Ben Reichner was big for the Braves, but Gallatin’s Bobby Gutzman scored 17 of his 23 points in the second half to lift the Raptors over Flathead 63-57 in a non-conference boys basketball matchup Friday evening. 

Reichner, a guard, led the Braves (1-2) with 26 points, connecting on five three-pointers. Boston Case added eight points, and Eli Coopman contributed seven. 

Flathead coach Dan Trageser praised his team’s effort despite the home loss.  

“We have a recipe: we need to guard, rebound, and limit turnovers,” he said. “I think we did two out of three parts pretty well tonight. They hurt us down the stretch with a lot of 50-50 balls and offensive rebounds that went their way, and I think that was the difference tonight.” 

The Braves came out strong, forcing Gallatin into multiple turnovers. Coopman grabbed an early rebound and raced coast-to-coast for the game’s first basket. Reichner followed with a 3-pointer and Case added a pull-up jumper to give Flathead a 15-10 first-quarter lead, despite a late push from Gallatin’s Zach Lockwood. 

The second quarter turned into a back-and-forth battle. Gallatin chipped away with a banked three from Aidden Brown, tying the game at 15 before Reichner scored five straight points. Brown scored 10 points in the period, giving Gallatin a 27-23 halftime lead. He finished the game with 15 points and multiple rebounds. 

In the second half, Gallatin extended its lead early, but Reichner kept Flathead afloat by knocking down multiple 3-pointers. The Braves briefly reclaimed the lead 36-35 in the third. 

“That’s a kid (Reichner) who lives in the gym; he was getting up shots all week,” said Trageser. “I’m proud of him and how he battled through adversity last weekend in Great Falls. It just speaks to the type of kid he is.” 

Flathead entered the final quarter trailing 41-38. The Braves battled using a full-court press and key layups from Coopman and Case, but Gallatin responded with timely baskets and free throws from Gutzman. Reichner’s fifth three trimmed the deficit to 62-57. 

Flathead continues its season Saturday, hosting Bozeman at 2 p.m. 

Gallatin    10    17    14    22    —    63 

Flathead    15    8    15    19    —    57

GALLATIN — Ethan Waldo 1 0-0 3, Brett Sonju 3 1-4 8, Joey Padilla 0 0-4 0, Bobby Gutzman 9 4-6 23, Zach Lockwood 3 2-2 8, Austin Bishop 0 3-4 3, Sam Litzen 0 0-0 0, Matthew Phillips 1 1-1 3, Aidden Brown 5 4-8 15. Totals 22 15-29 63. 

FLATHEAD — Sam McConnell 0 0-0 0 , Eli Coopman 3 1-2 7, Ollie Rosenberg 2 0-0 5, Ben Reichner 10 1-3 26, Lance Schneller 1 1-2 3, Reece Brotherton 2 0-0 4, Boston Case 3 2-2 8, Max Shostak 1 0-- 2, Kyler Kossman 1 0-2 2. Totals 23 5-11 57.  

3-point goals — Gallatin 4 (Waldo, Sonju, Gutzman, Brown). Flathead 6 (Reichner 5, Rosenberg) Fouls — Gallatin 14, Flathead 18. Fouled out — Brotherton.