Broncos basketball loses pair of heartbreakers

It was a backbreaking weekend for the Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Broncos basketball team, as they lost a pair of heartbreakers on back-to-back days to fall to 2-7 in league play on the season.

The Broncos traveled to Tekoa on Jan. 25 to take on the Tekoa-Rosalia Timberwolves in the first of their two games on the weekend. LRS got the better of Tekoa-Rosalia in their first matchup of the season earlier this month, winning by 31 points at home.

But there would be no blowout for the Broncos this time, as they went into halftime trailing 28-19. But LRS stormed back in the third quarter, outscoring the Timberwolves 17-8 to tie the game at 36 heading into the final quarter.

The fourth quarter was a high-scoring affair for both teams, and the game was tied in the final minute before the Timberwolves grabbed and held the lead on a layup, eventually winning 61-58.

Sophomore Drew Kelly led the Broncos offensively in the game, scoring 16 points to lead LRS. Senior Bryce Kelly and junior Austin Thompson also finished in double figures for the Broncos, finishing with 13 and 10 points, respectively.

"We struggled shooting a little bit from outside" said head coach Dustan Arlt, who noted that in the team's previous meeting this season that LRS made 12 three-pointers in that game. "This time we only hit six [three-pointers]. And I thought [our previous game against Tekoa-Rosalia] kind of worked against us, because I think the kids thought that [success] was going to happen again."

The Broncos returned home the following day on Jan. 26, as they took on the Asotin Panthers in the Gilson Gymnasium. LRS fell to Asotin earlier in January in a road game, 51-41.

This game was a much tighter affair, with the score tied at 22-all at the half. Asotin's offense came out blazing in the third quarter, scoring 20 points to nearly match their entire first half scoring output and taking a nine point lead into the fourth quarter.

But the Broncos mounted a comeback in the fourth quarter, outscoring the Panthers 19-10 to tie the game at 52 and push the game into overtime. LRS had a chance to win the game on a buzzer-beater, but Bryce Kelly's heave from just inside the half-court line bounced off the rim.

The Broncos' offense struggled in the four-minute overtime period, as they scored just three points to the Panthers' seven, falling 59-55. Asotin shot well from the free throw line in the overtime period to pull away from LRS.

Junior Cole Cameron led the Broncos in scoring, finishing with a game-high 17 points. Bryce and Drew Kelly scored 11 and 9 points respectively, while Thompson finished with 8 points.

Arlt noted that Tekoa-Rosalia and Asotin shot a combined 26-29 from the free throw line in their games against LRS this weekend, while the Broncos shot just 18-32 from the charity stripe.

"It's not just that stat [that contributed to the losses], but if you want to win close games you need to shoot well from the free throw line," Arlt said.

The Broncos sit with a 2-7 record in Northeast 2B South league play, with one game left to play before the Northeast 2B Conference Tournament. LRS currently sits in last place in the South, but a win over the Reardan Indians in the final regular season game would ensure that they earn the South's No. 5 seed in the tournament while Reardan would hold the South's No. 6 seed.

The Broncos will travel to Reardan for that final game on Feb. 1. LRS beat Reardan at home in their first meeting this season, 57-35 on Jan. 4. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.