Takeaways from Hamlin's sweep over De Smet and other Tuesday basketball

Hamlin High School's girls and boys basketball teams each recorded impressive victories Tuesday night in Lake Central Conference battles with De Smet in the Hamlin Education Center.

Hamlin's girls are top-rated in Class A and ran their record to 9-0 overall and 2-0 in the LCC by dominating the Bulldogs 64-35.

Hamlin completed the sweep with a 57-55 win over third-rated Class B De Smet in the boys game. The back-and-forth contest went down to the wire.

Here's some takeaways from the doubleheader:

Hamlin's girls are ready to make another run

That really isn't a surprise. The Chargers, under head coach Tim Koisti, have finished second in the state Class A tournament each of the past two seasons and returned pretty much everybody from last year's team. They recently moved to the top spot in Class A by gaining some revenge against a St. Thomas More team that defeated them in the state title game last March.

Hamlin was facing a De Smet team that also had a number of key returnees back from a team that finished second in the state B tournament last winter. The missing piece for the Bulldogs is 6-0 center Kennadi Buchholz, who graduated.

The Chargers took advantage, getting 21 points from senior Kami Wadsworth and 14 more from her cousin and fellow senior Ally Abraham. Freshman guard Addie Neuendorf added 14, junior guard Marissa Bawdon seven and senior guard Brooklyn Brandriet six.

Hamlin raced to a 40-8 lead late in the first half and were never challenged.

There's a lot to like with Hamlin's girls

Wadsworth is just such a force and such a smart basketball player. Abraham can do anything to help the Chargers' win. Neuendorf is the daughter of Hamlin boys basketball coach Todd Neuendorf and plays like a coach on the floor. Brandriet can shoot the ball and seems to come up with big plays and Bawdon is proving to be a 3-point shooting threat.

In a single game, you shouldn't bet against the Chargers. The only concern is the team isn't all that deep again and playing three games in three days at state can wear you down.

Don't worry, Hamlin is determined and will be a tough out for anybody.

It wasn't a good night for head coach Brendon Pitts and the De Smet girls, who got 10 points from senior Jada Burke and six each from senior Alyssa Asleson and freshman Hazel Luethmers. The fell to 5-4 overall and 1-1 in the LCC.

But ... yes there's a but. De Smet's four losses this season have come to 9-0 Class A teams Hamlin and Florence-Henry as well as Class B teams Arlington (8-3) and James Valley Christian (6-2). If you're counting, that's a combined 32-5 record. They miss Buchholz, but the Bulldogs may still make some noise before the season is over.

An impressive win for Hamlin's boys

The girls' game was over quickly, but you couldn't say the same about the boys' game which was in doubt all the way down to the final seconds. Hamlin's boys improved to 5-2 overall and 1-1 in the LCC and dropped De Smet to 7-2 and 1-2.

Hamlin's boys were led by sophomore guard Easton Neuendorf, the son of head coach Todd Neuendorf. He poured in 27 points, Senior Brennan Kesler added 17 and junior guard Tyson Stevenson seven.

Neuendorf and Keszler came through down the stretch. After Kadyn Fast's 3-pointer gave De Smet a 52-49 lead with just over five minutes remaining, the Chargers closed with a 8-3 run that included four points from Neuendorf and three from Keszler.

The Chargers just recently got 6-4 sophomore Dawson Noem back from an appendectomy on the opening day of the season and are also playing without 6-3 sophomore Evan Stormo, but there's plenty of talent. Zac Van Meeteren, a 6-6 sophomore, has given the team more size.

Hamlin's defense came up big down the stretch to keep the ball away from De Smet's 6-10 senior standout Damon Wilkinson, who poured in 25 points. George Jensen, a 6-5 junior, added 11.

Hamlin's only losses this season came to No. 2 Class A Sioux Valley and Dell Rapids, which has been rated. De Smet also lost to Sioux Valley.

De Smet still could challenge for third-straight State B title

The Bulldogs did lose some very talented players to graduation off a team that won the past two state B titles. Don't worry, there's still plenty of talent for head coach Jeff Gruenhagen.

Wilkinson isn't just big, he's good. And a number of his teammates have stepped into bigger roles this season and some of those players seem likely to take some burden away from Wilkinson as the season goes along.

