In Play with Craig Mattick: 2021 State Basketball Championships Recap

Seventy-two games, six tournaments, and two weekends - the South Dakota high school basketball championships invaded five different communities over the last couple of weeks. 

All six state championship coaches (Jared Bouman - White River, Derek Larson - Aberdeen Roncalli, Jamie Parish - Sioux Falls Washington, Jeff Gruenhagen - De Smet, Mike Schouten - Sioux Falls Christian, and Mitch Begeman - Sioux Falls Roosevelt) joined Craig Mattick to recap their teams success during this year's event.

Be sure to subscribe to the 'In Play with Craig Mattick' podcast through Apple or Spotify.

Jared Bouman - White River 

The class B championship went to White River. In fact, the last time the White River girls were in the finals, you got to go back to 1992 and they do it this year. They beat Castlewood in the finals. They get their very first girls championship and the head coach is Jared Bouman. He joins us here on In Play and Jared, I found a stat. Of course, I figured it out. That you've been an assistant with the boys for the last 15 years. And you made the state tournament every year as an assistant with Elden Marshall and now add 16 years in a row being the coach for the girls. That is quite a streak that you're on right now. I don't know very many coaches that have that.

There's some familiarity with going to state tournaments with the boys program for so long. We had a lot of success and been in that environment. And it was great this year to get the girls to the state tournament, and then not only get there, but capitalize on the opportunity.

Did that help you prepare for the state tournament since you've been there 15 years in a row with the boys?

I think for sure, you go through how important the rest when you're there and also the nutrition part of it, eating right. And making sure that the girls are getting enough rest at night, having some downtime during the day and preparing themselves, not only physically with that recovery, but also that mental side of it and putting the day before's game behind you and getting ready to go for the challenge at hand.

You got the job a week before the season. When did you decide to apply for the job? And did you feel a little cramped getting the job a week before the season?

It was a pretty last minute decision. They came to me actually and wanted to know if I wanted to be the girls program. And one of the first things I did was went down and talked to who had been the girl's coach previously, and she was all for it. She was really behind me and wanted me to fill that job. And thought that I would do really well with it and felt that there needed to be some new blood in the job. And so then after talking with her and talking to the wife and pinned down, I knew there's a lot of time and energy and effort into being a championship team and program and how much goes into it from the boys' side.

And I decided to jump on board with it. And I told the girls, the day I took the job I met with the girls. They know me through the boys program and stuff. And I told them that, "I'm not going to coach the boys no more. And I'm going to be all in with you girls and you'll have my full attention and my full energy and everything that comes along with it." So they bought in from the get-go and it was really a pleasure to coach them this year.

What was the preparation like during the first two weeks of the season, knowing that you had taken the job just a week earlier?

I think those first couple of weeks of any year, it was really just focused on how I want them to play defensively. Just getting them to play hard, really hard defensively and understanding the concepts of playing really good man-to-man defense. And then as soon as you turn that page of, they understand a little bit about what I want defensively. Then you can start putting in some offensive stuff. But that first couple of weeks of the season, so much just conditioning and not really running sprints, but just playing, practicing on the defensive end, as hard as you can.

White River did not lose a game to a class B school during the season. You lost to Winner. What was that game like? I think it was a four point game. What was it like playing Winner who was one of the top teams in class A?

We had played a couple of really good Class A schools. We met West Central and then we played Hamel earlier in the year and then Winner came to our place and it was a big game. And we just had a really slow start to the game offensively and we were down. I think we got down by double digits and then were able to really battle back in the second half. And we never stopped playing hard. We offensively, we just struggled and Winner hit some big shots going down the stretch. And I think we did get it tied or maybe even had the lead midway through the fourth quarter and then Winner just have some great players and are well coached and hit a couple of really big shots going down the stretch there and were able to come away with a four point lead.

But the girls never got too down. I told the girls after the game, after that Winner game, "We'll learn from it and then put it behind us and move forward." And I think they really did that. We refocused us a little bit and got back to some of the basics of where we started the year on the defensive end and really just carried that forward through the rest of the season.

Well, White River played nine class A schools this year. I know you didn't have much of a voice on who you played this year since you got the job right before the season started. But is that something you want to continue down the road playing some of the class A schools around White River?

I think it only helps you. It was a little different year around the area. They canceled the Lakota Nation Invitational on Rapid City, which we usually go out and compete in. So we were able to schedule Winner. We were able to get into the classic in Mitchell where we played West Central and those quality opponents definitely carry you, those A schools and those bigger classes definitely helped prepare you for post-season play and what it's like playing the state tournament.

Jared Bauman, the first year head coach of White River as the White River wins the championship. They beat Castlewood in the state B girls basketball tournament. Let's talk about a couple of your players. Of course, Caelyn Valandra-prue eighth on the all-time scoring list now. But she told her ACL last year, early in the season. You were on the boys' side as an assistant, but it sounded like she really got into a mode of preparing herself for the basketball season. What did you see from her while she was trying to come back from the ACL injury?

I think a lot of credit to Caelyn comes from her mom and dad and the commitment that they've made to making sure that she comes back as strong as she possibly could. They were driving twice a week out to Sioux Falls to do rehab and to get that knee back to where it is today. And anytime you have an injury like that, it takes a toll on a person. I know it took a toll on Caelyn and earlier this year she got cleared and it was really her first contact, physical contact was our first few practices this year. Stepping out back on the floor it's emotional for her and her family. And as the year went on she just got more and more comfortable, was able to really put it behind her, I think. And I think really that putting in Mitchell at the [inaudible 00:09:14] where she was injured, getting over that hurdle and then just continuing to get stronger and stronger as the year went on. And I think she's still, even now probably still getting stronger and stronger as she continues her high school career.

That injury can be a year and a half, maybe two years to come back from because being maybe a little tentative playing. She did not look, during the state tournament, very tentative at all with that injury.

No. Her style of play and she's one to not be tentative. She's super athletic and she'll penetrate, she's physical. She draws a lot of contact. She'd shot a ton of free throws this year. Gets to the line a lot and is a very good free throw shooter. So our style of play doesn't lead to being tentative. She gets after it and is a super, super athletic, aggressive type of player.

She also draws a lot of attention. How does she handle being I'll quote, "The star of the team," a top player in the state? How did she handle it this year?

I think she handles it the best you can. I think she focuses on how the team's going to win and is humble. And I think she gives credit to her teammates and she's a vocal leader. And she leads by example, she pushes the other girls to keep getting better and works hard, not only on the floor, in the classroom. I think she's a three seven, three eight student. Gets to school every day and does all the things that are required to be a great student athlete.

Maleighya Estes brings that one two punch for White River. Can you tell me about her progress this year and what it was like for her to be that player, playing along Caelyn Valandra-prue?

Maleighya transferred in at the beginning of the year and she is just another scoring threat for us, and she has been. I think she scored a thousand points last year as a sophomore. And so she's capable of putting up big numbers and her game is really the mid range game. It's a lost art of basketball, but she really can knock down the 15 footer and is comfortable in that area and really excels there. And she's super competitive, she's driven and she's one of the last players to leave practices and one of the first players there. You'll catch her up in the gym on weekends by herself shooting. And she's just all around a really great kid. And I got a heck of a basketball player.

And then Nicola Yakley, is there anybody else who has a higher arc for the three-point shot than Nicole? She has an amazing arc that she has on that shot. And she made what? Seven or eight threes during the tournament?

She had a great tournament for us. I think she had three big threes in our Kodak 16 game too, and then seven or eight in the state tournament. She does a really good job and she understands her role so well and defensively all three nights, she guarded the other team's point guard and did an outstanding job defensively and led the attack on the defensive end. And she's just a great kid. And I really bought into what her role was on the team and accepted it and flourished in the state tournament.

Of course you have the Morrison sisters. You use them sometimes as the point during the state tournament, being able to handle the ball. And that certainly gives you a lot more options to put Estes and Valandra-prue and Yakley in various positions on the floor.

Kelsey ran point for us sometimes this year. She's a good ball handler and is a good decision maker. If we get into the moment of where it's a little bit chaotic, I can get in Kelsey's hands and she can pull us down a little and gain some composure on the floor. She's very composed player and defensively she does a very good job of playing off the ball and playing health side and understanding what the offense is trying to do and be able to take some of that away.

