Trojans best Harrison with overtime buzzer beater
DRUMMOND – It was as exciting a home opener as a fan could ask for.
With 4.8 seconds left in overtime and Drummond trailing 56-55, Trojan senior Scott Parke inbounded the ball from to teammate Brody Rasor from the south sideline near midcourt. Parke raced toward the basket where Rasor sent a looping pass into him. Making the catch, Parke collected himself and then put in a reverse layup as time expired.
Clip courtesy of the NFHS Network
Drummond and its fans burst out in celebration as the Trojans claimed a 57-56 victory in overtime over visiting Harrison to open their home schedule in 2024.
“It was a good test for us,” said DHS Boys head Coach Levi Parsons. “It was good to see where we’re at and where we can improve. There were some things tonight that were unsettling. We got very ‘watchful’ on defense and forgot we were in a basketball game, and we let ‘em get some runs on us. And with a team like that, that is so well coached and so disciplined … you give ‘me a chance and they’ll put points on the board.”
Two squads had played close most of the night, with the Trojans holding a 44-39 lead after three periods. It was in the fourth where the locals let down their guard, allowing Harrison to go on a 12-7 run that knotted the score 51-51 at the end of regulation.
The overtime period was low scoring, and when the Wildcats took a 56-55 lead with seven seconds left on the clock, a pall fell over the Drummond gymnasium. Harrison pressured Drummond’s inbounds pass at the baseline after a timeout, deflecting the ball out at midcourt and setting up the winning play.
A trio of Trojans led the way in the scorebook, led by Parke with 13, He was followed closely by Michael James with 12 and Rasor with 11. Gavin Hokanson had a game-high 20 for the Wildcats, followed by Aaron DeFrance at 17.
Lady Trojans...
The girls beat Helena Christian in their varsity matchup, 51-39.
Leading 14-10 after the first quarter, the Lady Trojans used the next eight minutes to go on a 16-2 run that defined the rest of the game. The Lady Rams tried to rally in the third, but it wasn’t enough as Drummond kept up the pressure through the final buzzer.
Senior Lexi Nelson led the Lady Trojans with 17 points, hitting five three-pointers on the night. Remington Cline also cracked double figures with 10 points.
“It was a strong team that we played tonight,” said DHS Girls Head Coach Logan Wilson. “They are extremely well coached, very physical, their girls know how to press you and when to do what do … But our girls came out in the first half and they were up the challenge. They took it right to them and didn’t let the pressure get to them at all.
“Second half we got a little complacent … and in the habit of standing up a little tall on defense. But for us to get competition like Anaconda, Helena Christian, and Deer Lodge, these teams we’re playing here early in the season is really good for those girls.”
The Drummond Junior Varsity Boys lost to the Wildcats 44-40 to start the night. Chance Dunkerson had 15 points to lead the locals with Michael Goettle adding nine.
The Lady Trojan JV easily beat Helena Christian 48-18. Casey James and Hazel Sawfer led the scoring with 10 points each, followed by Natalie Graveley with eight and Piper Wetsch with seven.
Drummond takes a week off before heading out to Lincoln Friday and returning home Saturday to hope Valley Christian.
Looking ahead…
Saturday’s games close out the preseason, non-district portion of Drummond’s schedule, with both teams projected to win the District 13C title. In look ahead to what will likely be a less challenging schedule than what they faced in December and early January, Parsons and Wilson both spoke to what they do to get their teams ready for the eventual postseason run.
“Execution,” explained Parsons of the boys. “To go out to be able to clean run that offense, make sure everyone’s on point, doing their job, (etc.). We didn’t see some of those things tonight and so we’ll use these games to focus on that and getting ourselves into better conditioning.”
For Wilson it’s more of his team’s state of mind that needs fine tuning.
“The big thing for our girls right now is we need to beat the complacent factor. When we get up we start to stand up on defense and not attack as strong. Regardless of what other team we’re playing or what the score is, we need to teach these girls its 100 percent, all gas, no brakes, and we’re playing to Drummond Lady Trojan standards. It’s always 0-0, so get it and play smash-mouth basketball and play hard.”
BOYS SCORING
Harrison – 16/13/10/12/5 – 56
Drummond – 20/13/11/7/6 – 57
Harrison – Contreras 2, DeFrance 17, Hokanson 20, Edmondson 4, Reynolds 3, KWagner 6, GWagner 4
Drummond – Rasor 11, Parke 13, James 12, Graveley 3, Suthers 5, Phillips 9, McNally 2, Dunkerson 2
GIRLS SCORING
Helena Christian – 10/2/15/12 – 39
Drummond – 14/16/9/12 – 51
Helena Christian – Mcanney 8, KaCanney 16, BKostelecky 3, KyCanney 10, Goodsell 2
Drummond – Parsons 8, Nelson 17, RCline 10, HSawfer 5, CCline 8, PWetsch 2
