Jefferson High’s basketball teams took opposite paths last week: The girls hit a couple of bumps following a strong start to their season, while the boys took two wins after a rough December.
On Thursday, Jan. 5, the Panther squads traveled to Twin Bridges. Twin Bridges is a Class C school, drawing from a small student body. But this year, their girls are…tall. The Falcons’ starting five are 5’11”, 5’10”, 5’9″, and 5’6″ — and they know what to do with the ball when they get it.
The Lady Panthers are smaller, and they struggled against the bigger team. The first quarter was close: A basket by Austie May and a pair of free throws by Cameron Toney put the Panthers up 4-3, MacKenzie Layng stole the ball and scored to tie the game at 6, and two more free throws by Toney made it 8-6. But the Falcons went up 9-8 at the end of one.
The Panthers held a 15-14 lead on a basket by Izzy Morris but the Falcons went into halftime up 26-20. The early minutes of the third belonged to the Falcons, as they surged to a 39-29 lead. The Panthers closed the gap to 7 on a three by May but the Falcons went on another run from there — and Jefferson couldn’t close the gap in the fourth. Final: 52-38.
Toney led the Panthers with 9 points against one of the better teams the Panthers will face in the regular season. Morris and May had 7 each; Hanna Stevens and Arena Faler scored 4, Emma McCauley and Layng 3, and KK Morris 1.
For Jefferson’s boys, it was a different story. The Panthers started with a 6-0 run and built the lead on a basket by Dylan Root, a steal and score by Kael Hesford, and a basket by Hunter Stevens. At the end of one, the score was 12-3.
That lead increased to 16-5 on a basket by Zach Zody, and Luke Oxarart and Dalton Noble sank baskets to put the Panthers up 29-12 at the half. The Panthers kept it up in the third: Mike Emter put in 4 points, and Zody ended the third with a three to make it 46-16. The Panthers finished it off with a strong defensive effort in the fourth, outscoring the Falcons 11-3 for a 57-19 win.
Nine Panthers scored in the game led by Zody’s 16. Root scored 10, Stevens 8, Hesford 7, Emter 5, Oxarart and Noble 4, Marcuss Lee 2, and Tyler McGrady 1.
On Saturday, Sweet Grass County came to Boulder. The boys were up first – and the scoring was slow to get started. Emter hit two baskets, and Zody sank a couple of free throws, and that was it: After one, Jefferson’s lead was just 6-4.
Zody heated up in the second with two threes and a pair of 2-pointers. Stevens and Root added baskets, and the Panthers took a 20-14 lead into the half. Both teams scored 15 points in the third period, with seven of the Herders’ points coming from the free throw line. That reversed in the fourth, with the Panthers hitting 11 of 13 free throws. In all, the Panthers put down 26 points in the last quarter, and came away with a 61-48 win. Zody ended up with 21 points, Emter 12, Stevens 10, Root 8, and Hesford 4.
The Lady Panthers had another tough outing against a strong opponent. In the first period, May hit a 3-pointer and three of four free throws — but otherwise, the Panthers’ shots didn’t fall, and the Herders took advantage of strong long-range shooting to go up 23-12.
Morris started the second with a three, then came up with a steal and hit a two followed by another three. But those were the only points Jefferson would score in the period. Meantime, the Herders were living off Kameryn Ketcham’s 3-point shooting, taking a 34-20 lead at the half.
Toney hit a three to start the third. And Morris was fouled on a three point attempt and calmly stepped to the line and hit all three. But the Herders matched every Panther point, and took a 53-40 lead going into the final eight minutes of play. The Panthers pulled to within 8 on a 3-pointer by Layng, but the Herders held on for a 72-55 win.
Morris had a fantastic night, hitting four 3-pointers, three 2-pointers, and 12 of 13 free throws for 30 points overall, Layng had 7, May 6, Toney 4, McCauley 3, Faler 3, and Stevens 2.
This week the basketball teams were set to host Choteau on Tuesday. They travel to Deer Lodge on Thursday and host Townsend on Saturday. This is Pack the House night with lots of prizes and special half time entertainment. Games start at 1:00 p.m. for C teams, 2:30 for JV teams, girls varsity at 4:00, and boys varsity at 5:30 Wear purple or gold and get in free.
