Article Originally Published in the Omaha World Herald by Stu Pospisil
GRAND ISLAND, Neb. — A roundup of Saturday’s games at the Heartland Hoops Classic in Grand Island, Neb.
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Norfolk 66, Kearney 62
Only an eight-point comeback was needed Saturday night as Top 10 No. 5 Norfolk completed a weekend sweep and extended its winning streak to six games with a 66-62 win over Kearney in the Heartland Hoops Classic.
The Panthers (19-2) wiped out a 37-29 Kearney lead with a 13-4 surge over two minutes of the third quarter yet couldn’t shake one of Class A’s hotter teams of the past six weeks.
At home on Friday night, Norfolk had come from 17 points back to beat Lincoln North Star in overtime.
“I’m proud of our guys to find ways to win,” Panthers coach Ben Ries said. “North Star is a good team, and Kearney is greatly improved and a scary team for someone in districts with the right matchup.”
Norfolk shot 75 percent (15 of 20) in the second half to finish at 54 percent (27 of 50). On two-point attempts, the Panthers were 24 of 36 (67 percent) for the game.
“We were content shooting 3s in the first half,” Ries said. “When we got things to the rim, that’s what allowed us to shoot 75 percent.”
Tyler Hagedorn had 18 points, freshman Logan Strom 15 and Taylor Reedy 12 for Norfolk. Damien Austin led Kearney (9-13) with 23 points and Dakota Schriner was 6 of 12 on 3s for 18 points.
“They went to a 3-2 zone in the second half that slowed things down,” Kearney coach Scott Steinbrook said. “It was taking us longer in possessions to find the shot.”
Kearney (9-13) …………………………………… 13 16 17 16—62
Norfolk (19-2) …………………………………… 13 14 22 17—66
K: Damien Austen 23, Dakota Schriner 18, David Erickson 8, Brian Arp 4, Brady Johnson 2, Peyton Pocock 2, Bryan Burchell 5.
N: Tyler Hagedorn 18, Logan Strom 15, Taylor Reedy 12, Kory Resstman 5, Brandon Vallalpando 8, Lane McCaullum 4, Stefan Medel 4.
Elkhorn South 64, Grand Island 46
Grand Island (4-16) stayed with Top 10 No. 6 Elkhorn South (20-0), the top-ranked team in Class B, until the final quarter thanks to a fast start. The Islanders led 17-9, but Elkhorn South ran off the next 13 points and had seven-point leads at halftime and after three quarters.
Senior guard Matt Thomas scored eight of his game-high 21 points in the final quarter for the Storm.
Choul Biel had 11 for the Islanders (4-16).
Elkhorn South (20-0)………………..13 19 15 17—64
Grand Island (4-16)………………….17 8 15 6—46
ES: Josh Alberts 9, Chad Carlos 1, Matt Thomas 21, Tommy Trueblood 4, Johnny Trueblood 14, John Wehling 2, JJ Zumbrennen 4, Justin Costello 3, Aaron Hardy 6.
GI: Pierce Almond 9, Tanner Shuck 5, Ben Witkowski 9, Machoul Chol 2, Trevor Wojtalewicz 5, Seth Roberg 5, Choul Biel 11.
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Doniphan-Trumbull 55, Norfolk Catholic 50
Riley Wiltfong and Jordan Slough combined for 12 points in the fourth-quarter rally by Class C-2’s No. 6 Cardinals (18-3).
Wiltfong, who had seven of his 12 points in the period, followed a 3-pointer with a basket for a 46-45 lead, and Norfolk Catholic eventually trailed 51-46.
The Knights (11-10) got back to 52-50 on Beau Schommer’s putback with 2:10 left, but the Cardinals got one free throw by Wiltfong and two by Slough to ice the win.
Slough and Creighton Buhr each had 13 points to lead the Cardinals. Dylan Borer had a game-high 16 points.
