Senior, Kody Strutz (5) moving the ball for the shot.
Sophomore, Ryder Galbavy (32) puts the ball up to score.
The Pioneers started, ready to play. The boys hustled hard on defense, with excellent ball pressure and high hands in a half-court press. Fort Benton struggled to set up any offense and turned the ball over several times in the first quarter. Big Sandy had great ball movement and got some great offensive plays from several players. Braydon Cline had a great pass to Wylie Snapp, who finished with a bucket and one. Kody Strutz and Isaac Pedraza had some great drives to the basket and some great passes to open teammates. Strutz had some incredible steals. Pedraza had a great pass to Cline. Wylie Snapp hit a three-pointer to end the 1st quarter ahead 16-7.
The Longhorns came out in the 2nd quarter after making some adjustments and got into a much better offensive flow. Fort Benton hit some big buckets and held the Pioneers to only one point in the first 3 minutes, coming within 6 points. Cline hit a much-needed bucket to give a spark to the Pioneers. After several turnovers on both ends of the floor, Snapp got a steal, and Strutz had a nice take to the basket. Rusty Gasvoda and his tenacious hustle lifted the Pioneers back into the game. Cooper Taylor had a nice rebound and put back, and a steal from Pedraza gave some light to the Pioneers. Despite Fort Benton's effort, they went into halftime down 15-24.
The 3rd quarter started out strong for both teams. Both team's battles on the boards and the Pioneers pressured Fort Benton and caused them to make some unforced errors, leading them to call a timeout early. Braydon Cline had a big 3rd quarter with some nice drives and made buckets. The Pioneers had some great hustle plays, as well as some great efforts and contributions by Jake Darlington, Wylie Snapp, and Rusty Gasvoda. The Pioneers held their lead of 9 points finishing off the 3rd quarter with a score of 39-30.
Fort Benton came out of the 4th quarter trying all they could to close the gap on the score and made two putbacks. Both Cline and Strutz were playing with three fouls in the 4th quarter, with Strutz picking up a 4th foul early in the 4th quarter. After some breakdowns in Big Sandy's defense and fast break opportunities, Fort Benton pulled within 4 points with 3:30 left in the game. Gasvoda made a big reverse layup, and Big Sandy followed with a defensive rebound on the other end of the floor, followed by a hustle play by Snapp, putting the Pioneers back on top 52-45 with 2:00 left in the game. After some crucial turnovers on both ends of the floor and some fouls by Fort Benton, Pedraza hit some big free throws at the end of the game to seal the deal for the Pioneers.
Pioneers beat the Beaters handily Friday night, winning 67-52. The Pioneers started out with strong pressure defense, causing Chinook to have two turnovers which Big Sandy took advantage taking an early lead of 9-0. The momentum didn't stop with a couple of steals from Rusty Gasvoda and a good take from Issac Pedraza, finishing with an AND1 and hitting a 3-pointer, putting the Pioneers on top 15-2. However, Chinook didn't give up and got some fast break opportunities, rebounds, and putbacks. Chinook scored on an out-of-bounds play before the end of the quarter, putting them within 7 points. The score was going into the 2nd quarter 21-14, Big Sandy up.
2nd quarter had free throws being shot early due to fouls. After a couple of buckets by Chinook off of some rebounds, they pull within 4 points with 2:30 left in the half. Big Sandy had some big steals from Cline and some pressure defense from the Pioneers, which led to a good take by Pedraza to the basket, going into halftime up on the Beaters 32-24.
Chinook came out ready to play at the half and made some changes to their game. After some missed opportunities on the offensive end and turnovers, Chinook took advantage and pulled within 3 points. Big Sandy didn't give up, and after a Cline 3-pointer and Cooper Taylor steal, the Pioneers were now in a momentum swing, taking charge of the game. With an incredible layup, Strutz and the defensive board pushed the ball up the floor and a nice pass to Ryder Galbavy for 2 points. Strutz wasn't done there; he continued to hustle and get another steal and a fast break layup. Strutz continued to crash the boards and get a nice take to the basket, putting the Pioneers up 47-35 to end the 3rd quarter.
Chinook struggled to find an offensive rhythm in the 4th quarter. Big buckets with a Jake Darlington 3-pointer, Pedraza 3-pointer, and Galbavy bucket and free throw helped the Pioneers pull away with a win, with a final score of 67-52.
