-12 11, Cody Olson 0-4 2, Luke May 2-4 7, Jack Streibich 0-0 2, Luke Cardon 0-0 2, Chaffin Ross 2-4 4