MVL improves as Unke returns from injuries

NEW ULM -- He's back!

MVL's Dan Unke, who had been slowed down by a staph infection in his bersa sac and then had to battle a bout of mononucleosis, is getting healthier.

Evidence of that is his 16 points in the Chargers' 16-point win over Springfield Tuesday night.

"Dan got a lot of his points on assists from Jesse Pfeifer," commented Charger head coach Craig Morgan. "Jesse kicked the ball out to Dan and he had an open shot; Jesse say Dan really well. But it is nice to have Dan back healthy. He is feeling much better and getting better every game."

Getting Unke back makes a good MVL team even better. This season, the Chargers have had to do without the senior early in the season. That has forced other players on the team to take up the scoring slack from Pfeifer to Danny Liggett (who had 12 points in the win) to Tom Metzger to Justin Ohm.

"We have had players early in the year step up and have had three players get into double figures," Morgan said.

He also was happy with the adjustment that his team made at halftime in the win Tuesday night.

"They are noticing things as we are playing, and making the adjustment and showing composure on the floor. We didn't hit our first five shots; we even missed our putbacks. I was really pleased with the guys that they didn't lose their composure. They never lost confidence and they kept shooting."

"Our full-court press was pretty ineffective Tuesday night so we made the adjustment to pull back into halfcourt and the kids tightened up the defense. They were penetrating well in the first half and we made that adjustment to stop it."

Morgan believes the team is starting to jell. "It is tough because there are so many kids who can play with players back from last year and players coming up from (a 22-0) "B" squad. We didn't lose too many players and it is tough to pick a starting five because at times they can be all pretty equal. They all come with something that they can do and you have to put the right players on the court. It is a good unselfish group of players."

SLOW START DOOMS EAGLES: When a team goes on the road the one thing it cannot allow to happen is a slow start.

But that is what happened to the New Ulm Eagles Tuesday night at Blue Earth Area. The Eagles, who entered the game riding a two-game winning streak, came out sluggish in a 65-48 loss to the Bucs.

"It was unbelievable because the things that we had been doing well, we did not do well," said head coach Pat Burmeister. "We had breakdowns on defense and gave them some open three-point shots toward the end of the first quarter. And on offense, we did not execute very well. We had been moving the ball and getting open shots and Tuesday night, we did not do that. We took one pass and shot the ball or we passed the ball and held it and did not get good shots."

"Playing good defense leads to good offense and and if you execute on offense and make a basket it will pick up your defense. But we were flat on both ends of the court. That slow start dug us a deep hole."

Burmeister said the team played with more intensity in the second half. "We were more aggressive on defense and we moved the ball on offense better. It was nice to see that we came out hard in the third quarter and I think that we can build on that."

Burmeister was happy with the play of sophomore guard Bob Wellmann, who poured in 16 points. "He played well and has improved his play. He has been shooting the ball well and is a competitor. He plays hard on defense and does a nice job for a sophomore."

Burmeister said that Wellmann "will speak up and tell people when they are not doing things right or if they are not playing hard. That is made for him and we need that leadership on the court."

The Eagles host St. Peter tonight in a South Central Conference game that New Ulm can win. "They are not that big but they are a more aggressive, smaller team that likes to drive the ball to the basket. We have to make sure that we do the things that we want to do."

HOUNDS EARN HUGE CONFERENCE WIN: Cathedral head basketball coach Dan Wolfe said his team's 55-41 win over GFW was a big victory.

"Both teams came in with identical 3-2 Tomahawk Conference records. It was kind of an early game in the year that will send one up in the standings and the other team down," he said. "Toward the end of the year, that can make a difference.

"We have been able to put together two games (against Cedar Mountain and GFW) against teams that had winning records." said Wolfe. "We started out one game below .500 and now we are one game above .500 so hopefully, that can lead to confidence."

One of the reasons that Cathedral captured the win was the play of their defense.

"We held GFW to a total of 12 points for 16 minutes. And the player that keys that defense is Brandon Reinarts. His intensity on the floor and the pressure that he puts on the basketball are things that do not show up in the box score. But his intensity take a toll on our opponents. He is so active defensively and really sparks our team."

GUARDS PLAY WELL: Senior guards Will Moeller and Joey Schugel again played well in the win with Moeller scoring 25 points in his second straight game and Schugel tossing in 17.

"Right now, both Will and Joey are shooting close to 50 percent from the field," said Wolfe. "Early in the season, neither of them were shooting that kind of percentage. They are being more aggressive attacking the basket and that has paid benefits for both of those players. Will has done a nice job scoring for us but he has also played a clean floor game (from the point guard spot). He did not have a turnover and that is just about as important as the scoring."

Wolfe added that the Hounds "also had good play off the bench from Billy Schreiber (six rebounds) and Jacob Mertz who got a big steal and a layup. Brandon Goblirsch had to step into the starting line-up because Dave Groebner is out with a sprained ankle. Those three, along with senior Nate Osborne who knocked down two jump shots in the first half, really jump-started our team in that second quarter."

MARK THE DATE: It is only five days away when the best basketball rivalry around renews itself. MVL travels to Cathedral in boy's basketball this Tuesday. If you are not there by 6:30, you may not get a seat. It is one heck of a rivalry.

This column was written by Journal Sports Writer Jim Bastian.