Bucs cash in on title

Beach's full-court, man-to-man defense has come full circle.

The fourth-seeded Buccaneers scored 29 points off 26 Hettinger turnovers to capture the District 13 tournament championship with a convincing 51-36 victory Tuesday at Scott Gymnasium.

"The boys like it," Beach coach Troy Hoffer said of his team's pressure defense. "It's new to us. It creates turnovers and we feed off those turnovers."

Beach plays Richardton-Taylor at 7:30 p.m. Monday in the quarterfinals of the Region 7 tournament at the Knights of Columbus Activities Center. Hettinger meets Beulah at 4:30 p.m.

The win marks the first title for Beach since 2001 and the Bucs did it by harassing Hettinger's guards to the point of frustration.

"We knew Hettinger (isn't) very deep with guards," said Beach junior guard Justin Maus, who finished with a game-high 17 points. "They have (Jerad) Jacobson, who plays a heck of a game.

"But you can only play so much before you get tired. That made a big difference."

Hettinger coach Adam Hill was all smiles early on as his Black Devils held a 16-10 lead midway through the second quarter after senior Drew Nash sank a put-back.

"Early on, the game was going our way," Hill said. "Once they turned it into their kind of game, we couldn't turn back out of it."

Beach's answer to the six-point deficit was an immediate 12-0 run to finish off the first half. Hettinger went back to its pound-the-ball style in the second half, getting baskets from Nash and Jacobson to draw within two at 22-20 at the 4:30 mark of the third quarter.

Little did the Black Devils know, they wouldn't get another field goal for five minutes.

Buccaneers senior Jake Tescher drilled a 3-pointer to jumpstart a 16-1 run to end the third quarter. Hettinger never found an answer.

Hill said the Black Devils struggled to stay with Beach's up-and-down attack.

"We're a plow horse, they're a thoroughbred," Hill said. "Obviously, they play our style a lot better than we play theirs."

Hettinger was led by Nash's 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Beach junior Nolan Niece as also in double figures with 11 was the Bucs shot 32 percent from the field, but thrived off turnovers.

"(Our press) definitely did get to them," Hoffer said. "I call it a controlled chaos."

Hettinger 12 16 21 36

Beach 10 22 38 51

H: Drew Nash 10, Lance Johnson 8, Justis Caldwell 5, Ryan Fulker 4, Jerad Jacobson 3, Ben Laufer 3, Nathan Weaver 3.

B: Justin Maus 17, Nolan Niece 11, Austin Bagley 6, Derek Weinreis 4, Lance Dykins 5, Jake Tescher 3, Tanner Tescher 2, Mark Golberg 2, Jordan Tescher 1.

3-pointers: H 1 (Weaver), B 3 (Dykins, Niece, Jake Tescher). Free throws: H 13-22, B 10-18. TF: H 16, B 22. Fouled out: Jordan Tescher. Rebounds: H 40 (Nash 10), B 31 (Jake Tescher 5). Assists: H 4 (Jacobson 2), B 10 (D. Weinreis 4). Steals: H 7 (Jacobson 2), B 14 (D. Weinreis 4). Blocks: H 1 (Nash), B 1 (Maus). Turnovers: Hettinger 26, Beach 13.

Third place

Bowman County 64,

Heart River 36

The Bulldogs jumped out to a 17-3 first-quarter lead and had a 36-11 advantage at halftime on their way to third-place honors.

Tyson Harding had a team-high 13 points and led four players in double figures. Brock Boos finished with 12, Jake Mason had 11 and Alex Wolf 10 for the Bulldogs, who play Hazen in the first round of the Region 7 tournament at 6 p.m. Monday.

Heart River senior James Duletski had a game-high 21 points in the losing effort. The Cougars take on fifth-ranked Dickinson Trinity at 3 p.m.

HR 3 11 22 36

BC 17 36 47 64

HR: James Duletski 21, Jimmy Smith 4, Jared Schoch 3, Channing Wagner 2, Daniel Mehrer 2, Dalton O'Brien 2, Zach Krivoruchka 2.

BC: Tyson Harding 13, Brock Boos 12, Jake Mason 11, Alex Wolf 10, Tyler Fischer 9, Kenzie Robertson 2, Kyle Palczewski 2, Jarren Lutes 2, Tate Wallman 2.

Some BC statistics not available.

3-pointers: BC 5 (Mason 3, Boos 2), HR 2 (Duletski, Smith). Free throws: HR 4-8, BC 9-14. Total fouls: HR 12, BC 10. Fouled out: Krivoruchka. Rebounds: HR 22 (Duletski 6), BC 29. Assists: HR 3 (three with 1), BC 3. Steals: HR 11 (Smith 3, Duletski 3), BC 1. Blocks: HR 1 (O'Brien), BC 3. Turnovers: HR 15, BC 16.