Libby Boys Basketball Loggers stoked about districts with eye on state

The Libby High School boys basketball team is excited for districts this weekend, but some of their eyes are already on the state tournament.

Ranked third in the northwest Class A district, the Loggers started their district tournament against Whitefish Thursday night, a team they have played and beaten before.

“I’m excited, personally. I think if we just play our game, everything will turn out alright. We’ll come out on top,” said senior Logan Christensen.

Senior Nik Jones said that even though they have beaten Whitefish twice now, they still have to stay tough.

If the boys advance, their next opponent would be Polson, who the Loggers had a 63-54 loss to Feb. 10.

It was a close game, which Libby led for most of three quarters, with the Pirates only jumping ahead in the final minutes.

“We have to finish,” said senior Brian Peck. In their last game, the Loggers gave the game up within about the last minute and a half. Turnovers and lack of control over the ball spelled doom for Libby.

Christensen said he felt they lost their “team energy” at the end of their recent showdown with Polson.

But even in their practices since, Peck has noticed the team picking up as they get excited for the postseason.

“I think we’ll be able to put together four good quarters, and try to take home a district championship,” he said. “We’re really excited to go play.”

If the Loggers beat Polson, their most likely opponent for the championship would be the undefeated Browning Indians.

“They’re just so talented and so deep, they can bring 7, 8, 9 guys at you, and they don’t lose anything,” Bean said.

The Loggers run fairly well against the rest of the conference for depth, Bean said. Browning are the ones that stand out.

Peck said he wants to go on after to the state tournament, and the other seniors agreed.

“I think we could definitely make it to the State Championship,” Jones said.

With only Peck and junior Ryggs Johnston having played much varsity in previous years, Peck said he is also excited for the rest of the team to get to experience tournament play.

“It’ll be a cool experience for all those guys, and then for us,” he said.

To help make up for the lack of tournament experience, Bean said the coaches will need to get the team into a groove and comfortable early in their games. Once they are set up, the players can adjust without a lot of input thrown at them.

But, from Whitefish all the way to Browning, there is no team that Bean feels the team can afford to not take seriously.

“All the teams except for Browning are in the same boat right now,” he said. “And everybody’s playing good, so you can’t sleep on anybody.”

Bean said that while they do look at what they need to prepare for from other teams, their focus is on what the Loggers need to do right to succeed.

“Just as long as we play together, play with heart, I think it will be a really great way to end the season, no matter no matter how it turns out,” Christensen said. “But, yeah, we’re definitely looking for a state.”