And Remedy's a girl that is undersized. She's only five six, but she's guarded posts all year and just done an outstanding job of using her quickness and being able to get around in front and show different positions in the post. And blocks out every shot. And she's also a better scorer than... With Maleighya and Caelyn this year. Remedy's number of shots she gets a game has went down from last year and she's really bought into that and accepted it. And she's a capable of scorer as well. And the last couple of games of the state tournament, especially that second game when we played Corsica/Stickney, she had a really good second half. She had 12 points in the second half. That was really a key for us, stepping out and making 15 footers. And then the championship game, I know she hit a three there in the third that really opened things up for us. So they both played outstanding in the state tournament.

Second game of the tournament, all tied at 50 against Corsica/Stickney. You have the ball to end the game, what 20 seconds or so left in the game, everybody in the building, I thought that the ball has to go to Caelyn Valandra-prue. What was your plan and strategy on that last play of the game where Estes did take the shot and scored and you went to the title game?

It's a play that we have ran a ton of times in practice. And I told Maleighya in the huddle, probably midway through the third quarter she was struggling offensively and wasn't getting her shot at the fall. And I said, "Hey, Maleighya, we as a team, we'll live and die with you shooting that 15 foot jump shot." And it just so happened then going down the stretch there, we ran a play where we got it into Caelyn and then got it to Maleighya and Remedy's set a high ball screen. Caeyln cut through. And I told Maleighya, "Just come off the screen and if you're open, shoot the shot. And if they collapse on you, Caelyn's going to be open in the corner and just kick it to her." And she came off the screen and rose up and knocked it down and just a big play at a big time and a great score. I couldn't be happier for Maleighya.

And then the championship game versus Castlewood, Maleighya Estes was on fire, that short range jumper. She had eight quick points and you guys never let up. And you guys put the pedal to the metal and there was no question whatsoever the way you guys played to win the championship. A very impressive performance by your team on the championship. What did you see in your team that night?

I think all of the work that we've put in all year and what I wanted to see out of us just all came together. That championship game defensively, we were really, really good. And then offensively, we were able to get it into Maleighya on the high post area, three kill line area. She did a ton of scoring early for us, and then girls were knocking down shots and Nicole hit a three early on there and then hit another one in the third quarter and Remedy stepped down and hit one. Caelyn was Caelyn and she was aggressive and got some stuff in transition, was able to get to the free throw line a few. Just being hurt and it just all came together. And I thought the key to it all is being able to defend the way we defended and being physical and then rebounding and getting that going.

You were so even keeled, even steven. I didn't see you get all excited. That's just the way you are Jared. Where did that come from? Is that something you've always been pretty even on?

I think I can get emotional and show emotion, but especially coaching girls. It's a different ball game, coaching girls. I think they appreciate the evenness. And I told the girls, "Let's not get too high and let's not get too low and let's just play as hard as we can together." And that's all I can ask of them. And if I get crazy and jumping around and it's not who I am either. It's not my personality. And I try to stay pretty reserved and not maybe on the inside, I'm showing emotion, but try to at least show the girls that evenness and that hard work and the preparation that I put into it. I think that they seen through the year how much I care and just the work that I put into it. And it shows. They go out and believe in me and play how I want them to play and it's awesome to watch.

Two questions for you, Jared. One, what was it like having Elden Marshall, the boys coach, the head coach that you've been the assistant for, for the last 15 years, what was it like having him there at the state tournament this year?

It's awesome. We talk every day still and it wasn't an easy decision to leave the boys program. We've had so much success together, but Elden was all for it too. We have a really good young boys assistant, Justice Morrison who was in our program and was really eager to... He was going to help with the boys anyway. So that made my decision to step over the girls a lot easier to have him fill in that role, because I knew he would do a really good job with it. But Elden's been awesome. We've done a lot together and with the boys and he was one of the first people to come up and congratulate me. And I think he was just as excited about it as I was, happy for the girls. And he knows how hard it is and how much work it takes to be at that level and make the most out of the opportunity while you're there because it's not... Getting there and getting the state championship game, but then being able to go and win that game, it just doesn't happen every day or every year. I'm just making the most out of the opportunity that you have.

Well now you got some extra time to prepare before next season. What's next? When will you get going again?

Let Caelyn and the crew run their track season. And then so we'll get in some summer stuff and I know there's a couple of team camps that we're going to go to, and a couple summer league things going on. Hopefully there'll be a couple of weeks here to regroup. And I know the girls will be ready to get back in the gym when that time comes.

The class A champion is a first time champion and what a run they had in the postseason. It was Aberdeen Roncalli winning its very first girls' basketball championship and the head coach, Derek Larson joining us here on In Play. Coach, you were the four seed. It was your fifth appearance. Your fourth straight, your other appearance was back in 2013. What has been the difference with Aberdeen Roncalli girls' basketball here in the last eight years.

I don't know if there's a huge difference other than just the athletes we've had. When I started here in 2000, and I think it was 2009 as the head girls coach, they hadn't been particularly successful before that. And I had a really good group of kids that graduated in 2013 for our first state title appearance in 2013. And it was just a great group of kids. A really good group of athletes. We didn't have any size that year, but those kids would do about anything for you. And still look back at that team. And we won our first [Sean 00:22:44] game that year and then we lost to Harrisburg the last year that they were in class A, on the semi-final night. So we had a really good year that year. And since then we just had a great group of kids come through, a really good group of athletes come through that have really put in a lot of time and effort into basketball.

COVID took out so much for the summer and then the fall. What was it like for your kids to even try to get ready to play basketball this year?

The ending the season the way we did last year, make qualifying for the state tournament and then finding out right prior to that, that we were unable to play was pretty disheartening. Having a group of seniors that year and then going into the summer not knowing what the summer was going to look like. We were able to have four person workouts in our gym for a while. Once July rolled around it seemed like it things up a lot more. We're a group that typically goes to some team camps. We're unable to do that last summer. So there was definitely a lot of uncertainty going into the fall. I think not just uncertainty with our own school, but uncertainty in the entire state. Start of the year, I don't think many people thought we were probably going to get through the fall season. And we ended up getting through the fall season at our school, not many cases. And then once basketball hit, we hit full stride, I guess.

I think you have five players on your basketball squad that also played volleyball. When did you feel that the team was playing really well, that you were almost running on all cylinders and playing some really good basketball?

Well we started out the year pretty successfully. I think we started out 12 and zero. We hadn't really played a great schedule to that point, but we had a rough stretch in the end of January, early February. We had a tough one against Croton on the road. We lost to Hamlin by one on our home floor. And then we went to the DAK 12 MEC Challenge and got handled by West Central. And that was, looking back, that was the last game we lost. That was a really pivotal game for us. And I think an eye-opener of, we need to get back to work and get back to doing things the way we want to. And from that point on, we really stepped up our game on the defensive end and that's where we really hung our hat for the rest of the season.

I think you lost by 16 to West Central. What happened in that game?

They just got into us. We weren't used to the speed that they had, their guards were so fast and they scored a ton of points in transition and we turned the ball over a lot. It didn't help that we didn't shoot the ball particularly well that game. But they really matched it up with as well. They had a six two post player. So did we and their guards were just more than we could handle that night.

I heard you say that the last four games of the playoffs was the best defense that you played all year. Explain what that defense was and what you guys were doing?

Well, I don't think we did anything, in particularly different. I just thought our kids had a mindset and an attitude that, we were not going to give up points. And, you go into the red field game, they have really good player and Addison Roselle averaging 20 plus points a game. And we beat them earlier in the year, but they were playing a lot better at the end of the season. To hold them to 15 points, I think was just an eye-opener for us that, we can play defense as well. Then going into the state tournament and holding Christian in the thirties and then to St. Thomas More in the thirties and then Hamlin at 31, I think there again, the girls just really bought into what we wanted to do, and we really preach that if you can play defense, you can win. And we definitely did that towards the end of the season.

One Senior on your club. Typically, you get, three, four or five seniors on the club and, they're your leaders, but you only had one. You must've had some excellent leadership from some of your Juniors. So what was that like this year for you?

Yeah. You know, our lone Senior Lissa Hammerich didn't score the most points for sure. She was in that six to eight point range, maybe 10 per game had an 18 point performance against Aberdeen Christian. But she was really our, go-to person when it came to leadership, whether it was on the floor with her energy or whether it was, off the floor, organizing our team to do different team functions. She was a chooser has just been great this year for us. But like you said, only having that one senior, we definitely had to rely on a lot of junior SU kind of carries some heavy weight and, the three that made the All-Tournament team, Olivia Hanson and Morgan Fiedler, and Madelyn Bragg played a huge role for us this year in, in points and rebounds. Those guys really kind of filled the stat sheets when Alyssa was maybe more of the unsung hero, I guess.

