Ten Best: Zumbrota-Mazeppa vs. Plainview-Elgin-Millville

Zumbrota-Mazeppa and Plainview-Elgin-Millville met up for one of the afternoon games of the Hiawatha Valley League/Three Rivers Conference Showdown and while a number of the games turned out to be lopsided, this one was closer than the final score indicated. With both teams playing zone defense most of the afternoon, it was the Z-M Cougars who turned enough defense into offense. A game played essentially within a 10-point window from start to near finish, it was the three-headed attack of Isaiah Nolte, Alex Guse and Jacob Niebuhr that proved too much for the Bulldogs to handle. The Cougars improved to 6-1 with a 65-53 win. MVP: Isaiah Nolte (Z-M) Nolte started the game quietly, but he sure ended with a bang. The 6-foot-2 guard scored 13 of his 18 points in the second half and was a force on both ends. The Bulldogs made plays to keep the game, but when the Cougars needed a big play to keep them at bay, Nolte delivered. Best Offensive Performance: Jacob Niebuhr (Z-M) Niebuhr had an efficient offensive day, scoring 15 points in a variety of ways. He handled the ball well and created offense using his size on drives and he was very good without the ball, cashing in on multiple off-ball cuts. Best Defensive Performance: Nolte (Z-M) Both teams played zone and while that oftentimes means players aren’t expending a lot of energy on that end of the floor, Nolte was an exception. He was everywhere for the Cougars at the top of their 3-2 zone and did a great job limiting penetration, contesting shooters and keeping the ball from getting to the middle of the floor. He made big plays on the defensive end routinely, especially in the second half, jumping passing lanes and disrupting set plays. Best Shooters: David Penrose (PEM) With Barron Holtz struggling to find his shot Saturday, Penrose stepped up in a big way for the Bulldogs. The junior guard knocked down three 3-pointers in the first half, essentially keeping the Bulldogs in the game when it looked like the Cougars might run away with it. His ability to space the floor opened up the middle of the floor in the second half for the PEM bigs. Best Underclassman: Griffin Doughty (PEM) One of those bigs for PEM was sophomore Griffin Doughty. A multifaceted forward, Doughty hit a 3-pointer and was solid in the middle of the Z-M zone in his limited minutes. PEM has a nice stable of forwards so Doughty isn’t necessarily featured in the offense, but he looks the part of an excellent player going forward. Best Paint Player: Alex Guse (Z-M) Guse was a hoss for the Cougars Saturday. He got elbowed in the head and was bleeding pretty hard and was knocked out of the game for a brief stretch in the first half, but returned and made a big impact inside. The 6-foot-4 center finished with 11 points, finishing a number of buckets in traffic. Guse also did a great job passing the ball when he drew double teams down low and helped a smaller Z-M control the glass. Best Passer: Nate Harrington (PEM) Who doesn’t love a big guy that can pass. Harrington did it extremely well for PEM. A team that didn’t run particularly strong zone offense, the times when things did go well were when the Bulldogs got the ball to Harrington at the free throw line area and he was able to facilitate. His ability to spoonfeed PEM big men with his interior passing was impressive and he found shooters open on the opposite corners on several occasions. Best Player off the Bench: Tyler Grudem (Z-M) Grudem came off the bench, but he didn’t take long to make his presence felt. The junior forward scored nine points in the first half, energizing a slow-starting Cougars team. He had an assist from the high post and knocked down a triple. He fouled out in limited minutes, but he made his minutes count. Best Under-the-Radar Performance: Robvon Jackson (Z-M) Jackson didn’t fill up the stat sheet but he made several big plays in the second half for the Cougars. The 6-foot wing was very good defensively in the Cougars’ zone and his energy on the perimeter created extra offensive possessions throughout the game. Best Play: Nolte back-to-back reversals (Z-M) Z-M kept PEM at bay most of the second half but with about two minutes to go, Barron Holtz knocked down a 3-pointer to cut the Z-M lead to 57-53. On the ensuing possession, Nolte caught the ball on a reversal and made a quick attack to the lane, where he sidestepped the help defender on his way to a pretty reverse layup. After a turnover by PEM, Nolte ended up with the ball again in the corner, drove baseline and finished with another reverse layup in traffic to extend the Z-M lead back to eight.