Kari Gibb/MDN South Prairie-Max junior Drew Roedocker (11) shoots over Turtle Mountain senior Sheldon Williams (23) in quarterfinal action

Quarterfinal action at the Minot State Dome for the 2024 NDHSAA Division A, Region 3 Boys Basketball Tournament narrowed the field from eight teams to four by the end of the evening. There were no upsets as each of the higher seeded teams made it past the quarterfinals into the semis.

No. 1 Stanley 57, No. 9 New Town 34

The Stanley Blue Jays boys basketball team started the Division A Region 3 basketball tournament with a win despite a slow start over New Town, defeating the Eagles 57-34.

After the Blue Jays hit an early three point shot, neither team was able to get into the scoring column for over half the first quarter. With the score 3-0 at the 3:15 mark, Stanley finally found their rhythm and began to hit shots on the way to a 13-2 lead after one quarter and 26-11 lead at the half.

Stanley had seven players scoring with senior Josh Hetzel and junior Bennett Larson each putting in 14 points while senior Tristen Barstad added 13 points. The Blue Jays were 24-56 from the field, 8-22 from three point range and 1-4 free throw shooting.

New Town had six players score with sophomore Lawrence Marshall at a team high 11 points while fellow sophomore CJ Freeman added nine points. The Eagles were 15-52 from the field, 3-13 from three point range and 1-2 from the free throw line.

The biggest difference in the game was the rebounding by a slightly taller Stanley team at 46-25 with 29 of those boards on the defensive end of the court.

Stanley will face South Prairie-Max next in the semifinal round.

No. 4 South Prairie-Max 51, No. 5 Turtle Mountain 44

In a game that the Turtle Mountain boys basketball team led nearly the entire way, it went down to the final possession before the outcome was determined. In the end, patience and persistence paid off for South Prairie-Max for the 51-44 win

Both South Prairie-Max and Turtle Mountain had to deal with a press defense, turnovers and steals without a break in action.

The Braves had built an 11-5 lead to end the first quarter and held onto a 25-24 lead going into halftime.

The back and forth battle continued to the end of the third quarter where the Braves still held a 37-34 lead. At the 2:01 mark of the fourth quarter, Royals senior Josh Groniger hit a fast break layup to give the Royals a 46-44 lead they would not relinquish.

South Prairie-Max had five players score in the game. Senior Cameron Sys led all scoring with 19 points and 17 rebounds while Groniger added 13 and fellow senior Conner Johnson had nine points. The Royals were 16-44 from the field, 3-11 from the three point line and 16-22 free throws.

Turtle Mountain had seven players score. Senior Gunnar Zerr had 13 points and seven rebounds while freshman Nehemiah Poira had eight points and sophomore William Breland added seven points. The Braves were 19-59 from the field, 3-22 from three point range and 3-6 from the free throw line.

The Royals had nine blocked shots and outrebounded the Braves 42-32 with the defensive rebounds being the difference.

South Prairie-Max will face Stanley in the semifinal round.

No. 2 Des Lacs-Burlington 72, No. 7 Nedrose 28

The Nedrose Cardinals boys basketball team could hardly buy a shot in the first half of the game with Des Lacs-Burlington and the Lakers couldn’t miss a shot. By the end of the first quarter, the Lakers led 28-3 and at halftime the score was 48-17 for Des Lacs-Burlington.

The third quarter was more competitive although Nedrose was unable to gain traction. In the end, the Lakers couldn’t miss a shot and won the game 72-28.

Des Lacs-Burlington had nine players score. Senior Braylon Fisher led all with 20 points, juniors Jake Schaefer added 15 points while Jace Crockett had 11 points and five rebounds. The Lakers were 28-51 from the field, 8-15 from three point range and 8-11 from the free throw line.

Nedrose had six players score. Senior Jodey Myers had 13 points while sophomore Derek Heinert added four points and ten rebounds. Senior Keaton Cole, sophomore Kaleb Eggen and Junior Brayden Heigh each added three points. The Cardinal were 10-44 from the field, 2-19 from three point range and 6-11 from the free throw line.

Besides the shooting percentages, the Lakers also had fewer turnovers in the game.

Des Lacs-Burlington will face Bottineau in semifinal action next.

No. 3 Bottineau 46, No. 6 Rugby 42

In a tightly contested quarterfinal, the Bottineau Braves boys basketball team survived against the Rugby Panthers 46-42 to advance to the semifinals.

The Braves led nearly the entire game, but not assuredly so. The first quarter ended 13-11 and it was 24-21 at the half.

In the evenly matched game, the third quarter carried on the way the contest started. By the time the final quarter was ready to start, Bottineau held a 38-34 lead that would be cut to 40-39 with just over a minute to play. In the end, time would run out before Rugby would have a chance to close the gap.

Bottineau had six players score. Senior Carson Hearer had 16 points while freshman Emmerson Marum added 15 points. Both players had three rebounds each. