Depleted boys split games

Welcome to Custer High School basketball, WJ—without Jace.
Jace, of course, is the Wildcats’ leading scorer Jace Kelley, whose nearly 20 points per game a year ago and 27 opening-night points were MIA last weekend as he missed both of last weekend’s games (and is expected to miss at least two more) due to a hand injury suffered in physical education class.
It was the first time in over 60 games the Wildcats played a game without Kelley, and the Wildcats came away from the weekend with a win and a loss, defeating Lakota Tech 64-61 at the Armory Friday evening before losing to White River 68-60 at White River the next evening.
Custer head coach Paul Kelley said he felt the team acquitted itself well without its leading scorer.
“I think we were searching for an identity,” he said of the two games. “We hadn’t even practiced without Jace.”
The White River game was a close contest throughout, with each team at one point holding a lead—albeit slim ones—before the Tigers were able to pull away late on their home floor.
Part of the reason the Tigers were able to do so was attrition, as the Wildcats spent most of the night with key players in foul trouble. Two Wildcats fouled out of the game, while two more were saddled with two or three fouls early.
“We got in foul trouble and they capitalized on that,” Coach Kelley said. “It’s a tough place to play. I’m proud of our kids for the effort and hanging in there. I really feel it’s a game we let get away from us.”
Kelley also pointed to free throw shooting as a major sore spot in the game, as the Wildcats hit only 11 off 22 attempts.
“If you’re going to beat a team like that on their floor you have to shoot better than 50 percent,” he said.
The Tigers were a two-man show, as Joe Saylor scored 27 points and Dylan Marshall added 23. The Wildcats sent those two to the free throw line 24 times.
“I think Daniel (Sedlacek) did a tremendous job (on Saylor),” Kelley said. “He just ran out of gas. I don’t think he got a break in the second half.”
The Wildcats got so depleted that eighth-grader Kyle Virtue was called on to play nine minutes of the game, in which the 6-2 Virtue scored seven points.
“That’s a pretty big accomplishment when you’re going up agains the likes of White River,” Kelley said. “It was good to see.”
Gunner Prior, who has assumed the heaviest minutes in the point guard role in the absence of Jace Kelley, scored 18 points, dished out seven assists and grabbed six rebounds in the game.
“That’s a pretty darn good game for a kid that is starting his second varsity game,” Coach Kelley said.
Sedlacek scored 15 points of his own, while Gage Tennyson chipped in 11 points.
“Daniel isn’t used to shooting 10, 11, 12 times,” Kelley said. “He realized he had to step up his play.”
The Wildcats became the answer to a trivia question—who was the first team to play, and beat Lakota Tech—in Friday night’s game, a game in which it was Tennyson who did the heavy lifting, scoring a career-high 28 points while pulling down 14 rebounds and creating havoc on the defensive end of the court as well.
“He was phenomenal,” Kelley said. “He dominated both ends of the floor.”
The game was the second of two home games that was close throughout and in question until the final minutes, despite Custer’s best effort to pull away several times.
It appeared Custer was going to finally pull away in the fourth quarter after a Sedlacek basket on which he was fouled and made the free throw and a Tennyson putback off an offensive rebound put the Wildcats up eight.
The free throw shooting—or lack thereof—reared its head in the final minute, however, as the Wildcats went two of 10 during that stretch to allow the Tatanka to close the advantage to two following a Tristen LeBeau basket inside off an offensive rebound with seconds remaining.
Prior was fouled on Custer’s next possession and with 2.8 seconds left made one of two free throws. A desperation heave from the Tatanka as time expired bounced off the rim.
Kelley pointed out the Wildcats were 12 of 34 from the free throw line in the game, causing him to question how the team was able to win the game.
“They battled through it and were able to survive,” he said. “I’m sure we’ll all have nightmares watching that free throw shooting performance. We had the kids we wanted on the line, but those things happen.
“We had a chance to put it away. If I had the answer as to why we are struggling from the line I’d have millions of dollars, but I don’t have the answer right now.”
It was the Wildcats who found themselves down early in the game, trailing 14-6 at the end of the first period. A Sedlacek three-pointer brought the Wildcats closer at the outset of the second quarter, which was followed by a Prior three-pointer.
Chuckie Cottier made a three-pointer for the Tatanka to push Tech’s lead back to five before Custer rattled off the next six points to take their first lead. The Wildcats led 25-22 late in the second quarter after a Tennyson turn around jumper, but the Tatanka took a 27-26 lead into the halftime break.
