Butte returned home to Ross J. Richardson Gymnasium on Saturday night looking to respond after its first loss of the season, a road setback at Helena Capital two nights earlier. Hosting Helena High, the Bulldogs delivered the answer they were looking for, pulling away late for a 75–65 win.
Brady Hanson set the tone early with a two-hand flush that brought the home crowd to life, then followed it up with a pair of smooth jumpers from the elbow. Mitch Verlanic chipped in during the opening stretch, but Helena High stayed right there, answering nearly every Bulldog push. Hudson Luedtke added a tough runner in the lane, though the Bengals responded with a triple to keep it close at 20–15 midway through the first half.
The back-and-forth continued as Helena knocked down another three to cut the lead to one. Luedtke answered immediately, drilling a triple of his own to give Butte a four-point edge. Helena briefly grabbed the lead at 27–25, forcing a Bulldog timeout, but Luedtke came straight out of the huddle and buried a contested three from the left wing to put Butte back in front. Cayde Stajcar drew contact late in the half but missed the and-one, and the Bulldogs took a 30–27 lead into the break.
Butte came out firing in the second half, knocking down big shots to stretch the lead to eight. Helena responded to keep things competitive, but the Bulldogs maintained control at 36–30. Rhett Arntson then stepped into a deep triple late in the third quarter to push the lead to seven. When Helena began doubling Luedtke, he made them pay, finding Arntson for another deep three before Stajcar finished a fast-break layup. Just like that, Butte had blown it open to 44–32.
Stajcar continued to play bully ball inside, adding another bucket before Luedtke broke a full-court press with ease, going coast to coast for a layup to make it 50–38 late in the third. James Pearston knocked down a timely three in limited minutes, and the Bulldogs carried a 50–40 advantage into the final frame.
Helena made one last push early in the fourth, cutting the deficit to eight with strong inside play. Butte answered immediately. Off an offensive rebound, Hanson found Josh Liston in the corner, and Liston buried the three to push the lead back to 53–42. After Helena scored off an inbound to trim it to nine, Luedtke took over for good.
You could try to contain him, but you could not stop him. Luedtke attacked the lane, spun through traffic, finished through contact and completed the old-fashioned three-point play. He later drew a foul on a three-point attempt and calmly knocked down all three free throws. The exclamation point came in transition as Luedtke pushed the ball up the floor and lofted a perfect lob to Hanson for a two-hand alley-oop that sent the crowd into a roar.
Butte closed it out from there, pulling away for a 75–65 victory.
Luedtke led all scorers with 35 points, taking over the second half by scoring at all three levels. Hanson finished with 12 points, while Stajcar added 10. Arntson provided a spark off the bench with nine points, and Liston chipped in seven. Tyse Todorovich led Helena High with 22 points.
After a tough road loss earlier in the week, the Bulldogs made sure their return home ended the right way.
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BOX SCORE
HELENA HIGH (5–3, 2–2)
Pacer Lybert 0 1-2 1
Reece Silvonen 1 0-0 2
Seth Lieberg 3 0-2 7
Gracen Silvonen 4 3-4 13
Tyse Todorovich 8 2-4 22
Chase Foster 6 5-5 20
Cayden OneSpot-Danforth 0 0-0 0
Kale Day 0 0-0 0
Brayden Garza 0 0-0 0
Seth Kiser 0 0-0 0
Totals: 22 11-17 65
BUTTE HIGH (8–1, 3–1)
Cayde Stajcar 4 2-5 10
Hudson Luedtke 10 13-15 35
Mitch Verlanic 1 0-0 2
Josh Liston 2 1-4 7
Brady Hanson 4 4-4 12
Rhett Arntson 2 3-4 9
Kendel Noctor 0 0-0 0
Ryan Hanson 0 0-0 0
James Pearston 0 0-0 0
Totals: 23 23-32 75
Quarter Scores
Helena: 8 19 13 25 — 65
Butte: 11 19 20 25 — 75
3-point goals — Helena 10 (Todorovich 4, Foster 3, G. Silvonen 2, Lieberg), Butte 6 (Luedtke 2, Liston 2, Arntson 2).
Fouls — Helena 27, Butte 17.
Fouled out — R. Silvonen.
Technicals — none.
