Hill City vs. Hot Springs: Player Notes

This West River matchup on Saturday was a wild one! The Rangers and Bison battled back and forth all game long. There were numerous lead changes and the momentum switched sides several times. Just when I thought one team would extend the lead, the other fought back and made a play. It came down to the final possession of the game and there was a clutch play that needed to be made for the win. You have to love the Black Hills Conference, the talent and history runs deep!   Coming into this game, Hill City had a 2-1 record and Hot Springs was 1-0. The Bison have had a ton of success as of late, they won the State Championship in football and they went to State in hoops last spring. Region 8A is loaded this year and it will be fun to see who has the best squad late in the season.   *Sidenote, [player_tooltip player_id='1394428' first='Camron' last='Maciejewski'] DNP for Hot Springs   On the last possession of the game Hills City had the ball, it went on the floor, and both teams went after the rock. The refs could have easily called a Jump Ball but they awarded Hill City a TIMEOUT and the possession. After the timeout, Hill City ran a nice BLOB and [player_tooltip player_id='2301376' first='Everett' last='Sullivan'] scored the game-winner. There was a little over a second on the clock and the Bison did not get a last-second shot off.   SCORES   1st: Hill City 23 Hot Springs: 17   2nd: Hill City 37 Hot Springs 35   3rd: Hill City 48 Hot Springs 53   FINAL: Hill City 62 Hot Springs 61   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/03/SD-1.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/03/SD-1.jpg?w=865" alt="" class="wp-image-1399487" style="width:285px;height:auto" /></a></figure>   Player Notes   Hill City Rangers   [player_tooltip player_id='2301376' first='Everett' last='Sullivan'] (2025) |5'11 G|   -19 points and 9 of them came in the 4th quarter, GAMER!   -Not afraid to dive on the floor, hustler, will stick his chin in a scuffle just to get the ball   -Delivered a nice pass on a give-n-go to Buehler   -Flies around on D, hustles, sprints the floor   -Quality catch, cut, and score vs 1-3-1 zone D   -Offensive rebound, quick putback score   -Picked off a pass recovering on defense   -2-handed crisp pass from halfcourt to the baseline, hit a cutting teammate for a good look   -Cashed in a 3-ball, a teammate grabbed the O-board and kicked it out   -Catch-n-shoot in-rhythm triple from the corner pocket   -Nailed another three-pointer, this time in the 4th quarter against the 1-3-1 zone, hit it from the corner   -Hit a 1-dribble pull-up just inside the arc, hit the back of the iron but still found its way through the basket   -A confident shooter   -Scored the GAME WINNER on the BLOB, cross-screen, catch, reverse-pivot, floater for 2!   [player_tooltip player_id='1407000' first='Devin' last='Buehler'] (2025) |5'11 G|   -14 points   -Special athlete with quickness, impressive vertical, and awesome ball skills   -Has all the moves, impressive handles   -Broke a few ankles with his sick moves   -Delivered lefty passes off the bounce   -Scored on a sweet iso-set, blew by defender with a killer crossover   -Has a super-quick first step, twitchy athleticism   -Scored on a give-n-go from Sullivan   -Looked good on D, walled up and cut off the attacker   -Slashed to the rim, used his body to protect the ball, flicked ball up & spun it off backboard for a miraculous lefty score   -Halfcourt overhead pass to a cutting teammate, great vision & strength to make that pass   -Showcased a beautiful pull-up jump shot   -Knocked down an impressive pull-up 3   -Put defenders on skates multiple times, excellent at changing speeds   -Delivered a dime from halfcourt vs. the 1-1-3 D   -Grabbed a D rebound, went coast-to-coast for an athletic AND1 score   -Got the ball on dribble-handoff, slashed going left, scored with a southpaw scoop   -Impressed me with a 1-dribble stepback J, impossible to stop that move   [player_tooltip player_id='2301374' first='Zane' last='Messick'] (2026) |5'8 G|   -10 points   -Got a bucket off a baseline cut-n-score, Buehler hit him with a bullet pass   -Scrappy & pesky defender   -Cashed in a triple in 1st quarter   -Cashed in a triple from beyond college range against the 3-2 zone   -Nailed a beyond halfcourt buzzer-beating 3-pointer before halftime, no bank shot, it was clean, true & to the mark   -Moved ball well against the 1-3-1 zone, found Sullivan in the corner for a triple   -Did good work slashing, drawing help, finding shooters   [player_tooltip player_id='1972182' first='Alex' last='Stoeckmann'] (2025) |6'0 G|   -14 points   -LEFTY   -Hit a triple on the first possession of the game   -BLOB, catch-n-shoot, cash!   -2nd possession of the game he hit another 3, back-to-back 3's to start   -Made a nice double-move to create space, pulled-up at the top of the key & hit the three-pointer   -Scored on a run-out transition opportunity, lefty score in traffic   -O-board AND1 putback score when the Rangers really needed a bucket   [player_tooltip player_id='1270364' first='Erick' last='Jorgensen'] (2024) |6'7 PF|   -5 points, injured his knee in the 2nd half and did not come back in   -Extra long, mobile, and athletic   -Blocked & erased shots   -Appears to be a willing passer out of the post   -Scored with a fall-away J from the block   -Scored an AND1 bucket   Not afraid to pull the trigger from 3-point land   -Looked good high-pointing the ball on rebounds   -Blocked a shot to end the 1st quarter   -Recovered on D and blocked shots, help-side D eraser   -Caught high post vs. zone, 1-dribble fall-away baseline J from 13-feet, difficult shot   -Swatted shots out of bounds and off the backboard   Ian Jorgensen (2024) |6'7 PF|   -Played much more after [player_tooltip player_id='1270364' first='Erick' last='Jorgensen'] hurt his knee   -Gave good minutes but fouled out with 4:29 remaining in the game   -Hustled, saved the ball from going out of bounds, and bounced it to Buehler   -Dove on the floor to save the ball, passed to Buehler, and he hit the shot   -Very LONG   -Blocked a shot hustling back on D   -Changed and altered shot   -His size/length was needed on defense vs. Janis   Hot Springs Bison   [player_tooltip player_id='1394429' first='Matt' last='Close'] ('24) |6'1 G|   -Skilled lead guard, made 1-handed passes look easy   -Slasher & creator   -Drove baseline, made a great across-lane pass to Peterson for 2-point   -Picked up a loose ball & quickly scored with a floater in mid-lane   -Showed a very nice crossover move   -Drive-n-dish, hit Peterson for the open triple   -Impressed with his crossover again, great at creating space   -Impressive across-body score from mid-paint   -Skilled passer, made a lefty pass from a tough angle on a post-entry   -Has an effective hesi-move   -Created TO's on defense   Modes Kerr ('24) |6'1 G|   -Cashed in a catch-n-shoot 3-ball on the first Bison possession of the game   -Nice pass on a BLOB play for a Bison score, fit the ball into a tight window   -Had some other quality assists   -Threw an accurate 3/4 court pass in transition impressive vision & touch   -Picked off a pass like a safety in football   -Aggressive on defense, deflected passes in the zone D   -Made a great basket-cut pass to Janis for a score   -Gave the Bison extra possessions by grabbing offensive rebounds   [player_tooltip player_id='2100148' first='Josh' last='Kleinsasser'] ('24) |6'2 G|   -23 points, all in the first 3 quarters   -Stood out as an aggressive shot creator   -Looked good crossing over from right to left, scored with a running pull-up J w/ the D right in his face   -Gathered in multiple O-boards   -An active/mobile defender   -Deep drive, drew help, kicked to a teammate for 3   -Slash off the bounce, got into the D, scored with a fall-away J from 12-feet   -Shook the D with a crossover, score w/ a short pull-up jumper   -Showed his athleticism with an O-board on a missed FT   -Multiple assists, slash-n-dish opportunities   -A natural scorer that knows how to create scace, crafty bucket-getter   Scored multiple times in transition and off TO's   -Showed great body control when scoring off balance   -O-board putback scores   -Impressed with his deep penetration and how often he got 2 feet in the paint   -Excellent at creating space with pivots and body control   -Scored with an old-man fadeaway J from the block   -Sharp-cut score on a BLOB, AND1 bucket   -Another AND1 score, this time in transition off a Kerr steal   [player_tooltip player_id='1407001' first='Aidyn' last='Janis'] ('25) |6'4 PF|   -22 points, many rebounds, had to be double digits   -BIG & physical lefty   -Set good/effective ball screens   -Multiple offensive rebound putback scores   -This kid is a beast and a monster on the glass   -Basket-cut & score, effective cutter & athletic finisher   -Has physical moves on the block, good feet & hands   -Seasl hard and fights for position   -Executed a 1-4 high set to perfection late in the game for a clutch basket   -A fearless player but also patient   -MANY interior scores, strong   -Multiple AND physical scores   -Athletic score attacking across the rim   -Good at using his body to protect the ball   -Showed speed in the run-out transition situation   -Passed out of double teams   -Tipped passes on defense with keen anticipation   -Plays extra hard   Braden Peterson ('24) |5'10 G|   -Played hard & hustled   -Had some big rebounds throughout the game   -Opportunistic on offense   -Did not force shots   -Hit from beyond the arc   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/05/NoteworthyPlayers-1.jpg"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2023/05/NoteworthyPlayers-1.jpg?w=865" alt="" class="wp-image-1968043" /></a></figure>

This West River matchup on Saturday was a wild one! The Rangers and Bison battled back and forth all game long. There were numerous lead changes and the momentum switched sides several times. Just when I thought one team would extend the lead, the other fought back and made a play. It came down to the final possession of the game and there was a clutch play that needed to be made for the win. You have to love the Black Hills Conference, the talent and history runs deep!