That group includes 6-5 senior forward Kasen Janssen, senior guard Gannon Gruenhagen, junior guards Tom Aughenbaugh and Fast and junior Trace Van Regenmorter.

De Smet had plenty of chances to win Tuesday's game, including a potential game-winning 3 in the final seconds trailing 56-55. Keszler rebounded the miss and was fouled, hitting one of two free throws with 1.1 seconds remaining.

By the way, it was just a good game. A really good game between two talented teams with two very good coaches and two programs with a long history of basketball success.

Other Boys Basketball

Tea Area 45, Watertown 44: Sam Almas grabbed an offensive rebound and scored with 13 seconds left to cap a late rally that lifted Tea Area to the victory Tuesday night in the Civic Arena. A 3-pointer by Caden Beauchamp with 3:46 left and another basket by Marcus Rabine with 2:20 left gave the Arrows a 44-41 lead. They didn't score again.

South Dakota State University football recruit Reis Kirschenman scored after an offensive rebound with 1:39 left to set the stage for Almas in the closing seconds.

Blake Thompson scored 13 points, Almas 12 and Kirschenman 10 for Tea Area (7-2). Thompson also grabbed nine rebounds and Kirschenman seven.

Jake Olson and Koken Kranz each tallied nine points, Dylon Rawdon eight and Beauchamp seven for the Arrows. Rawdon also had five rebounds and four assists.

Watertown visits Rapid City Stevens on Friday and Rapid City Central on Saturday.

Waubay-Summit 53, Milbank 46: Damon Opdahl and Jonathan Johnston each surpassed the 1,000-point mark for their careers for the 10-0 Mustangs. Opdahl recorded 20 points and nine rebounds,16 points and six steals from Jackson Wohlleber and 11 points and seven rebounds from Johnston. Joe Schulte tallied 14 points, Yohana Ajwanga 12 and Garrett Mertens 11 for Milbank.

Deuel 56, Flandreau 43: Dravyn Carlson tallied 16 points and Gavin Benck 14 to lead Deuel to the Lake Central Conference win. Braydon Simon contributed 10 points and six assists, Ronnie Begalka eight rebounds, Trey Maaland five assists and five steals and Owen Quail six rebounds. Paul Parsley scored 13 points and Luke Sheppard and Alfie Henderson 12 each for Flandreau.

Dell Rapids St. Mary 73, Castlewood 70 (OT): Trevon Beckman erupted for 26 points and Nic Gaspar 21 to lift DRSM to the Dakota Valley Conference win over the No. 5 Class B Warriors. Lane Tvedt notched 25 points, Bryon Laue 23 and Jackson Schofield 12 for Castlewood.

Northwestern 56, Warner 37: Northwestern took the Lake Region Conference victory by getting 15 points from Reilly Schmitt, nine from Jude Ortmeier and eight from Lincoln Woodring. Levi Scepaniak scored 20 points and Hunter Cramer 10 for Warner.

Sioux Valley 85, Chester Area 40: The second-rated Class A Cossacks (10-0) rolled again with 18 points and 14 rebounds from Alec Squires, 21 points from Patrick Carey, 15 points from Maxwell Engebretson, 11 points from Maverick Nelson and eight points, eight rebounds and nine assists from Oliver Vincent. Jovi Wolf and Layke Wold led Chester Area with 15 and 12 points, respectively.

Waverly-South Shore 43, Great Plains Lutheran 42: A 14-9 fourth-quarter surge lifted Waverly-South Shore to the Eastern Coteau Conference win. Grant Holman scored 13 points, Landon Maag 11 and Troy Kneeland 10 for the Coyotes. Myles York tallied 13 points Alex Heil 10 and Micah Holien nine for GPL. York snared eight rebounds and Rubendall seven.

Langford Area 67, Britton-Hecla 59: The Lions won with 23 points by Jackson Bahr; 15 points and 10 rebounds from Kassen Keogh; 10 points from Rennan Bruns and 12 points, 11 rebounds, 13 assists and five steals from Jesse Keough. Landon Carlson scored 11 points and BoDell Davidson and William Schuller each nine for the Braves.