The Tatanka continued to lead after a Jamiah Blanas three-pointer and a Lebeau basket inside, and the two teams went on to exchange the lead or tie the score five times before Sedlacek drove for a basket and Prior drilled a three-pointer off a Kaleb Wragge offensive rebound to give Custer a 43-38 lead.
The fourth quarter started with an easy Sedlacek basket off a designed play, followed by Tennyson streaking the length of the court for a basket. The Tatanka refused to go away, however, as Lebeau scored inside once more and the Tatanka trimmed the Wildcat lead down to three with four minutes left in the game.
Sedlacek scored 17 points for the Wildcats, while Prior had 16.
“The kids didn’t back down from adversity and stepped up,” Kelley said. “It was two tough games. I was pleased with the kids. Us at 100 percent, I think we’re 3-0 right now. But guess what? We’re not 100 percent.”
The Wildcats are back in action for a rare Tuesday and Wednesday pair of games when they head south to Chadron, Neb., for the annual Chadron Rotary George Watson Holiday Basketball Classic.
The Wildcats will open the tournament Tuesday with a matchup against Valentine, Neb.
“We don’t know a lot about them. They are known as a football school, so they will have good-sized kids and athletes,” Kelley said. “We have to keep progressing on the defensive end and hopefully have a couple of other kids step up.”
If Custer were to win, it would play the winner of the other game between Chadron and Hemingford, Neb.
The Wildcats will start the new year by heading to Mitchell for the Sacred Hoops Classic Jan 2. The ’Cats will square off with 2-2 West Central, a team that most recently defeated Winner. The Trojans started 0-2 but have won their last two games.
“We just have to take it game by game and get back to being healthy as soon as possible,” Kelley said.
Custer    19    15    16    20    —60    
WR    8    17    17    27    —68
Custer—Gunner Prior 6-20 1-2 18, Gavin Klein 1-3 0-1 2, Dustyn Fish 1-3 3-4 5, Daniel Sedlacek 5-13 5-7 15, Gage Tennyson 5-7 1-3 11, Kyle Virtue 3-4 1-5 7, Kaleb Wragge 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 22-51 11-22 60.
White River—Nicolas Marshall 1-3 0-0 2, Dylan Marshall 6-9 10-14 23, Colbe Scott 4-12 0-0 9, Joe Sayler 9-19 8-10 27, Kendrell Cuevas 0-1 0-0 0, Kenyon Easter 2-3 0-0 4, TJ Beardt 0-1 1-5 1, July Schmidt 1-1 1-1 3. Totals: 23-49 20-30 69.
Three-point goals: Custer 5 (Prior 5), WR 3 (D. Marshall, Scott, Sayler). Rebounding: Custer 23 (Prior 6), WR 23 (Sayler 8). Assists: Custer 15 (Prior 7), WR 10 (D. Marshall 6). Total fouls: Custer 25, WR 16. Fouled out: Klein, Fish.
Custer    6    20    17    21    —64    
LT    12    15    13    21    —61
Custer—Gunner Prior 6-21 1-6 16, Gavin Klein 0-1 0-2 0, Dustyn Fish 0-6 5-9 5, Daniel Sedlacek 7-14 2-7 17, Gage Tennyson 11-16 4-10 26, Kaleb Wragge 0-4 0-0 0. Totals: 24-62 12-34 64.
Lakota Tech—Quincy Means 0-3 0-0, Mauricio Curry 0-2 0-0 0, Kailjah Oldson 4-5 1-2 11, Aiden Catches 0-2 0-0 0, Jamiah Blanas 2-5 1-2 6, Chuckie Cottier 2-3 0-0 5, Trey Yellow Boy 3-8 1-2 7, Jordan Whirlwind Horse 6-16 0-0 14, Tristen Lebeau 5-9 6-7 16, Carlos Plenty Arrows 1-1 0-0 2. Totals: 23-54 9-13 61.
Three-point goals: Custer 4 (Prior 3, Sedlacek), LT 6 (Oldson 2, Whirlwind Horse 2, Blanas, Cottier). Rebounding: Custer 33 (Tennyson 14), LT 33 (Whirlwind Horse 9). Assists: Custer 9, LT 6. Turnovers: Custer 15, LT 24. Total fouls: Custer 15, LT 24. Fouled out: Means, Wragge. Technical foul: Blanas.