(#2) Vermillion 68 (#6) Dell Rapids 66 – Five Things to Know

<p>With a victory over 6th ranked Dell Rapids, Vermillion is now the only unbeaten team left in Class A basketball.  An 11-0 mark they earned with a hard fought win.</p> <p><strong>One.  Dobney is Playing at an All State First Team Level</strong>.  Six-foot-0 senior guard [player_tooltip player_id="975516" first="Jakob" last="Dobney"] set the tone early.  Dell Rapids wants to play at a certain pace but the ball control of Dobney led to 14 first quarter points and two assists which was 19 of his teams’ 23.  Dobney controlled each possession forcing Dell Rapids to work and then taking advantage when they broke down.  It was the ultimate tone set and gave his team confidence for the rest of the evening.  In the clutch Dobney had the game’s biggest basket when he took the ball under his own basket up 65-63, sped through the opposing defense, and then split the final pair of defenders to the left side for the 67-63 dagger.  Jakob also stepped to the foul line and sunk 11 of 12 foul shots on his way to a team high 24 points (scored on 6 of 12 field goals). </p> <p><strong>Two.  [player_tooltip player_id="732203" first="Colin" last="Rentz"]</strong>.   I don’t think I’ve ever seen a player have both the rapid transition green light that Rentz has AND the constant success rate he has pushing those rapid transitions.  If I’m a shooter that loves to play in transition he’s the type of player I want be with because if you run to the corner while he’s pushing the middle you are going to have constant open threes.  Rentz sucks in more defenders than most point guards ever will.  There are times when guys aren’t shooting as well which will lead to Rentz looking to his own offense more but when you get to the front of the rim as much as Rentz does it can make up for some of those shooting struggles.  He’s also an outstanding defensive rebounder because if he is the guy that gets the board the transition push is even faster.  Playing against Rentz is also the ultimate test for your transition defense because he’s open the floor in five seconds or less nearly every time.  Colin scored 25 points on 10 of 19 shooting plus grabbed a dozen boards. </p> <p><strong>Three</strong>.  <strong>The New Number One</strong>.  If Vermillion beats Redfield on Saturday they will be the new number one team in state come Monday.  The Pheasants will be a tough task as they are 9-3 with wins over Langford Area and Tiospa Zina but a team a Class A number one team should beat in business like fashion.  Redfield is coming off of a bad loss to Milbank by 15 points.  On February 9th, Dakota Valley will have a chance to reclaim their crown as they will play at Vermillion although we will also to need to see where the Chargers are at at that point.  Keep in mind the Tanagers have already defeated Sioux Falls Christian by 13 so Vermillion is the clear number one right now.  </p> <p><strong>Four</strong>. <strong>The X-Factor</strong>.  The Tanagers had a top player on the floor (Dobney), they have a nice frontcourt with [player_tooltip player_id="757844" first="Dillon" last="Gestring"] scoring 16 efficient points (and 8 rebounds) on 8 of 12 shooting and even though he was quiet last night Noah Gilbertson usually offers regular scoring production, and 6-foot-4 junior Nick Sorenson is a nice player off the bench.  Vermillion was better up front than Dell Rapids last night plus they received a huge contribution from six foot guard Connor Saunders on both ends.  Saunders scored a dozen points including a pull-up jumper down the stretch that was crucial.  He rebounds well (grabbed six) and is a smart passer. </p> <p><strong>Five.  Top Prospects</strong>.  Top prospects in this game?  This is how I would rank them after seeing these players compete over the last few years:</p> <ol> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="732203" first="Colin" last="Rentz"] (6’0 Point Guard, Sr) of Dell Rapids</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="975516" first="Jakob" last="Dobney"] (6’0 Point Guard, Sr) of Vermillion</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="975501" first="Carter" last="Nelson"] (6’8 Power Forward, Sr) of Dell Rapids</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="757844" first="Dillon" last="Gestring"] (6’4 Forward, Sr) of Vermillion</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="963773" first="Brayden" last="Pankonen"] (5’9 Point Guard, Soph) of Dell Rapids</li> <li>Connor Saunders (6’0 Guard, Sr) of Vermillion</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="975534" first="Connor" last="Rentz"] (5’11, Shooting Guard, Sr) of Dell Rapids</li> <li>Nick Sorenson (6’4 Power Forward, Jr) of Vermillion</li> <li>Noah Gilbertson (6’3 Power Forward, Sr) of Vermillion</li> <li>[player_tooltip player_id="968177" first="Landon" last="Ruesink"] (5’10 Guard, Sr) of Dell Rapids</li> </ol>