BILLINGS — Billings Senior head boys basketball coach Drew Haws vividly remembers his first encounter with Chase Bad Bear.
“I was coaching his older sister Naomi, and he was in this hallway over here racing Matchbox Cars. That’s my first memory of Chase,” Haws said. “Now he’s 6-7, he’s a great shooter and a great scorer. He’s a great leader and doing everything right.”
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After years of watching his older siblings Naomi, Courtney (now the Senior volleyball coach) and Kola don the orange and black, Bad Bear wasted no time earning his stripes. He thrust himself right into the middle of the Senior/West rivalry as a sophomore when he buried a game-tying 3-pointer that forced overtime and eventually led to a Broncs victory.
“It was crazy. I was told to sit in the corner and I saw Davin (Lehfeldt) go up for the shot, then he passed me the ball and I was like, ‘I’ve got to shoot it now’ and just threw it up,” Bad Bear said.
“We see it every day in practice, so we know how good he is. We know it’s very difficult to contest a shot from a 6-7 kid,” Haws said. “We know he’s capable of doing those types of things, otherwise we wouldn’t draw them up for him, but I’m not surprised he made it.”
Bad Bear certainly stands out on the floor, and not just because of his 6-foot-7 frame. The Bronc senior impacts the game in several ways on both ends, and that likely stems from watching and learning from those big sisters.
“They’re a big influence. They show me what to do, what it looked like to be an athlete on and off the court,” Bad Bear said. “What I needed to do inside the gym and what needs to be done outside the gym.”
“Having those older sisters is huge for him to see their leadership, what they brought to the table, how they prepared for games and what they did in the offseason,” Haws said. “He’s done a tremendous job. He’s a film junkie and a gym rat. He’s always sneaking in here whenever he can. It helps his sister has keys to the gym.”
Bad Bear looks to carry on that family hoops legacy when he leads the Broncs into Skyview on Friday night for a crosstown duel with the Falcons.
