SKC Bison give North Idaho College a scare

North Idaho College needed a late surge to get past SKC for the 80-71 victory on Thursday night in Pablo. However, it was an evening that was about more than basketball as the Bison retired Marvin Hudson-Lewis' number with a ceremony before the game.

Lewis drowned earlier this year in South Dakota after helping lead the Bison to a AIHEC National Championship. Members of Lewis' family from Washington State and South Dakota were able to make the game and were part of the ceremony. 

The Bison took the floor with only four players and Lewis' jersey was put at center court for a ceremonial tip-off. Lewis was listed as an official starter for the Bison and appeared in the final box score for the game. 

SKC came out strong behind excellent three-point shooting and held a 18-14 lead midway through the first half. North Idaho College would go on a 10-0 to gain the lead but the Bison would go away and only trailed 38-31 at the half. 

The battle continued against the Cardinals in the second half and with 9:43 left in the contest, Dennis Sangrey hit a three to pull within four points of NIC at 54-50. The Cardinals would respond with an 8-0 run to take the 62-50 lead. The Bison would continue to fight and Ralston Moore hit two free throws to make it 74-69 NIC with two minutes to go but the Cardinals would finish out the game on a 6-2 run for the victory. 

D.J. Fish continued to showcase his skills, posting a double-double for SKC with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Moore had 19 points as well and Sangrey posted 11. Isiah Martin scored 12 points. The Bison's defense forced 24 NIC turnovers but their shooting was 39 percent from the field to the Cardinals' 53 percent. 

Against a perennial powerhouse in junior college basketball, the Bison played strong with NIC and their tough early-season schedule should get them geared up for Montana Tribal College Athletic Association play. SKC will travel to Dillon this weekend and play the University of Montana JV squad on Friday and Saturday. 

NIC 80, SKC 71

NIC - 38 - 42 - 80

SKC - 31 - 40 - 71

Bison Stats - 

Isaac Wal - 1 rebound

Ralston Moore - 19 points, 1 steal

Dennis Sangrey - 11 points, 2 steals

Sonny Eppinette - 2 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist

Trent Ashley - 2 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist

Isaiah Martin - 12 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 5 steals

DJ Kemmer - 3 points

DJ Fish - 15 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist

Jonathan Allen - 1 point, 1 assist

James Bible - 6 points, 1 rebound, 3 steals

NIC Stats -

Jordan McCloud - 11 points, 6 rebounds

Antoine Hosley - 7 points, 2 assists

Connor White - 5 points, 1 rebound 

Kwame Bates - 10 points, 6 rebounds, 1 steal

Keon Lewis - 21 points, 2 rebounds, 5 assists

Michael Middlebrooks - 13 points, 13 rebounds, 3 blocks

Edrico McGregor - 6 points, 6 rebounds

Tyrell Lewis - 6 points, 4 rebounds, 1 block, 1 assist, 1 steal

Kay Sherman - 1 point, 3 rebounds, 3 fouls

Here are photos from the game... click here to buy full prints from the game. 

Click on "Read More" to see the full gallery.

Mission's new gym floor

Mission High School spent the summer refinishing their gym floor with a brand new graphic scheme and here's a photo of the final product. Pretty snazzy looking eh?

You can read the full post of the new gym floor on St. Ignatius Schools Superintendent Bob Lewandowski's blog.

Mavs find Heat's kryptonite... high fives

One might say that Lebron's no-show in game 4 or Dirk's performances in the fourth quarter have led Dallas to a 2-2 tie with the superstar-laden Miami Heat. But that might not be the case, high fives could be the Mavs' secret weapon.

The Mavericks, with 250 slaps, hugs, taps or bumps, are almost twice as touchy-feely as the Heat, who had only 134 instances of televised contact. In those three games, the Mavericks were 82% more likely to high five.

The concept of "chemistry" on a sports team has become the stuff of cliché over the years. Nobody seems to have the same definition for what it is, or what produces it. But last fall, three researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, took a serious look at one of the most obvious signs of camaraderie on a team—touching.

The study, which was titled "Tactile Communication, Cooperation and Performance: An Ethological Study of the NBA," was authored by Michael W. Kraus, Cassy Huang and Dacher Keltner. After reviewing broadcasts of games from the 2008-09 season, they concluded that good teams tend to be much more hands-on than bad ones. Teams whose players touched the most often were more cooperative, played better and won more games, they said.


Hear that Lebron!?!?!? Get your high-fives together!

