By Coach Tad Heitkamp
Blue Dragons Thumped By The Cardinals
The Blue Dragons jumped on the bus for a short trip to Dell Rapids on February 3rd to take on the Cardinals from St. Mary’s.
The Cardinals came out of the locker room red hot as they torched the net for 37 1st quarter points, while only giving up 7 on the defensive side of the ball. St. Mary’s never looked back as they defeated the Blue Dragons 78-47.
“I have been playing and coaching basketball for a lot of years and I have never witnessed an offensive display like that,” stated Heitkamp. “We explained to the kids that once Connor (Libis) walks into the gym he is in his range, so we need to know where he is at. The bottom line is he wasn’t going to be denied this evening and made just about everything he threw up. On a more positive note, the kids didn’t quit battling the final three quarters, which showed a lot of heart and character when all was said and done.”
Dylan Kindt (4 rebounds/3 assists) and Triston Rekstad led the way for the Blue Dragons with 9 points each, as Trey Buckneberg added 7 points of his own. Cole Skadsen, Josef Zahn, and Sam Schleuter all collected 5 points apiece, while Cooper Long hit for 3 points. Lucas Fitzgerald (6 rebounds), Evan Bly, and Brady DeBates rounded out the scoring with 2, 1, and 1 points.
Blue Dragons Take Down The Bulldogs!
The Blue Dragons didn’t have any time to dwell on the past as they were right back on the road to Baltic the following night to take on the Bulldogs.
“We talked to the kids last night and explained that they need to get the St. Mary’s game out of their minds and prepare for Baltic, which is obviously a long-time rival,” said Heitkamp. “When the team got on the bus to leave they all had a different look in their eye, which is the greatest feeling as a coach...as we knew it was going to be a good night!”
The visiting Blue Dragons took the court with a sense of confidence that wasn’t going to be denied as they defeated the Bulldogs 65 to 53.
“The kids played a very sound game this evening on both sides of the ball,” said Heitkamp. “We rebounded very well, took advantage of transition opportunities, and played solid TEAM defense. We also shot 17 of 22 from the free throw line, which is something we work on just about every practice.”
Cooper Long led a very balanced scoring attack for the Blue Dragons with 18 points, with Josef Zahn (10 rebounds) knocking down 10 points of his own. Dylan Kindt (2 steals), Jake Schroeder (2 steals/3 assists), and Trey Buckneberg all collected 9 points, while Hayden Olofson and Lucas Fitzgerald (3 assists) rounded out the scoring with 6 and 4 points each.
The team and coaching staff would like to take a moment to thank the parents, other family members, fans, and the student section for their constant support throughout the season, especially tonight in Baltic...it is so greatly appreciated. Go Blue Dragons!!
MCM Too Much For The Blue Dragons
On February 7th, 2020, the Blue Dragons played host to the McCook Central/Montrose Fighting Cougars. The visiting Fighting Cougars didn’t waste time to show who the better team was on this evening as they took down the Blue Dragons 66-35.
“We came out flat and lost a lot of confidence early when our first five possessions came up empty. We were getting some pretty good looks at the basket, but nothing was falling,” said Heitkamp. “Once we lost our confidence, then that lead to us not playing hard on the defensive side of the ball, which is never a good combination. We showed a couple of times that we could compete against MCM, but we were never able to get anything rolling consistently.”
Cooper Long had a solid night for the Blue Dragons as he netted 11 points, while Trey Buckneberg (10 rebounds/2 assists) collected 8 points. Josef Zahn did his part with 6 points, as Sam Schleuter added 3 points of his own. Dylan Kindt (2 assists) and Lucas Fitzgerald each had 2 points, with Hayden Olofson, Jake Schroeder (4 rebounds/2 assists), and Evan Bly ending the night with 1 point each.
