BILLINGS — Teams from the Eastern and Western A met in Lockwood on Friday for the opening day of the Class A Tipoff Tournament. Butte Central, Hamilton, and Browning made the trip east to meet Billings Central, Havre, and Lockwood.
Here is a breakdown of Friday's games:
BOYS
Billings Central 58, Butte Central 49
It wasn't easy, but the Billings Central boys picked up their first win of the season with a 58-49 win over Butte Central.
The Rams jumped out to a 10-point lead after the first quarter and led by 12 at the break, but the Maroons scored the first seven points of the third quarter to trim the lead to five.
Billings Central wouldn't let the Maroons get any closer, though, holding them at bay over the final 10 minutes and icing the game from the foul line.
The Rams got a game-high 17 points from Darcy Merchant, while Howie Martin added 11 and Toby Stewart scored 10. The Maroons were led by Owen McPartland's 19 points.
Billings Central plays Browning on Saturday and the Maroons play Havre.
Havre 58, Hamilton 53
Havre outscored Hamilton 9-2 over the game's final 2:30 to snatch a 58-53 victory from the Broncs.
Canaan Magness hammered home a two-handed dunk with 2:45 to play to put Hamilton up 51-49, but a jumper by Brayden Ereaux and a 3-pointer by Matt Huse gave Havre a 54-53 lead.
Hamilton had a shot to tie trailing 55-53 with under 20 seconds to play, but Tre Gary got a steal at mid-court and finished off a three-point play to ice the game.
Gary had 24 to lead Havre, while Magness had a game-high 30 points for the Broncs. Havre will play Butte Central on Saturday and Hamilton will play Lockwood.
Lockwood 65, Browning 50
Lockwood built a 37-23 halftime lead before letting off the gas in the fourth quarter for a 65-50 win over Browning.
The Lions led by just five after the first quarter, but that lead grew to double digits quickly in the second quarter and ballooned past 20 in the third quarter.
Zicciah Callison-Blake led Lockwood with 15 points, while Nate Davis scored 14 and Kobe Blake added 13. Lockwood will face Hamilton while Browning takes on Billings Central on Saturday.
GIRLS
Billings Central 65, Butte Central 4
Billings Central raced out to a 42-3 halftime advantage over Butte Central en route to a 65-4 win. The Rams held the Maroons to just one made field goal, which came in the first quarter.
Billings Central was paced by Kamryn Reinker's 18 points. Annika Stergar added 12 for the Rams, while Lyssa Peterson and Grace Jagodzinski finished with eight.
The Rams will play Browning on Saturday, while the Maroons play Havre.
Havre 72, Hamilton 32
No Dustin Kraske, no problem for the Havre Blue Ponies.
Under first-year head coach Tommy Brown the Havre girls haven't missed a beat. The Blue Ponies opened up a 35-14 halftime advantage over Hamilton en route to a 72-32 win.
Havre had four girls in double-digits led by Ariana Gary's 18 points. Tierra Parker, the lone senior for Havre, added 14.
The Blue Ponies will play Butte Central on Saturday and Hamilton will play Lockwood.
Lockwood 54, Browning 43
The Lockwood girls built a lead north of 20 points early in the second half before coasting to a 54-43 win.
Dani Jordan led Lockwood with 23 points, while Montana State Billings commit Tailey Harris added 21.
Lockwood will play Hamilton and Browning will face Billings Central.
