The Daily Standard
Story Archive
New Knoxville's Connor Hoge (15) is defended by New Bremen's Owen Rindler (21) and Jaylen Powell.
NEW BREMEN - New Knoxville got gradually better at attacking New Bremen's defense as Friday's game progressed.
But Gavin Dicke was in attack mode from the beginning.
The sophomore had 10 of his game-high 21 points in the first quarter, leading Bremen to an early cushion that they didn't relinquish in a 48-37 victory in Midwest Athletic Conference action.
"It's great to see him step up tonight as a sophomore," New Bremen coach Cory Stephens said. "Yes, the points are good, but what he does with his defense and rebounding and talking to the other guys, I think that's huge."
The Cardinals improve to 6-4 overall and 1-2 in MAC play. The Rangers fell to 3-5 and 0-2.
New Bremen led 15-6 after one quarter, 30-14 at halftime, and the game never got closer than 11 points in the second half.
"There are different ways to attack a 2-3 zone," Knoxville coach and Bremen alum Carson Manger said. "I think when we were aggressive, we did things really well. We attacked the rim and finished and played inside-out like we want them to do.
"I think it starts with our energy and our desire," he added. "If we have both of those things, things look really good. If we lack them, we struggle."
Knoxville struggled early offensively as Bremen mixed half-court pressure with zone. The Rangers had only 13 shot attempts in the first half. The Cardinals had 25.
New Knoxville's Preston Rutschilling (5) goes out to defend the shot of New Bremen's Gavin Dicke.
Dicke's night started with a couple of layups off Ranger turnovers. He also had a couple of 3-pointers on his way to 12 first-half points. Jaylen Powell scored six of his eight points in the second quarter for Bremen. The score was 26-8 before Preston Rutschilling knocked down a pair of 3-pointers to end the half.
Knoxville trimmed its 16-point halftime margin to 11 before one minute went by in the third quarter thanks to a hoop by Jay Schroeder and another triple by Rutschilling. But Dicke added six to his point total in quarter three, and the Cardinals kept a double-digit lead for the entire second half.
"It's a MAC game and every MAC game is tough no matter who it is," Stephens said. "We've got to match energy. That's something we talked about after this one. Knoxville came out in the third quarter and they were very energetic. They went on a run because their defensive intensity picked up, and we were lackadaisical."
Dicke finished 9-of-15 shooting to lead Bremen in scoring.
"He's just a solid, all-around player," Manger said. "He can shoot. He can drive. He's a good facilitator. He's got good court vision. Guys like that are tough to guard."
Rutschilling scored a team-high 14 for the Rangers. Parker Jones added eight points and seven rebounds.
New Bremen's James Nelson (5) shoots over New Knoxville's Solly Stiles.
