Wild Saturday in Hot Springs

It was a wild night in Hot Springs Saturday as the Charlo Vikings came to town for some basketball action.

The Vikings girls dominated the Lady Savage Heat, winning 50-17, but Hot Springs never gave up in the battle on the court. Charlo came out with an early lead, allowing just one Hot Springs point to the Vikings’ 19. Hot Springs struggled to keep up and trailed the rest of the game as Charlo improved their lead to 38-4 at the half. Hot Springs’ offense drove the ball hard and their defense kept their eye on the ball the entire game.

The Charlo boys hit the court with the same vigor, taking an early lead against Hot Springs. But a tough defense and two three-pointers (from Jack McAllister and Number 24) helped propel the Savage Heat as they took the lead 21-20 at the end of the first quarter. Hot Springs and Charlo traded leads in an intense battle that found Hot Springs down by just two points at the half, 31-29. It was a physical game, with Hot Springs taking two charges in the first half. “I knew they were physical and athletic,” Hot Springs Coach Scott Fredrickson said of Charlo. “Both teams competed hard and never quit. It was a great game.”

The second half of the boys’ game was fought with the same intensity as no team took more than a two-point lead until in the third quarter. The teams were tied at 39 with three minutes left in the third, but Quincy Styles-DePoe scored at the end of the quarter, pushing Hot Springs up 41-39.

Hot Springs held that lead for the next six minutes of play until Charlo tied the game at 55 with less than two minutes remaining in the game. Hot Springs pulled ahead 57-55 with a basket by Nathan Lawhead in the final minute. Charlo then took a timeout with nine seconds left. On their next possession, they took the ball down the court and made a three-point shot with just three seconds left, taking the lead by one point and winning the game 58-57.

“It’s one of the most intense games I’ve ever coached,” said Fredrickson. “Both teams worked hard on every possession and for every point. I told the team, `You aren’t a player unless it hurts when you lose.’”

The junior varsity boys for Hot Springs and Charlo played with the same intensity. Hot Springs ended up winning, but they had to play hard the whole game. Fredrickson said looking at the score book after the varsity game, the teams’ stats were nearly identical. He added that the Hot Springs varsity handled Charlo’s pressure, but then turned the ball over in other ways. Charlo outrebounded the Savage Heat by just two.

Fredrickson said this is a critical part of the season, and the competition intensifies. While Hot Springs has not had to reschedule any games due to weather or sickness, their opponents have, and now the Savage Heat have a busy remainder of the season with that rescheduled competition. The Charlo game was only the second for Hot Springs since the holiday break. This week, the Savage Heat went to St. Regis on Tuesday, will play Flathead Christian on Thursday and go to Noxon on Friday.

“You don’t get to be on top unless you go through some adversity,” Fredrickson said. “I expect these kids to come back hard. One win and you’re back.” He said his team is excited for the busy schedule coming up. “The kids want to play. That’s where they learn.”