Sidney boys, girls start year with big wins

The first quarter of Thursday night's home opener against the Greeley West (Colo.) Spartans was a little rough for the Sidney High varsity boys' basketball team.

But the Red Raiders got into an offensive groove and began to lock things down defensively early in the third quarter. They didn't look back as they carried that momentum all the way to a 60-37 victory over the Spartans in the opening round of the Western Conference Tournament.

"I maybe had 10 different scores that went through my head and this was not one of them," Sidney head coach Erik Kohl said. "I was really pleased with our effort and I thought as the game went on, our defense got better and better. Offensively, our guys like each other and they share the ball well. When we pass that way (referring to the second half), we're fun to watch and we'll get great shots."

Sidney came out a bit flat right after the opening tip. The Red Raiders struggled to find any rhythm on offense, scoring 14 points in the first quarter. Sidney held a 14-13 lead over the Spartans after the first eight minutes.

Offensively, the second quarter was more of the same for Sidney. The Red Raiders didn't pass the ball around well enough to get quality, open shots. They forced several shots from the perimeter and while enough of them went in to hold a seven-point lead at halftime, Kohl knew his players weren't at their best.

On the other end, Sidney used a stifling defense to hold Greeley West to a mere seven points in the second quarter. The Red Raiders, despite not playing an effective first half, took a 27-20 advantage into the locker rooms.

Sidney junior forward Cutter O'Connell was responsible for a couple of critical baskets late in the first half to help Sidney preserve its lead. O'Connell led the Red Raiders in scoring on the night with 15 points. He also pulled down four rebounds.

Despite the win, O'Connell said there are a few things his team needs to work on going forward.

"There's a lot of room to grow for us as a team," O'Connell said. "We didn't move the ball as well as I thought we should have. We didn't rebound as well as I thought we should have. But once we get that going, we should be a pretty solid team."

But Sidney exploded out of the locker rooms and almost immediately improved its ball movement. The defense buckled down and started to force several turnovers, which got the Red Raiders out on the break. They kept their heads up, found the open man and played an all-around unselfish half of offense.

But Sidney didn't finish the third quarter strong. With the Red Raiders leading 42-20, Greeley finally hit a stride and went on an 8-3 run to close out the quarter. Sidney committed a few turnovers that got the Spartans in transition and a couple of and-one opportunities. The Red Raiders still led 45-28 heading into the final quarter.

Again, Sidney opened the quarter with a bang and pushed its lead back to 22. Depth was key in the surge – the Red Raider bench scored 17 points in the game. Kohl, knowing his guys were up against a talented Spartan team, was happy with the way the Red Raiders weathered the Greeley storms and pushed back on runs of their own.

"They're (Greeley West)going to be a pretty good team – they've got three pretty good players," Kohl said. "They challenged us and it was nice to see us take their punches when they got back into it a little bit."

Sidney's suffocating defense continued to cause problems for the Greeley West offense especially late in the game, when the Spartans really began to settle for threes. Sidney held the Spartans to just 17 second half points and 1-for-21 from behind the arc on the night.

Junior guard Cordell Gillingham led the Spartans on the stat sheet with 12 points, while junior forward Preston Marion added 10 for Greeley West.

Sidney junior forward Tyler Wintholz chipped in 10 points and boards for Sidney.

Sidney plays Chadron tonight at 6:30 in the semifinals at Western Nebraska Community College in Scottsbluff.

Western Conference Tournament

Boys’ Division

Thursday, Dec. 4

Sidney 60, Greeley West (Colo.) 37

Chadron 43, Gering 32

Alliance 47, Omaha Gross 44

Scottsbluff 71, Mitchell 23

Friday, Dec. 5

At Western Nebraska C.C.-Scottsbluff campus

Sidney vs. Chadron, 6:30 p.m.

Alliance vs. Scottsbluff winner, 8 p.m.

At Scottsbluff High School

Greeley West (Colo.) vs. Gering, 6:30 p.m.

Omaha Gross vs. Mitchell, 8 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 6

At Scottsbluff High School

7th-place game, 11:45 a.m.

At Western Nebraska C.C.-Scottsbluff campus

5th-place game, 11:45 a.m.

3rd-place game, 3:15 p.m.

Championship game, 6:45 p.m.