BILLINGS — Former Lame Deer boys basketball star Journey Emerson, who set the state single-game scoring record to help make the Morning Stars one of the best stories in Montana sports in 2022, died Friday in a car accident on the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, his former coach Tiger Scalpcane told The Billings Gazette and 406 MT Sports on Friday night.
Emerson celebrated his 21st birthday this past Saturday, according to Scalpcane. Emerson was living with at the time of his death.
Emerson was traveling with his daughter and en route to dropping her off with his girlfriend’s grandmother so that he could play in a recreational softball tournament in Billings, Scalpcane said. Emerson’s daughter was in an intensive care unit in Billings as of Friday evening; a male passenger was in stable condition, per Scalpcane.
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Lame Deer’s Journey Emerson drives down the court during a game against Lodge Grass at First Interstate Arena at MetraPark in 2022.
“I remember him as kind, soft-spoken, smiling all the time, always positive,” Scalpcane said. “I never had to worry about him, never had to worry about him getting in trouble. I never had to worry about him drinking or staying out late. He always came in on time.
“He was my adopted son, for one, and was living with me, so he meant the world to me. I treated him like my own son, loved him like my own son. He called me dad. … never had a mean bone in his body. Great kid, lovable kid, (and in the) community everybody loved him.”
Emerson garnered national attention for his scoring outbursts during his senior season at Lame Deer in 2021-22, most notably when he dropped a still-standing state-record 82 points against Forsyth in February 2022.
