Big 4th sends Sabers past Rebels

By Steve Thiltgen

DEWITT — After a number of years of not playing each other, the Central DeWitt and Northeast boys basketball programs renewed their rivalry during the 2000-01 season.

What the respective coaches at the time — Central DeWitt's George Pickup and Northeast's Kevin Enwright — were looking for was a challenging game that, win or lose, would prepare their squads for the challenges each would face later in the season.

Both coaches have since retired, with Enwright stepping down following the 2005-06 season and Pickup calling it quits last spring after accepting the principal's job at the school. Even though both have moved on, the intensity of the rivalry is just as strong as it was that first meeting in December of 2000.

Saturday's ninth meeting since the series resumed was just what fans of each program expect. Through the game's first three quarters, there were 10 ties and five lead changes as the teams battled to a 45-45 tie entering the final eight minutes of action. But in that final quarter, it was the Sabers - playing on their home court - taking control on their way to a 66-57 win.

Prior to the final period, the largest lead of the game was four - with the Rebels holding 14-10 and 20-16 advantages. The Sabers' largest edge was three, which happened at 29-26, at the half at 31-28, and at 33-30.

Making sure the Sabers' lead never got larger than three was Jed Rogis. The Rebel junior scored his team's first seven points of the second half - on a pair of two-point field goals and a three - with the three giving his team a 35-33 lead. That would be the Rebels' final lead of the night, as the Sabers responded with back-to-back baskets. The Rebels did, however, tie the score with an 8-4 spurt over the remainder of the quarter.

The spark for the Sabers' late charge came from an unlikely source - or maybe not. After all, the night before junior Scotty Burke came off the bench and scored a career-high 12 points in a loss at Solon. Burke matched his output Saturday, but the 12 points were much more satisfying since they led directly to a Saber win.

Prior to the final quarter, Burke's only points came on a first-half three. Burke put his team up for good by scoring the first four points of the period, with his second score coming on a one-handed put back of a teammates' miss. Pretty impressive for a 5-10 guard.

“I go for offensive rebounds a lot,” Burke said. “If I'm out of top I'll crash the boards all the time.”

Burke has a fan in DeWitt's first-year head coach Jeff Frick.

“Scotty is one of those guys with deceptive offensive skills,” Frick pointed out. “He is a very good shooter and is very intelligent with the ball.”

Burke's pair of scores was the first of a one-two punch that staggered the Rebels. The second came when both Ryan Krogmann and Dan Heiar picked up their fourth fouls in the first two minutes of the quarter. With their two best players shuttling in and out of the game the rest of the way the Rebels were unable to keep pace with their hosts. Opening the period with an 8-1 run, the Sabers pulled away for their third straight win in the series.

Despite the key offensive spurt, Frick pointed to his team's defense as the key to the win.

“The big thing in the second half was we tightened up the lane,” he said. “We were able to cut off the driving lanes and really make them work for everything.”

With Burke one of five Sabers scoring in double figures (Wes Ketelsen led the team with 15 points, Tyler Smith added 14 with Michael Burke and Patrick Burmester each chipping in with 11), Frick conceded his offense wasn't too shabby, either.

“I don' think I've ever had five players score in double figures in the same game,” Frick, who led Western Dubuque to the 2001 3A state championship, said. “We have the capability of having five guys score in double figures, but it's rare to happen on the same night. When you have five guys in double figures that shows you are really distributing the ball. It's nice not having two or three guys carrying us. That will make it tough for teams down the road having to decide how they're going to play us.”

While not happy with the final outcome, there were many things Northeast head coach Danny Vogel was pleased with.

“I thought we played hard . . . we competed hard,” he stressed. “We did a decent job with our press and that's something we've been working on. They are quick and have some good ball handlers. They are a solid team. This was a good game to see where we're at.”

Turning in a solid all-around performance for the Rebels was Ryan Krogmann, who led all players with 17 points to go along with eight rebounds, three assists and steal. Rogis contributed 14 points, with Heiar adding 12 points and seven boards. After getting off to a slow start, Krogmann has resembled the first-team All-Big East player he was a year ago.

“Ryan had a big game for us,” Vogel said. “He's been playing well for us. We need him both on offense and on defense and on the boards. I ask a lot out of that guy.”

After Saturday's non-conference match-up in DeWitt, both squads return to their respective league slates Tuesday. Northeast returns to its home court for a matchup against Big East rival Olin, while Central DeWitt travels to Manchester to face West Delaware in a WaMaC Eastern Division game.

Score by Quarters

Northeast 16 12 17 12 — 57

Central DeWitt 16 15 14 21 — 66

Scoring

NORTHEAST (57)

Ryan Krogmann 8 0-0 17, Jed Rogis4 3-4 13, Jordan Howe 2 2-2 7, Shaun Eberhart 0 0-0 0, Derek Bormann 0 0-0 0, C.J. Herrington 4 0-0 8, Dan Heiar 5 2-4 12. Totals 23 7-10 57.

CENTRAL DEWITT (66)

Michael Burke 5 1-2 11, Nate Keeney 1 0-0 3, Adam Lee 0 0-0 0, Weston Ketelsen 7 0-1 15, Tyler Smith 3 6-10 14, Patrick Burmester 5 1-3 11, Scott Burke 3 5-8 12, Brennan Ketelsen 0 0-2 0. Totals 24 13-26 66.

3-point goals—Northeast 4 (Rogis 2, Krogmann 1, Howe 1); Central DeWitt 5 (Smith 2, S. Burke 1, W. Ketelsen 1, Keeney 1). Total fouls—Northeast 22, Central DeWitt 14. Fouled out—Northeast (Heiar).