Hoop City Classic roundup for Dec. 30: Potter County edges Bridgewater-Emery in final seconds

Dec. 30—MITCHELL — Landon Larson converted a three-point play with 1.3 seconds remaining, lifting Potter County past Bridgewater-Emery 58-56 at the Hoop City Classic on Saturday evening at the Corn Palace

After scoring 55 points through the first three quarters, Larson's layup and ensuing free throw were the Battlers' lone scoring effort of the final eight minutes. Potter County led by as many as 14 points in the first half, while the Huskies never led by more than two points.

Larson finished with a game-high 18 points, while Ryder Falkenhagen and Jhett Simon added 14 points apiece. Falkenhagen tacked on eight rebounds and four steals to his final tally, and Carter Luikens offered eight points, 11 rebounds and three assists.

Ben Weber's 15 points and three blocks paced B-E, as Macklen Weber was 5-for-5 from the field and 4-for-4 from 3-point range with 14 points and eight rebounds. Jase Kayser scored 11 points and Holden Wollmann had 10 points and eight assists for the Huskies.

Both schools return home to host contests on Jan. 2, as Potter County (3-3) welcomes Mobridge-Pollock and Bridgewater-Emery (2-4) battles Sanborn Central/Woonsocket.

Benson Kieffer's game-high 27 points paced Rapid City Christian to a victory over Campbell County on Saturday morning at the Corn Palace in boys basketball action.

Kieffer was joined by teammate Julius Frog, who had 17 points and 11 rebounds on 8-for-14 shooting, as the Comets outrebounded the Camels 40-33 in the game, including snaring 16 offensive rebounds.

Campbell County (5-5) was led by Lane Hladky's 18 points, while Nate Williams had 12 points. RCC won the second half by a 40-29 margin.

Rapid City Christian (5-1) plays two games next week in Bismarck, North Dakota, starting on Friday, Jan. 5 against Dickinson Trinity (N.D.).

Cordova completed a 4-0 run at the Hoop City Classic on Saturday with a convincing win over Minnesota power Totino-Grace in boys basketball action.

Emerson Tenner scored 28 points on 10-for-18 shooting, while Julius Thedford had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Wolves, who picked up 15 points from Randin Johnson. Cordova (16-0) led 35-23 at halftime and widened the lead to as many as 21 points in the third quarter.

Totino-Grace (5-3) was led by 15 points from Dothan Ijadimbola, who had 15 points. The Eagles picked up 12 points from Tyler Wagner on the strength of four 3-pointers and Chace Watley had 10 points for the defending Minnesota Class 3A champions.

A hot shooting start for Brandon Valley powered the Lynx boys basketball team to a victory over Thunder Basin, Wyoming on Saturday afternoon at the Hoop City Classic.

Aiden Zerr was 6-for-7 from the field for 15 points and 6-foot-8 center Josh Olthoff converted 7 of 10 tries to score 14 points and snare seven rebounds, as the Lynx made 16-of-22 shots in the first half to build a 38-25 lead over the visitors from Wyoming. The Bolts got to within 49-41 with a quarter to play but the Lynx outscored TB 15-5 over the final period to secure the win. BV shot 59.1% from the field overall for the victory.

Thunder Basin had 20 points from Parker Wagner, with 16 points for Josh Klaassen. The Bolts shot 34% for the game, including 26.1 from the field in the second half.

Brandon Valley (2-2) will host Watertown on Jan. 4.

Playing its second game of the day, Thunder Basin ended its Hoop City Classic campaign with a win over Aberdeen Central on Saturday night.

Gibson Williams tossed in 25 points to lead all scorers and grabbed six rebounds, while Karver Partlow scored 10 points off the bench. Bodie Williams had five points, three rebounds and four assists.

Camden Fauth led the Golden Eagles with 14 points, and Brenden Phillips notched 10 points off the bench. Grant Fritz logged eight points and eight rebounds, and Parker Lemer distributed four assists.

Thunder Basin (4-6) returns to Wyoming with a Hoop City Classic record of 1-3, while Aberdeen Central (4-2) will host Sioux Falls Washington on Jan. 2.

To cap the 2023 Hoop City Classic, Waconia (Minn.) held off Lennox in the final moments to capture a win on Saturday night.

Waconia (6-2) got 20 points, six rebounds and five assists from Gavin Olson alongside 18 points and seven rebounds by Jackson Hayes. William Kirsch tacked on 16 points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals and one block for the Wildcats.

The Orioles were paced by Tate Gerdes' 24 points, six rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block, as Boston Katzer followed with 22 points and four rebounds. Braxton Musser also scored 12 points.

Lennox (2-3) will play at Rock Valley, Iowa, on Jan. 4.

Behind a record-setting 3-point effort from Ellie Clayberg and her teammates, Class A No. 3 Tea Area posted 13 3-pointers and cruised past Rapid City Christian 77-44 in a Hoop City Classic girls basketball game on Saturday.

Clayberg made a record seven 3-pointers — a mark that would be matched later in the day by Mitchell's Addie Siemsen — and Tea Area's 13 triples broke the team girls event record, as well. Mara Grant scored 23 points, Clayberg had 21, South Dakota State pledge Katie Vasecka scored 14 points and Haidyn West logged 10 points for the Titans, who scored 25 points in the first quarter and salted away the game with a 19-5 margin in the fourth quarter.

The Comets picked up 12 points from Lydia Williams and Hayden Thorton had 11 points.

Tea Area (6-0) will play No. 5-ranked Vermillion on Tuesday, Jan. 2. Rapid City Christian (4-2) will play a pair of games in Bismarck, North Dakota starting Friday, Jan. 5.

Brandon Valley scored 26 of the first 32 points of their girls basketball game against Thunder Basin, Wyoming on Saturday afternoon and cruised to a victory at the Hoop City Classic at the Corn Palace.

Alyvia Padgett scored 14 points for Brandon Valley, while Kennedi Deckert tallied 11 points and Madison Geiver finished with 10. Brandon Valley made 16-of-28 shots in the first half, including seven of its nine 3-pointers for the game.

Thunder Basin (5-5) was led by 14 points from Kambel Cox, but the Bolts were held to 4-of-20 shooting in the first half and 26% overall for the game.

Brandon Valley (2-3) will travel to Watertown on Jan. 4.