MISSOULA — Missoula Big Sky's girls and Hellgate's boys completed the season sweep of their crosstown rivals on Tuesday as both basketball programs picked up wins in a doubleheader clash at Big Sky High School.
The Eagles girls grinded out a 50-42 victory over the Knights while the Hellgate boys topped Big Sky 71-50.
In the girls game, the Eagles, ranked No. 2 in the latest MontanaSports.com rankings, trailed the Knights 26-22 after a back-and-forth first half where Hellgate's defense proved to be the difference.
But in the second half, the Eagles found their footing and took the lead on a 3-pointer from sophomore Mya Hubbard late in the third quarter and never fell behind again as they put the game away down the stretch.
Junior Kadynce Couture led the way with 19 points for Big Sky while sophomore Avory Decoite added 14 points. The Eagles improved to 10-1 overall and 7-0 in Western AA play.
Senior Chloe Larsen led Hellgate with 13 points and sophomore Elly Reed added 10 as the Knights fell to 6-6 and 4-4.
In the boys game, the Knights, also ranked No. 2 in the latest MontanaSports.com rankings, started out fast and never looked back as Hellgate quickly jumped out to an 18-3 lead and carried a 36-21 advantage into halftime after a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from sophomore Spencer Wayland.
Junior Easton Sant paced the Knights offensively with 20 points while fellow junior Chance McNulty added 18 as Hellgate closed it out strong in the second half to get the win. The Knights improved to 11-1 overall and 8-0 in Western AA play.
Junior Carson Towe led Big Sky with 12 as the Eagles fell to 5-6 and 2-5.
For full highlights from Tuesday's games, check out the video above.
