HAMILTON — Ronan is back.

Matiya Nenemay and Kolby Finley combined for 35 points as Ronan defeated Butte Central 58-51 in the Northwest A Divisional semifinals on Dale Berry Court Friday.  

“I thought the kids played hard and it was a physical and fun atmosphere” said Ronan coach George Sherwood, whose club advanced to face Dillon in Saturday's 6 p.m. title game. “We knew they were a great team, and they were going to go on runs." 

Siouxprixm Qualtier swished a triple at the buzzer to give Ronan a 33-24 lead at halftime, but Butte Central made sure the finish wouldn't come easy. 

Finley made a 3-pointer from the corner to start the second half for the Chiefs before the Maroons went on an 11-0 run with two layups from Noah Sutton and a triple from Jaxon Hiatt, trimming the lead to 43-40. 

The Maroons kept pushing. Hiatt and Ryan Peoples found transition baskets and Joshua Sutton made a triple to tie the game at 51 apiece with two minutes remaining in the game. 

Finley shined under the pressure by making an acrobatic layup and threading a pass to Jett McDonald through traffic, extending the lead 56-51.  

“We practice for moments like that,” Finley said. “You just have to stay composed.” 

Qualtier fouled out for the Chiefs in the final seconds, but Nenemay made late crucial free throws to bring the Ronan boys back to the state tournament for the second straight year. 

Ronan (17-3) will face Dillon (14-6) for the first time this season Saturday. 

Ronan    17    16    12    13    -    58 

Butte Central    15    9    16    11    -    51 

RONAN — Matiya Nenemay 7 4-7 19, Siouxprixm Qualtier 1 1-2 4, Jhett McDonald 4 0-0 10, Kolby Finley 6 3-6 16, Tryance Matt 2 3-6 7, Ben Running Rabbit 0 0-0 0, Will Normandeau 1 0-2 2. Totals 21 11-23 58.  

BUTTE CENTRAL — Ryan Peoples 2 2-2 6, Cade Kelly 1 1-2 3, Joshua Sutton 3 5-6 13, GG Fantini 1 0-2 2, Jaxon Hiatt 7 0-0 17, Burkley Lakkala 1 0-2 2, Gunnar O’Brien 0 0-0 0, Noah Sutton 2 2-2 6, Henley Mansanti 1 1-1 2. Totals 18 10-17 51.  

3-point goals — Ronan 5 (McDonald 2, Finley, Nenemay, Qualtier), Butte Central 5 (Hiatt 3, J. Sutton 2). Fouls — Ronan 19, Butte Central 17. Fouled out — Qualtier.   

Dillon 55, Frenchtown 41 

It may have been a Friday, but Aason Munday scored 12 of his 16 points in the second half to lead Dillon past Frenchtown in the other semifinal. 

Hank Smith drilled four triples and scored a game-high 29 points for Frenchtown, but Dillon used a full team effort to knock off the first-seeded Broncs. 

After a back-and-forth first half, Dillon’s Will Hansen opened the third period with a three to give the Beavers a 22-19 lead. 

Smith had a put-back layup and triple for Frenchtown, but Cohen Hartman buried a 3-pointer as Dillon took a 37-27 lead into the final frame. Hartman added two more 3-pointers to score nine points. 

Braxtyn Turner made all six free throw attempts down the stretch to give Dillon a decisive 45-32 lead. Turner contributed 13 points. 

Frenchtown won both meetings this season prior to Friday’s game. The Broncs now matchup against Browning on Saturday Morning at 9 a.m. in an elimination game. 

Dillon    8    11    15    21    -    55 

Frenchtown    9    10    8    14    -    41 

DILLON — Canin Christiansen 0 2-2 2, Braxtyn Turner 3 6-6 13, Cohen Hartman 3 0-0 9, Will Hansen 2 2-2 7, Aason Munday 8 0-2 16, Gage Curnow 1 0-0 2, Noah Feenstra 1 0-0 3, Paxton Puyear 1 0-1 3. Totals 18 10-13 55.   

FRENCHTOWN — Trevor Smith 2 0-0 4, Cooper Michaud 2 0-0 4, Cole Pfahler 0 0-0 0, Konnor Klimpel 1 0-0 2, Hank Smith 9 6-10 28, Henry Griffin 1 0-0 3, Brooks Day 0 0-0 0, Jaxon Haynes 0 0-0 0, Brayden Ricci 0 0-0 0. Totals 15 6-10 41. 

3-point goals — Dillon 7 (Hartman 3, Puyear, Turner, Hansen, Feenstra), Frenchtown 5 (Smith 4, Griffin). Fouls — Dillon 17, Frenchtown 15.