1 day Ago By Blake Durham
MITCHELL — If someone told Mitchell High School girls basketball coach Dave Brooks his team would start 8-2 at the start of the season, he’d take it without hesitation. It’s exactly where the Kernels find themselves with 10 games left in the regular season. ADVERTISEMENT Mitchell is sitting fifth in the Class AA seed-point standings as one of five teams in the class to accumulate at least eight victories to open the year, highlighted by a marquee win over Rapid City Stevens on Dec.
20, and a comeback victory over last year’s top seed at the Class A state tournament Sisseton on Dec. 30. Looking at the schedule, which is currently the seventh-most difficult so far in Class AA, the Kernels are ready to accomplish more.
“We’re happy with where we are at,” Brooks said. “I think the kids won the game that they could have won and 8-2 is a nice start halfway through the season. We look back on it and we still think we can get better.
” With games against the top of Class AA coming up in the second half of the season, here’s what has powered Mitchell’s success: Mitchell’s transition offense has been the focal point for a multitude of reasons, mainly to use the players’ speed and athleticism on the floor. However, the quicker tempo creates less margin for error when going up against imposing players on the opposition, especially trying to work the ball inside near the rim. Finding open space to get the ball to becomes paramount, which comes down to everyone’s awareness and positioning to create chances to score.
ADVERTISEMENT “We really understand the game well,” junior guard Addie Siemsen said. “It also helped us last year. We really knew how to win a lot of games and that translated to this year.
We knew when to hold the ball, look to score and understand what we’re supposed to do at the moment.” Brooks said it comes down to the players maintaining a strong chemistry from the previous years while integrating new players into the team. There’s also a level of balance on the roster where every player is not afraid to try and find someone open who has a better look to score points.
Mitchell averages 10.1 assists per game, and all members of the Kernels’ starting five have recorded at least 10 assists this season. Carsyn Weich leads the team with 24 assists, followed closely by Lauren Van Overschelde (21) and Siemsen (19) on the roster.
Using their experience from previous situations, the players know that one person on the team isn’t going to carry the Kernels, and others will have to step up in order to battle for victories. Knowing where to go with the ball furthers Mitchell’s ultimate bottom line. “The kids are sharing the ball to find the open girl, and that’s what we need to do,” Brooks said.
“We don’t have that size to pound it inside. I don’t think they really care who scores whatever points as long as we can do Kernel Jacks in the locker room after the game.” Mitchell’s goal every game is to score at least 50 points, which Brooks feels puts the Kernels in the best position to win.
ADVERTISEMENT So far, Mitchell is 8-0 when the team has scored at least 50 points, with the Kernels’ shooting prowess on display in most of those eight wins. Averaging close to 50 shots per game and shooting 37.5% from the field, the players have built confidence in pulling up to take a shot as the season has progressed.
“Our team has a lot of confidence,” Weich said. “We’ve all had to step into new positions on the team and with the past few games, we’ve learned what we can do and our confidence has grown through that.” Mitchell’s strength in shooting reached the next level in the game against Eastern South Dakota Conference rival Brookings, where the Kernels went 14-of-25 from the 3-point line en route to a 56-28 victory.
While the game was an anomaly, as the Kernels were only 4-of-21 inside the arc against the Bobcats, it also proved the extra hours spent shooting around were worthwhile. “The kids are putting a lot more time in than what’s in practice,” Brooks said. “On weekends, you’ll find them shooting around, and that’s what it takes.
We always say, ‘A shooter’s not born. You have to make yourself into a shooter.’ When you see the ball go in the hole, you’ll get confidence.
” It also helps the team get going in the scoring department, with the Kernels averaging 52.6 points per game offensively following a season-opening loss to reigning Class A champion Vermillion on Dec. 13, where they only scored 24 points.
The players also attribute working on drills in practice where a shot’s expected to be taken has also helped build a consistent shooting motion. “We do a lot of shooting drills that show real game speed,” Weich said. “We do a lot of the brief parts of our plays that focus primarily on the shooting.
It comes into play when we get into the games and it really helps benefit our team.” ADVERTISEMENT Not lost on the Kernels is the work on the defensive side of the ball, which has seen a shift in philosophy where the team’s patented modified zone look has yielded to a man defense to show off the players’ athleticism and the ability to make a play on the ball. Finding success in the full court with the style, also utilizing the press effectively, Mitchell has only allowed 39.
7 points per game, the third-best mark in Class AA, and has the fifth-best average point differential at plus-10.2. Always an emphasis in practice, using their knowledge from the shell drill where they force opponents to stay around the perimeter, Brooks knows strong defense where the players get energized can translate on the offensive end, with the rest of the game becoming in sync.
“If we get juiced up from playing defense, our offense seems to get in lockstep with that,” Brooks said. “That’s where we are going to really continue to work hard in practice for sure.” With CeCe Morgan listed at 6-foot-2, and as the only Kernel taller than six feet, Mitchell’s focus is flooding the post to try and get rebounds, along with bringing in help to form double teams underneath.
At the same time, the players know not to force the issue to create takeaways. “All of us need to be relaxed and not try to force a lot of stuff and just play our own game,” Siemsen said. “We can’t let the other team affect the way we play.
” Mitchell opens the second half of the season with a road contest against Sioux Falls Roosevelt on Tuesday, Jan. 28. ADVERTISEMENT.
