Sibley East

routs NUHS

By BOB VARMETTE

Journal Sports Writer

NEW ULM -- The two teams couldn't have played more differently. The Sibley East Wolverines likely played one of their best games of the season; the New Ulm High Eagles might have played one of their worst.

The result -- a big win for the Wolverines. Sibley East went on a 14-2 run after New Ulm High scored the first points of the game and cruised to a 65-30 win Saturday night in girls nonconference basketball.

"We haven't that many games where we shot that well and did that many things on offense right," Sibley East coach Steve Schmitz said. "Things just went well for us tonight."

As simple as that summation of the Wolverines was New Ulm High coach Paul Meyer's summation of his Eagles' play.

"That was about as bad a first half as you could play," Meyer said. "We had absolutely no intensity. The most disappointing thing was our communication on defense."

Sibley East (6-4) took advantage. They put on an offensive clinic in the first half, outscoring New Ulm (3-8) 42-14.

The Wolverines shot 67 percent from the field in the first two quarters.

Jenny Bjorklund and Diana Martens led Sibley East with 17 points each. Tiffany Drill led New Ulm High with eight points.

It was a good night for Sibley East on the boards, too. The taller Wolverines -- with 6-foot sophomore Astyn Bjorklund and 6-foot-3 sophomore Jenny Bjorklund -- dominated the glass.

Sibley East outrebounded the Eagles 35-21 for the game and grabbed 12 offensive rebounds. The Wolverines likely would have had more, but they just shot too well.

"I'm happy with the way the offense was going," Schmitz said. "We've had stretches this year where we don't get the ball movement that we like. Then we take shots and they don't always go in. Tonight, we were getting open looks after ball movement."

Junior guard Amanda Paa put the Eagles up 2-0 on their first possession with a jumper from just inside the arc. It appeared the Eagles were ready to go.

Appearances can be deceiving.

Martens answered with a 3 on the ensuing possession to give the Wolverines a 3-2 lead they would never surrender. Martens went 3-for-4 from the field in the opening eight minutes and had 12 points at halftime.

Sibley East also got production inside. The Bjorklund cousins combined for nine points in the first quarter, both hitting their first two shots from the field.

The Wolverines were off and running and gunning. The Wolverines put it up from inside and outside. For them, the basket seemed to be a vacuum cleaner.

With 6:36 to play in the first half, the Wolverines led 27-8. Sibley East expanded its margin to 28 at half and pushed its lead into the 30s in the third quarter.

Jenny Bjorklund hit all three of her shots in the quarter. She finished the game 8-for-10 from the field

The Wolverines held their biggest lead at 63-27 in the final quarter.

"People were getting shots, open looks after maybe five or six quick passes," Schmitz said. "We're just very happy. Everything kind of fell into place."

Everything kind of fell apart for the Eagles. New Ulm High's shooting was as suspect as its defense.

The Eagles shot only 12-for-45 (26.7 percent) from the field and committed 20 turnovers. While the Eagles slowed down the Wolverines' offense in the final two quarters, they could do nothing to kickstart their own offense.

New Ulm High made three field goals in each of the four quarters. The first quarter was the worst -- the Eagles were a dismal 3-for-17 (17.6 percent) from the field.

"When you look at what we did in the first half here and when you compare it with what we did Thursday night against St. Peter, it's like two different teams," Meyer said. "That was a very disappointing first half."

Sibley East will travel to Mankato Loyola Tuesday for a Minnesota River Conference game. New Ulm High will host Waseca in a South Central Conference matchup Thursday.