Tigers rally to get past Pierre

HURON — Huron Tiger sophomore Kobe Busch hit a pair of free throws with 9.8 seconds on the clock to give the Tigers a 47-46, come from behind win over the Pierre Governors in ESD boys’ basketball action Thursday night at Huron Arena.
Huron will head to the holiday break with a record of 2-4 while Pierre slips to 1-3.
“Tonight was a big step for us,” said Tiger mentor Tim Buddenhagen after the tough win. “Good teams go through adversity and we’ve certainly had our share so far this season. We really needed this one and it is nice to be able to head to the break with a win.”
Huron jumped out early, as baskets from Tanner Evers and Isaac Carr staked the Tigers to a quick 4-0 lead before Garrett Stout got the Governors on the board.
Alex Hill got a tip-in for the Tigers and Kobe Busch hit a scoop shot to counter a basket by Matt Maxfield and a charity toss from Jack Maher for Pierre, giving Huron an 8-5 lead and prompting a timeout from Governor coach Terry Becker, with just over a minute and a half left in the quarter.
From that point, however, Pierre closed the quarter with an 11-0 run, as Carson Tschetter hit a three to tie the score before Stout gave the Governors their first lead. Maxfield hit field goals on back-to-back possessions and Peyton Zabel hit a shot as the clock wound down to give Pierre a 16-8 lead after one quarter of play.
The teams traded points to open the second quarter; Huron got a pair of free throws from Tanner Evers to counter a layup from Zabel. The Tigers found another gear then, as they went on a quick 7-0 run.
Teegan Evers hit a long three-point shot, then forced a turnover and although he missed the layup, his brother Tanner was there to clean up the miss. Kobe Busch got into the scorebook on a pair of free throws and the score stood at 18-17 in favor of the Governors.
Pierre got a bucket from Andrew Coverdale, but a Jett McGirr three-pointer knotted the score for the first time since early in the first quarter, only to see Grey Zabel hit a leaner to give the Governors a 22-20 lead at the halftime horn.
Pierre scored the first five points of the third quarter, before Teegan Evers responded for the Tigers. He hit three-of-four from the line, then scored on a steal and layup to bring the score back to two points at 27-25. The teams traded baskets for the last three minutes of the quarter, as Stout hit a three pointer, which was matched on the Huron end by Sean Flanery, then Stout hit a jumper at the buzzer to make it 36-32 headed to the final frame.
“It wasn’t pretty at times tonight,” Buddenhagen said, “but I thought that we got some good play off the bench tonight. Teegan played well and Sean hit a big shot for us.”
Huron got a three from Teegan Evers to open the quarter and Pierre countered with three of four from the line to maintain its lead. The Tigers tied the game for the first time since the first quarter, as Tanner Evers hit both ends of a one-and-one bonus free throw set and then got a put-back basket.

Pierre responded with a bucket from Maxfield midway through the period, but Teegan Evers had a field goal and one-of-two from the line on consecutive possessions to give Huron it’s first lead in the second half, at 44-43 with 2:45 to play.
Maher hit one of two and then fouled out on the ensuing Huron possession, as Tanner Evers hit one-of-two free throws to give Huron a 45-44 lead. Stout hit a pair of free throws with :27 seconds on the clock, setting the stage for a final Tiger possession and for Busch’s game winners.
Pierre had one more chance, but a three-pointer from Stout was long.
“We really battled down the stretch tonight,” Buddenhagen said. “I have to give props to Ike (Carr) tonight. He went man-to-man with (Peyton) Zabel all night full court and kept him in check with only 10 points. That was a tremendous effort.”
Teegan Evers led all scorers with 14 points for Huron. Teammate and older brother Tanner Evers added 11 points and eight boards, while Busch cashed in 10 points and added eight rebounds.
“I think that this is the first game where we won the battle of the free throw line,” Buddhagen noted. Huron was 17-21 at the stripe while Pierre ended 10-15. The Governors ended with four more field goals in the game - 17 to 14, but Huron had two more three pointers and won the game at the line.
Stout had 13 points, Maxfield and Peyton Zabel each added 10 and Zabel had 10 boards to lead all rebounders.
In preliminary action, the Tigers won the JV game 45-42, as Teegan Evers scored 17 points and had eight boards, while Cooper Fryberger added 10, and also won the sophomore game 64-43, behind Hayden Hegg’s 15 points and 11 points and seven rebounds from Landon Hegg. The teams split the freshmen action, with Huron taking the “A” match 54-25 behind Kler Hae’s 15 points. Pierre won the “B” game, 60-29.
“We’re going to take a few days off, let everyone enjoy Christmas with their families and then get back to work to get ready for Aberdeen Central.”
Huron hosts the Golden Eagles on Jan. 2 and Harrisburg on Jan. 6, but then hits the road for five of its next six games. With six games before the holiday break, the Tigers have completed nearly one-third of their season already.
“We got a big win tonight, but we still have work to do and a lot of room for improvement,” Buddenhagen said.

Pierre     16  22  36  46
Huron       8  20  32  47
Pierre (1-3): Carson Tschetter 1 0-0 3; Matt Maxfield 5 0-1 10; Garrett Stout 4 4-4 13; Andrew Cloverdale 1 0-0 2; Jack Maher 1 4-8 6; Peyton Zabel 4 2-2 10; Grey Zabel 1 0-02. Totals: 17 10-15 46.
Huron (2-4): Jett McGirr 1 0-0 3; Tanner Evers 3 5-6 11; Kobe Busch 2 8-8 12; Isaac Carr 1 0-1 2; Alex Hill 1 0-0 2; Teegan Evers 4 4-6 14; Sean Flanery 1 0-0 3. Totals: 13 17-21 47.
FG: P - 17-44, 39%; H - 13-46 28%. 3-pt FG: P - 2-13 (Tschetter and Stout); H - 4-14 (Teegan Evers 2, Flanery and McGirr). Reb: P - 30 (P. Zabel 10): H - 35 (Tanner Evers and Busch, 8 each). TO: P - 14; H - 12. Fouls: P - 18 (Maher out); H - 15.

Photos:

Huron’s Jett McGirr dribbles past Pierre’s Matt Maxfield during their game Thursday at Huron Arena.

Next, Huron’s Tanner Evers drives against defensive pressure by Grey Zabel of Pierre during their game Thursday at Huron Arena.

And next, Huron’s Kobe Busch puts up a shot over Pierre’s Dawson Puepke during their game Thursday at Huron Arena.

Photos by Mike Carroll/Plainsman