2nd District 2C Pepsi All-Star Basketball Game To Be Held In Lambert

For the second year in a row, the District 2C Pepsi All-Star Basketball Game will be hosted, Tuesday, April 4, at Lambert School in their new gym.

In 2022, after watching the NBA All-Star game, the members of the Lambert student council sat around discussing ideas for the coming months. A district-wide All-Star basketball game was brought up by Grady Gonsioroski. The students started planning and looking for sponsors. Blue Rock Pepsi decided to lend a hand and the Pepsi All-Star Basketball game was born.

The game is mostly student-driven and players from Fairview, Culbertson, Westby-Grenora, Bainville, Savage, Plentywood, Circle, Richey-Lambert, Brockton, and Froid-Lake teams have a chance to be picked for it. The top 20 male athletes and top 20 female athletes on the 2C all-conference list are selected by coaches for displaying the best skills in offense, defense, or as a team leader before the District 2C tournament. The girls’ game will be at 6 p.m. and the boys’ game will be at 7:30 p.m. Tickets will be $5 each and can be purchased at the door.

According to student council member Tiegen Cundiff, they are the only district in Montana that does this game. The closest there is to the Pepsi All-Star is the Billings Senior Classic Tournament but that is just for seniors. The Pepsi All-Star is for high school players of any age in the 2C District. An MVP trophy will be awarded to the best player in the girls’ game and the best player in the boys’ game. The MVP choice will come from the officials, coaches, and Grady Gonsioroski. Proceeds from ticket sales will go into the fund for next year’s game. With year two of the game about to start, student Cundiff said, “We plan on doing this annually as long as we can.”

Tickets can be purchased at the door the night of the games. For more information contact Nicole Simonsen at 406-774-3333. The games will also be live-streamed on the Pepsi 2C Classic YouTube channel. Shirts, hoodies, and hats will be available for sale. Concession and a meal will be offered by the Lions’ Den.