BILLINGS — The gold-colored basketball shoes are a dead giveaway. Marisa Snider is about to start firing for the Ennis Mustangs and there’s likely nothing anybody can do about it.
Only a sophomore, Snider proved it Saturday in a dazzling performance at the Southern B girls basketball divisional tournament in Billings.
“When you get to watch Marisa go off like that … coaching her is awesome, but even watching that would’ve been fun tonight,” Mustangs head coach Jordan Overstreet told MTN Sports afterward.
Watching Snider's effort was jaw-dropping for many. In a must-win game for the Mustangs, she almost single-handedly outscored Big Timber, exploding for 40 points in a 48-41 win.
“Yeah, I was talking to my team about it, just how insane it is to be able to do that,” the guard said after surprising even herself.
Only the third-place winner between Ennis and Big Timber would join top finishers Huntley Project and Baker out of the Southern B advancing to this week’s state tournament, which happens to appear on the same court. The Mustangs play their opener at 3:30 p.m. Thursday against Anaconda. All state tournament pairings can be seen here.
“It felt awesome," Snider said. "I just knew I really had to show up for my team and didn’t want to let them down.”
Overstreet knew what he was witnessing.
“I was like, she can’t miss. I’ve just got to get her the ball as much as I can and just get out of her way, to be honest,” he said.
Hours earlier, Snider scored 29 points in a morning loser-out win. The performances were no fluke.
“I just really work … on and off-season … all the time," Snider said. "I just really love the game.”
The biggest effort of her young high school career carries even more weight for the town itself. Ennis wasn't exactly favored to slam the door on a state tournament ticket in its first season of climbing from Class C to Class B.
“I’m from Three Forks originally, so I’m used to Class B and I know how tough this tournament is," Overstreet said of clinching the third-place trophy. "Probably the best feeling I’ve had in my nine years of coaching.”
“It’s super cool," gushed Snider. "I didn’t know if we could do it, but we did in the end.”
Almost the end. There's likely still some basketball magic left in those gold-colored shoes.