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of the NBA Playoffs

Haven't been watching the NBA playoffs? Why the heck not? In what could easily be the best post season product out of all the major sports, the NBA playoffs have not disappointed so far.

Mas Sports' Riley Lemm has a rundown on The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of the NBA Playoffs so far. You can read that right here. 

NOTE: He does not mention the Spurs. Why? Because the Spurs do not matter. They're not entertaining. They're old. They're completely irrelevant. Is anyone really on the edge of their seats for the Portland-Dallas playoff series. No, because the Western Conference this year is a relative old folks home compared to the hip and exciting teams in the East.

I'm not talking about who's better from an actual X's and O's. I'm talking about from a fan's perspective. Other than fans in those cities, nobody is going to be thrilled about whoever makes the Finals from the West except for the Thunder. Lakers? Been there, done that. Spurs? Gag me and throw me down a well. Hornets? All four of their fans will be jumping for joy. Grizzlies? Yeah right, like that will happen. Blazers? Brandon Roy doesn't quite have the Bazinga! as Lebron James. Nuggets? Wait, who's on that team now? Steve Kerr?

C-Fall's Emerson to walk on for Griz

Polson Pirates and Ronan Chiefs fans certainly know about Columbia Falls' Nick Emerson. He helped lead the Wildcats' to a divisional and state championship this year in boys' basketball. Now we may have to root for the guy since he'll be walking on at the University of Montana...

(From Dillon Tabish of the Daily Inter Lake)

Nick Emerson was not afraid of taking the game-winning shot in the divisional championship game.

The Columbia Falls senior isn't afraid of taking a shot at playing Division I basketball either.

The 6-foot-5 all-state point guard will be a walk-on for the Montana Grizzlies men's basketball team next year.

Emerson averaged 16.63 points-per-game and led the Wildcats to a 22-1 record and the Class A state championship this season.

He will be the first player from Columbia Falls in at least 15 years to play at the Division I level.

"I've heard of people that have gone to junior colleges so they could develop more because they wanted a shot to play at the Division I level ... I had my shot now so I figured I'd take it," he said. "I realize what I'm going to have to do and how hard I have to work, but I'm taking it like it's a challenge."

Bigfork boys' basketball coach will not return

Bigfork, which was a dominant force in District 7-B this season, will have a new coach next season for the boy's team after it was announced that Paul La Mott will not return. Here's part of the story from the Daily Interlake...

Paul La Mott, who guided the Bigfork boys basketball program to a 37-14 overall record the last two seasons, will not return as head coach.

Bigfork activities director Matt Porrovecchio made the announcement earlier this week.

"All our coaching positions are one-year contracts," Porrovecchio said. "At the conclusion of the season I decided to open up the head boys basketball position. I'm very appreciative of Paul's time, energy and commitment. I wish him the best."

Fairbank resigns as Columbia Falls girls' basketball coach

(From the Daily Interlake)

Dan Fairbank has stepped down as the Columbia Falls girls basketball coach after a successful four-year stint that included three straight Northwestern A titles. Fairbank turned in his resignation on March 11.

"When I got back into it I said I was looking at the four-year mark and seeing what I could do with the program in four years," Fairbank said.

He added, "It was an awful nice run. Four years went by awfully fast."

Fairbank, who had a similar coaching stint in the 90s, helped steer the Wildkat program to its first divisional trophy since 1996 in 2009. Since that year, Columbia Falls has a 30-2 conference record and is the three-time reigning divisional champions.

"The highlights have been the kids that I've been able to work with," he said. "We've just had some of the nicest young ladies. They have worked as hard as I asked them to work and they were able to push their way to three-straight conference and divisional championships."

Fairbank credited part of the program's turnaround with reinstating an emphasis at the youth levels with camps involving the high school players working with kids.

"When I took over I wanted to really work hard to connect the younger kids to the high school program," he said. "What really builds the program is you get those 4th-8th graders coming to watch you play and dream of being a Wildkat later in life. I felt that was something I was able to put back into place. We have a large group of kids dreaming to be a Wildkat."

Fairbank continues to teach at the high school and said he plans on perhaps returning to radio, where he has worked alongside Mike Hammer at KOFI covering Columbia Falls athletics.

"We have great kids coming back next year," he said. "I'm leaving the program I think in really good shape and it has the opportunity to continue its success."

Mission Valley All-Star Boys Game Photos

Here are photos from the Mission Valley All-Star Boys Game on Tuesday night at SKC in Pablo.

Mission Valley All-Star Girls Game Photos

Here are photos from the Mission Valley All-Star Girls Game on Tuesday night at SKC in Pablo.