The first crosstown basketball meetings of the year tip off tonight at Glacier High School.
The Wolfpack boys (11-1, 4-0) have been playing like the best team in the state and are currently on a state-best eight game winning streak.
Wolfpack center Jaxen Hashley is one of two players in Class AA averaging a double-double this season, netting 16.7 points and 11.2 rebounds per game. His return to the lineup has helped Glacier to the best defense in the state this season, holding teams to just 44 points per game, and opened up the floor for the rest of the team, helping Glacier average a Western conference best 55.8 points per game.
Flathead (6-7, 2-3) has struggled of late, losing its last three games after a 2-0 start to the conference season.
That doesn’t mean the Braves have played poorly. Flathead led in each of those losses and has a balanced attack that has given some of the state’s best teams fits, leading the West in field goal percentage in conference games.
Three Braves average double digit scoring, led by Tyler Johnson with 13.3 points per game. Sam Elliott is averaging 10.9 points and Wyatt Potter 10.7 points per game. All three have had 20-point games this season.
The boys teams split games in the regular season last year, Flathead breaking an eight-game losing streak to the Wolfpack to close the regular season, before Glacier prevailed in a state tournament play-in.