Indians Spank the Bulldogs
The St. Francis Indians received little resistance from the Golden Plains Bulldogs on Saturday, January 7. In games played in Rexford, the Indians defeated the Bulldogs 21-8 in a two-quarter junior varsity contest and smacked the Bulldogs 50-16 in the varsity game.
There was little suspense in the varsity contest. The Indians jumped out to a 14-0 lead just over halfway though the first period. Tate Busse opened the contest with a top-of-the-key trey and a steal two giving the Indians a quick 5-0 lead. On the second Golden Plains (GP) possession, a deflection by Busse landed in the hands of Jeremiah Neitzel who tossed the ball ahead for another Busse lay-in. Brock Waters followed with a driving score. After another steal-two by Busse, Waters sank a free-throw giving the Indians a 12-0 lead. With 3;25 left in the first period, GP attempted their first shot of the game. The shot was missed and soon resulted in a driving score by Busse moving the scoreboard to 14-0. GP's Nolan Ritter gave the Bulldogs their first points on a nice drive to the basket. Jeremiah Neitzel followed with three consecutive baskets (post move, offensive rebound, and left wing jumper) increasing the lead to 20-2. Ritter scored two free-throws late in the quarter bringing the score to 20-4 at the first quarter horn. With GP being deliberate offensively and the Indians playing excellent defense, the result was only two shot attempts by Golden Plains in the quarter (two additional attempts were erased by SF fouls).
Ritter scored the first basket of the second period on another strong drive. Brock Waters answered with a jumper (assist Quinton Cravens). A Waters' steal resulted in another lay-in by Tate Busse, and then Waters added two free-throws after being fouled driving to the rim. The lead expanded to twenty points (26-6) early in the second period. GP's 6' 6" senior Nick Brown scored in the post moments later. A Busse left wing trey was followed by an offensive rebound score by GP's Dawson Spresser (6' 2" senior). The Indians closed the first half with a 7-point run getting a free-throw from Taylor Rogers, a steal-two from Waters, a drive by Waters, and a fast-break basket by Brady Dinkel (assist Waters). St. Francis led 36-10 at halftime.
The Bulldogs did not increase their offensive pace in the second half, and the result was zero points scored in the third period. After a early Indian basket, Quinton Cravens assist led to a score by Jeremiah Neitzel in the post. Tate Busse followed with a top-of-the-key trey and a pair of free-throws. The Indians used mostly substitute players in the later portion of the period, but the Bulldogs did not score against the Indian defense. St. Francis led 47-10 after three periods.
With the margin being more than 30 points, a running clock was used in the fourth period. Golden Plains earned a post basket by Nick Brown in the early portion of the period. K.C. Krien's assist led to a post basket by Brady Dinkel a bit later. Jake Faulkender sandwiched a free-throw between two GP baskets, making the final score 50-16.
Scoring for the Indians were: Tate Busse 21, Brock Waters 11, Jeremiah Neitzel 8, Brady Dinkel 4, Taylor Rogers 3, Quinton Cravens 2, and Jake Faulkender 1. The Indians made 7 of 13 from the line.
Golden Plains was led in scoring by 6' 0" sophomore Nolan Ritter with 6. Nick Brown and Jacob Ritter each scored 4. The Bulldogs made 4 of 7 from the line.
The two-quarter junior varsity game was also controlled by the Indians. K.C.Krien opened the contest with a offensive rebound basket. GP's Austin Patmon answered from the left wing. An offensive rebound score by Tayton Weeter gave the Indians the lead for good at 4-2. Jordan Raby's baseline drive advanced the lead to 9-2, and Weeter's right-wing trey bumped the scoreboard to 15-2 with a couple minutes remaining in the first period. Golden Plains' 6' 5" junior Devin Carter scored from the right elbow just before Weeter's stick-back basket closed the quarter. St. Francis led 17-4 after one period of play.
St. Francis played mainly substitute players in the second (and final) period. Jake Faulkender's driving score gave St. Francis their largest lead of the game (19-4). After an offensive rebound score and steal-two by the Bulldogs, Isaiah Lee closed the scoring with a strong drive to the rim. St. Francis defeated Golden Plains in the JV game, 21-8.
Scoring for the Indians in the junior varsity game were: Tayton Weeter 10, K.C. Krien 5, Jordan Raby 2, Jake Faulkender 2, and Isaiah Lee 2. Golden Plains had 4 players each score 2 points. The Indians made 2 of 4 from the line while GP connected on 0 of 4.
St. Francis will play Weskan in St. Francis on Tuesday, January 10. The Indians will travel to Dighton to play the Hornets on Friday, January 13.
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