M-ettes earn 2B Crown in Glasgow

The Malta M-ettes basketball team exited the District 2B Tournament with their second consecutive title last Saturday, February 19, with a 51-43 win over Wolf Point in Glasgow.

"It feels really good," M-ette senior Co-Captain Justine Lamb told the PCN. "I am really proud of these girls. They have been playing really good and they are really great to play with. I am proud of them."

Malta's 2B title win sets them up to face the Shelby Lady Coyotes in the opening round of the Northern B Divisional Tournament to be held in Cut Bank from Thursday, March 3 through Saturday, March 5.

The Coyotes were the fourth seed at the District 1B tournament after losing the third-place game 42-39 to the Conrad Cowgirls. Shelby opened the 1B tournament with a 57-46 victory over Rocky Boy. The team then lost their semi-final game 53-25 to the Fairfield Lady Eagles. Fairfield went on to win the District 1B title with a 53-29 win over Cut Bank last Saturday night.

Malta defeated Fairfield 49-33 last year in the 2021 Northern B title game and with both teams on opposite sides of the bracket, both teams need to pick up wins for a championship rematch.

Lamb was asked what she would like to see improve with the M-ettes prior to their appearance in the Northern B in a couple of weeks. She said that conditioning will be a focus.

"I would also like to see us run our offense a little better, as well as defense," Lamb said.

The Malta M-ettes survived a late offensive push by Wolf Point in the 2B Championship. The Wolves ended the game on a 13-4 run, but Malta won 51-43.

"We just had to play together and no matter what happened, play as a team," Lamb said. "Just keep pushing through everything."

It was the third time that Malta had defeated Wolf Point, but with crowds from every district team being at the tourney, this win took more mental strength than others.

"It was harder because the crowd was so big that it put more pressure on us," Co-Captain Addy Anderson said. "We played really tough defensively, and I think that was key to how we won."

The M-ettes were led by Allison Kunze who had a 14 point, 11 rebound double-double. Maddie Williamson also had a double-double consisting of 11 points and 10 rebounds. Addy Anderson had 11 points. Justine Lamb had six points and six rebounds. Kunze, Lamb, and Williamson each had three steals.

The M-ettes jumped ahead 11-4 by the conclusion of the first quarter thanks to their defense which only allowed a pair of uncontested shots. Anderson attacked the paint early which led to quick fouls by Wolf Point.

"I was just trying to get to the paint so they could foul me so that we could get some points on the board," Anderson said.

Malta was up 23-8 midway through the second quarter but the Lady Wolves went on a 9-0 run heading into halftime. The score at the break was 23-17.

Williamson, who was the team's third captain in the game, was asked what was key in slowing down the Lady Wolves' aggressive perimeter shooters.

"I think just putting pressure on them and letting them know that we weren't going to let them take the easy shots," Williamson said.

Malta scored the first seven points in the third quarter. The team outscored the Lady Wolves 14-10 during the period. Malta's lead grew to its largest point in the fourth quarter (47-30). The Wolves ended the game on a 13-4 run, but Malta would hold on to win.

Malta was 17-of-43 (39%) from the field and 4-of-11 (36%) from three-point range. The team was 13-of-26 from the free-throw line. Malta had 38 rebounds and Wolf Point had 25. Malta had 35 defensive stops and Wolf Point had 31.

Malta defeated the Harlem Lady Wildcats 63-43 in the semi-finals on Friday, February 19. The M-ettes were led by Kunze who had 22 points and 13 rebounds. Anderson added 14 points and Williamson had seven.

The M-ettes had 36 rebounds to Harlem's 27. The M-ettes were 25-of-53 (47%) from the field. Harlem was 16-of-48 (33%). The M-ettes were 5-of-16 (31%) from three-point range and Harlem was 5-of-21 (23%).