12/29/21: @Cloquet

Highlights: http://www.hudl.com/v/2GfB9N

Varsity: L (78-72)

Boys basketball takes on Cloquet over break

By Heidi Burger editor@pinecitymn.com

The Dragon boys basketball team headed up to Cloquet for a tournament on December 28, eager to get a game going after their loss to North Branch. They would begin playing by facing off the Proctor Rails.  

Proctor put up the first basket of the game. The Dragons tightened up their defense. Kameron Jucszak went to the free throw line and put one in for the Dragons, the first point of the game. The Dragons continued to apply pressure and senior Dylan Peterson made a big play by setting his feet and taking the charge. The bench audibly erupted with excitement.

Coach Kyle Allen recalls, proudly, “We came out and played our most complete game of the year to this point. I was really proud of how the boys executed new concepts that we had put in over break.” 

Still working hard on offense to get a bucket, Jusczak was finally able to put up and sink a three, assisted by Levi Wilson. The Dragons began to get their rhythm and pulled ahead 12 to 2. By the end of the first half, the Dragons had gained quite a lead and some of the other players from the bench were able to see some playing time. The Dragon boys went into the second half with a nice lead of 51 to 30.

Well into the second half, the Dragons were in a nice position with some of the other players coming off the bench and contributing to the game. The team stats were growing by the minute, with each player being a big part of this Dragon victory.  

The Dragon’s defense continued to be a constant growing force, and their offense looked so smooth with the drives into the key and the ball being passed back out to open teammates. The Dragons were able to finish the game strong with a win of 99 to 64.  

The leading rebounders were Petersen with 6 points, Jusczak with 5, Wilson with 5, and Lamont Sydney with 5. Wilson also had a game high with 9 assists, followed by Jusczack with 6. Cole Waxberg, Jason Thieman and Colton Blaisdell were also huge contributors with the stats. 

“We really attacked both ends of the floor well and did a great job on the boards. We also shot the ball extremely well,” said Coach Allen. “All of this is correlated to our defense, rebounding and energy.” 

The next day, the Dragons faced the hosting team, Cloquet. Cloquet is a AAA school with a more sizable enrollment than Pine City High School. Allen noted, “Cloquet has one of the best players we will see this year in Connor Barney who is a senior for them. His athleticism is second to none. I thought we did a nice job on him for the most part throughout the game, but that is the difference between most AA schools and a AAA school; there are more players available to choose from.” 

Luke Wilson was able to drive to the hoop for the first bucket of the game. Wilson then picked off the ball from Cloquet, passed to Waxberg who handed the ball off to Peterson for two points. The score was 4 to 0, Dragons. The Dragons were up and they worked hard, but they had a big slide the second part of the first half. The Dragons went into halftime trailing by eight points. They never gave in and battled hard. At one point the Dragons were down by eighteen, but they fought back and were able to bring the score to within one basket several times. “The ball just didn’t roll our way a few times at the end and we didn’t have enough to pull out the comeback,” recalled Allen.

The game ended with a score of 72 to 78, with Dragons losing by five points. Petersen and Jucszak again led on the boards with nine each. Waxberg also hit the boards with five, while also contributing an assist and a steal. Thieman and Wilson each grabbed three rebounds.  Thieman also had two assists and two steals. Wilson had five assists and three steals. Points were added by all players, and the Dragon boys are a team worth watching. 

Coach Allen commented on the tournament and the season as of now, “We really liked our game plan coming into the game and when it was executed, we were the better team. Again, part of the process of scheduling all these big schools early are these experiences. We are getting closer and closing the gap on the items we need to fix. I am excited and fully expecting this team to continue to fight towards success on the court through our system.”

This week, the Dragons will play at Mille Lacs on Tuesday, at Rush City on Thursday, and then travel up to Duluth East to play Hermantown on Saturday.