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State B Boys: wild Harlem-Eureka ending highlights Day 1; Lodge Grass, Bigfork, Three Forks advance

Three Forks Boys
Posted at 1:57 PM, Mar 10, 2022
and last updated 2022-03-11 00:35:18-05

BOZEMAN — Teagan Levaldo had a grand total of three field goal attempts in Harlem's State B opener against Eureka.

But boy did two of them mean a whole heckuva lot.

With 12 seconds remaining in overtime, Levaldo drained a game-tying three. He then picked off the Lions' inbound pass, quickly drove to the rim and sent up a shot that bounced and shimmied about before falling through for the game-winning basket.

Levaldo scored five points in roughly ten seconds and Harlem's players and sizable contingent of fans rightfully went into a frenzy.

The end result? An unforgettable 63-61 win that sets up a semifinal between the Wildcats and two-time defending champion Lodge Grass.

"My first couple shots of this game," Levaldo, looking somewhat dazed, said afterward. "I followed through with them and get them."

Harlem stormed to a 20-12 lead after one quarter before the game evolved into a back-and-forth tussle that saw the Wildcats and Lions exchange nine ties across regulation and overtime.

The Wildcats were led by 17 points from RJ Ramone, 13 from Caleb Cole and 12 from Tyler Cichosz.

Eureka was paced by a game-high 20 points from Gavin Bates and 12 from Carson Komac. The Lions will play a loser-out game on Friday morning against Shelby.

THREE FORKS 56, MALTA 54
Four Three Forks players scored in double digits as the Wolves outlasted Malta in overtime 56-54 in the first round of the State B tournament on Thursday. Malta was the top seed out of the Northern and Three Forks was the No. 2 seed out of the Southern B.

Owen Long had a game high 16 points for the Wolves, Finn Tesoro had 15 and Jacob Buchignani had 13.

Malta was led by 13 points from Stockton Oxarart, 12 from Connor Tuss and 11 from Rex Williamson.

BIGFORK 55, MANHATTAN 46
Levi Taylor scored a game-high 17 points and the Vikings fended off the third-seeded Tigers to set up a semifinal against Three Forks.

Taylor had eight total rebounds to go with his 17 points while teammate Bryce Gillard had 10 points.

Bigfork led 13-8 after one quarter before Manhattan tied the game at 20 going into halftime. The Viking then built a five-point lead heading into the fourth quarter where they fended off the Tigers.

Manhattan was led by 14 points from Markus Fenno and nine from Evan Douma.

LODGE GRASS 61, SHELBY 45
The Indians are two wins away from replicating the success of Elvis Old Bull and brining a three-peat to Lodge Grass.

Damos Gros Ventre continued his torrid season and piled up 25 points as the Indians trounced Shelby and weathered a 28-point performance from Rhett Reynolds.

Ty Moccasin had a double-double for Lodge Grass with 13 points and 10 rebound while teammate DC Stewart had 12 points.

Lodge Grass led 17-10 after one quarter before Shelby closed in to trail 30-27 at the half. But the Indians then outscored the Coyotes 31-18 in the second to complete the win and move a step closer toward history.