Posted: 1/2/08
Teamwork pays big dividends for boys; win two straight
 North Branch's Dan Ginal looks to pass during the first half the of the Vikings game against St. Francis at home Dec. 20. Ginal finished the game with eight points. |
By Steve Morris
In the final minute of regulation, Deon Farr found teammate Eric Sampson who scored the easy basket to give the boys their first lead since the opening minutes of the game.
The game concluded with a 44-43 win for the Vikings boys basketball team against Prescott in the first round of Albert Lee Holiday Tournament on Dec. 29.
The boys started the game slow but were soon energized by the defense presence of mind from senior Alex Sundly. The senior came off the bench and took two charges.
"On the offensive end we showed real patience and got a lot of good looks at the basket," head coach Bill Baumann said.
Ryan Norman finished with a team-high 13 points.
The boys kept the momentum going as they won their next game against Albert Lea, 51-42.
The boys pressured Albert Lea's perimeter players, which prevented them from dumping the ball into their taller players.
Danny Ginal led the team with 11 points, while Kirk Dahl added 10.
"We are gradually getting all the pieces back and working them in together ... I'm really pleased the direction we are heading," Baumann said.
Ryan Norman 5-7 0-0 13; Deon Farr 4-5 0-0 9; Kyle Grote 2-4 2-2 8; John Lindstrom 2-5 2-2 8; Eric Sampson 2-4 0-1 4; Kirk 1-7 0-0 2; Dan Ginal 0-5 0-2 0; Mike Dahl 0-3 0-0 0; Totals 16-40 4-7 44.
3-point goals-Prescott 3-7 (Prescott 3-7) , North ßranch 8-26 (Ryan Norman 3-3; Kyle Grote 2-3; John Lindstrom 2-5; Deon Farr 1-1; Dan Ginal 0-5; Kirk 0-6; Mike Dahl 0-3) . Fouled out--Prescott-None, North ßranch-None. Rebounds-Prescott 31 (Prescott 29) , North ßranch 15 (John Lindstrom 4) Assists-Prescott 0 () , North ßranch 14 (Kirk 4) . Total Fouls-Prescott 13, North ßranch .
Prescott 27 16 43
North ßranch 21 23 44
Dan Ginal 4-7 0-0 11; Kirk 3-4 2-4 10; Kyle Grote 2-2 2-2 6; John Lindstrom 2-7 0-1 6; Bryce Hunter 0-2 4-6 4; Ryan Norman 0-5 3-6 3; Deon Farr 1-3 0-0 3; Alex Sundly 0-0 3-4 3; Mike Dahl 1-3 1-1 3; Eric Sampson 0-0 2-4 2; Totals 13-33 17-28 51.
3-point goals-Albert Lea 6-15 (Albert Lea 6-15) , North ßranch 8-24 (Dan Ginal 3-6; John Lindstrom 2-6; Kirk 2-3; Deon Farr 1-3; Ryan Norman 0-5; Mike Dahl 0-1) . Fouled out--Albert Lea-None, North ßranch-None. Rebounds-Albert Lea 27 (Albert Lea 23) , North ßranch 22 (Kirk 5) . Assists-Albert Lea , North ßranch 11 (Kirk Dahl 5) . Total Fouls-Albert Lea 23, North ßranch .
Albert Lea 15 27 42
North ßranch 29 22 51
St. Francis
If games were decided by the team who works the hardest, the North Branch boys basketball team would be undefeated.
Unfortunately, for the Vikings, such is only the case for dreamers.
On Dec. 21, the boys left it all on the court, but lost 65-58 at home. It was the team's 4th straight loss.
In the first stanza, St. Francis and North Branch exchanged blows, as the Vikings wrestled to find an answer for St. Francis' six foot six inch forward Andy Grzesiak-Grimm. At one point, he dunked it on a breakaway as his teammates jumped for joy off their bench.
"This was really an up and down game. St. Francis jumped out to an early lead then we took the lead while they took it back and led by 10 at half," head coach Bill Baumann said.
In the final minutes of the first half, the Fighting Saints had a 10-point edge, at 38-28.
In the second half, the Vikings' defense was stout, as they held St. Francis scoreless for the first eight minutes. As luck would have it, North Branch's offense also stalled and was only able to chip three points off the lead.
"They [St. Francis] then hit some big shots to shoot the lead back out to 17, but we rallied back to cut the margin to five and basically had some momentum on our side but just didn't have enough time," Baumann said.
Sophomore guard Kyle Grote came off the bench and provided the boys with a much needed lift and ended the game with a team-high 18 points.
In the meantime, the hard-nosed, aggressive style of play from senior Eric Sampson earned accolades from Baumann. He said Sampson's play was similar to the style of former NBA rebound champ Dennis Rodman.
Kirk Dahl ended the game with team highs in assists (4) and steals (5).
Regardless of the outcome, the boys may just be a game or two from reaching their potential.
"We moved a little closer to what we want to do and we are gaining more and more experience. We just need to get more consistent and pick up a win or two and we just might take off," Baumann said.
Kyle Grote 6-10 2-2 18; John Lindstrom 3-6 4-5 12; Dan Ginal 2-4 2-2 8; Mike Dahl 2-8 2-2 6; Eric Sampson 3-3 0-2 6; Deon Farr 2-2 0-0 4; Kirk Dahl 1-3 0-0 2; Ryan Norman 0-3 1-2 1; Alex Sundly 0-1 1-2 1; Totals 19-40 12-17 58.
3-point goals-North Branch 8-18 (Kyle Grote 4-4; John Lindstrom 2-4; Dan Ginal 2-4; Ryan Norman 0-2; Kirk Dahl 0-1; Mike Dahl 0-3), St. Francis 8-16 (STF 8-16). Fouled out--North Branch-Eric Sampson, St. Francis-none. Rebounds-North Branch 24 (Kyle Grote 5), St. Francis 23 (STF 13). Assists-North Branch 15 (Kirk Dahl 4), St. Francis 0.
North Branch 28 30 58
St. Francis 38 27 65
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