Bucks take 2nd place The Dakota Bucks played five games at the Fury Invitational, they won four. They defeated a struggling Heat Carlson team by 28 and then took out Magic Elite by 13 in pool play. From there the…
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Subscribe Already a subscriber? Log inBucks take 2nd place
The Dakota Bucks played five games at the Fury Invitational, they won four. They defeated a struggling Heat Carlson team by 28 and then took out Magic Elite by 13 in pool play.
From there the Bucks won their first round playoff contest with Fury Jordan by 19 and then beat a top ten team in Minnesota (Comets Lewis) by 13 points. The Dakota squad played in the championship game against the host Minnesota Fury squad (ranked fourth in Minnesota) but didn’t have enough to pull the upset.
All in all it was another fantastic weekend for the Bucks. They drove away from the Twin Cities having earned a lot of respect particularly for Iowa big man Josh Van Lingen, Sioux Falls Christian forward Chad Barkema, and Keegan Van Egdom.
Through five games Van Lingen averaged 20 points and ten rebounds meaning a double-double for the weekend. Barkema was close averaging 17 points and nine rebounds. Van Egdom scored 15 a night and grabbed 6-7 rebounds with about six assists a contest.
The Bucks also got some strong performances from Tyler Van Voorst, Joey Horstman, and Jett Thune in the Fury event. Van Lingen was named to the Fury all event first team, Barkema to the second team, Van Egdom to the third team.
Hayden Sadowsky (Hettinger/Scranton, 6’1, PG): did a great job scoring from the perimeter and with deep penetration. Had more than three treys in three of the five games. Competed hard on both ends of the floor and did a nice job of getting to the foul line as well.
Casey Walcker (Beulah, 6’1, SG): really a strong competitor. Took tough defensive assignments all weekend and really relishes the defensive stopper roll. Is good for a few offensive board put-backs a game and showed some range as well.
Wyatt Carr (Hazen, 6’4, SF): played up with the 17U as 16U was off. Did a nice job defensively despite having to defend centers. Started out a bit slow offensively to begin the weekend but picked it up Saturday afternoon and was very good on Sunday.
De'Sean Allen-Eikens (Williston, 6’7 SF): Hit for a double-double in each game. In the loss to Future Stars De’Sean still showed up with 19 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists and 4 blocks. In the other three games he was consistently dominant. In the East Metro Elite win, he was responsible for 12 points in a 16-0 run that took Phenom from down 30-45 to up 46-45.
Trae Steckler (Mandan, 6’4, SF): started off the weekend with a 28 point/13 rebound performance against the Minnesota Suns squad and did not slow down. Hit for a double double in all four games. He works very hard around the rim, on the glass, and defensively. He also stepped out to knock a trey down in two of the four games. He is very effective one on one on the block or from 15 feet.
Camren Steckler (Mandan, 6’5, SF/PF): did a nice job of finishing in the high post and with a lot of perimeter shots, as his team played several zones. He is improving dramatically in being willing to play through contact and use his size.
Joshua Kihle (Burke County, 6’8, PF/C): did a great job defensively. He carries around a 6'7/8″ stocky frame, but was able to keep wings in front of him in ball screen situations where he needed to hedge. Did a nice job of rebounding out of his area, showed great vision in consistently finding cutters and shooters against zones and double teams, and finished with a high percentage around the rim and at the free throw line.
Cole Gendreau (St. Mary’s Central, 5’11, PG): showed a nice ability to lead a team. He does a nice job defensively creating plays. He is very effective in transition, and is the type of player where you notice him being all over the floor. It was common to see him come down with five or so points, rebounds, assists, and steals. Does a very good job in knowing when to be aggressive as a scorer, but also is really effective as a pass first, defensive minded point guard
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