You know, Bragg and Hammer could also play volleyball. What has their progress been like over the last few years, playing volleyball and basketball, trying to handle both sports. I mean, sometimes you have to do that in the smaller schools, but how about their progress when it comes to basketball with Bragg and Hammerich for your team?

Yeah. You know, they're two really good volleyball players. Also. I think Alyssa was a second team, All-State volleyball player. If you look back at our team this year for basketball, I think there was one kid only that didn't play a fall sport, whether it was soccer or cross country or volleyball, our team was full of people that are multi-sport athletes. And I don't think we have anyone just plays basketball only. And like you said, at a small school, you're going to be required almost to do some of those other things that at bigger schools, you don't have to do... Alyssa for example, is in band, she is on the dance team, so doubleheader nights, she's dancing at halftime at the boys games. Oh yeah. We have a lot of kids doing a lot of different things that, maybe it doesn't happen at a AA school.

It is Derek Larson as Aberdeen Roncalli in class A. Wins their first ever girls' basketball tournament. They beat Hamlin 48 31, but Derek let's go to that semi-final game. You beat Sioux Falls Christian in the quarterfinals, and immediately that St. Thomas More name is there. You never had beaten them. What kind of psyche was going on prior to the St. Thomas More game to get this team ready to play in the semi's?

Yeah, it's funny that we get to the state tournament and play a bunch of teams, I'm guessing, I don't know. I don't think our basketball team has ever beaten Sioux Falls Christian either. I don't think we had a lot of people thinking that we are going to be Sioux Falls Christian. Like you said, once we beat them, when we had St. Thomas More on the docket, we had never beaten them in my time here. Last year, they had a last second shot to beat us by one. We were up two and they hit a three with about three seconds to go and, and beat us on our home floor last year. And we'd seen them quite a few times playing them in a kind of our Cavilier classic that we have hosted and had never had the opportunity to beat them. I don't think that the kids, especially our Juniors had always played really competitively against them at the C level and JV level. Now at the varsity level, I don't think they had that fear in their mind or ever had a sense of that we were going to, for sure lose. They have that mindset going in that we can play with these guys. It came down to the last couple of seconds and we were fortunate to make two huge free throws down the stretch.

What was the key for you that night again? St. Thomas More?

Well, again, similar, like we've talked about is the defense that we played again, holding them to 35 points, I think was their season low. We had to have some things, obviously go our way with them missing a free throw down the stretch and getting fouled with the second to go and making two huge free throws. Things really had to align up for us to do that. But, you know, really emotional win for our ball club that night.

I did see the video of the free throws and the crowd going crazy. What was the atmosphere like in Watertown?

The atmosphere in Watertown, both the second and third nights were kind of second to none.We really told our kids, really take this all in because this doesn't get to happen everywhere where your in a state tournament. We knew, obviously we're going to have a big crowd the second night after winning the first one. When we made those free throws and the crowd erupted Olivia kind of gave that fist pump. It was just awesome and kind of sort of surreal moment to be in.

When you win the game, the semi-finals against St. Thomas More. Did you have to calm them down a little bit to start focusing on Hamlin, the team that you lost to during the regular season. What was that 24 hour stretch like before the championship?

I think after that, it was a really emotional win again, beating them for the first time ever St. Thomas More. That was a really emotional one for us. The fans that showed support in the hallway behind the bleachers was just a cool experience to be a part of. But like you said, we knew that we didn't want to be satisfied, making the state title game. I think everyone, you know, on a roster had that same mentality that we're going to go into this thing to win it. I don't think there was a lot of things we needed to say. I think everyone, had that same mindset of, well, if we're going to be here and we're going to play Hamlin who haven't beat since 2013, we need to play well. And I think, again, them coming in watching film and doing that kind of stuff that night, I think really got us prepared.

What are you going to remember most about 2021? When you hear about State basketball? What is going to come to your mind first?

I think just the... Couple of things, number one from the start of the year, I don't think many people thought we were going to be in the state tournament. You know, pre-season poll, we weren't in there. I think we kind of played under the radar most of the season, and we really kind of hung our hat on playing that underdog role. Secondly, I think we can say that we really defended well and we definitely didn't score the most points in the state for sure this year, but we really, I think brought it on the defensive end almost every night. And I think those two things are really what we can look back on and say. We were really happy with the success we had with those two things.

Well, next year is going to be a lot different too. Instead of not being in a pre-season poll, you might be the number one team you got almost everybody back. And then of course, you're moving down to class B next year. It'll be a little different feeling when the season gets going.

We told our kids, we just one class A. We are going to have a huge target on our back. We're going to get everyone's best performance because they're playing the number one team the previous year. I think our kids will be excited for that, but, nothing's a guarantee, there's just because you were successful the year before. There's a lot of things that can happen between here and then. So again, we really want to make sure we celebrate this one, but we are looking forward to next year, but definitely, nothing's guaranteed as the next season rolls around.

Sioux Falls Washington - Jamie Parish

The Sioux falls, Washington warriors win the championship as they beat Rapid City Central and then Sioux Falls, O'Gorman and in the Championship, Rapid City Stevens who win their first title since 2015. Their third Title in the last eight years. And the head coach of the warriors, Jamie parish. Jamie, congratulations on the Title. You won a title with Vermilion in 2007, you got to Washington in 2015. You won a Title there in your first year. Warriors went back to back, and then it's been six years since you win the Title game. What's going through your mind right now, knowing the kind of team you had and what they did to win the Title.

We look back at last February with this group of kids. At that point, we were starting a freshman, sophomore and three juniors and we were getting better. We were kind of getting things figured out in February. We had talked with our coaches and I said, here's what we want to accomplish. We want to have a good showing at the tournament. And that didn't necessarily mean winning it, but, give this young group of kids a taste of it. And then we were looking forward to having a great summer knowing that we were bringing all those kids back and, kind of setting ourselves up for this opportunity. Then COVID hit, which, drastically changed everybody's plan. So there was a little more feeling out at the beginning of the year.

We knew things that we wanted to get to, but you're doing them on a condensed timeline. You're doing, making sure that everybody's healthy, that kids are being screened. We've got kids who are not at school because they're close contacts. Minus the basketball, just getting through this season and giving kids an opportunity to have a tournament at all is a huge hats off to all of our administrators and the people that, the activities' association and then with our kids, obviously to stay focused through that. To have an opportunity played really well, all three games during the course of the weekend is outstanding.

Because of COVID last summer. Was it more that the kids had to do more individual things rather than the team camps and doing things together?

Oh yeah. We always put a big premium on our summertime. We kind of call it the summer season where we know that we're going to have the kids get together and play, 15 or 20 games, just at random little team camps or tournaments and getting together and playing up and down sometimes even against the coaches, if we're a little shorthanded and our kids did not play face to face basketball until the first day of tryouts. We were at that point, it was, everything was skill work. One kid, one basketball, and nobody guarded anybody face to face. Now I'm also not going to make it sound worse than what it is. We had kids who were running around the country doing summer basketball and running with their AAU programs. But as far as our team playing and guarding each other. We went from the day of the shutdown all the way till the first day of tryouts before those kids could play together.

Well, plus during the fall you've got Sydni Shetnan and Ndjackalenga Mwenentanda they're playing volleyball. I mean, they're playing volleyball where you're worried about those two, possibly getting hurt during the volleyball season?

No, we make a big push for our kids. We want them to be multi-sport kids. And that's something that came from Jamie Knoll. Probably before Jamie, but Jamie was my first experience. He basically told me when I walked in the door at Washington, that we support other sports, we support other people, we promote multi-sport athletes. If you're not interested in doing that, then you're probably not the right guy for this job. Out of our 12 kids that finished the year on the varsity. I know 10, I think 11 of them were in a fall sport.

That's a high priority for us. We think that it balances you as a person, but it also balances you as an athlete. You might be starting on the basketball team, but you got to be on the bench as a volleyball player. That makes a difference in how you treat people to have that different perspective. It also trains your muscles differently to the overuse injuries that we see so much in sports right now comes from a lot of those kids deciding in the sixth and seventh grade, they're only going to do one thing. So at Washington, that's not our emphasis. In fact, we do everything we can to discourage it, to get them out from our activities.

