Freeman Academy-Marion: Season Update

Freeman, SD - The Bearcats have been an underrated team all season in South Dakota Class B, despite having an impressive 17-2 record. This past week Freeman Academy-Marion captured the Great Plains Conference Championship. The Bearcats have one game left in the regular season against Flandreau Indian School. FAM should win that one and they will likely head into the postseason with an 18-2 record and a ton of momentum. Read below for player stats, comments from coach Austin Unruh, and an updated Bearcat schedule. Best of luck to the Bearcats for the remainder of the season! <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1391632" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/02/FAM-crop-1557x1022-1645490912-300x197.png" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> <h4>Statistical Leaders</h4> [player_tooltip player_id="812189" first="Quincy" last="Blue"] (2022) |6-0 G| - 16.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 2.1 apg [player_tooltip player_id="968211" first="Thalen" last="Schroeder"] (2022) |6-5 F| - 16.3 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 1.9 apg. He scored his 1,000th career point this month! [player_tooltip player_id="1391635" first="Connor" last="Epp"] (2023) |5-11 G| - 14.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 4.6 apg Donte Butler (2022) |5-9 G| - 6.9 ppg, 3 rpg, 2.6 apg Dylan Johansen (2022) |6-0 F| - 3.3 ppg, 2.4 rpg, .8 apg Matthew Hagen (2023) |6-0 F| - 6.6 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 2 apg Maddox Kihne (2023) |5-9 G| - 4.8 ppg, 2.1 rpg, .8 apg <h4>Bearcat Chat with Coach Austin Unruh</h4> <div>PHD: You have one game left in the regular season, if you win out, how will the playoffs situation look for your team?</div> <div> </div> Coach Unruh: "We should be sitting around the 5-7 seed in the state based on seed points coming out of the regular season. We start with our region tournament; we were undefeated against everyone in our region this season and so we have great confidence heading in and should be able to advance to the Sodak 16 if all goes well. In the Sodak 16, there will be a lot of great teams and so we will need to play a great game to give ourselves the opportunity to play at state! There are a lot of good class B teams this year, so the competition will be intense and we will have to work hard, play together, and compete at a high level to keep playing basketball for as long as possible!" PHD: Who are some of your most improved players this season? Coach Unruh: "We have 4 seniors and a junior who have played together since they were in junior high, so we have great chemistry with that group of players. Our two newer players Matthew Hagen and Maddox Kihne improve every day as they learn and grow into their roles on the team, and I’d say the biggest improvement is more from a team aspect: the understanding of each other on the floor, the strengths each person brings, and the rhythm and experience that comes with playing together over the course of a great season as we’ve had so far." PHD: Who have been a few of your best defenders and why? Coach Unruh: "We pride ourselves on our defense, as we fall in the top 10 in both points per game allowed and point differential in our class, and defense is a team priority for us. We are undersized and often find ourselves mismatched physically on the floor. We work hard to make this up with intensity, speed, and great rotation/team defense to help each other out. [player_tooltip player_id="812189" first="Quincy" last="Blue"] often guards the best perimeter player on the opposing team, and [player_tooltip player_id="968211" first="Thalen" last="Schroeder"] will take the top 4/5 man as he has the size and speed to guard inside-out. Matthew Hagen has improved a lot defensively this season and relishes in the opportunity to guard the opposing team’s best player, inside or out. Donte Butler is often the smallest player on the floor between both teams, but his lightning-quick hands and feet and long arms can create havoc for opposing point guards." PHD: Who is your "go-to" guy when you need a big basket and why? Coach Unruh: "We have 3 players averaging double figures in [player_tooltip player_id="812189" first="Quincy" last="Blue"], [player_tooltip player_id="968211" first="Thalen" last="Schroeder"], and [player_tooltip player_id="1391635" first="Connor" last="Epp"]. Each of these guys can be counted on in key moments, and all for their own individual strengths." <div> <ul> <li> Quincy: "Lights out shooter who will shoot from anywhere at any time and has the confidence and ability to knock down big shots in big moments. He has added more strength in his drives and finishes at the rim and that complements his shooting to make him a true scorer." </li> <li> Connor: "Connor can get to the rim on just about any defender he faces, and in key moments throughout this season he has time and time again found a way to knife into the teeth of the opposing defense and get a high-percentage look in the lane. When we need to get downhill, we turn to Connor." </li> <li> Thalen: "Thalen has developed into a great interior scorer who can consistently knock down the 3-pointers as well, and will dunk on you if you let him drive unchecked to the rim. His ability to get physical in the lane and battle for a post touch/look allows us to have an inside-out approach and he is our go-to player for an interior look." </li> </ul> </div> PHD: What have been a few of the most fun moments of the season? Coach Unruh: "This group loves each other and loves the game, so every day is pure joy when we are together. Highlights of the year have been our long list of firsts: first time beating Region/local rivals Canistota, Bridgewater-Emery, Viborg-Hurley; first conference championship with a big win against 16-2 Burke; best winning percentage in program/school history. And we’ve had some individual triumphs as well: [player_tooltip player_id="812189" first="Quincy" last="Blue"]’s alley-oop finish from [player_tooltip player_id="1391635" first="Connor" last="Epp"] on a fast break vs Bridgewater-Emery, [player_tooltip player_id="968211" first="Thalen" last="Schroeder"]’s long list of dunks, more fast-break dunks from Quincy, Thalen scoring career-high 35 points and scoring his 1000th career point with his last points of the night; Donte Butler’s fadeaway buzzer-beater against Burke on Saturday; Maddox Kihne’s 20 point night off the bench; we’ve had a lot of fun this year!" PHD: What are your goals for the rest of the season? Coach Unruh: "Our biggest goal is clear: make it to the State Tourney in Aberdeen. This creates a list of smaller goals": <div> <ul> <li> "Take a step forward and improve each and every day -- never be comfortable with where we are, always striving to get better" </li> <li> "Continue to improve defensively, especially on our interior post defense and our closeouts on top shooters" </li> <li> "Get/stay healthy and be in top shape when the postseason starts" </li> <li> "Continue our unselfish, team-first approach that has brought us to this point" </li> </ul> </div> <h4><a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/02/FAM-Bearcats-Shield-Maroon-Gold.png"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-1391629" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/02/FAM-Bearcats-Shield-Maroon-Gold-300x219.png" alt="" width="300" height="219" /></a></h4> <h4>Bearcat Scores/Schedule(17-2)</h4> Centerville W 56-30 Ethan W 57-46 Tripp-Delmont-Armour W 68-41 Howard L 53-56 Mitchell Christian W 59-23 Scotland W 60-34 Canistota W 71-55 Avon W 69-23 Bridgewater-Emery W 52-44 Irene-Wakonda W 58-50 Marty W 93-65 Oldham-Ramona-Rutland W 76-49 Viborg-Hurley W 57-42 Gayville-Volin W 74-52 Andes Central-Dakota Christian W 74-52 Lower Brule L 60-75 Alcester-Hudson W 65-23 Menno W 65-38 Burke W 69-60 February 25th @ Flandreau Indian School