It was an entertaining game at 6:30 on the floor of Swede Erickson Gym at Casper College Thursday in the Class 2-A State Tournament opener for Wyoming Indian. The Chiefs battled the Wright Panthers throughout the first half before a run in the final minutes of the second period and the first few of the third lifted the Chiefs to a double-digit lead.
Wyoming Indian won the game 71-61 and advances to an 8 pm semi-final against East 2-A champion Pine Bluffs at the Ford Wyoming Center.
The Chiefs took care of business with a balanced offense. Wright worked to deny Cordell Spoonhunter the ball, but the 6-3 senior displayed his versatility by setting up his teammates.
Mitchell C’Hair and Adriano Brown dominated play in the opening half, and they finished with 12 and 16 points, respectively.
The game was tied three times, and there were six lead changes before the Chiefs hit high gear.
Holding a narrow 30-28 lead, Spoonhunter reeled across the free throw line, spun, and hit C’Hair for a first-half highlight.
After trailing 19-18 at the end of the opening period, the Chiefs led 37-32 at the half.
A flash of what makes Wyoming Indian basketball so exciting came with 5:19 remaining in the third period.
Heeyei’Niitou Monroe-Black scored on a blazing no-dribble, coast-to-coast fastbreak after Spoonhunter cleared the rebound, hit Jordan Black with the outlet, and black drilled a perfect bounce pass to Monroe-Black in stride for the basket.
A pair of follow shots by C’Hair broke the Chiefs into the open 45-38, and they gradually pulled away for the win.
Monroe-Black tallied 16 and Spoonhunter 11.
Big Horn scored almost all of their points inside on the play to their two big men; Mitchell Strohschein tallied 19, and Joseph Kimbrell 23.
Kimbrell, at 6-5, is a true post player who has pop and explosiveness.
In the early going, Strohschein would either post up or set up Kimbrell on a wraparound pass.
Not many teams have the collective basketball savvy the Chiefs do. They adjusted in the third period, jumping the lane on the wraparound attempt and scored four times on fastbreaks off the turnover.
WYOMING INDIAN 18 19 19 15 – 71
WRIGHT 19 13 14 15 – 61
Wyoming Indian – Jordan Black 2 2-4 6, Julius Robinson (2) 1-2 7, Heeyei’Niitou Monroe Black, Adriano Brown 5 (1) 3-6 16, Mitchell C’Hair 6 0-0 12, LaDanian Brown 1 0-0 2, Cordell Spoonhunter 4 3-4 11, Ryder Spoonhunter 1 0-0 2. Totals 25 (3) 12-20 71
Wright – Joseph Kimbrell 11 1-4 23, Tobyn Teigen 2 1-2 5, Jackson Rob 2 2-4 6, Gauge Anderson 1 0-0 2, Truatt Strohschein 3 0-0 6, Mitchell Strohschein 9 1-2 19. Totals 27 (1) 4-10