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Dec. 30, 1999
Unke scores 18 asMVL routs St. ClairBy PAUL DUNLAP Journal Sports Editor MANKATO -- It was safe to say that the Minnesota Valley Lutheran boys basketball team ran on all cylinders Wednesday night. The Chargers built a 17-point halftime lead, cruising past St. Clair 85-58 in consolation bracket action of the 1999 Bethany Holiday Tournament in Mankato. The MVL defense was staunch as well, forcing 26 Cyclone turnovers in the win. Twelve different players scored for the Chargers. "I was worried about what kind of intensity we'd come out with," MVL coach Craig Morgan said. "The kids came out and played really well. The defensive pressure was there, and our offense was much more patient -- guys shot the ball much better. It was a nice game to coach." Brothers Ben and Brandon Stori gave the Cyclones a quick 6-4 lead to start the game, but Dan Unke and Jesse Pfeifer combined for 12 of the next 14 points, including Unke's tip-in and fast break bucket that pushed the Charger advantage to 16-8. "We needed a Dan Unke game tonight," Morgan said of his junior forward, who had 14 points and seven rebounds by halftime. "He's allowed other players to step up and contribute for us, but tonight he found the openings and created some things." A Chris Freitag three-point play and bucket plus Ben Stori's jumper would get St. Clair to within 20-15, but Danny Liggett's 3-pointer with 3:45 left in the half signalled the beginning of the end for the Cyclones. Justin Ohm and Tom Metzger's baskets off of turnovers pushed the MVL edge to 31-17, and the Chargers would end the half on a 5-1 run, courtesy of a Pfeifer bucket off an Unke steal and another Unke jumper, this one off the window. The scoreboard at the break read 39-22 MVL. "We didn't want halftime to even be there ... we wanted to keep going," Morgan said. "We talked about keeping up the intensity and quit taking bad fouls. Keep things going, and let the clock run." A 6-0 run midway through the third pushed the Charger advantage to 49-27, and two separate 7-0 spurts toward the end of the frame, punctuated by 3-pointers from Justin Ohm and Jay Wendland, upped the advantage to 65-37. Unke scored just four points in the second half, but as a team MVL put 28 points on the board in the third quarter alone. Morgan emptied his bench in the fourth, and everyone contributed. Brandon Stori would hit a pair of 3s to open the final frame, and a Matt Hennek trey two minutes in brought the lead back down to 70-52. Jeremiah Kramer then ignited his team with a short jumper, and his 4-for-4 performance from the charity stripe put MVL back in command. Jason Lohmiller hit a pair of buckets for an 82-56 lead, and Bryant Polzin, Danny Bendix and John Enter got into the act with points of their own in the final minute. All in all, reserves scored all 18 Charger points in the fourth. "It was a nice opportunity for us to get these guys in the game," Morgan said. "I was really pleased with some of the guys at the end (of the game). They ran the stuff, they were patient, and it was a good feeling. Everything clicked for us." Unke finished the game with 18 points and eight boards. Pfeifer added 12 points and six rebounds, and Wendland contributed with 10 points including a pair of 3-pointers. Jamie Will led the St. Clair attack with 18 as well. The Chargers (4-2) will participate in the consolation championship game tonight at 6:30 p.m. against Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial. MVL 16 23 28 18--85 ST. CLAIR 11 11 17 19--58 MVL (85): Unke 18, Pfeifer 12, Wendland 10, Beilke 8, Ohm 7, Metzger 6, Kramer 6, Liggett 5, Mielke 5, Lohmiller 4, Polzin 2, Enter 1, Bendix 1. ST. CLAIR (58): Will 18, Br.Stori 16, Freitag 11, Be.Stori 10, Hennek 3.
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