BY MIKE CARROLL
OF THE PLAINSMAN
ABERDEEN — After a one-year hiatus, De Smet is returning to the Class B State Tournament this season.
Coach Jeff Gruenhagen says the Bulldogs have been focused on reaching the state tournament since they had their string of six straight state tournament qualifications ended a year ago. “We are really excited to be going back to compete for a state championship. The overtime loss at the end of last season really had never left our mind with so many opportunities to win that game, and eventual state champ Castlewood was never challenged during the tournament,” Gruenhagen said. “It did make our kids realize it is a great accomplishment to get to a state tournament in any year, and it is hard no matter what path you have to take to get there.”
De Smet put together a 19-4 record this season and will be the third seed going into the tournament, which begins Thursday and runs through Saturday at the Barnett Center in Aberdeen. “We had a shot to be the top seed, but one too many losses in Lake Central Conference play bumped us back,” Gruenhagen said. “We have been seeded all over the field in past state tournaments, and we know that it just determines the start of the tournament and not how you finish.”
The Bulldogs will open the tournament against sixth-seeded Wall, which also put together a 19-4 campaign this season, at 6:45 p.m. Thursday. Top-seeded Viborg-Hurley is 20-3 and will face No. 8 Lyman (17-6) in the opening game of the tournament at 11 a.m. Thursday. Fourth-seeded Aberdeen Christian (20-3) will play fifth-seeded Castlewood (20-3) at 12:45 p.m., and second-seeded Freeman (21-2) will play No. 7 Sully Buttes (18-5) at 5 p.m.
“The field is wide open again this year with many of the teams having met head to head in many close games during the regular season,” Gruenhagen said. “Several different styles of BB and some teams have more size than others, but overall, a very talented group of teams that should make for great games all week. “Freeman and Castlewood are probably the most balanced teams with a lot of weapons,” he said. “Wall can really play fast and defend with great energy, while Viborg-Hurley has had good wins all season and played a tough schedule. In my opinion, there is no clear favorite.”
Wall won’t be able to match the height put on the floor by De Smet, but is able to make up the difference in other ways, according to Gruenhagen. “They are a tough matchup for us with their 5-guard style offense, and they can shoot from the perimeter very well. They can all drive to the basket and really attack the offensive boards with their speed. We will need to play well on D and not let them finish in the paint at the rim,” Gruenhagen said. “Rebounding will be the key in this matchup, as they put up a lot of shots. We will need to establish our inside game with Grant (Wilkinson) and handle the ball pressure they put on us, whether that is man-to-man, run-and-jump, or zone trap.”
Senior Grant Wilkinson, at 6-foot-10, has been a catalyst for De Smet offensively this season. However, a strong supporting cast has played huge dividends for the Bulldogs. “Our key was to become a more balanced attack on offense, as teams try to focus on Grant in the post,” Gruenhagen said. “ We did that nicely over the season with two other starters averaging double figures.
“We were a little cold in region play, but our other kids really stepped up and got clutch baskets to keep us moving forward,” he said. Grant Wilkinson has amassed 565 points this season for the Bulldogs, giving him an average of 24.57 points per game. On the defensive side of the ball, he has averaged 16.74 rebounds per game. Noah Luethmers, a junior guard, has averaged 14.26 points per game this season, while junior Carter Wilkinson has scored 11.13 points per game and senior Slayten Wilkinson has netted 8.35 points per game. Other seniors for De Smet this season are Kolby Sinclair and Anthony Escobar.
Adding seasoned depth for the Bulldogs are juniors Coy Van Regenmorter, Jordan Botkin, and Owen Anderson.
The winners from Thursday’s games will play in the semifinals at 5 and 6:45 p.m. Friday, while the losers will square off in the consolation semifinals at 11 a.m. and 12:45 p.m. Friday. The final day on Saturday begins with the seventh-place game at 11 a.m. The consolation championship is scheduled for 12:45 p.m., followed by the third-place game at 5 p.m., and the championship game at 6:45 p.m.
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