Shetnan and Mwenentanda though, I've watched them the last three years. Three years ago, I watched them and they've come a long way. Kind of explain what you've seen in their development, in the game of basketball, between let's first talk about Sydney Shetnan at six five, and going to go play volleyball at Louisville. And maybe even some basketball there.

Syd actually sitting on a basketball scholarship at Louisville but when she really took off, in fact, I'll even take a step back. She's a kid that we talked to all the time, and I just told her as a coming in as a freshman, I said, coach Schroeder and I will never make you pick one. We're never going to overlap our camps. We're never going to make this difficult for you. We want you to do both. And I look back, as when she was a freshman and sophomore, she was all in on volleyball and basketball was something that she did. I think with a little bit of pressure from the family, from grandpa and aunts and uncles and everybody else, but we never put her on that spot. And suddenly it would have been at the end of her sophomore year, she decided to take off for a tournament.

I think it was down in Kansas city. And before she left the tournament, the basketball tournament, she had an offer from two or three division one schools. At that point it was an eyeopening opportunity for her. She was like, Oh wow. You know, I know coach Keith saying I'm pretty good at this, but now there's other people that think I'm pretty good at this. And you know, it changed her focus. She started to spend a little more time working on some skills and, just got so much better. You know, by the time she was a junior, she just blew up with the things that she was able to do, six, five is six, five, but being able to run and catch, play outs to about 15 feet, shoot the basketball and do some things is a rare skillset for somebody of that size.

And then you got, Mwenentanda when I saw her three years ago, she wasn't six, two. She's grown a few inches. What about her development? What have you seen in her? She's just, she's a junior and will be back next year.

She's just relentless in her work ethic. She is a kid that during volleyball and basketball, we need to tell her. Hey, we just had three games this week. You don't get to go to the wellness center at five o'clock in the morning tomorrow, you need to stay home. And it's hard to convince her of that, because she just wants to. She's just driven to want to be in the gym on a daily basis. She wants to get in there. She wants to get shocked up. She wants to work on things and what an awesome problem to have as a coach is I have to tell a kid to shoot a little bit less than to not work so darn hard. She is that work ethic has put her right where she is.

A lot of that could be on display. If you saw there was a stretch in that late in the Oklahoma game, where she came down the floor and she got two assists, real quick to throw five points on the board for us. I think she scored 10 straight. If I remember correctly. I mean, just absolutely dominated that portion of the basketball game. And I'd like to say it was good coaching, but it's not. She's just a really good player. We told the kids to give her the ball and see what happened. That was a fun stretch of basketball to be a part of.

Jamie Parish, the head coach, the Washington warriors, they win the title, they beat Rapid City Stevens. It is Jamie's third title as a coach. Won the title with Washington in 2015. And of course this year, and also back in 2007, when he coached at Vermilion. Back in January, you lost to St. Thomas More and then Harrisburg. I mean, that was back to back losses. Was there a little concern at that time for your team?

No, no concern. I kind of reflect back on what I started the conversation with is we wanted to have a good state tournament and a big summer knowing that we were going to change some things and teach new things. At that point in the season, we just weren't ready. We didn't execute the things that we were trying to do, and we needed more time. We needed more coaching. We needed to make things simpler for them as a coaching staff. So my coaches night, we sat down for a long time and talked about it. The other part that sometimes may be a blessing in disguise, it was a heck of a lot easier to tell them we needed to get better at stuff after two losses. If we had gone in there and been a little bit floppy and still won, you don't get the same attention from the kids as we were able to get after two losses in that same week.

After that, if I remember correctly, we had a game that was against O'Gorman that got canceled with the snow. Then we picked it up on Saturday. After that, we kind of blew up, our kids really started to about the second quarter of that game started to figure out what we were doing defensively. They started to talk more and trust each other more and fix problems as they arose. You know, there were times where in the past we would have used the timeout and said, Hey, we need to do this. They started talking to each other on the floor and making defensive adjustments and basically coaching themselves. Which, when your kids have that feeling of confidence, that they know what they're talking about, and they have that desire and competitiveness to do that in the moment. As a coach, you're really lucky at that point, you've just put them in a place to be successful. And now you just got to try to keep them motivated and steer the bus.

Jamie in the state tournament. You played Rapid City central first. You didn't play Central or Stevens during the regular season. Did you have a little concern about those two teams knowing that you hadn't faced them all season long?

Well, there's always that part of being unfamiliar that, it'd be nice to have them have been on the schedule. Then you get that feeling for how quick and how tall and those types of things. We also felt it was an advantage for us because they hadn't played off either. We did some things different defensively this year that I don't know if you can practice them or if you can prepare for them. So we felt good, from that aspect, knowing that those guys didn't have an opportunity to play against us and figure things out. So it's a two way street. We were... I could look at the other situation, did we want to play O'Gorman a third time? You know, because now they'd had two doses of it and had an opportunity and their coaches had made some great adjustments and we had to battle our tails off to hold on to that one on Friday night.

Your two top scorers did not score much at all in the championship game. What was the key in the win against Rapid City Stevens? I mean, Mwenentanda and Shetnan had six points for you, even though you get out to a very quick start.

It was the first thing was hats off to coach Brooks. He did a heck of a job defensively of trying to take away our two best kids and did a really good job. A couple of reasons, reason number one, her name's Edin Hullinger showed up, man, what a great game she had. Led us in scoring, made some threes, got to the basket. I think she had about six assists. She was a huge difference maker in that basketball game. The other thing that we were able to rely upon is, is our depth. We made a commitment this year to try and to play eight, nine, maybe even 10 kids on any given night.

Those kids stepped up and made plays for us. Brooklyn Harpe made some really good plays for us offensively and defensively. Taylor Thompson came in and gave Shetnan a little bit of a break and rebounded the ball and did a great job. Hannah Harpe, twin sister was a really good defensively Alexus Motley comes in there and is really athletic and did some things for us as well. Our depth is something that we preached all year, you never know when your number is going to get called and those kids showed up and did some things for us.

Four seniors on your team. What does this team look like next year? Certainly Mwenentandawill be mentioned a lot next year for you guys.

Yeah, Ndjakalenga will have a much different role, a lot bigger role, but we also like the fact that we have four really experienced kids coming back. Even though we had four outstanding seniors, we have four kids who played a lot of varsity basketball. Will there be growing pains as they grow into bigger roles? Absolutely. But they got to see Brielle Biteler and Jaden Warner and Eden and Shetnan how they prepared. They got to see what those kids did and big moments of big games. I'll go back to the end of that O'Gorman game. Our seniors just made plays, after Ndjakalenga gave us the lead. The senior kids stepped up and had some huge defensive stops. They made some huge free throws. When you watch that and learn from that. That's hopefully, as a coach, you say that hopefully, your tradition gets passed down from year to year. That's what we hope with these youngsters they will be experienced, but hopefully they've learned some lessons by watching those older kids.

One last one for you, Jamie, this year's team kind of reminds me a lot of the Vermilion team. You had in 07' cause you had two really good players in 07' and a pretty good supporting cast. Would I be kind of close?

Yeah. That, that would be... We had two basically first team all Staters and when we won it in 15 at Washington, we had Goodhope and Arrington too. That might be a secret to coaching. If you have two all Staters on your team, you got a chance.

What's next for you. Jamie? Do you think you can get back to the team camps and do stuff again this summer? Is it possible?

Well, you know what I feel, and I'm not a doctor and I'm going to follow advice from people who make more money and make those decisions. But I feel like with our student athletes. I feel like it's relatively safe. I feel like its something that could possibly happen. But again, I'm not going to put myself in a position where I need to tell the CDC or Mr. Malchow or anybody else, how to do their jobs. We really feel like we're making progress. Our kids are just chomping at the bit. I've already got a couple text messages. Hey, when do open gym start? When does this start? My rule has always been, Hey, March and April, it's a lockdown. We're done. You guys go do other stuff. We're going to try to coach pressure them into getting out for track and maybe doing something like that. Then in May we start to bring them back around and start shooting and try to start building for that next opportunity.

De Smet - Jeff Gruenhagen 

Jeff, you were an assistant girls' coach for five years, you were an assistant boys coach at De Smet for a year before you became the head coach four years ago. What was that like in your development as a coach, being with the girls first, then an assistant with the boys before taking over the program at De Smet?

I think that really helped me, adjust to high school age kids and the game and how it moves. And every year was just so much different. The different kids that you have, you have to coach differently and that made it able for us to just learn a lot in a, in the short periods of time,

It is tough for teams and schools year in and year out to be really good. There's always going to be a little bit of a rollercoaster ride, but boy De Smet 90s, seven times De Smet was there, but only five times since 1999. Has it been a tough roller coaster ride here in the last few, in the last 20 years.?

