Top seeded White River looked impressive on Thursday in Aberdeen, defeating Viborg-Hurley 72-57 in the quarterfinal round of the ‘B’ boys basketball tournament. This is the programs 19th straight year qualifying for the state tournament, an impressive stretch for head coach Eldon Marshall.
This year, White River finished the season with a 21-2 record. The Tigers only two losses came to ‘A’ schools – Rapid City Christian and Pine Ridge. White River defeated Oelrichs and Jones County in regional play, and then took down Highmore-Harrold in the SoDak 16 to punch their ticket to the state tournament.
Thursday’s game saw impressive shooting from the Tigers as they went 55% from the field in the quarterfinal contest. Jordan Hulir led the Tigers in scoring with 21-points. He also attributed four boards and two steals in the victory.
“Jordan, we need him. He’s been really playing well in the last month, said coach Marshall. “We need him to step up even more. The next couple opponents are going to be really tough.”
The Tigers defense really played tough in Thursday’s quarterfinal round as well. They forced 22 Cougars turnovers, while turning the ball over just nine times themselves. Efficient play from a lot of different contributors. Nicolas Marshall also scored 20-points and had seven assists for White River too.
“Viborg-Hurley is a great team. I thought we did a better job defensively in the second half. Our rebounding, and we hit a couple shots, kind of just gave us breathing room, extended it, and we were able to care of the ball down the stretch,” explained coach Marshall. “I’ve got to credit our guys, they did a great job defensively. Overall a great team effort.”
White River will advance to the semifinal round where they’ll play No. 5 Howard.
“Playing at night is always the best,” stated Marshall. “We’ve got to be ready to go.”
The Tigers semifinal matchup with Howard will take place at 6 pm CT on Friday night.
