CMR boys' basketball team pulls away for victory over Great Falls High
Points were at a premium for much of Thursday night, and the C.M. Russell High boys’ basketball team saved its best burst for last.
The Rustlers finished the crosstown contest against rival Great Falls High on a 15-2 run to close out a 49-29 Eastern AA victory at Swarthout Fieldhouse.
Senior Landon Grosenick sparked the flurry over the final four minutes on a fast-break bucket from River Wasson, who added a pair of baskets of his own on top of a Jonah Van Tassell 3-pointer.
CMR (2-1 Eastern AA, 4-3 overall) held Great Falls High (0-3, 1-6) to just two scores from the floor and nine points overall in the second half.
The Rustlers led by just three points heading into halftime before going up 10 heading into the fourth frame on a pair of 3-pointers from Van Tassell and Drew Etcheberry late in the quarter.
Junior post Dean Blair said the defensive end helped pick up the offense on a down scoring night for CMR, which had been averaging 63 points in its first two conference contests.
“In the first half we started a little slow,” Blair said. “We couldn’t really get anything going. But in the second half we turned turnovers into easy buckets on the other end. And five straight turnovers to end the game. We just kind of ran away with it.”
Blair led all scorers with 11 points as he went 5 for 6 at the free throw line, while Van Tassell and Wasson added eight each for CMR and Grosenick and Hunter Goad had five apiece.
Guard Traycen Ehnes led Great Falls High with nine points on three makes from beyond the arc, while Mason Kralj chipped in five and Cooper Collins and Kaden Burd had four each.
The Bison kept it close for much of three quarters as they held the Rustlers to just 10 points in each the second and third stanzas. Ehnes handed Great Falls High its only lead of the game late in the first half on a 3-ball before Blair hit a pair at the charity stripe and scored again on a fast break to give CMR the advantage for good.
Blair said the Rustlers were highly effective running its 1-3-1 zone, especially in the second half.
“I think we were really good in our 1-3-1 and we were just active on deflections and obviously we were going the other way,” Blair said. “Just deflections and passing lanes.”
Great Falls High faces off with Bozeman Gallatin next Friday at Swarthout Fieldhouse at 5:30 p.m. before taking on Bozeman on the road on Saturday at 4 p.m. The Rustlers play host to Bozeman next Friday at CMR Fieldhouse at 7 p.m. prior to a 4 p.m. matchup at Gallatin the following day.
The girls’ crosstown contest tips off at 7 p.m. at CMR on Friday.
CMR 13 10 10 16 – 49
GFH 9 11 3 6 – 29
CMR – Hunter McMann 2, Landon Grosenick 5, River Wasson 8, Brady Henzel 2, Jonah Van Tassell 8, Drew Etcheberry 5, Ben Cunningham 2, Dean Blair 11, Hunter Goad 5, Kael Barnes 1.
GFH – Traycen Ehnes 9, Noah Banderob 2, Scott Klinker 3, Tristan Watson 2, Cooper Collins 4, Mason Kralj 5, Kaden Burd 4.
3-pointers – Van Tassell 2, Etcheberry, Goad; Ehnes 3, Klinker.
Photos provided courtesy of Matt Ehnes of Jared's Detours.
This article originally appeared on Great Falls Tribune: CMR boys' basketball team pulls away for victory over Great Falls High
