Nathan Beitler/MDN Bishop Ryan senior Jack Passa takes a jump shot in the Lions’ Monday night, Dec. 29, game against the St. John High School Woodchucks as part of the Dale Brown-Hoopster Classic at the Minot State Dome.

The Bishop Ryan Lions had mixed results during the second day of the Dale Brown-Hoopster Classic at the Minot State Dome on Monday night, Dec. 29 as they faced off against the St. John High School Woodchucks. The Bishop Ryan girls’ basketball team ended with an 18-48 loss and the boys’ team ended with a 67-49 win.

The Bishop Ryan girls’ team took to the court first on Friday night with a 1-5 record, a tough start for the team as they finish up the first third of the regular season. The Lions entered the Classic without their only returning all-region player, senior Tochi Udekwe, after she suffered a season-ending injury just before Thanksgiving. Since then, the Lions have had to rearrange their playstyle, but head coach Cole Edwards says that the team has been fighting hard and working on a learning curve.

The Lions’ girls’ basketball team was behind in the first minutes of the first quarter. The Woodchucks took an early seven-point lead when Lions eighth grader Shilow Christianson was fouled on a drive to the basket. The foul allowed Christianson to punch the first point for Bishop Ryan on the first of her two free throws. The Woodchucks worked their way up to a 14-1 lead over the Lions, but Christianson was able to secure her second field goal of the game with a lay up off of a rebound that put Bishop Ryan at an 11 point deficit at 14-3 at the end of the first quarter.

The Woodchucks were able to move up to a score of 18 before the Lions went on a short run in the second quarter. The Lions went from six points to 11, cutting the deficit to the smallest it had been since the beginning of the first quarter, but the Woodchucks were quickly able to widen their lead again, going on a run of their own to end the second quarter of the games with a 24-11 lead. The second half of the game was just as tough for the Lions. The Woodchucks’ defense was able to keep Bishop Ryan at bay, and only allowed them to score seven more points in the last two quarters. The Woodchucks doubled-up their score in the third and fourth quarter, ending the game with a dominant win at 48-18 over the Lions. The Bishop Ryan girls’ basketball team fell to a record of 1-6 after Monday night and they are scheduled to play Mohall-Lansford-Sherwood this Saturday, January 3, on the road for the first game of 2026.

The Bishop Ryan boys’ basketball team took to the court after the conclusion of the girls’ game. The Lions’ boys’ team came into the season off the back of their title win in the 2025 NDHSAA Class B State Championship, their first title in 31 years. Though the Lions have a 2-0 record going into the classic, head coach Broderick Bosch says that the team is still trying to find its groove after graduating four seniors at the end of last season.

Through Monday night’s game, the Lions were able to find a groove against the Woodchucks’ boys’ basketball team. The Lions struck first with a two-point bucket by senior guard Hayden Seay, but the Woodchucks were not far behind. The two teams stayed tight together through the first quarter, never more than two buckets apart. The first quarter ended with a 13-10 lead for the Lions, but the Woodchucks came out hot in the second quarter. St. John scored a two-point bucket and a single free throw to tie the game at 13-13. The two teams tie once again at 15-15, but the Lions are able to run away with the game through the rest of the second quarter, ending the half with a lead of 32-20. The Lions kept up the pressure in the third quarter, working their way up from a 12 point lead to a 16 point lead, ending the quarter at 46-30. The early minutes of the fourth quarter were slow for the Lions. The Woodchucks were able to work their way back up to a 12 point deficit at 50-38, but the Lions came back strong after a time out with just over five minutes remained, earning 17 points in the last half of the fourth quarter, giving them the win over the Woodchucks at 67-49. The Lions’ boys’ basketball team improved on their season record and extended their winning streak at 3-0 after their victory on Monday night.

The boys’ basketball team still have one more game left to play in the Dale Brown-Hoopster Classic, as they are scheduled to take on the Dunseith High School Dragons (3-0) in the Minot Municipal Auditorium beginning at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 30.