HAMILTON — The semifinal round of the Western B divisional tournament got underway Friday at Hamilton High School. Missoula Loyola and Thompson Falls will battle for the divisional crown after wins in the semis.
Missoula Loyola 75, Arlee 35
Missoula Loyola is again on to the divisional championship game at the Western B as the Rams defeated the Arlee Warriors 75-35 in the final game of Friday's slate.
Rey Johnston scored 22 points for Loyola and Ethan Stack added 19 while Vincent Lincoln added 10 for the Rams. Loyola will take on Thompson Falls at 8:30 p.m. in the championship game on Saturday.
Loyola led 16-9 as the Rams struggled shooting out of the gates while Arlee went toe-to-toe early with them. A slow start by their standards quickly turned into a runaway as Loyola found its rhythm in the second quarter and held a 45-17 lead at the break.
Josh Horn led Arlee with 11 points. The Warriors will play in a loser-out contest at 10:45 a.m. on Saturday.
Thompson Falls 53, Florence 41
Thompson Falls withstood a comeback attempt by Florence to punch its ticket to the Western B championship game with a 53-41 win.
Owen Doyle scored 18 points and Bryson LeCoure added 15 for the Blue Hawks. Thompson Falls led 21-12 at the end of the first quarter as Doyle was hot out of the gates as he scored 12 of his points in that frame.
Florence chipped away but Thompson Falls still led 33-29 at halftime. The Falcons briefly led in the third quarter before the Blue Hawks regained the lead, 38-35, heading into the fourth quarter.
A 3-pointer from Brody Duchien tied it 38-38 with five minutes to go in the game, but the Blue Hawks found some separation and iced the game down the stretch to seal the win and set up a meeting with Loyola in the title game.
Duchien led Florence with 14 points, and the Falcons will play in a loser-out game on Saturday at 10:45 a.m.
