Broncos set to compete in district tournament

The Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Broncos wrapped up their final week of regular season play against three league adversaries.

They faced their first opponents, the Tekoa-Rosalia Timberwolves, on Tuesday, Jan. 27, in Rosalia.

Both teams were tied at 11 points by the end of the first quarter.

“We did not start the best,” head coach Dustan Arlt said.

In the second quarter the Broncos ramped up their defense and kept the Timberwolves scoreless for the entirety of the quarter. In addition to their defensive performance, the Broncos added 10 points to their score before halftime.

In the second half the Timberwolves managed to put together scoring attempts, but the Broncos increased theirs as well and scored 17 points to their opponents 10 in the third quarter.

In the fourth quarter scoring was difficult for both teams, with the Broncos recording six points and the Timberwolves seven. Arlt attributed the low scoring for the Broncos to poor outside shooting, which has seemed to plague the Broncos in recent weeks.

The Broncos took the win over the Timberwolves 44-28. They scored 70 points against the Timberwolves in a previous game.

Cort Ruzicka picked up 11 of the Broncos’ points and Wyatt Roettger put up nine as the leading scorers during the game on Tuesday.

On Friday, Jan. 30, the Broncos hosted the Colfax Bulldogs for their senior night. Before the game the LRS team honored the nine seniors who played basketball this year.

Colfax got out to an early lead in the first quarter and at one point the Bulldogs were up 9-0 over the Broncos. The LRS squad managed to get points on the board and by the end of the first quarter the Bulldogs lead had shrunk to 11-7.

The Broncos’ defense then went to work and held the Bulldogs to just six points in the second quarter, which allowed them to tie the game at 17 points before the half. Kyle Canaday and Trevor Jantz hit back-to-back threes to tie the game and Jantz nearly hit a second three-point attempt to take the lead.

In the third quarter Colfax managed to gain a six-point lead over the Broncos.

The Broncos tied the Bulldogs at 44 with 3:30 left in the game but the Bulldogs then went on a 7-2 run to secure the win 51-46.

According to Arlt, the Broncos again had a difficult time shooting.

“It was a little disappointing the last few minutes,” Arlt explained. “It wasn’t because of a lack of effort it was just we couldn’t come up with a big shot and a lot of guys were a little hesitant to take it.”

Arlt said he liked the intensity the Broncos played with against the Bulldogs and said it shows they can beat Colfax.

Ruzicka recorded 19 points for the Broncos with 14 rebounds and five blocks. After Ruzicka, Jacob Saetre and Roettger recorded eight points each.

After a difficult loss the Broncos trekked to St. George’s for the final regular season game. They would need to win the game in order to secure the third seed into the District Tournament and face Wilbur-Creston.

After a difficult and physical game on Friday night the Broncos seemed worn out for their game against the Dragons, Arlt said.

In the first quarter the Broncos recorded only two points and allowed the Dragons to put up 11. A second quarter rally by the Broncos brought the score close to even, 22-20 Dragons.

The third quarter was very similar to the first for the Broncos with only four points added to their score compared to the Dragons’ 18. The Broncos tied the Dragons’ scoring efforts in the fourth quarter but could not make up the deficit and fell to the Dragons 52-36.

Canaday scored a season high 14 points against the Dragons and Ruzicka put up another 13. Dylan Becker stepped up to score five points for the Broncos.

“As we got behind we forced shots, panicked,” Arlt said.

He explained the Broncos need to work on discipline and wait for better shots when they are down.

With the conclusion of the regular season the Broncos enter the District Tournament in Reardan as the fourth seed from the south league. They faced the north league number one seed, Northwest Christian, at 7:45 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 4.

The Broncos beat the Crusaders 57-52 earlier in the year but they lacked one of their key players who will be available for Wednesday’s game. One thing the Northwest Christian team does not have is any seniors, and Arlt was hopeful their lack of experience might be a factor in the pressure of the tournament.

“They’re not exactly a great defensive team,” Arlt explained. “So there’s points to be scored but we’ve got to get kids playing smart and doing things we teach and coach.”

If the Broncos beat Northwest Christian, Arlt said they have a chance to make a run, since they would face Colfax or Reardan instead of Liberty in the semifinals.

The Broncos will face either on of these teams in their next game on Saturday. Of the eight teams in the District tournament five will move on to the Sub-Regional Tournament.