Bigelow’s Week 2 Notebook: Star Guards Shine Bright

<p><em>Week number two of the high school basketball season in Nebraska came to a close last Saturday and thankfully I was able to take in two games during the week’s action in the Omaha metro area and made sure to rewatch some streams of others. The two games I was able to attend in person last week were Omaha Westside’s road victory at Omaha North and Bellevue West’s dominant home-court defense against Lincoln Pius X. Here are some of my takeaways from the action I took in. </em></p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1013207" first="Tate" last="Odvody"] Flexes His Muscle Against North</strong></p> <p>One of the top players to watch in the state’s 2023 class, [player_tooltip player_id="1013207" first="Tate" last="Odvody"] is off to a hot start for Omaha Westside averaging 15.5 points and 4.2 rebounds a game so far for the Warriors. The 6’4 junior had a stat sheet stuffing performance in a road win over Omaha North, notching 20 points, 12 rebounds, and 4 assists in the win over the Vikings. Odvody has clearly been in the weight room and used those gains to his advantage playing very strong inside both with the ball scoring and without the ball fighting hard for rebounds, including 5 of his 12 being on the offensive end. Odvody is one of the top players to watch in the 2023 class for a reason and will play a key role on a Westside squad that brought back just about everybody from last year’s group. Including...</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="890584" first="Payson" last="Gillespie"] is Still One of the Best Shooters in the State</strong></p> <p>The 6’3 senior guard recently committed to Concordia (NE), The Bulldogs will be getting on the top 3 point shooters in the state of Nebraska. Gillespie found himself feeling it from deep against North, torching the Vikings for 17 points which included an impressive 5-8 mark from beyond the arch. Gillespie has a pretty quick release and you never wanna leave him unguarded beyond the arch. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1031437" first="Mason" last="Strong"]’s Strong Start Continues</strong></p> <p>Omaha North was not on the winning side of their matchup with Westside but I certainly left the game impressed by the play of senior guard [player_tooltip player_id="1031437" first="Mason" last="Strong"]. He is averaging 20 points a game so far on the season and is a leader at the guard spot on a senior-laden Vikings roster. Listed at 5’10, Strong has a good handle and is a talented slashing scorer. He led North on a nice run in the OPS Jamboree to kick the year off and will win the Vikings some games on his own this year. He’s very fun to watch. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1013209" first="Josiah" last="Dotzler"] Solidifies Top Spot in the 23 Class. </strong></p> <p>I feel as though I was one of the early buyers of [player_tooltip player_id="1013209" first="Josiah" last="Dotzler"] stock. From his varsity minutes at Bellevue West as a freshman, I have thoroughly enjoyed watching him play. Against Lincoln Pius X, Dotzler was scorching from the field, finishing the night with 20 points on an impressive 8-12 shooting, including a 3-4 mark from 3. He also tallied 4 rebounds and 6 assists. Dotzler’s basketball IQ is second to none, and though Bellevue West has great depth, and got. contributions from  [player_tooltip player_id="1031436" first="Evan" last="Inselman"] (16 points), [player_tooltip player_id="1018806" first="William" last="Kyle"] (14 points), and [player_tooltip player_id="1013231" first="Jaden" last="Jackson"] (10), Dotzler will be the straw that stirs the drink for the Thunderbirds as they look to return to the Class A final for the third straight season. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="981700" first="Jared" last="Bohrer"] Can Flat Out Score </strong></p> <p>The senior guard notched 30 points on an efficient 11-14 from the field against Bellevue West. Bohrer was also 4-6 from 3 point range. Pius hung tough in the first half against Bellevue West, and in big part thanks to Bohrer scoring inside and out. He had some impressive finishes at the rim and has always been known for his 3 point shooting abiliy. </p>