Yeah. It's been a little tough, because the 90s were great, late 80s when we got out of high school and you just kind of get used to State Tournament time, your odds are good. You're going to the state tournament. And then we kind of quit going a little bit and there was a football title there in the early 2000's and we thought we'd get back but just the other teams had a little bit more talent and better stuff. De Smet had great teams but there was just great competition that prevented us from getting in those and for us we always say it was just too long of a drought before we got back there.

Well, and it helps too when you get some talent. I'll tell you what, I think four years ago, when you became the head coach, you saw this group that were probably freshman or eighth graders or sophomores, and you were able to develop them. What did you see when you first became the head coach four years ago?

Yeah. That was when I became the head coach. I was an assistant coach and Tom Hook was our head coach and he's a De Smet guy and we kind of expected him to stay and just a better situation came up for him down at DWU. And we knew this group was coming through, my son was going to be a senior and coach Hook told me that, "You're going to have no problem coaching these guys and you'll be good at it." I was skeptical but we did it, we got through that year and we were able to get a lot better by the time I settled in from start to finish. Then we were able to win our region and get in that first ever round of 16. But, unfortunate for us as we got in at the 16, we had to play the one Bridgewater Emory that year. And we came up about 12 point short, but it was just a great experience that the boys fought that long and had a chance to maybe try to get an up set and that just made it really fun.

Well then the next year, you're in the state title game. You're up against Clark Willow Lake. What was that transition like from that first year to that second year?

Yeah. And that was a really I would say almost kind of a strange type of thing because we went from Caitlyn Gary and Red Austin and those guys that were, they're going to come in and be freshmen in the eighth grade. They played in our JV, but they weren't able to play on the varsity. So we had actually graduated. My son's class had, I believe, six seniors in it and four of them started. So we graduated, kind of cleaned house that year. So when those freshmen came in, we had Ethan McCune who started with those guys a little bit, but he is really the only one that had played much.

And we had Trevin Holland who was a senior that year. He had sat out the year before, half of the season with an injury and he was coming back. So that was kind of our two guys and everybody else was going to be, play it as it goes. Cody and Ethan really stepped in there with Kevin and it was just turned into a pretty good year with Rhett and Caitlin as freshmen, little guys. But, by the time that season got over we were winning games and we were winning games people thought we weren't going to win. Just kind of kept going and we gained momentum and just kept on going right State Tournament.

How did you guys keep them motivated?

Well, they were young guys and they knew the, the first year we wound up going 18 and two, I believe regular season. Rhett and Caitlin are freshmen, Cody and Ethan are sophomores and Trevon was our senior. And we were, no one expected us to do that type of thing, but they weren't bad. But we had a lot of close games, and they won those close games, but it was rough and physical because we were smaller guys. For them to learn and just be more physical and get bigger, they just kept adapting to things. And then I was also learning as they were, we can do this style of offense and this style of offense, but we can't do, another deal or, just had to be picky about what we did and what we implemented. sometimes putting something one week and just scrap it out the next week and start with something new.

And it got to be where it was almost like one of your starters would start a sentence and the other four would finish the sentence because they knew everything that, that each one could do. They're sure.

Yeah. And that just comes with being together. You play 20 plus games a year and you get used to people and then you go play 20 more games in the summertime and just get used to being around. And they never get tired of being around playing basketball. So that's a great part of those guys.

When the season started this year, we all know that COVID just blew things up a year ago and you guys were the top seed a year ago and couldn't play the tournament, but you got back again this year. How difficult was it for these guys to maybe go to camps and do some team things over the past year?

Yeah. It was tough when we got going in the summer, the only real summer thing we did was the Pentagon League where we play a couple games a week and it wasn't the same as where we go and do three more camps or play five games on a weekend. It just wasn't the same, we hadn't been together hadn't prepped that long. And then these guys are all football players and they had a really great football team last year. So then we kind of take a couple months there in the fall where we don't do a ton of stuff we maybe shoot a little bit and that's about it. So we weren't together as much as we were the previous summers, but because they knew each other and they're used to each other, just being around, that, that didn't seem to play into too much of an effect of them.

It's Jeff Gruenhagen, the head coach of the De Smet Bulldogs. They win the class B title, their sixth overall title, the first since 1999. How tough is it as a basketball coach to watch your guys play football?

Not too bad here. I know they're, somebody might get hurt, somebody might do that, but they're doing stuff they love to do. We're like, "Well, if we get them back mid season basketball." Somebody doesn't get hurt, not a big deal. We hope nobody gets a big injury or anything like that. Then it's just fun to watch because they love to do it. They're just super competitive guys, they just hate to lose at anything. And you just wish them the best and hope for the best. Take what you get at the end, but we've been fortunate and hopefully that continues.

Your first game in the State Tournament. It's Lower Brule, they came in as the number eight seed. It's an up and down team. What was your concern about Lower Brule? Because you got out to a real quick start in that game.

Yeah. We were really concerned with their speed, the three guys for them. They had the two thighs and then Laroche who we knew we could really fill it up. I talked to a lot of coaches kind of scouting, trying to feel him out, and that was the message I got from them was, don't overlook them because they're an eighth seed. They lost a few games during the year, but they can play offense. And defensively they come out and they're going to try to steal it from your play zone, play a couple of different zones, but many of them just shots going in the basket, they kind of prove that against White River, the other day, they're down 18. And then pretty soon it's tied just like that. And we knew we had to come out and just play good defense and contest shots and make sure we got. But we got in their head and made sure that we established, we're going to play defense on you all day long. So these shots are going to be tough on everyone.

Well you had three starters and then one came off the bench all double figures. So much balanced scoring. Is that pretty much been the theme for De Smet boys basketball? The way it comes on score. I mean, you have Kalen as your, Kalen Garry is your top score. But I think the rest of your team, you, you were pretty even throughout the whole season.

Yeah. Kalen is our leader. I think he's around 23 points a game. And then everybody else is, I think I got 10, nine, eight, and a couple of seven points a game. That's the way it is here, I guess I would say, or has been in De Smet. We don't have a ton of thousand point scorers, we've got a whole lot of 500 point scores, but it's just everybody willing to make that extra pass and just play the team game and go attack it that way. When you have a real special guy, of course you feed him the basketball. Caitlin, he's just, the ball seems to find him. He just makes himself open. But everybody's good with that. Damon had such a good tournament that everybody was good with it. He comes off the bench, but we're going to get him the basketball all night long

Well Viborg-Hurley was in the semi-finals and you're behind 10-8 at the end of the first quarter. A physical game, were you a little concerned at that point in time?

Yeah. We were concerned. We were kind of standing on offense. They weren't letting us, drive to the basket. There was no gap to attack and they were coming at us under the rim a little bit. They stretch that lead I think out to, I don't know if it was 19-10, something like that.

We were down nine and I remember saying, well, we're going to have to get a time out here if we don't score. And we got a basket and got a couple more. Damon got in there and we started finding him at the basketball and that was just a huge turnaround for us and just uplifting and he did a great job of guarding chairman and, and making them be there. We've got a couple of followers there and that really helped just get that momentum. And we went in the locker room at halftime with the lead. Then the guys were settled in and they were relaxed and then we were pretty confident at that point that we would, we withstood their shot at getting away from us. And now we were going to close it out.

I never did see any faces of your team have any fear or concern. They all look pretty normal, pretty relaxed during the tournament.

Yeah. Been in a lot of big games. And those guys as freshmen played in a lot of big games and then you would see those mistakes and those have steadily dropped off just with maturity and adjustment. And I think they really matured. Their first year back when we went to the championship game, those last 10 games of the season were so different from the first 10 games of the season. But they just learned a lot. And then the second year, last year, the schedule got harder and they just kept adjusting and they're now more physical, more athletic and their basketball IQ has just stayed high and it's just fun to coach those guys because they adjust so fast.

Well the championship game, you go up against a really hot Aberdeen Christian team, a team that can really hit it from the outside. In fact they had 10 threes in the game. You were, you led the whole way and just ran away with it. They tried to stop Kalen Garry with a bigger body. Did you see that a lot this year where teams would try to go and put the bigger body on Caitlin Gary?

