White River Tigers: Season Rerun

<p>The Tigers made their 17th consecutive trip to the State Tournament this spring. White River is led by the man, the myth, the legend, <em>Eldon Marshall</em>. Making it to 17 straight State Tournaments is mind-boggling, beyond impressive, and quite the accomplishment. The Tigers played a very tough schedule this season and they picked up 21 wins along the way. White River was not afraid to travel and compete against stiff competition. The Tigers finished the season with a quality win over Potter County to take home a 3rd place State Tournament trophy. </p> <p>Read below for player stats, team stats, comments from coach Marshall, and the Tiger scores/schedule from this season.</p> <p><img class="wp-image-1420953 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2022/04/white-river-crop-1124x739-1649168487-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="224" height="147" /></p> <h4><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Player Stats</strong></span></h4> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="963747" first="Joe" last="Sayler"] (2023) |6-3 G| </strong>- 29.8 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 2.4 apg, 2.6 spg, 35 3FG%, 49.4 FG%, 84.4 FT%</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="968165" first="Dylan" last="Marshall"] (2022) |6-1 G| </strong>- 15.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 4.9 apg, 2.5 spg, 36.5 3FG%, 53.2 FG%, 85.2 FT%</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1266275" first="Nic" last="Marshall"] (2024) |6-1 G| </strong>- 9.1 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 3.6 apg, 1.4 spg, 51.9 FG%</p> <p><strong>Bryson Morrison (2024) |6-2 F| </strong>- 2 ppg, 2.1 rpg, .7 apg, .8 spg, 80 FT%</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1420985" first="Gavin" last="Folkers"] (2023) |6-3 F| </strong>- 8.1 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1 apg, .6 spg, 41.7 3FG%, 48.3 FG%</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1421028" first="Kendrell" last="Cuevas"] (2023) |6-4 F| </strong>- 6.1 ppg, 5.3 rpg, .8 apg, .4 spg, 55.5 FG%</p> <p><strong>TJ Beardt (2023) |6-3 F|</strong> - 1.7 ppg, 3 rpg, .3 apg, .3 spg, 51.7 FG%</p> <h4><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Team Stats</strong></span></h4> <p><strong>PPG:</strong> 73</p> <p><strong>RPG:</strong> 29.3</p> <p><strong>APG:</strong> 14.1</p> <p><strong>SPG:</strong> 9.3</p> <p><strong>BPG:</strong> 2.6</p> <p><strong>FG%:</strong> 49.6</p> <p><strong>FT%:</strong> 78.5</p> <p><strong>3FG%:</strong> 32.9</p> <p><strong>3’s MPG:</strong> 7.7</p> <p><strong>OPPG:</strong> 52.9</p> <h4><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Tiger Talk with coach Eldon Marshall</strong></span></h4> <p><b>PHD: What were some of the highlights of the season? </b></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Marshall</span>: "<em>Making it to LNI championship for the 4^th straight year, winning Jones County tourney for the 4^th straight year, The Classics, defeating Aberdeen Christian at Hoop City Classic, Sioux Valley at Heritage Classic (Pentagon), and Canistota at DWU Classic, defeating Harding County in SoDak16 to make it to 17^th straight state tourney, and the State B tourney itself, semifinal vs Lower Brule was a 3 OT classic, and then bouncing back from the loss to defeat a very good Potter County team. [player_tooltip player_id="968165" first="Dylan" last="Marshall"] scoring his 1,000^th point. [player_tooltip player_id="963747" first="Joe" last="Sayler"] finished the year with 1,935 total career points.</em>"</p> <p><b>PHD: Who was your "go-to" player when you needed a basket?</b></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Marshall</span>: "<strong>[player_tooltip player_id="963747" first="Joe" last="Sayler"]</strong> was our go-to player when we needed a basket, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="968165" first="Dylan" last="Marshall"]</strong> was also more than capable as he was very good at scoring when we needed."</p> <p><b>PHD: Which players improved the most for you this season and what did they improve on?</b></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Marshall</span>: "<em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1420985" first="Gavin" last="Folkers"]</strong> really improved for us this season as he was one of our most consistent knock-down 3 pt shooters, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1266275" first="Nic" last="Marshall"]</strong> improved as the year went along as well as he got better at asserting himself when needed, improved his defense and 3pt shot.  <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1421028" first="Kendrell" last="Cuevas"]</strong> improved his defense and rebounding and was a good paint presence for us. <strong>TJ Beardt</strong> also improved his defense and stepped up big for us when needed. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1407011" first="Mackenzie" last="Wike"]</strong> also came in and played very solid defense when needed, he started vs Aberdeen Christian and played outstanding in that game.</em>" <b> </b></p> <p><b>PHD: Who were a few of your hardest workers and what did they do well?</b></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Marshall</span>: "<em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="968165" first="Dylan" last="Marshall"]</strong> was our leader, he led by example with the effort he gave every day in practice. He was a physically strong defender that knew how to get in position and he loved to compete. Great kid off the court and in the classroom. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1407011" first="Mackenzie" last="Wike"]</strong> was very quick and he did whatever the coaches asked of him defensively. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="963747" first="Joe" last="Sayler"]</strong> was a very good leader for us also, leading scorer, leading rebounder, and he’s an excellent student in the classroom, and he’s very respectful off the court.</em>"  </p> <p><b>PHD: Can you talk about a time when you and the team overcame adversity?</b></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Marshall</span>: "<em>When we lost in the semifinal at the State B tourney vs Lower Brule in 3 OT’s, it was a heartbreaker for us. Every one of them rallied and were responsible for getting themselves ready for the next game vs Potter County and we were able to defeat them in another battle. I’m really proud of our teams’ character and the fortitude we displayed overall at the State B tourney. Incredible effort by every one of our guys."</em>  </p> <p><b>PHD: Who was your best practice player and why?</b></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Marshall</span>: "<em><strong>Kalan Collins</strong>, he’s a hard worker, he talks and he will sacrifice whatever is necessary to help the team succeed.</em>"  </p> <p><b>PHD: Who were some of your key bench players?</b></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Marshall</span>: "<em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1407011" first="Mackenzie" last="Wike"]</strong>, is a quick and hard worker. <strong>TJ Beardt </strong>is a very good post defender and rebounder. <strong>Bryson Morrison</strong>, got injured during the season (torn meniscus) but was able to rehab back into the lineup at end of the season.</em>" </p> <p><b>PHD: Who are some of your top players that will be back next season?</b></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Coach Marshall</span>: "<em>We’ll return 4 starters: [player_tooltip player_id="963747" first="Joe" last="Sayler"], [player_tooltip player_id="1266275" first="Nic" last="Marshall"], [player_tooltip player_id="1420985" first="Gavin" last="Folkers"], <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1421028" first="Kendrell" last="Cuevas"]</strong>; plus <strong>TJ Beardt</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1407011" first="Mackenzie" last="Wike"]</strong> will be needed to be big-time contributors next year.</em>"  </p> <h4><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Tigers Scores/Schedule (21-3)</strong></span></h4> <p><strong>Pine Ridge</strong> <em>W</em> 71-32</p> <p><strong>Rapid City Christian</strong> <em>W</em> 65-52</p> <p><strong>Red Cloud</strong> <em>W</em> 63-41</p> <p><strong>Lower Brule</strong> <em>L</em> 57-60</p> <p><strong>Aberdeen Christian</strong> <em>W</em> 58-48</p> <p><strong>Kadoka Area</strong> <em>W</em> 75-43</p> <p><strong>Phillip</strong> <em>W</em> 75-52</p> <p><strong>Lyman</strong> <em>W</em> 58-36</p> <p><strong>De Smet</strong> <em>L</em> 49-69</p> <p><strong>St. Francis Indian School</strong> <em>W</em> 103-42</p> <p><strong>Wall</strong> <em>W</em> 81-49</p> <p><strong>Sioux Valley</strong> <em>W</em> 64-62</p> <p><strong>Bennett County</strong> <em>W</em> 95-52</p> <p><strong>Stanley County</strong> <em>W</em> 88-57</p> <p><strong>Canistota</strong> <em>W</em> 61-50</p> <p><strong>New Underwood</strong> <em>W</em> 75-38</p> <p><strong>Todd County</strong> <em>W</em> 81-60</p> <p><strong>Lyman</strong> <em>W</em> 66-56</p> <p><strong>Jones County</strong> <em>W</em> 86-61</p> <p><strong>Wall</strong> <em>W</em> 67-38</p> <p><strong>Harding County</strong> <em>W</em> 68-50</p> <p><strong>Freeman Academy-Marion</strong> <em>W</em> 75-70</p> <p><strong>Lower Brule</strong> <em>L</em> 83-86</p> <p><strong>Potter County</strong> <em>W</em> 83-74</p>