Game Report: De Forest 81, Fort Atkinson 44

KEYS TO THE GAME   With eight minutes left in the first half, host De Forest led Fort Atkinson 27-22 in Tuesday's non-conference boys' basketball contest. However, a 13-4 scoring spurt to end the first half, followed by a 6-0 run to begin the second half gave the Norskies the cushion they needed to post their third win without a loss this season. The Norskies shot the ball well, defended well, played hard the entire 36 minutes and eventually led by 40 points to get a running clock in motion with just under four minutes left. The stellar guard play of De Forest senior [player_tooltip player_id='2440759' first='Brooks' last='Ohmen'] (18 points), sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='2445276' first='Jayden' last='Doedens'] (17 points) and freshman [player_tooltip player_id='2402423' first='Ben' last='Pritzl'] (17 points) was just too much for Fort Atkinson to handle as the Norskies outscored their counterparts 41-18 in the second half. A big reason behind De Forest's strong shooting performance was its ability to get the ball up the floor quickly and get good looks at the basket before Fort Atkinson could set up its defense.   STAR OF THE GAME    A backcourt player who seems to be in motion at all times, Doedens affects the game in a very positive manner on both ends of the court. He can put lots of ball pressure on opposing guards while also preventing opponents from getting into the lane and to the basket. On offense, Doedens is an unselfish player who is quick and shifty enough to shed defenders on drives to the hoop while also being able to drill three-point shots from well beyond the arc. One of the state's better class of 2028 guard prospects, Doedens teams with [player_tooltip player_id='2440759' first='Brooks' last='Ohmen'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2402423' first='Ben' last='Pritzl'] to give De Forest an elite backcourt trio. He finished with a game-high 18 points in the win over Fort Atkinson.    EMERGING PLAYERS    Ohmen scored 17 points and made four three-point baskets in the Norskies' convincing win over Fort Atkinson. But it was his defense that stood out the most. Chasing around talented Fort Atkinson junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='2508477' first='Graeson' last='Geiger'], Ohmen kept Geiger away from the basket for most of the game, cutting off one of the Blackhawks' best scoring options. He limited Geiger to just 11 points and one three-point field goal. His defense earned praise from De Forest coach Eric Stewart and was a big part of the Norskies' triumph.     This may have been Pritzl's third varsity basketball game, but you'd never know it by the way he handled himself on the court against older players. He scored 17 points, played with poise and basketball smarts, and physically matched up with upperclassmen. He finished drives to the basket, sank three-point shots and moved to ball to open teammates. Defensively, Pritzl was able to stay in front of his opponents with his lateral quickness and smart positioning. Pritzl is definitely one of the state's better class of 2029 prospects and he's proving that claim to be true from the get-go as a starter for unbeaten De Forest.     Matched up against 6-foot-7 junior [player_tooltip player_id='3019982' first='Ollie' last='Evans'] of Fort Atkinson, Schloemer more than held his own. In fact, the improved big man outscored his counterpart 12-6 as De Forest pulled away to its victory. Schloemer used very good footwork around the basket, good verticality and some aggressiveness around the hoop to score the majority of his six baskets. He also used his mobility and improved strength to make things difficult for Evans on his field goal attempts.    THE BIG PICTURE De Forest's fast start most certainly has caught the attention of opposing coaches in the Badger Large Conference. The Norskies now own wins of Sun Prairie East, Milton and Fort Atkinson, and get back to league play Saturday with a game against Watertown. De Forest has a big non-league game with state-ranked Onalaska, on the road, next Tuesday. After two games decided by a mere two points, Fort Atkinson ran into a buzzsaw Tuesday in De Forest. It's one of those games where things simply didn't go the Blackhawks way and it mushroomed quickly. Fort Atkinson owns a two-point win over Oconomowoc and a two-point loss to Sauk Prairie in addition to Tuesday's outcome. The Blackhawks return to action Saturday at Badger Small rival Portage. FROM THE COACHES From Fort Atkinson Coach Mike Hintz: "We have a lot of work to do and need to get some of our guys up to speed in terms of competing at the varsity level. We have some experience back, but it's limited to around four players. They just took it to us in the second half and we had trouble staying with them in terms of rebounding." From De Forest coach Eric Stewart: "We had a couple of miscues in the first half that we had harped on in our scouting report. We wanted to keep the ball out of the post, but they were able to get it in there a bit. We adjusted well at half and the kids did a great job of executing our game plan in the second half. They were really dialed into the game. As far as our shooting, we have a lot of threats. We have a bunch of different players who can knock down threes." BOXSCORE Fort Atkinson (26-18 = 44) Geiger 11, Kloster 0, Quamme 5, Klopcic 9, Evans 6, Keller 2, Samuels 8, Lewis 0, Huber 0, Griffiths 0, Baldry 3. Three-point field goals: Samuels 2, Baldry 1, Geiger 1, Quamme 1. FT: 7-15. Fouled out: None. Record: 1-2. De Forest (41-40 = 81) Ohmen 18, Doedens 17, Pritzl 17, Schloemer 12, Paskey 2, Weisbrod 0, K. Wood 0, Brown 4, Rauber 0, R. Wood 0, Nolan 0, Pascoe 0, Thornsen 2, Hackman 0, Burgess 0, Killerlain 2, Halvensleben 2, Allen 3. Three-point field goals: Ohmen 4, Pritzl 3, Doedens 1, Allen 1. FT: 2-3. Fouled out: None. Record: 3-0.

KEYS TO THE GAME