Yeah. It used to start with Kalen. They would come after him with a faster person, but with Kalen, we know we can just put him down in the post and he has so many moves. He finishes right-hand, left-hand and everybody tries to come at him now and just be more physical with him, try to stop him where he's running to. But usually he can find a way out of that or he's willing to be the screener for somebody else. And he just finds a way out of that trap in there or somebody that's just trying to keep him from the basketball.

Just does a great job doing that. So it was fun to see him adjust to that and go. And Aberdeen Christian was, you're right, they were, I think in that game, they finished 8-14 from three. We would love to be 8-14 from three. Our last two games, I think we combined, we were like 10 or 11 and 42 from the three point line. But we still had solid leads in the second half of each game just because if we missed the three, we seem to go back down and just get another stop on defense.

Did you feel there was pressure for you guys this year and how did the team deal with maybe the pressure of knowing that you're really good, you won 60 something games in the last three years, you're in the tournament, the number one seed, how do they handle the pressure?

That was a little bit going to be tough at the beginning of the season of, we got through, we were able to get the number one seed, we're kind of top rated, beat a lot of teams a year ago and to come in this year and the schedule was pretty stacked and the teams around us were also getting better, getting bigger, a lot of seniors on there, you have the Howard teams that, 6'7, 6'5, 6'6, just big teams and to be able to go through and the guys are like, well, we want to be the number one see, we want to beat those teams. And we knew we had, another, what would I want to say? Another classic game. We have just added the Pentagon this year.

So we were going to get matched up with somebody really good that wound up being vibrant Hurley. So they were kind of locked in, but yet, we're a little nervous at the start because we had really tough games right at the beginning and summer was a little bit different. There was a little bit of pressure, but once we came out, got planned and Damon stepped in to be such a big part of our team that they just settled in and I always tell them, we don't care if we lose a game, go undefeated, we're going to use these 20 games to figure out how we get out of the region and the round of 16 to get back to that state tournament.

It's pretty rare that a team will play five or six, the whole game for the whole season. And that's what pretty much you did all year long. Now you're a farmer, you operate a grain and a cow calf operation near De Smet. How challenging is that being a farmer and then also being the coach for the boys basketball team?

Makes it a little tougher, it's not bad. Say the winter time is no big deal if we have a normal fall and get harvest done before Thanksgiving. Then basketball practice is kind of a welcome thing at two o'clock or three o'clock in the afternoon, I'm heading to town. And I got my two boys help me and we have another guy that works for me and they are getting used to that. I just kind of leave them stuff to do and some days honestly we're done at two or three o'clock and they get a little downtime. But now they know that when the season's over calving season is going to start here in about seven days, we'll hit it pretty hard. And now we're going to get really busy. So if the weather cooperates, it's a piece of cake when it's bad it's a little tough to get all the cows fed, get to practice, but we kind of make it work.

I know farmers don't take any days off. What was it like being in Aberdeen for four days though at the state basketball tournament?

It's nice to be away and we're kind of wishing that we would've missed the snow last week because that kind of made it muddy. And we're, we have a few cows that are calving real slow, but my guy that works for me does a great job. Actually, I have my uncle, he lives down in Two Falls. He worked at the stockyards for years and down at Two Falls Regional Livestock, and he's just retired. So he comes up and helps me watch the cows while I'm gone. And it's just great that he'll come up and do that. So just takes a lot of family support and people just helping out because they know I'm doing what I love and they like being up here. So just a lot of help really works out.

There was a big dunk by Kalen Garry near the end of the game on the championship night. What was going through your mind after that dunk? Because the De Smet crowd was going crazy.

Yeah. He came down the floor, he kind of gave one look back to see if anybody was coming and how close they were. And he sped up a little bit and we knew what was coming. I think everybody jumped up, but I've seen the video. My assistant coaches were both jumped right out of their chairs and just that great emotion right there and was almost the, I think Tory Holland had hit a three, a couple possessions right before that. And we got that same boost of we were feeling pretty confident, but when Caitlin flushed that one down, it was just one of those things that it is crazy.

Was it relief when the final houled?

Yeah, I think so. I think when Kalen flushed that one down, I think that was the, everybody relaxed right there that they're not going to be able to throw in enough threes to get it. We were just talking about it a little bit ago that we watched the video a few times. And when he throws that down and he's celebrating, he's kind of jogging back down the court and Ethan McCune is celebrating a little bit at halftime, Cody Cavanaugh's down there on the camera, but Aberdeen Christian in mounds the basketball makes two passes, makes a three Caitlin literally looks up in the net and the balls coming out by this time he's down in the lane and he's looking around like, "Oh, they just scored a basket. I better inbound the ball." It was just like, nobody right there they were just ready. They knew they had, they had got that thing sealed.

Sioux Falls Christian - Mike Schouten

Well, it was the sixth straight appearance for Sioux Falls Christian in the Class A boys basketball tournament. And it was the second title for The Chargers. They come back and they take out Sioux Valley. And the head coach, Mike Schouten is joining us. Mike, congratulations. It was your sixth appearance, but of course you qualified last year and we all know what happened last year. What was the feeling at that time with the players you had a year ago and because of COVID you weren't going to play in the tournament. Did you think at one time that maybe it'd be tough to get back into the state tournament this year?

Yeah. I thought we had a nice group of guys coming back. Some, good players. They have three returning starters. So we had a good nucleus returning. But along with that, we had, I believe a total of seven or eight letter winners. So we had kids that had some varsity experience to go along with those three starters. And so just with looking at that combination of kids return, I thought we maybe had a chance to get to the state tournament. And we were able to get that done this year.

I know there are some multi-sport athletes on your team, but with the COVID thing and during the summer, not being able to do much. Was it more important for these kids to work on their own last summer when it came to their basketball skills?

Yeah. We had some limited contacts. Last summer we were able to play a few games out at the Pentagon and had a few open gems, but it was, it was very limited. So yeah, definitely the kids had to find time on their own to work on their game. And fortunately I have a group of kids who love basketball and many of them did just that along with their, the other sports that they were involved in. So that's what it takes and all the kids have to try to improve themselves in the off season. And our kids did a really good job of doing that.

You won seven of your first eight. Were you playing really good basketball at that time or were you kind of getting by sometimes?

No. We were playing pretty well and we were able to have a fall open gym time and that really helped too. I was starting to put together a team with just trying to get some chemistry going and yeah. Like I said, we had a number of really good players coming back, so they were able to get going right out of the gates, I guess, through our first few weeks of practice. But, it's like every, probably every year you can you just rely on a lot of times early on, you're relying on the talent of your kids and we have some good talent there and they played really well to start the year.

Right in the middle of the season, you have to go to Vermilion. And certainly The Tanagers were one of the top teams in Class A and you lose on the road by like 13. What were you thinking after that loss at Vermilion?

Yeah. That was a, we knew that'd be a real challenge going down there and they had all five of their starters back and they had a good team last year. So we knew it'd be a really tough game. The final score is probably not really indicative of the closest of the game. I believe it was a three point game with three minutes to go. So it was a good ball game and they played very well. But, we knew that going in that they were going to be good and that the game would be difficult. And as I said, they played really well and they got a win. And, we just, when you play in the deck 12, you got night in and night out, you got a tough opponents. So we knew that going in and we were just doing it while we got to go onto the next game. And just kind of keep trying to get better as the season progressed.

Well I know you always have a tough schedule too, Mike. And when it comes to late in the season, well you lost three of your last five games. Of course it was Western Christian out there and Hall. Now that's always a good game for you guys and Sioux Valley, you played Sioux Valley and Flandreau. What was going through your mind? End of the regular season, you find out where you're playing in the playoffs. What was going on in your mind with your team and how they can compete?

Yeah. We had, like I said, a tough stretch. We had Harrisburg in there as well. And just about, in about five days that we went, we played Harrisburg, Sioux Valley and Flandreau. So that was a tough run. But, I really feel that that's the kind of thing you want to have as your game, [inaudible 01:15:50] you have to help prepare yourself for tournaments where you're going to, if you get to the state term, you're going to have three tough games and close in three days. So I really liked that schedule. Would've liked to have had a little more time to prepare maybe, for Sioux Valley and Flandreau, but we were, we had to just kind of rely on how we've been preparing throughout the year.

Late in the season. You get an injury to one of your top players. Noah Van Donkersgoed. What happened with that injury and what was your thoughts when you knew that your, one of your best players was going to go down for the playoffs?

