Luedke, Bache lead Bulldogs over Missoula Sentinel
Butte High's freshman phenom Hudson Luedtke had 21 points and sophomore Dylan Bache came off the bench to add a dozen as the Butte High Bulldogs pounded their way to a 67-56 Western AA victory over Missoula Sentinel Friday night at Ross J. Richardson gymnasium.
While Butte High definitely got the points they were looking for, it was their defense that set the tone early as the Bulldogs scored the game's first twelve points behind a pair of Luedke long-bombs, a Luedke coast-to-coast layup, a drive by sophomore guard Tocher Lee and a pair of free throws by senior co-captain Jace Stenson. Over six minutes would pass before the Spartans would get their first points, a layup by 6'5 junior post Holter Schweyen, and Missoula Sentinel simply could not overcome the early double-digit deficit. The Bulldogs would lead 17-6 at the end of the first quarter and 32-23 at halftime.
Joining Luedtke and Bache in double digits was sharpshooting senior guard Casey Merrifield who had 10. Sophomore guard Tocher Lee would get 8 while Senior guard Cameron Gurnsey would add 7 for the Bulldogs, senior forward Jonas Sherman would add 5 and senior forward Jace Stenson had 4. Stenson would foul out of the contest with 6:10 to play in the third quarter, but the Bulldogs were able to get valuable minutes from the bench, with Dylan "Bobby" Bache always finding himself in the right place at the right time.
With the win, the Bulldogs even their overall record at 4-4 and improve to 4-3 in the Western AA. Missoula Sentinel falls to 1-3 in league play and 2-7 overall. The Bulldogs will be on the road Thursday for a tilt at Helena Capital before returning home next Saturday at 3:30 to meet the Helena High Bengals.