Ten Best: Spirit Lake (49) at Williamsburg (32)
Sophomore Owen Coburn had 13 points on 5-5 shooting in front of four Division I assistants Spirit Lake 49, Williamsburg 32 The Spirit Lake Indians remained unbeaten with a 49-32 non-conference win over Williamsburg on Monday night. Despite a slow…
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Continue ReadingSpirit Lake 49, Williamsburg 32
The Spirit Lake Indians remained unbeaten with a 49-32 non-conference win over Williamsburg on Monday night. Despite a slow start, falling behind 14-11 after the first quarter, the Indians were able to cruise in the final three quarters behind a balanced offensive attack and a smothering defense that allowed just seven second half points.
Spirit Lake (6-0) was led by the trio of Alex VanDyke, Frankie Ramos and Owen Coburn, who each had 13 points. Williamsburg (1-6) was led by Lucas Schlesselman, who had 12 points off the bench for the Raiders.
Scoring
Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | F |
Spirit Lake | 11 | 20 | 6 | 12 | 49 |
Williamsburg | 14 | 11 | 5 | 2 | 32 |
Spirit Lake: Frankie Ramos 13, Owen Coburn 13, Alex VanDyke 13, J.P. Walz 5, Mason McCaffery 3, Nick Christensen 2
Williamsburg: Lucas Schlesselman 12, Ben Subbert 8, Brandon Blythe 4, Sam Buch 3, Isaiahn Powell 3, Derek Greiner 2
MVP: Frankie Ramos/Alex VanDyke (Spirit Lake)
When the Indians really needed a spark in the second quarter, it was Ramos and Alex VanDyke who delivered it. Ramos scored seven, and VanDyke six, of their 13 points in the second quarter, including each hitting a pair of 3s to help give Spirit Lake a halftime lead. Their activity on both ends of the floor helped change the course of the game and keep the Indians undefeated.
Best offensive performance: Owen Coburn (Spirit Lake)
The 6-10 sophomore only took five shots, but connected on all of them en route to his 13 points (5-5 FG, 3-3 FT). He displayed a different piece of his offensive arsenal with each bucket – a jump hook, soft hands on a offensive rebound and putback, the ability to run the floor and finish, the ability to finish with the left on a post move. He didn’t touch the ball nearly enough, and when he did, he was frequently swarmed with double and triple teams. Nonetheless, he still tied for the game high with 13 points, and dished out four assists as well, showing good court vision and passing ability. He needs to recognize the doubles a little bit quicker, as he got caught a few times for turnovers, but a strong showing despite not being tremendously involved.
Best defensive performance: Spirit Lake in the second half
The Indians as a whole were much better defensively in the second half, holding Williamsburg to just seven points in the last 16 minutes. They did a better job applying pressure to the Raiders guards, and allowing Coburn to take care of the middle.
Best shooter: Lucas Schlesselman (Williamsburg)
Schlesselman came off the bench to known down four of his seven shots from behind the arc. He did a nice job moving off the ball to find spaces in the defense, coming off of ball screens and having his feet set and ready to shoot on the catch. His shot has a bit of an odd side spin on it, but it was working for him as he led the Raiders with 12 points on those four 3s.
Best rebounder: Owen Coburn (Spirit Lake)
I had Coburn down for only three rebounds, but he was getting bullied on the glass all night, frequently having only one free arm available to pull down boards. So he adapted, and began tipping balls out to teammates for rebounds. He must have done this close to a dozen times, so while he didn’t get credited with the board, he played a part in ensuring his team got possession.
Best player off the bench: Lucas Schlesselman (Williamsburg)
He came off the bench to lead the team in scoring, providing a spark with his shooting ability.
Best passer: J.P. Walz (Spirit Lake)
The 5-10 point guard had five assists, and did a nice job penetrating the defense and dishing to open teammates for shots. He does a nice job keeping his head up while dribbling and finding open spots in the defense to get into and suck the defense in to get his teammates open looks.
Best intangibles: Sam Buch (Williamsburg)
Buch appears to be the vocal leader for the Raiders, and he’s a hustle player who was constantly on the floor and sticking his nose into the paint to pull down rebounds despite being one of the smaller players on the court.
Story to watch moving forward: The development and recruitment of Owen Coburn
It’ll be a frequent occurrence over the next two-and-a-half years, but Coburn played this game in front of four assistants from three different schools (Kirk Speraw, Iowa; P.J. Hogan, Northern Iowa; Jeff Horner and Steve Grabowski, North Dakota). The 6-10 sophomore already holds a pair of Division I offers from Drake and North Dakota, and many more will surely be coming. You could make the argument that he’s significantly ahead of where Ryan Kriener (Iowa) was at this stage in their respective careers. As he continues to develop and refine his offensive skill set, he’ll become a highly sought after recruit.