Yeah. Yeah. We got, we lost Noah in our first region game with [inaudible 01:16:39] with a dislocated ankle. And then our first thoughts are just for him and how devastating that would be for him. And it was devastating for our team. That was a very sad locker room after that game, even though you got a tournament win where you should be happy. There wasn't a lot of joy in the locker room. We were all very concerned and disappointed for Noah. But, we got a text from his dad the day later and Noah and his dad just told us that Noah had said, "The guys will be fine. They'll collect it up." Is what his quote was and "They'll get it done." And I think that just gave us a real boost of confidence, knowing that Noah still felt that we were capable of going out and winning it. And just hearing that from him, I believe really helped us and helped motivate us to, to try to go get this state tournament or a state championship for him.

Well, he's at 6'5 type post player can be outside as well. So what did you do to find the contributor or contributors who were going to cover for him as the playoffs continued?

Yeah. I just kind of challenged the kids. I told the kids, what, no average is 16 a game. So I just said, "Can four of you score four more or can five of you score three more?" And they all went. "Yeah. We can do that." Same thing with the rebounds. And...

They all went. "Yeah. We can do it." same thing with the rebounds and his assist. Just challenged everybody just to do a little more and not a lot more, but just a little bit more. And then we replaced them with Nathan Cool. He took his spot in the starting lineup and Nathan really stepped up big. He played great at a really good tournament. And so we got just, everybody to kind of just up their game a little bit more and it got great contributions from all those kids who were out there on the floor. And so we just kind of rallied as a team and decided that we were just going to try to make up for Noah's loss through everybody just contributing just to touch more.

Well when you qualified for state, you had a little time to prepare and get ready for your first round opponent, which was St. Thomas More. I don't think St. Thomas More has ever lost in the first round, but you beat them by 11. What did you like in that game with your team?

I really liked our defense. I really feel that the last six games of the year, our defense effort was really improved. I believe that's what carried us throughout the whole tournament and when we play, we played good defense a lot of times, at least a good offense too and so we were able to shoot a high percentage throughout the whole tournament, but really it was our defense that carried us through the last six games of the year.

And then you go on and take on a team that was way sky high because the Dell Rapids had beaten Vermilion the top seed the night before with a last second shot. What kind of concerns did you have knowing that Dell Rapids was coming in sky high for the semi-finals?

Yeah. Dell's has got some really talented guards and some good players. And it was really uncomfortable I guess a little bit just we only had to play them again. Because we had played them earlier and we, we did beat them, but that often times that just gives it would give them a little more of a revenge factor, I guess, to try to beat us this time. But most of the kids, once again our kids just really step it up on the defensive. And were able to do a good job on those guards from Dell's and that's really what propelled us to that win against them that night too.

What was the defense, specifically, how were you handling it? Was it more man to man or was it more zone?

It was man to man. Well, that's pretty much our base defense is man to man. We don't play a lot of zone but just the way the kids came together and played really good, solid team defense, and just their intensity on the defense of them was ratcheted up. And as I said earlier, that it's been going on for about the last six games of the year and that's what we needed. And all of a sudden you heard the kids talking about it, about playing defense. So they were, they bought in as to they could see too, that that was what was carrying us, those last few games. So, it was really good to see them. Defense isn't fun, it's still fun to play. Everybody wants to score, but our kids bought into that defensive concept. And as I said, I just really helped propelled us through this whole tournament.

Well, you go to the championship game and you lost to Sioux Valley by 10, just like a month ago. What was your biggest concern with Sioux Valley going into that final game?

Well, when we played them up here, they shot really well. And so that was a big concern that if they get going shooting the ball well, it was going to be a tough night. But once again, we were able to guard their guards really well. We kind of tried to take away some of the things that hurt us the first time and the kids did that very well again. And of course we shot phenomenally well and better than we did up there. And so just a combination of-

On a 62%, 62% from the floor. That's pretty good there, Mike.

Yeah. That'll help you win a lot of games for sure. And that kind of shooting along with just, increased defensive intensity was really kind of what really propelled us to win last night.

Was it one of those two? I mean, it was quick, you won by 34. Was it one of those where you struck quick and it was just tough for Sioux Valley to come back right away. You just got out early and didn't stop at all.

Yeah. I think that was a lot to do with it that quick start and that big start.

22-7 start in the first quarter.

Right. Yeah. And you can kind of see it on, you could just see our confidence building as the game went on. Because we were able to continue to build a lead and you could see Sioux Valley's kids that they were getting a low down and didn't have quite the prep in their step they had earlier in the game and so just a combination of that, getting that momentum going and we just kept it rolling and we just kept waiting too for them to make a big run, but we were able to prevent that. And because of that, we were able to build that real comfortable lead and then hold on to get the win.

Hey, compare this team with that 2016 team you beat St. Thomas More in the finals that was back in 2016. What was the biggest difference between these two or were they a lot alike?

I would say there were a lot alike. That team also back in 2016, were, had some very skilled offensive players, but really brought in on the defensive end too. And that team back then was probably, they had more size and we had some kids go up, several kids go play college ball off that team. And we got our three seniors who probably are heading off to play college ball as well. So that's how they were similar and both teams had good role players. And so I would say when comparing the two that they're pretty similar and, but yet in their own way, a little bit unique. And so I'm just proud to be a part of both of those teams and just happy to know those guys and I'll be a part of their lives for a few years.

Mike, how have you done it? How have you done it there at Sioux Falls Christian? I mean, it's been a great run. You've been to the tournament now, six years in a row. You're one of the dominant teams all the time. How have you done it there for The Chargers?

Basketball is pretty big deal at Sioux Falls Christian. So our kids are, our parents are getting those kids started really young, and they're putting them on teams and getting leaks and they're getting some individual instruction as well. And we've got a good set of coaches in our junior high. And we got some excellent coaches in our, for our freshmen and JV. So just a combination of, when you have a tradition, everybody wants to kind of be a part of it. So those kids, when they're young, they're starting right away and they want to have their chance too. And Tyler Prince mentioned that last night at the homecoming that he watched that 2016 team as an eighth grader and that just motivated him to want to do the same thing.

And so that's a big deal. We have our younger kids see that and they see that success and they want to be a part of it. And so they put in the time and the effort to make themselves better. And it just kind of keeps going. Yeah. And so, we appreciate all the efforts the parents put in, but then also the, all the hard work and the time our lower level coaches put in because they're the ones that really get them started and get them going in the right direction. And so we're just thankful that the kids love basketball and that they're put time in to get better and helping us as a team once they get to that varsity level.

Sioux Falls Roosevelt - Mitch Begeman

The Sioux Falls Roosevelt Rough Riders get their third title in history as they defeated Sioux Falls O'Gorman in the title game out in Rapid City and the head coach, Mitch Begeman joining us on In Play. Coach congratulations. It was a tournament that, a lot of people were looking at Yankton, certainly with Matthew Mors's name and Sioux Falls, Washington and Sioux Falls O'Gorman on a hot roll into the Double A tournament. And then they kind of mentioned Roosevelt. Did you get that feeling too at times before the tournament started?

Certainly, I think anytime you go into the state tournament obviously you always hope that your team's playing their best basketball. And I certainly felt like we were doing that and we were progressing towards that. But, I felt like after the Yankton game, when we got beat down there, that really kind of just changed a lot for us. We just seemed a little bit more focused, but we kind of rattled off some wins. And we I'll tell you what I thought, our focus before the state tournament, it was a long layover. We literally had three games or two games in about two and a half weeks. And I just, this team, I'd never seen a team so focused before state tournament. And I think that has huge piece to it, but this group of seniors and this team this year, I thought was just tremendous throughout the whole entire year. And they wanted it and it showed.

This is your sixth year Mitch. I remember that first year you only won one game. And I think that was a district game. Wasn't it I think?

It was, it was up in Watertown in the region game. Yeah, it was the region game. And we got a chance we had to go play Harrisburg after that, to go to the state tournament. That was the one winner that year.

Only one game that first year. How much experience, you had a lot of experience in the playoffs in tournament play. How much did that help you prepare over this time being at Roosevelt now and eventually getting into the championship game and how to handle that?

I think it helps quite a bit, to be honest with you, the message I tried to send last night before the game was just simply, tell the guys that these moments don't happen very often and it's really hard. Some kids never get this opportunity and, but you have to go out and embrace it and enjoying it. I think that was my main message last night then, I know it's a state championship, but it's no different than any other game that you played. And I tried to preach that we just got to continue to do what we've done all year long to get here. And that can't change. I think that was really just trying to keep things as simple as possible. We're not trying to reinvent anything new or not try to do anything differently. Do what you've done the entire year, because that's how you got here and that's what will make you successful.