281 Conference Tourney: Semifinals: Wolsey-Wessington 55 (Blaze Herdman 18, Ricky Maurovic 14), Hitchcock-Tulare 36 (TJ Salmen 15); and James Valley Christian 68 (Landon Wager 25 points, eight assists and four steals and Jerrad Wallman 12 points and nine rebounds), Highmore-Harrold 61 (Bryce Bourk 19 points and 11 rebounds and Trey Knox 15 and 10). Consolation Semis: Wessington Springs 66 (Colby Flowers 16 points, Parker Graff 14 and Ryder Michalek 13), Sunshine Bible 18 (Daniel Gerbracht nine points and six rebounds); and Iroquois-Lake Preston 41 (Logan Peskey 14 points, Riley Casper 11 points and Toby Arbeiter 10 points and seven rebounds), Sanborn Central-Woonsocket 36 (Jeff Boschee 10 points).

Ellendale, N.D. 56, Leola-Frederick Area 41: Riley Thorpe's 18 points, Anton Geller's 15 and Mason Molan's 14 topped Ellendale. Noah Kippley had 11 points, Connor Spitzer eight and Brayden Sumption seven for LFA.

Mount Vernon-Plankinton 77, Redfield 60: The Titans rolled with Reed Rus getting 25 points, Mason Hetland 15, Jordan Stoltz and Chris Mayer 11 each and Zach Baker 10. Hetland added 10 rebounds and Stoltz eight. Jerrod Haider finished with 20 poinits, Mitchell Mack 11, Justin Ratigan 10 and Tristen O'Daniel nine for Redfield. Ratigan hauled in 13 rebounds.

Tri-Valley 53, Deubrook Area 46: Braden Oyen's 17 points and Logan Ellison's 12 lifted Tri-Valley. Jacob Jorenby poured in 24 for Deubrook Area.

Aberdeen Roncalli 42, Tiospa Zina 36: The Cavaliers won the Northeast Conference game with 10 points from Darwin Gambler and eight from Maddox Miller. Tate Never Misses A Shot had 10 points and Mike Smith and Storm Sierra seven each for Tiospa Zina.

Aberdeen Christian 77, Faulkton Area 38: The second-rated Class B Knights improved to 8-0 with the Lake Region Conference win, getting 16 points from Ethan Russell, 13 from Malek Wieker, 11 from Joey Johnson and nine from Jackson Isakson. Charlie Deiter finished with 11 points and Layne Cotton eight for Faulkton Area.

Ipswich 56, North Central 21: Tyler Hettich and Trevor Heinz each scored 11 points and Chet Peterson and Jace Konsor eight each for Ipswich. Peterson and Tucker Miller had six rebounds apiece and Heinz five steals. Raynor Sprague's seven points topped North Central.

Scores and Postponements: Estelline-Hendricks 61, Oldham-Ramona-Rutland 27; Oakes 52, South Border 50 (N.D.); Oak Grove (N.D.) 73, Tri-State 38; and Canby 74, Ortonville 38 (Minn.). No other details were reported. The Aberdeen Central at Sioux Falls O'Gorman (now Feb. 18) and Sisseton at Flandreau Indian School games were postponed.

Girls Basketball

Watertown 55, Tea Area 36: Watertown (4-4) outscored Tea Area 36-17 in the second and fourth quarters combined to win the non-conference game Tuesday night in the Civic Arena.

Jaida Young's 21-point, seven-assist performance paced the Arrows, who also got eight points apiece from Emery Thury and Miranda Falconer, seven from Addi Johnston, six from Grace Corey and five from Jade Lund. Kendall Paulson chipped in with five rebounds.

Mara Grant paced Tea Area (4-5) with 13 points and five rebounds.

The Arrows head west to take on Rapid City Stevens on Friday and Rapid City Central on Saturday.

Faulkton Area 54, Aberdeen Christian 22: Addison Melius notched 16 points and nine rebounds and Paislee Martinmaas 12 points, nine rebound and five assists for the Trojans. Gabby Kast had eight points and Olivia Hadrick seven rebounds. Chloe Bosma's 11 points and seven rebounds and Sophia Fogarty's 10 points paced Aberdeen Christian.

