BILLINGS – The Billings West Golden Bears cruised to an 11-point halftime lead and survived a furious second-half rally to hang on for a 40-33 win over Butte in Eastern AA girls basketball action on Friday night.
The Lady Bears were locked in defensively in the first half as they raced out to a 24-13 lead after the first 16 minutes.
The Lady Bulldogs flipped the script in the third quarter as they held West to two points to climb within 26-23 after three quarters.
Butte kept coming in the fourth quarter and eventually tied the game at 30 after a long 3-pointer from Ally Cleverly.
West coach Charlie Johnson called a timeout, and the Bears were able to regroup. TyLee Manuel and the Golden Bears found some easy baskets down the stretch as they regained the lead and survived a scare on Senior Night.
West now sits atop the Eastern AA standings at 9-1 with two conference games remaining.
The Billings West boys were in Butte on Friday night, and they rolled to a 61-43 victory.
