Second half of hoops campaign set to start

Back from the holidays, and ready for the second half of the winter sports season to begin.

Congrats to the Sidney High School Lady Raiders for their second-place finish in last weekend’s Cabela’s Holiday Shootout.

In Saturday’s championship game, Tyler Shaw’s club ran up against a buzzsaw in Douglas, Wyo., and struggled against the Lady Bearcats’ defense.

Still, Sidney came out of its own event with a 7-2 record, and considering those two defeats came at the hands of the likes of Chadron and Douglas in the championship games of tournaments (Western Conference and CHS finals, respectively), SHS is in pretty good shape.

Meanwhile, Erik Kohl’s Red Raiders boys’ squad has a little soul-searching to do after finishing 1-2 in its own tournament. Sidney (5-4) got past a taller Gothenburg team in the opening round, but in Friday’s semifinals, the Raiders struggled with the outside game while losing to Cheyenne South in overtime, and the woes from the perimeter lingered Saturday in a three-point loss to Gering in the third-place contest.

The Raiders simply lack the size to play an effective half-court game, and opponents realize this. SHS is most effective when it is able to utilize its speed and windsprint the defense to death.

While dropping 3-point shots can be appealing to the eye, fact is the Raiders are hardly world-beaters from beyond the arc.

Kohl noted that several of his players are in need of additional practice time to perhaps hone their craft. The coach readily notes that Paxton Ehler is consistently working on his long-range ability, but against Gering, the shots weren’t dropping for the junior sniper. The Bulldogs were also getting back on defense and stopping SHS’s transition game, which also led to further frustration for Sidney.

One thing isn’t missing with the Raiders, and that’s scrappiness. When things looked bleak against Gering late, the Raiders reached down and almost pulled the game out.

It should be interesting to see what happens Friday night when Sidney takes on Gering once again – this time on the road – in conference play. This year’s series has seen the Bulldogs win both games thus far, the other contest coming in the third-place game of the Western Conference finals, in which Sidney didn’t shoot well from anywhere – including the foul line – in an overtime loss.

Saturday isn’t any easier for SHS, which hosts McCook to a boys/girls doubleheader. The girls varsity game should go off at about 4:30 p.m., with the boys following.

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SHS athletics director Mike Brockhaus has confirmed that Douglas and Love Christian Fellowship of Aurora, Colo., will not renew their contracts with the Shootout.

“I have sent contracts out to the other schools that were in the tournament and am in negotiations with a couple other schools to fill the open spots,” Brockhaus wrote this morning. “I hopefully will know more in the next couple weeks.”

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The small schools kick back into action this week (save for Peetz, Colo., which will start its second half next week).

Below is a thumbnail update of the area schools, both boys and girls.

Boys

1. Leyton (7-0): What have the Warriors done wrong so far? Gary Oltmann’s team took care of last year’s loss to Hemingford and has a win under its belt against Cheyenne County rival Potter-Dix.

As it stands right now,. Leyton’s only competition in the Feb. 18-21 Mitchell D2-12 subdistrict looks to be Sioux County (5-2). Hay Springs, LHS’s Saturday night visitor, is 1-6 and entered at Mitchell as well as two other currently winless clubs, Banner County (0-7) and South Platte (0-6). A return trip to the state finals seems very real.

Three Warriors average in double figures: Sam Schumacher (17.6 points), Brennan Cruise (15 ppg, 10.4 rebounds) and Dylan Brenner (11 ppg). Next: At home Saturday against Hay Springs.

2. Creek Valley (4-2): Roger Behrends’ Storm, led by son Sam Behrends (17.8 points), lost back-to-back games to Colorado foes Caliche and Sedgwick County, but owns a handy win against Potter-Dix. Creek plays at Leyton Feb. 1.

Luke Cavalli averages a double-double per outing (11.3 ppg and 10.5 rebounds) and Lane Godfrey is good for 11 points and 4.3 assists a contest. Next:At home Friday with Haxtun, at home Saturday with Minatare.

3. Peetz, Colo. (2-4): Bulldogs are scoring the points, but have to find some consistenct at the other end of the floor. Josh Fiscus leading the way at 16.3 ppg, followed by Tom Karnik (12.8), Austin Crane (9.7) and Tom Clevenger (9.5, 11.5 rebounds). Next: At home Tuesday with Creek Valley.

4. Potter-Dix (1-5): Chad Miller’s club has one beaten, and that is winless Banner County, but Coyotes should pick up a few wins in the second half of the campaign. Next: At Bayard Friday, hosts South Platte Saturday.

Girls

1. Potter-Dix (4-2): Coyotes get the nod on the strength of their 39-37 nail-biter against Leyton Dec. 11. Conner Wolff leads the way with a 19.5 point average. Taylor Juelfs puts in 8.5 points a game. Next: At Bayard Friday, hosts South Platte Saturday.

2. Leyton (4-3): Two of the three losses have been by a total of six points, and the other defeats came in the season opener to Bridgeport in the Bayard Tournament. Look for Rol Rushman’s team to pick up the pace in the second half of the season. Next: At home Saturday against Hay Springs.

3. Creek Valley (2-4): Lady Storm just missed Dec. 7 against P-D, and the team surely used the Christmas break to tweak things. Summer Mueller averages 18.3 points to lead the way for CV, which could find its way back to .500 before the postseason. Next: At home Friday with Haxtun, at home Saturday with Minatare.

4. Peetz, Colo. (2-4): Like the boys’ squad, the Lady Bulldogs have netted just two wins in their first six contests. Melissa Schumacher (12.5 ppg) is Peetz’s leading scorer. Next: At home Tuesday with Creek Valley.

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So, that’s why Charlie Strong decided to stay at Louisville.

After watching the Cardinals destroy a rather flat Florida club in last night’s Sugar Bowl, it’s pretty evident that Strong – a former defensive coordinator with the Gators – knows what he has at the U of L.

Which is why is he said no when Tennessee came calling. Comparison shopping will reveal that Louisville has a one-game winning streak against Florida, while the Gators are riding an eight-game winning streak against the Volunteers.

After six bowl games, the Southeastern Conference has struggled to a 3-3 standoff, with Texas A&M, Ole Miss and Alabama still to play.