BEMIDJI β Itβs been a battle-testing stretch for the Lumberjacks.
The Bemidji High ΝαΝαΒώ» boys basketball team played its fourth game since Feb. 7 on Thursday night, welcoming Grand Rapids to the BHS Gymnasium to continue marching through a run of games that hasnβt offered many breaks.
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βThe schedule just kind of stacked up on us,β head coach Steve Thompson said. βIt is a grind, so the boys have to be really aware of staying hydrated, eating the right foods and getting rest. These guys work hard, and we have to work hard, and they know that.β
After suffering a pair of road losses last Friday and Saturday, BHS picked up a win over Park Rapids on Tuesday to get back in the win column. Thursday evening offered a chance to string together two consecutive wins and hop back into its first winning streak since late January.
The Lumberjacks jumped on the opportunity, pulling away from the Thunderhawks in the second half for a 70-62 victory.
βIt feels good to get back in the win column and put a couple together,β Thompson said. βThen (weβre) right back at it again on Saturday, so weβre excited about that.β
With a road win on Jan. 7 against Grand Rapids under their belt, the Jacks knew they were heading into a rematch full of contested shots, tight defense and battle from the opening whistle to the closing buzzer. Thatβs exactly what they got.
βGrand Rapids is a gritty team,β Thompson said. βThey always work really hard and you have to match their effort or try to exceed it. Playing a team that defends as well as they do twice in a season is a good challenge for us.β
The first half featured seesawing momentum as Bemidji and the Thunderhawks traded leads constantly, attempting to take firm control heading into the locker room.
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BHS seemed poised for a slight lead at intermission, but with a second left before the halftime buzzer sounded, Grand Rapids nailed a 3-pointer to tie the game up 34-34.
βTheyβre just a close rival and I think we always know that weβre just going to give each other our best game,β senior Charlie Zellmann said. βItβs going to be hard, itβs going to be a grind, itβs going to be a defensive grind, and we both know that.β
The second frame started in a similar fashion. However, with the Thunderhawks up 41-40, junior Jeron Huseby splashed a 3-point basket that ignited a run for the Jacks.
On the ensuing BHS possession, senior Kobe Brown slipped to the cup for a nasty layup, turning it into a three-point play, thanks to a foul on Grand Rapids. He tacked on another 2-pointer shortly after to hand Bemidji a quick 49-40 advantage, the largest lead from either team at that point.
βWe werenβt doing the things that we talked about before the game, like rebounding and transition,β Zellmann said of the first half. βSo in the second half, we made our adjustments and the team responded really well.β
The lead stuck.
Grand Rapids responded with a couple of 2-point possessions, but junior Jaxon Boschee converted a layup and junior Rhys Sneide notched a pair of buckets for a 55-44 lead.
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βWe did a much better job defensively of keeping the ball in front and forcing contested shots and then rebounding the basketball,β Thompson said. βOffensively, we moved the ball much better, we attacked the paint much better, therefore, we had a better showing in both areas in the second half.β
The Thunderhawks fought back as the second half wound to a close, but they were never able to put together enough successful possession to make a real dent in the Lumberjacksβ lead.
βIt was critical for us,β Thompson said. βItβs been a grind with all the games weβve played in a short period of time here, and for the boys to find themselves in a lead where we just had to maintain, that was good for us.β
By the end of the night, Bemidji had a scoring sheet with a strong distribution of points. Naturally, Boschee led the way with 21. Sneide was next up, collecting 13 points.
Beyond the duo, though, scoring was sprinkled throughout the starting lineup. Brown wound up with nine points, as did junior Austin Riewer. Zellman and Huseby tallied seven apiece.
Each run seemed to be sparked by a different player, from a Huseby triple to a 3-point basket from Reiwer.
βThat makes us hard to guard,β Zellmann said. βYou canβt just guard one guy, you gotta guard all of us, so it makes us more dangerous.β
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Though he didnβt quite put up the point totals of Boschee or Sneide in the victory, Zellmann continued to bring stability for the Jacks in the starting lineup, providing consistent defensive effort and smart play on the other end of the court.
βHeβs very good at executing game plans on both the defense end and the offensive end,β Thompson said. βItβs always nice to have a heady player like that in the lineup.β
βI just try to bring good defense to a team and bring energy to help the team out,β Zellmann said. βLook for my opportunities and try to help the team in the ways that I can.β
Bemidji 70, Grand Rapids 62
GR 34 28 β 62
BHS 34 36 β 70
Bemidji β Boschee 21, Sneide 13, Brown 9, Riewer 9, Zellmann 7, Huseby 7, McNallan 2, Pink 2.
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Grand Rapids β Sylvester 22, Sutherland 10, Morgan 9, Wegwerth 8, Giffen 6, Ketola 4, Schroeder 3.
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