Broncos move down in league standings after loss against Liberty

The Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Broncos had a full week of competition, playing three games before preparing to face the undefeated Northwest Christian Crusaders. The Broncos started the week against Odessa-Harrington, before facing league competitors Tekoa-Rosalia and Liberty.

Against Odessa-Harrington on Dec. 29, both teams had a slow start after having four days off and only a single practice before the game. The Broncos eventually earned a 67-34 win against the Titans.

The first quarter proved to be unsuccessful for both teams and the Broncos ended the quarter with a 13-7 advantage. Both teams struggled to get open looks at the hoop and have patience offensively.

The Broncos had maintained a full court press throughout the first quarter before dropping into a half court press. Head Coach Dustan Arlt said the team would have continued the full court press if the defense had created turnovers, but the Titans did not struggle to break the press during the game.

The Broncos gained momentum in the second quarter, holding the Titans to only three points. The 22-point advantage gave the Broncos an opportunity to bring athletes off the bench in the second half and also work on running their offense.

Overall, Arlt said he was not pleased with the Broncos’ defense in the second half. Arlt said the team did not continue to play with the same intensity, and gave up multiple perimeter shots because of lackluster defense.

The Broncos were able to prevent turnovers during the game and managed to move the ball well on offense, allowing the team to earn a successful lead and eventually win the nonleague game.

The Broncos only gave up five offensive rebounds during the match up. The team also collectively hit nine 3-pointers.

Jacob Saetre led the team in points with 18, and also added five assists. Wyatt Roettger helped keep the Broncos scoring consistent with 17 points in the game and added six rebounds.

Dallas Killian had nine points, and led the team in rebounds with nine. Dylan Becker had a successful game with six points, seven rebounds and eight assists.

Carlos Vuilleumier had seven points for the team while Nick Fleming had six points. Bryce Esser and Ryan Frederick rounded out the scoring with two points each.

The following evening, the Broncos faced Tekoa-Rosalia for the second time this season. The Broncos walked away with another win against Tekoa-Rosalia, 66-32.

Arlt said both teams performed better in the second match up, and Tekoa-Rosalia started the game strong against the Broncos. The Broncos were able to hold the Timberwolves to scoring a maximum of 10 points per quarter.

The game proved to be a better contest for the Broncos than the previous night against the Titans. The Broncos proved to be the superior team in the final three quarters of competition after earning a nine-point advantage in the first quarter.

The Broncos pressed the Timberwolves until the third quarter and the pressure resulted in multiple turnovers for Tekoa-Rosalia. Arlt said the Broncos earned 32 forced turnovers against the Timberwolves.

Arlt mentioned the Broncos played better in their press than they had in previous games. After a slow defensive start in the first quarter, Arlt said the Broncos improved at getting back into their defensive rotations to provide a strong defense against the Timberwolves.

The Broncos’ scoring advantage at the end of the third quarter allowed the LRS team’s second five athletes to earn quality varsity playing time. The Broncos starters sat for the entire fourth quarter.

Throughout the game, the Broncos only gave up six offense rebounds. The strong rebounding proved to be crucial to the Broncos’ successful league game.

The Broncos had another effective night from the perimeter, draining eight three-point shots.

Roettger stepped up to lead the team in scoring with 17 points. Becker added 13 points for the team, as well as four assists and three steals. Saetre scored 12 points and added six assists and five steals.

Alan Field ended the night with seven points, five rebounds, three assists and four steals. Killian racked up six points and six rebounds for the team.

Bryson Gering scored six points for the team, and Vuilleumier had five points. Nick Fleming rounded out the team’s success with three steals.

The Broncos faced their toughest league competition on Saturday night against Liberty. Arlt knew the game would be a battle for the team, especially with the less than ideal conditions of playing on Jan. 2 after limited practices.

Liberty handed the Broncos their first league loss of the season. Though the Broncos lost the game 43-56, Arlt said the scoring deficit does not show the true competition in the game.

The Broncos jumped out to a strong lead in the first quarter, and Arlt said the team was able to maintain momentum into halftime. At the half, the Broncos had secured a two-point advantage over Liberty.

Arlt said the Broncos had kept a seven point lead throughout the first half, but Arlt said the Lancers narrowed the scoring gap with a five-point scoring run.

The Broncos suffered from being in foul trouble early in the game, and Arlt said the fouls plagued the team into the second half. Arlt explained there were a variety of calls, and the Broncos had 16 fouls compared to nine from Liberty.

Arlt said he was disappointed in the amount of fouls, especially since the Lancers played a more physical and aggressive game than the Broncos, but still had less fouls.

In the second half, Liberty came out strong and cranked up their defensive pressure. Saetre had a successful first half, and the Lancers adjusted their defense to shut down his shooting advantages in the second half.

Arlt said while the Lancers played with more intensity, the Broncos seemed to go in the opposite direction. With decreased momentum, the Broncos could not maintain their composure or be patient on offense.

The Broncos dribbled too much on offense, Arlt said, and with limited passes, the Broncos did not get open looks at the hoop. Arlt added the team also made unnecessary drives towards the hoop instead of looking for the open man.

In the fourth quarter, the Broncos managed to cut the Lancers lead to five points, but Liberty quickly recovered and went on a 10-point scoring streak in the final minutes of the game. The Broncos struggled offensively, hitting only 17-46 shots during the game and having 18 turnovers.

Arlt mentioned in upcoming games the Broncos need to have a balanced scoring effort as a team. The Broncos only had two athletes with double-digit scoring and will need other players to step up in the next games in order to earn the advantage.

Saetre led the team in scoring with 17 points, followed by Roettger with 10 points. Field had six points and Fleming scored five points. Gering hit a 3-pointer and Becker rounded out the scoring with two points.

Arlt said he was frustrated with the Liberty game because he saw a lot of bad habits the team had suffered from last season that he had not seen from the team this year. He said he hopes the Broncos realize their mistakes and continue to improve as athletes as the team continues into the second half of the season.

The Broncos moved on to face the undefeated Northwest Christian Crusaders on Jan. 5 and Arlt expected the game to be tough competition from the beginning. The Crusaders are returning all five starters from their state playoff run last year, and are currently ranked second in the state.

Arlt expected the Broncos to give NWC trouble because of their perimeter shooting and quickness.

As long as the Broncos could contain the Crusaders 6-foot-7 post player, Arlt stated the Broncos should prove to be successful.

The Broncos move on to face Davenport in Ritzville on Jan. 8, before matching up against Kettle Falls on the road on Saturday.