You said that this championship was a long time in the making. What did you mean about that?

Well, this group of seniors, they're a very talented bunch and quite frankly, I think a lot of them are multi-sport athletes and we've had that kind of monkey on their back for awhile, not necessarily getting to the championship. And when they got that thing off their backs on Friday night, I was really happy for them. But, they were so motivated, they were so focused and this group has been a special group to us. They came in that year after our tough year and they really set the tone for this culture, this program. And they kind of helped us get some, get some wins on the board and kind of turn the corner every single year. Kind of nice to see a group kind of go out on top.

Tucker Large, Marcus Phillips, Tyler Feldkamp. Those were the youngsters, right? That just came in, when you came in, but what did they do to bring this program to where it is today?

I think a lot of it is just, their competitive desire to want to win. Something that we've really just kind of preach to our guys last year is you have to come to work everyday and be competitive. You can't come to work and think that you can just show up and things are going to happen. And this group certainly did not do that by any means. They came to work, they knew what was at stake every single day. I think it's just a huge part of who these kids are, they're competitors. And every day at practice, we talked about being competitive. And, there were days that they didn't like me and probably days I didn't like them, but they always came ready to go, they always came ready to want to get better. But most importantly, they wanted to compete every single day. And I think that's kind of what led them to be here. And I'm just glad that they got the opportunity to hoist that trophy because it's something that they've been dreaming about for a long time.

That attitude though Mitch has to come from somewhere and I'm assuming it's coming from you because I watched you play, you were competitive. Has that rubbed off on your team being a very competitive person?

No I'm not going to lie, I'm a pretty competitive person in everything I do, whether I'm playing golf against my dad and brother or I'm just, I'll deal with something I'm a competitive person. I don't know, I obviously my focus is always trying to just to help the kids to try to be better. But yeah, there's a lot to do with that, but I'm just proud of these kids and I'm proud of everything that they've done for this program. I'm glad that I got to be a part of it with them because they're a special group and they'll never be forgotten.

He's Mitch Begeman, the Roosevelt boys basketball coach, they win their third title in the AA Boys Basketball Tournament beating O'Gorman. Defense was big for you, how did you make it difficult for other teams this year?

When we had this group four years ago, we kind of installed this pressure defense type philosophy. We installed this full court pressure that, because this, we looked at this group as, they're a bunch of athletes that can run up and down the floor, multi-sport athletes kids, and we just tried to figure out how could we help these kids and put in the best situation possible? And we kind of came up when we actually changed our whole half court defense and we've installed this pressure defense and they've really embraced it, they loved it, they wanted to play fast. So we kind of tried to get that going a little bit more as well, but this group is just, again, we worked it, we preached it every day.

It's who we are. Our team is built on our defense and our whole goal was to try to make things as difficult as possible every single night. We felt like if we could do that, we could be in any single game. And, our defense was incredible the last three nights. And we really made things difficult for all three teams I felt like, but it takes the whole entire team, it takes a lot of kids to be able to do that. And it takes a competitive group that wants to do that as well.

You got by Brandon Valley in the first day, but then here comes Yankton, the Yankton Bucks, Matthew Mors is one of the most decorated players we've seen in AA. He has stated that he was very motivated to win another title. What was it like when that game started Yankton and Roosevelt and Matthew Mors? What was it like knowing that both teams were pretty much on a roll?

In the last two years we've played them. I feel like I've had to prepare for this kid for, very bad practically my whole entire career. We've always had some time and we've been fortunate to have about four or five days to prepare for them. And obviously if you talk to any coach, you kind of have to prepare a lot differently for this team and Matthew, because you know he's an exceptional player and you know he's going to score baskets, but how do you prepare to make things as difficult as possible? So, but that said, obviously we had about 12 hours to kind of prepare our kids. And the good thing is is we kind of knew what we needed to do already, but when you don't have a lot of that preparation time, it's, you just kind of wonder if they, how they're going to figure it out and this sort of time.

But we just, we had two kids that did a tremendous job in Marcus Phillips and Michael Paulson. And Marcus actually went out the first half with three fouls and so Michael had to come in and spell that time. And I thought they did just a great job. Again, at the end of the day, Matthew was going to score baskets we knew that, but we've just thought, how can we make things as difficult as possible for him to score the basketball? And obviously on the flip side, you also got to lock in the other guys as well. I think the first time we played them, we gave up 19 points to Jamie Kroll. And I think that was the difference in the game. So we knew we had to keep those other guys in check, we knew we had to rebound the basketball and our offense really got it going. We kind of controlled the temple from the start and we pushed it and transitioned. And we kind of took off from there.

69-43, absolutely offensively went crazy against a really good Yankton team. And then in the championship game, it's O'Gorman, they had won 11 in a row. They were the hottest team coming into the tournament. What was the biggest concern you had against the Knights for the championship game?

Well, yeah, absolutely. They were definitely the hottest team. I felt like we were right behind them. I truly think it was the two hottest teams playing in the state championship. They've been playing extremely well, they've been shooting it well, and their post players have been really really good down the stretch form. So obviously we knew we needed guard shooters, Matthew Ang, Kade Moffitt, Ben Renshaw, and have all been playing extremely well for them as of late. And then Eddie Miler and David Alpers and Joe Liz have also been really good for them as well. And so we knew two things that we could control, and that was our defense and our rebounding. If we can do those two things, we knew we'd have a chance. And I think someone told me a stat today, we hold one for 29 for the three point line.

And that just says a lot. That says who we are our defense is just tremendous, it was solid. We were forcing them in the top threes. And it was one of those games where first half it was kind of, not ugly, but just two teams that were really trying hard and just things weren't going in the basket for us. But second half we kind of came out and we made a couple adjustments and actually really just the ball kind of started falling for us. But our defense created our offense and they kind of jump-started us and Marcus Belts hit a few baskets for us. And Tyler Bellcamp hit a few baskets and, we just kind of took off.

During the final 30 seconds of the game. You know you're going to win the championship. What was going through your mind?

Craig, it's the last four minutes and 24 seconds. I've told a lot of people this, it felt like a marathon. I don't know how else to explain it. But when Coach Robin started subbing in and the clock started coming down, it kind of set in, but it really has not sunk in yet. It's a crazy feeling, but an exciting feeling. It's a lot of hard work a lot of time energy spent the last five years and getting to this point, and this is not just about the kids, our coaching staff. It's about everybody. It's about kids in our program that didn't get an opportunity last year. And we just, we're so so grateful to get to play this season and in a state tournament this year. And I know we'll never take this for granted.

And something I told our kids after the fact I, when we were in the locker room last night was "You guys are state champions. You earned this opportunity and no one could ever take it away from you. But also know that this is a year that will go down in history books. And some people are never going to forget that you guys were able to do this in a year that is obviously been as [inaudible 01:38:06]" again, something that I'm very appreciative of is the great thing that we've been able to accomplish, but it's not done alone. It takes the whole entire team or program or squad to be able to do these things. And I'm just very fortunate to be a part of it.

Mitch, you never got a chance to win a state title. When you played at O'Gorman, your dad, Mike never won a title, but came so close so many times. He's been a huge supporter for you. He's at your games, he even wears the Roosevelt gear at times. What was it like when you saw your dad, when you won the championship?

Pretty special Craig, it's, like you said, we've never got a chance to win one together. Obviously it was something that we really worked hard towards and when we came up short two years in a row it's done. And obviously it's been with me ever since. And when I followed his footsteps into this profession, obviously it's always been a goal, but he's been a huge part of my life. He's who I am. He's the reason why I obviously chose this profession. And without him, I would be here today. He's a guy that I lean on and he's been there for me since the start. And I can't thank that man enough, but this one's for him as well. He's equally as important as anybody else in this program on this team, because he has a huge part in this. He's retired now as you know and he spends a lot of time kind of hanging around.

Obviously he doesn't miss the game, has been to every game. I don't think he has missed a game in five years, to be honest with you. This one's for him as well. And I know he's really proud, but I'm just very, again, blessed to be here in this position. I've loved this time at Roosevelt. This is a great special place. And we've come a long way and I think that's what we're most proud of is it started from the bottom and, it's gotten better every single year and obviously we've reached the top, but we know that this is just the start for us. And we hope that we can continue to do this and keep helping these kids be successful and both on and off the floor, because that's what it's all about is seeing kids, have success. And obviously winning is fun, but we want to make sure our kids are doing the right thing and going on in life and being successful as well.