St. Regis Tigers stay hot, win fourth straight
St. Regis center Andrew Sanford controls the opening tip over Plains' forward Nathan Feliksa Friday afternoon in St. Regis. (Chuck Bandel/Valley Press)
The balanced scoring that was the hallmark of last year’s St. Regis boys basketball team is back, as demonstrated by three lopsided victories this past week.
The Tigers return to form was highlighted by an 85-62 road win over Charlo Saturday night as all five starters scored in double figures.
St. Regis took control of the game against the Vikings from the outset, exploding to a 25-9 first quarter lead behind what has become their signature swarming, ball-hawking defense.
They have also been finding range from long-distance as of late, dropping in seven shots from beyond the 3-point arc, including three by junior forward Tanner Day.
By halftime the defensive pressure and outside shooting, coupled with early dominance of the boards, had propelled St. Regis to a 42-21 lead. Those big leads over the past two weeks have also allowed coach Jesse Allan and crew to accrue valuable playing time for a young group of reserves, who they are counting on for depth as the season barrels toward the playoffs next month.
The Tigers added to their halftime lead in the third quarter when they outscored Charlo 21-16, giving them a commanding 63-37 lead heading into the final eight minutes of play.
After a 1-2 start, including 0-2 in Western 14C conference play, St. Regis is now 5-2 overall and 3-2 in conference games.
Caleb Ball, the Tigers’ ball-hawking point guard, led the St. Regis offensive assault with 19 points for the game. He was joined in double-figure scoring by brother Adam who had 18, Day with 17 points, freshman John Pruitt’s 16 points and 13 points from 6-5 senior post Andrew Sanford.
Keaton Piedalue scored a game-high 24 points for Charlo.
The win over Charlo followed a 56-29 win over Plains on the Tigers’ home court the night before.
Both teams came out scrapping in that game, which ultimately saw the Tigers take an 8-5 lead after one foul-filled first quarter that saddled Tigers starters Sanford and Day with early penalty trouble.
Day picked up his third foul of the game with just over two minutes to go in the opening quarter of play and was forced to sit most of the first half.
The second quarter saw the Tigers’ offense come alive, fueled by several steals and lay-ins from Caleb Ball, who was part of a swarming defense the kept Plains from advancing beyond half court on numerous occasions. By halftime St. Regis held a 26-16 lead.
The third quarter was all St. Regis, aided by Plains starting forward Tucker Foster being sidelined by what appeared to be a leg injury. With Foster out of the lineup, the Tigers increased their rebounding advantage en route to a 17-3 spurt that put them up 43-19 heading into the final eight minutes of the game.
Caleb Ball led all scorers with 28 points mostly via lay-ins and short jumpers off steals and break-aways. Day added 11 for the Tigers, who squared their conference record at 2-2 with the win.
The loss dropped Plains to 1-4 in conference play and 1-5 overall.
St. Regis opened their busy week with a hastily arranged non-conference game against Mullan, Idaho, their co-op partner during the football season.
With friends facing off as foes, this one promised to be an interesting matchup.
While the interaction on the court was indeed interesting to players and fans, including several who made the trip across Lookout Pass to see their Tigers, the Idaho team proved to be no match for St. Regis.
Caleb Ball was once again the catalyst to a quick start and lead by the homestanding St. Regis squad. The choking St. Regis defense forced multiple Mullan turnovers that in many cases led to fast-break lay-ins by Ball and crew.
At the end of the first quarter, St. Regis held a 16-5 lead thanks in part to nine points from Ball. That lead grew to 37-13 by halftime, as Ball erupted for 13 second quarter points.
The interstate rout continued in the third quarter as St. Regis rolled to a 21-7 advantage that gave them a 58-20 lead with eight minutes to play.
St. Regis has little time to enjoy the trifecta of wins from last week as they face a pair of challenging road games this week. Friday the Tigers journey to Hot Springs where they will face a tough Savage Heat team that is currently in second place in the 14C with a 4-1 mark.
The following night St. Regis travels the 14 miles down Interstate 90 to face conference leading Clark Fork in Superior. The Mountain Cats are unbeaten in conference games heading into this week.