Florence-Henry 58, Webster Area 16: The Falcons (9-0) got 17 points and 12 rebounds from Caylin Kelly, 13 points from Trinity Watson, seven points from Reese Schmidt, six points and four rebounds from Haley Hlavacek, six points and five rebounds from Aubrie Hartley and five points, four rebounds and four steals from Taylor Watson. Paige Snell's four points paced the Bearcats.

North Central 44, Ipswich 20: North Central won with 16 points from Brittney Frickson, 12 from Ella Batie and eight from Jenisa Jacobs. Marley Guthmiller and Gabby Wald each had seven for Ipswich.

Dell Rapids St. Mary 52, Castlewood 50 (OT): Ella Griffin scored 17 points and Madala Hanson 12 to help the Cardinals also win the girls' game in overtime. The Warriors received 16 points from Maddie Horn, 15 from Mackenzie Everson and 12 from Lyndsey Archer.

Milbank 46, Waubay-Summit 41: Maurina Street's 22-point, 13-rebounds performance led the way for Milbank, which got 11 points from Isabella Anderson and eight points and five steals from Tyra Berry. Claire Snaza grabbed six rebounds. Eva Benike produced 18 points and seven rebounds, Faith Larson 10 points and Kailee Berger seven points for the Mustangs.

Flandreau 61, Deuel 22: Harley Hennings finished with eight points and four rebounds and Josie Andersen seven points for Deuel in the Lake Central Conference loss.

Sioux Valley 84, Chester Area 65: Landee Wilson had 24 points, Isabelle Bloker 16 and Julia Schneider 12 for the Cossacks. Emery Larson and Jacy Wolf each garnered 21 points and Emmerson Eppard 14 for Chester Area.

Great Plains Lutheran 49, Waverly-South Shore 12: The Panthers won the Eastern Coteau Conference game with 12 points from Olivia Holmen, 11 from Abby Knenstad and seven each from Halle Bauer and Myra Lentz. Holmen and Esta Cameron each collected five rebounds.

Mount Vernon-Plankinton 50, Redfield 35: Reagan Rus scored 15 points to lead MVP. Katie Rozell and Annie Smith tallied 11 points apiece for Redfield.

281 Conference Tourney: Semifinals: Wolsey-Wessington 58 (Mallory Miller 22 points and 10 rebounds, Leah Williams 14 points and Mya Boomsma 12 points), Sanborn Central-Woonsocket 43 (Kendra Ochsner 16 points and Liz Boschee 15); and Wessington Springs 47 (Avery Orth 24 points, nine rebounds), James Valley Christian 37 (Lily Hofer 14 and Alexa Goertz 12 points and eight rebounds). Consolation Semis: Iroquois-Lake Preston 51 (Hadlee Holt 20 points and Adison Moore 14), Highmore-Harrold 46 (Brooke Palmer 19 points and 11 rebounds); and Hitchcock-Tulare 50 (Katelyn Schroeder 29 points and 13 rebounds and Isabel Gilbert 12 and 12), Sunshine Bible 20 (Sadie Konechne six points and Anna Van Zee eight rebounds.

Dawson-Boyd 48, Canby 36 (Minn.): Brynn Kockelman finished with 11 points, Braelyn Merritt 10 points and Kortney Leppke seven points and seven rebounds for Canby in the Camden Conference loss.

Lac qui Parle Valley 55, Minneota 44: The Eagles improved to 10-2 with 10 points and 18 rebounds from Camryn Lee, 10 points and nine rebounds from Ayanna Gipson, 11 points from Rylee Lund, nine from Taylor Shelstad and eight from Jayln Lee. Ireland Stassen had 17 for Minneota.

Aberdeen Roncalli 53, Tiospa Zina 34: In the Northeast Conference game, Claire Crawford tallied 13 points, Ava Hanson 10 and Maddie Huber to spark Roncalli. Alexis Quinn's 12 points and Kennadee Bissonette's nine led Tiospa Zina.

Scores and Postponements: Tri-State 70, Wilmot 39; Tri-Valley 54, Deubrook Area 40; and Arlington 56, Colman-Egan 44. No other details were reported. The Sioux Falls O'Gorman at Aberdeen Central (now Feb. 13) game was postponed.

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: No. 1 Hamlin girls win big, Hamlin edges No. 3 De Smet boys.