Doniphan-Trumbull (18-3) …………………………………… 12 13 12 18—55
Norfolk Catholic (11-10) …………………………………… 18 16 11 5—50
DT: Jordan Slough 13, Creighton Buhr 13, Riley Wiltfong 12, Grady Koch 8, Lorenzo Williams 7, Noah Keller 2.
NC: Dylan Borer 16, Matt Miller 8, David Engelhaupt 8, Beau Schommer 6, Austin Becker 4, Zach Pospisil 4, Nathan Boyle 2, Seth Montag 2.
High Plains 52, Freeman 42
Logan Fleming was 7 of 8 from the field for a game-high 17 points for Class D-2 No. 3 High Plains (20-1). The Storm shot 65.3 percent from the field (17 of 26).
Isaac Frerichs and Cole Schuster had 14 points apiece for Class C-2 No. 3 Freeman (19-4), which made up a nine-point deficit during the third quarter but lost the final quarter by 10.
Freeman (19-4)…………………..8 7 15 12—42
High Plains (20-1)………………11 13 6 22—52
F: Derek Veerhusen 6, Isaac Frerichs 14, Cole Schuster 14, Cullin Bloom 3, Calan Sedlacek 5.
H: Ben Nunnenkamp 4, Cole Klingsporn 10, Logan Fleming 17, Logan Engel 10, Dylan Shenk 8, Cale Harless 3.
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Wahoo Neumann 70, Grand Island Northwest 35
Class C-1 No. 2 Neumann (14-6) got 16 points from Austin Woita, 13 from Zach Ahrens and 11 from Travis Carnahan.
The Cavs took control by outscoring Northwest 20-7 in the second quarter for a 35-18 lead.
Wahoo Neumann (14-6)……………….15 20 18 17—70
Grand Island NW (6-15)……………….11 7 9 8—35
WN: Austin Woita 16, Zach Ahrens 13, Travis Carnahan 11, Ben Simons 8, Nate Meduna 7, John Kenney 6, Conner Loos 5, Noah Vedral 4.
NW: Darrek McNelis 8, Brook Brown 7, Casey Dahlkoetter 5, Garrett Koepp 4, Trevis Schliep 3, Isaiah Daws 2, Zack Blase 2, Christian Ellsworth 2, Will Mettenbrink 2.
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Overton 51, Sutton 48
Tanner Ryan led Class D-1 No. 6 Overton (18-4) with 24 points.
The Eagles trailed Sutton (13-9) by two going to the final quarter. Sutton’s Cole Wiseman, who led the Mustangs with 15 points, saw his 3-point attempt go in and out at the buzzer.
Overton (18-4)……………………..13 10 12 16—51
Sutton (13-9)………………………..11 10 18 9—48
O: Tanner Ryan 24, Hayden Cahoy 9, Caleb Ecklund 6, Joel Shafer 4, Logan Kozer 5, Creighton Ryan 3.
S: Cole Wiseman 15, Noah Johnson 12, Andrew Pawlowski 12, Tristan Sheridan 4, Trae Ramer 3, Nicholas Hohensee 2.
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Southern Valley 48, Grand Island Central Catholic 38
Class C-2 No. 5 Southern Valley picked up its 20th win by breaking away from a 21-21 halftime tie against shorthanded Central Catholic.
The Crusaders (14-8) suited up only nine players. Senior guard Phoenix Stevenson and junior Eli Hunter were hurt during Friday night’s win over Class C-2 No. 1 Hastings St. Cecilia.
Youhanna Ghaifan, the Class C-1 No. 10 Crusaders’ 6-4 junior power forward, had a game-high 21 points. Alex Kaup had 14 and Hunter Quinn 11 for the Eagles (20-2).
Southern Valley (20-2) …………………………………… 9 12 13 14—48
Grand Island CC (14-8) …………………………………… 6 15 7 10—38
SV: Alex Kaup 14, Hunter Quinn 11, Dylan Brooks 9, Seth Miller 9, Jeremiah Perkins 5.
GICC: Youhanna Ghiaifan 21, Alex Allen 6, John Rohweder 5, Harry Heideik 4, Brady Brokaw 2.
