GREAT FALLS — Four days of divisional basketball wasn’t enough to determine which teams will represent the North at the State C tournament next week.
But the Fort Benton boys provided the final piece of the puzzle with a 54-39 win over District 9C rival Chester-Joplin-Inverness in a Monday challenge game.
The Longhorns fell behind 8-0 in the first quarter before closing the gap to make it 10-8 after the first eight minutes. Fort Benton outscored CJI 17-7 in the second quarter to take a 25-17 lead to halftime and maintained the lead throughout, pushing the margin to 21 at one point in the third quarter.
Eli Arganbright led all scorers with 14 points in the win. Truman Giese added 13 while Isaiah Smith had 11. Kellan Diekhans and Kelton Vielleux each pitched in eight points for a balanced scoring night. Vielleux also pulled down 15 rebounds.
Ryland St. John and Dane Grammar led the Hawks with 12 points apiece. Fort Benton dominated the boards, out-rebounding CJI 40-20. It was the fourth time that Fort Benton and CJI faced off this season, with the series finishing tied at 2-2.
The Longhorns, who fell to Box Elder in the Northern C championship game on Saturday night, will join the Bears at the Class C state tournament, which begins in Butte on Thursday, March 13.
