For the first time in three years, Jefferson High’s girls basketball squad is headed to the Divisional tournament.
The Panther boys will have to wait for next year.
Like everything else in this pandemic year, the District 5B tournaments had a very different look: Instead of the usual four-day event at Belgrade, games were played at the gym of the higher seed.
That meant the Lady Panthers began the tournament at home against Manhattan. The Tigers finished last in conference play, but they had improved over the course of the season — so nothing was a given.
Cia Stuber provided the fire in the first quarter, knocking down a pair of three-pointers, a two, and two free throws to lead the Panthers to a one-point edge at the end of one. Jefferson pulled away in the second, with Rachel Van Blaricom finding the range and working out of double teams to put in seven of her team’s 13 points. At the half, it was 27-20.
The Tigers came back in the third, sinking seven of 10 free throws to take a one-point lead. But in the final period, Dakota Edmisten took over, hitting a three and then adding six more points with assists from Van Blaricom.
Final: 55-44. Van Blaricom was high scorer with 15 points; Stuber added 14, Edmisten 11, Austie May 6, Olivia Lyon 4, Grace Alexander and Sam Zody 2.
The win sent the Panthers to Whitehall, with the winner advancing to the championship and a place in the divisional tournament. The Trojans put in the first five points and jumped to an early 9-2 lead before Zody stopped the run with a three-pointer. Van Blaricom converted an old- fashioned three, and Edmisten hit two baskets and a free throw to knot the game at 13.
Alexander put the Panthers up 15-13 starting the second, but the next nine points went to the Trojans. Threes by Van Blaricom and Edmisten closed some ground, but it was Whitehall by five at the half.
The Panthers made a run in the third, closing the gap to one. But then the fouls started piling up, and Whitehall made 12 of 14 free throws to pad their lead. With a little over three minutes left, the Trojans went into a control game, and it paid off with a 54-45 win. Van Blaricom led Jefferson with 16 points, Edmisten 12, Alexander 7, Zody 6, Abbie Youde 2, Hailee Stiles and Stuber 1.
The loss put the Panthers in a position of having to win two more games in order to qualify for Divisionals. They returned to their home court to play Townsend in what turned out to be a low-scoring affair. A three by Stuber put Jefferson up 5-1, but in the next four minutes the Panthers were only able to add a couple of free throws. Fortunately the Bulldogs were not having any luck either, leaving the score just 7-3 after one.
The offenses still couldn’t get into gear in the second: Stuber provided a pair of three-pointers, and the Panthers crept to a 17-9 halftime margin. Then came the third, with just nine points scored between the two teams. The score resembled a volleyball match with both teams trying to hit 25 points.
At last, Jefferson found the hoop in the final period. Van Blaricom put in 10 of her 15 points, Stuber added her fourth three of the game, and to the relief of their fans, the Panthers took the 41-27 win. Stuber and Van Blaricom had 15 points each, Edmisten 7, Lyon 2, Zody and Izzy Morris 1.
With a trip to Division on the line, the Panthers played Manhattan again on Saturday night. Once again, Stuber started the game with a three and then added another a few minutes later. Youde added a two, Morris fed Edmisten for a basket and Van Blaricom followed with another assist to Edmisten to give the Panthers a 14-9 lead at the end of one.
A three by Zody put the Panthers up 17-11 but the next six points went the Tigers’ way. Another three by Stuber followed by a two by Morris gave the Panthers a little breathing room, but a last-second three by the Tigers made it 24-23 at the half.
The third quarter was really the difference: The Panthers held Manhattan to a pair of free throws and cruised to a 35-25 lead. Manhattan’s 6-0 run narrowed the gap to four, but free throws made the difference down the stretch. Grace Alexander hit six of 10, and the rest of the team went four for six. The final was 46-35 — and the Panthers had their ticket to Billings. Stuber led with 12 points, Van Blaricom 10, Zody 9, Alexander 7, Edmisten 4, Morris and Youde 2.
Jefferson will play Columbus on Wednesday at 1:00 p.m. The top three advance to State next week, again in Billings.
Meanwhile, the Panther boys opened the play-offs against their old nemeses from Whitehall. The Trojans had been winless in conference play, but everyone knew this would be a tight contest.
In fact, the two teams stayed close in the first quarter, with the score tied several times, including 13 all at the end of one. The Panthers took a 21-18 lead on a two-pointer by Wade Rykal, but the Trojans surged to a 29-25 lead at the half.
A steal and score by Braden Morris followed by five points from Trent McMaster, a two by Rykal and a free throw by Luke Eckmann gave the Panthers a 39-38 lead after three. And it looked like Jefferson would pull out the win after a pair of free throws by McMaster made it 47-44 with less than a minute left. But two baskets put Whitehall up 48-47, and it held on for the 50-47 win. McMaster led the Panthers with 19 points; Joe Visser added 11, Rykal 8, Morris 7, Eckmann and Jayden Kemner 1.
The Panthers fell into the loser-out bracket and played Three Forks on Friday. Three Forks wasted no time jumping out to a 10-3 lead before the Panthers clawed back on three-pointers by Morris and Visser. But then Wolves forged ahead 21-10 at the end of one.
The teams played almost even in the second, with McMaster accounting for eight of his team’s 14 points. Still, the Wolves led by 36-24 at the half. Both teams heated up in the third: Back-to-back three-pointers by Tyler Harrington and a three by Eckmann made it a nine-point game.
But in the fourth, free throws made the difference. The Wolves connected on seven of nine, and the Panthers went zero for six. Three Forks outscored Jefferson 18-11 in the final period to take the win, 75-56.
That ended the Panthers’ season. This was a great team that was fun to watch — and all but one senior will be back next year. McMaster had 16 points in the last outing; Visser added 13, Morris 12, Harrington 9, Eckmann and Jake Genger 3.
