Ten Best: Dike-New Hartford (60) at Jesup (63)
Ethan Wyant scored a career high 32 points for Jesup Jesup 63, Dike-New Hartford 60 What looked like a blowout turned into a highly competitive game in a hurry on Tuesday night, as Jesup held on against North Iowa Cedar…
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Continue ReadingJesup 63, Dike-New Hartford 60
What looked like a blowout turned into a highly competitive game in a hurry on Tuesday night, as Jesup held on against North Iowa Cedar League rival Dike-New Hartford, 63-60.
A close game during the first quarter was blown open in the second, with the J-Hawks outscoring D-NH 22-10 in the second quarter to take a 38-23 lead into the locker rooms. Jesup came out and extended that lead to as much as 21 points in the third quarter, 49-28, with 3:34 left in the frame. A late D-NH push cut the lead down to 14 heading into the fourth. That was just a sign of things to come.
In the fourth quarter, D-NH extended their defense and used that pressure to help them make a huge run. They opened the quarter on a 10-2 run to trim the deficit to just six with five minutes left. The J-Hawks regained their composure and were in control until the final minutes, when the free throw line started to betray them.
Jesup went just 7-15 from the line in the fourth quarter, allowing D-NH to make up some serious ground late. A pair of Broden Coulter 3s helped cut the Jesup lead to 59-58, with just 44.7 left. Tyler Lienau went to the line, went 1-2 (60-58 Jesup), and D-NH came down for their possession. After a bit of ball movement, Ethan Wyant got his hands on a pass, resulting in a turnover. After a scramble, Jesup got the ball ahead to Joey Youngblut, who was fouled with 22 seconds left. The referee called the foul intentional, giving the J-Hawks the ball back after Youngblut went 1-2, meaning D-NH had to foul again, and essentially locking up the win for Jesup.
Jesup (5-1, 4-1) was led by Ethan Wyant, who had a career-high 32 points in the win. Drew Schmit added 10 for the J-Hawks. Ben Latusek led Dike-New Hartford (3-2, 3-1) with 17 points and 14 rebounds. Broden Coulter had 13 and Connor Blough addded 11 points for the Wolverines.
Scoring
Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | F |
Dike-New Hartford | 13 | 10 | 15 | 22 | 60 |
Jesup | 16 | 22 | 14 | 11 | 63 |
Dike-New Hartford: Ben Latusek 17, Broden Coutler 13, Connor Blough 11, Royce Weber 8, Colton Harberts 8, Cade Fuller 3
Jesup: Ethan Wyant 32, Drew Schmit 10, Tyler Lienau 6, Ben Hummel 5, Hans Riensche 4, Alex Moore 3, Cole VanBrocklin 2, Joey Youngblut 1
MVP: Ethan Wyant (Jesup)
Wyant has become one of our favorites with his silky mid-range game and command over the floor at all times. That was on display yet again in this one, scoring a career-high 32 points on 9-15 shooting. He’s a force offensively with his ability to pull up and shoot from anywhere or get to the free throw line (he attempted 18 free throws in this game). He was also very active at the top of Jesup’s 2-3 zone, and made the biggest defensive play of the game, sealing the win for the J-Hawks.
Play of the game: Wyant tips a pass with :30 left, leading to a turnover and intentional foul call
After Tyler Lienau had gone 1-2 at the line for Jesup, giving them a 60-58 lead, Dike-New Hartford came down to run their offense. Wyant tipped a pass at the top of the zone, leading to a turnover. In the ensuing scramble, the J-Hawks got the ball across the halfcourt line to Joey Youngblut, who was fouled with 22 seconds to play. The referee signaled an intentional foul, all but wrapping up the game for Jesup. Youngblut went 1-2 at the line, making the lead three, and the J-Hawks got the ball back to get fouled again.
Best offensive performance: Ethan Wyant (Jesup)
The 6-0 guard was his usual sensational self, sticking right with his shooting percentage of 60% coming into the game, going 9-15 from the floor. He’s got an exceptional mid-range game, which in turn helps open up his dribble drive, where he gets to the free throw line frequently. He was in complete control all night.
Best defensive performance: Joey Youngblut/Ethan Wyant (Jesup)
The activity that these two provided at the top of Jesup’s 2-3 zone was a big difference maker, and a primary reason the J-Hawks jumped out to a 21-point lead to begin with. They got their hands on a number of passes, leading to easy layups at the other end.
Best rebounder: Ben Latusek (Dike-New Hartford)
The 6-5 big man pulled down 14 rebounds for the Wolverines, using his strength and athletic ability to just out-muscle and out-leap players for boards. He had a stretch during the fourth quarter in which he was nearly unstoppable – if he missed his own shot, he was getting the rebound back until he finally put it in. He was just so much stronger than anyone else on the floor, and his physicality shined.
Best shooter: Drew Schmit (Jesup)
Schmit knocked down three of his five attempts from the arc, showing a quick release off the catch and a great ability to move off the ball and get his feet squared on the catch. His release is smooth and consistent, and he showed tremendous range. Special mention here to D-NH’s Broden Coulter, who knocked down a pair of big 3s late in the game to help the Wolverines make it very interesting late.
Best passer: Ben Latusek (Dike-New Hartford)
In addition to being the strongest player on the floor, Latusek also showed some fantastic passing ability from the low post. He routinely found players on the opposite side of the floor and snapped strong, crisp passes to them for open looks. He also found cutters through the lane for layups and is good at recognizing when the double is coming and getting rid of the ball. He displayed fantastic court vision and each of his passes was on target and led to a potential scoring chance for a teammate.
Best player off the bench: Colton Harberts (Dike-New Hartford)
The 6-6 sophomore came off the bench to give the Wolverines eight points, nine rebounds and a block. He’s a big, strong and physical player who showed good touch on the interior, was aggressive on the glass on both ends of the floor and proved to be a solid interior defender as well. As he continues to refine his skill set, watch out. And when Dike puts both Latusek and Harberts on the floor together, that’s a tough combination of strength in the paint.
Best underclassman: Colton Harberts (Dike-New Hartford)
We touched on his game in the “off the bench” portion, but Harberts really does look like he could be the face of the D-NH program for the next two seasons. Lots of skill combined with a good size and strength combination, especially at the 2A level.
Story to watch moving forward: Does this game help D-NH’s Broden Coulter break out of his shooting slump?
After shooting 56.3% (18-32) from the arc last season as a role player, he entered this game just 2-19 (10.5%) from the arc this season. He still wasn’t sensational from deep in this one, going 3-7, but the last two went in, and hopefully seeing those two drop will help raise his confidence back up and he can go back to being the dynamic shooter that he has proven to be both last season and at our Top 250 Expo in September.