Basketball

By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

Teutopolis coach Chet Reeder said he has challenged Brendan Niebrugge to be more than just a three-point shooter.

And as the season progresses, the junior sharpshooter may accomplish that.

But in the season opener Monday night, it was his shooting from long range that sparked the Wooden Shoes to a big first half lead, en route to an 69-42 victory over Rantoul in the opening game of the St. Anthony Thanksgiving Tournament.

Niebrugge knocked down three shots from behind the arc in the first quarter to help THS build an 18-9 lead. But it was his deadly shooting in the final three minutes of the first half that created the blowout.

The Eagles went on a 7-2 run to trim the gap to 20-16. It was a 24-17 THS lead with 3:17 to play in the first half when Niebrugge took over. He drilled four three-pointers in the final three minutes to spark a 16-1 run to close out the half and send the Shoes to the locker room with a comfortable 40-19 advantage.

“Brendan was on display tonight,” Reeder said. “Plus, the guys understood he had the hot had and got him the ball. There were three or four times, we had a nice drive and then kicked the ball out to Brandon for a good shot. I like seeing that. I’ve been on Brendan to be a multi-dimensional scorer. He can’t just shoot the three, although he shot it real well tonight.”

The Shoes spread the scoring around in the second half. James Niebrugge scored eight points and Kayden Althoff added six, as T-Town maintained a comfortable lead throughout. Rantoul managed to get within 19 points twice, but no closer.

The Teutopolis Lady Shoes are off to a good start in the 20^th annual Lady Wildcat Thanksgiving Tournament in Salem.

They kicked things off with a 71-31 win over Salem and then came back with a 66-28 decision over Highland on Saturday.

Against Salem, T-Town raced to a 21-2 lead after eight minutes and rolled from there. The Lady Shoes led 40-10 at halftime and 56-19 after three quarters.

Emily Konkel paced THS with 15 points, while Izzy Hardiek chipped in with 10 and both Kaitlyn Schumacher and Courtney Gibson had 8. Schumacher also had team-high nine rebounds and four steals.

It was a similar pattern against Highland. The Lady Shoes led 18-9 after the first period, 32-15 at intermission and then used a 22-10 scoring run to open a commanding 54-25 advantage after three quarters.

T-Town had a balanced scoring attack, placing four players in double figures. Schumacher led the way with 16 points, with all of those coming in the second and third periods. Hardiek and Kaylee Niebrugge both scored 13 points and Konkel added 12.

The Lady Shoes are now 3-0 on the young season. They will return to action Saturday with two games in the Salem tournament. They will play at 1:30 p.m. against Carterville and then conclude the tourney with a 5 p.m. game against Centralia.

By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

Most years, getting a win on Senior Night would have been the highlight of the final regular-season game.

And the Teutopolis Wooden Shoes accomplished that with a 54-46 victory at home over Newton.

But there was one more bit of business that needed to be completed Saturday night at J.H. Griffin Gymnasium.

And it didn’t take long.

Like the first offensive possession.

Just 45 seconds into the contest, Evan Wermert hit a short jumper to become the 18th player in the rich Teutopolis basketball tradition to reach the coveted 1,000-point plateau. He came into the game with 999 career points.

“It was nothing out of the ordinary,” THS coach Chet Reeder explained. “We ran his favorite set. We were going to run that play until he scored.”

By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

Laurie Thompson said all the parts are there for the Teutopolis Lady Shoes to have a successful basketball season.

She welcomes back a group that brings experience, size, speed and athleticism.

“We just need to get them all working together,” Thompson said.

The veteran coach is entering her 16^th season at THS. She will reach a coaching milestone early when she notches her 400^th victory. Thompson enters the season with a 397-106 record in her career and got one step closer when the Lady Shoes opened their season with a convincing 61-19 victory over Newton.

And after a year dealing with the COVID pandemic, it was nice to be playing in a gym with fans again.

“Everybody is excited about coming back with more normal conditions,” she admitted. “You never realize exactly what you have until something is taken away.”

Thompson said one of the most difficult things about last year was the lack of goals.

“What goals could you really set?” she questioned. “Go undefeated? Scoring so many points or holding your opponents to a certain number? Trying to win the conference?

“One of our goals every year is to go undefeated in the second season (postseason),” Thompson added. “Unfortunately, we didn’t even have that. It was like an intramural season.”

She said she’s seen a difference in the girls this year.

“There’s a spark,” Thompson noted. “They came in more focused and they’ve been practicing harder. There’s a mindset of wanting to come ready to play every day and making the most of it. I like what I’ve seen so far.”

T-Town only lost one senior from a team that went 15-5 a year ago. But the one player – Lexie Niebrugge – was a good one. She averaged 17 points a game, led the team in steals and was the fourth leading rebounder.

“Overall, those are big shoes to fill,” Thompson admitted. “Lexie was an aggressive player with a high basketball IQ. Our girls are going to need to step up and fill that void.”

Fortunately, she has a nucleus that just might be able to do that.

By Steve Raymond

ET Sports Report

Laurie Thompson knew her team had it in them.

She had been telling them so all season.

Saturday afternoon, the coach, the team, the fans and, yes, the Paris Lady Tigers saw it in action.

The Teutopolis Lady Shoes turned in a five-minute stretch that was dominant. That’s the only word that describes it properly.

They swarmed and caused turnovers at the defensive end.

They pounded the ball inside and made those two-footers at the offensive end.

And they dominated the boards at both ends.

The result was a 17-0 scoring run that turned a close game into a rout of the state’s No. 2-ranked team.

When the final buzzer sounded for the final time this season, the Lady Shoes walked off the court 65-40 winners in what was easily their most impressive performance of the season.

“That was a very good way to end the season,” said Coach Thompson. “Look what defense did for us. Look what happens when you knock down those inside shots. Isn’t that fun? It’s a much happier feeling when you play like that.”

With three minutes to play in the third period, T-Town held a slim 30-27 lead over the Lady Tigers, who entered the game with a 13-1 record and ranked No. 2 in the Class 2A poll. That’s when Thompson applied full-court pressure and the game changed instantly.

Paris turned the ball over five times during the final three minutes of the quarter and the Lady Shoes responded over and over again. Lexie Niebrugge started the big run with a pair of free throws. Kaitlyn Schumacher followed by converting a three-point play after the first of those turnovers by the Lady Tigers.

But that was just the beginning. Kaylee Niebrugge and Emily Konkel turned the next two turnovers into short jumpers and Kaylee Niebrugge put the perfect topping to the end of the third quarter. After yet another miscue by the Lady Tigers, Niebrugge grabbed a rebound and scored right before the buzzer sounded.