Hamlin, Sioux Valley, Groton Area, De Smet, Castlewood and Leola-Frederick Area qualify
Three area Class A teams (Hamlin, Sioux Valley and Groton Area) and three area Class B teams (De Smet, Castlewood and Leola-Frederick Area) posted victories in SoDak 16 state-qualifying boys basketball games on Tuesday.
The six teams qualified for state tourney March 14-16 in the Summit Arena at The Monument in Rapid City (Class A) and the Barnett Center in Aberdeen (Class B).
Here are details on SoDak 16 games involving area teams on Tuesday:
State A, B Pairings: Six area teams qualify for tourneys March 14-16 at Rapid City (Class A) and Aberdeen (Class B)
Class A (No. 2 Hamlin 90, No. 15 Hanson 43)
MADISON — Hanson never had chance.
Second-seeded and second-rated Hamlin earned a second-straight trip to state by rolling to a 25-5 first-quarter lead. The Chargers shot 57 percent (35 of 62) from the field, including 52 percent (14 of 27) from 3-point range.
Jackson Wadsworth went 7-for-9 in 3s and led Hamlin (20-3) with 25 points. Easton Neuendorf added 22 points, eight rebounds, five assists and four steals and Tyson Stevenson 16 points and five assists. Zac VanMeeteren contributed eight points, Evan Storm six points and Dawson Noem six rebounds.
Jayce Slaba scoreed 17 points for Hanson (14-9), which made 16 of 44 field-goal attempts for 36 percent.
Class A (No. 3 Sioux Valley 58, No. 14 Lakota Tech 57)
CHAMBERLAIN — Alec Squires collected 22 points, 20 rebounds, five assists and four blocked shots to lead Sioux Valley back to state for the fifth-straight year.
Hudsyn Ruesink added 16 points, 10 rebounds and four assists for the Cossacks (21-2). Maxwell Engebretson scored 13 points, Maverick Nelson eight and Jace Christensen seven to go with five assists.
Sioux Valley made 27 of 54 field-goal attempts for 50 percent compared to 23 of 71 for 32 percent for Lakota Tech, which ended its season with an 11-11 record.
Gilbert White Jr. finished with 24 points, Julian Tonche 14 and Riley Casey 11 for Lakota Tech. Casey Aalso had eight rebounds and four steals.
Class A (No. 8 Groton 69, No. 9 Dell Rapids 55)
WATERTOWN — After losing a SoDak 16 game in the Civic Arena last March, Groton Area returned to notch a victory on Tuesday. The Tigers grabbed control in the second quarter and kept Dell Rapids at bay.
Ryder Johnson tallied 20 points, Lane Tietz 16, Keegen Tracy 14 and Jacob Zak 10 for the Tigers (19-4), who overcame a 16-15 first-quarter deficit with an 18-9 surge in the second period. They led by double digits much of the second half.
Jack Henry's 23 points and Tad Tjaden's 10 paced Dell Rapids (17-6).
Groton Area shot 57 percent (26 of 46) from the field compared to Dell Rapids' 25 of 41 for 61 percent.
Class A (No. 7 Rapid City Christian 82, No. 10 Milbank 66)
PIERRE — Rapid City Christian pulled away down the stretch to beat Milbank in a game played at Pierre High School.
Milbank pulled within 64-59 with 5:24 remaining. RCC (20-3) closed out the game with an 18-7 spurt.
Julius Frog had 24 points, Benson Kieffer 21 and Simon Kieffer 10 for RCC.
The Bulldogs (17-6) received 24 points from Joe Schulte, 21 from Jaxson Wildung and 15 from Garrett Mertens. Emmett Hanson grabbed seven rebounds and Wildung and Mertens six each. Wildung also added five assists and Mertens four steals.
RCC shot 44 percent (28 of 63) from the field and Milbank 49 (23 of 47).
Class A (No. 5 Dakota Valley 67, No. 12 McLaughlin 32)
MITCHELL — Two-time defending state A champion Dakota Valley pulled away in the second half for the win in the Corn Palace.
The Panthers (20-3) led only 27-18 at halftime before pushing their lead to 30 and forcing the running clock in the third quarter.
Luke Bruns and Jaxon Wingert led Dakota Valley with 20 and 17 points, respectively.
Raymin Yellow Earrings scored 14 points and Cassidy Demery 11 for McLaughlin (16-7).
Neuendorfs: Two coaches, three players from same family part of resurgence for Hamlin hoops
Class B (No. 2 De Smet 61, No. 15 Timber Lake 49)
MILLER — De Smet earned the chance to play for a fourth-straight state Class B championship by topping Timber Lake in a game played in the Miller Armory.
George Jensen recorded 16 points, Kadyn Fast 14, Trace Van Regenmorter 11 and Grant Wilkinson eight for the Bulldogs (20-3), who drained 24 of 59 field-goal attempts for 41 percent and owned the boards 43-27. Van Regenmorter snared 10 rebounds, Jensen nine and Wilkinson seven.
Kyler Bollinger (18 points and seven rebounds) and Tristan Dupris (14 and six) paced Timber Lake, which ended its season at 13-10.
Timber Lake shot only 29 percent (16 of 55) from the field.
Class B (No. 3 Castlewood 82, No. 4 Centerville 51)
MADISON — Castlewood led most of the way and closed out the win with a 23-8 scoring surge in the fourth quarter at Madison High School.
Bryon Laue led the Warriors (20-3) with 21 points and 12 rebounjds. Lane Tvedt contributed 18 points, Luke Baumberger 14, Jamison Keszler 11 and Quincy Thu nine. Thu also added seven rebounds and four assists.
Castlewood connected on 31 of 57 field-goal attempts for 54 percent compared to Centerville's 17 of 41 for 42 percent.
Aiden Bobzin scored 16 points and Cole Edberg and Ethan Bobzin 10 each for Centerville (14-9). Cole Edberg also grabbed six rebounds.
Class B (No. 4 Wessington Springs 54, No. 13 Waverly-South Shore 35)
HURON — Waverly-South Shore's bid to qualify for state fell victim to a slow start and cold shooting.
Wessington Springs (22-1) led 10-5 after one quarter and 27-10 at halftime. Waverly-South Shore (16-7) canned only 12 of 49 field-goal attempts for 25 percent.
Ryder Michalek produced 19 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and four steals to lead the Spartans, who shot 44 percent (20 of 46) from the field and dominanted the glass 43-24. Parker Graff pitched in with 14 points and six rebounds; Colby Flowers nine points, 12 rebounds and five assists; and Brock Krueger eight points.
Sam Appelhof led Waverly-South Shore with 11 points and six rebounds. Colont Kranz and Zach Ries each added eight points and Cody Thompson seven. Ries also corraled seven rebounds.
Class B (No. 6 Leola-Frederick Area 72, No. 11 Potter County 56)
MELLETTE — A 17-10 third-quarter scoring run carried Leola-Frederick Area (22-1) to its second win over the season over Potter County in a game played at Northwestern High School.
The Titans led only 43-37 at halftime before gaining some breathing room with the big third quarter. Noah Kippley poured in 24 points and Brayden Sumption 19 and Ethan Petrich had nine. Milo Sumption added seven points and seven rebounds.
Ryder Falkenhagen scored 16 points, Chance Smith 13, Landon Larson 12 and Jhett Simon 10 for Potter County (15-8).
Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on X (formerly known as Twitter) @PO_Sports or email: rmerriam@thepublicopinion.com
This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Area teams advance to State A, B boys basketball tourneys March 14-16
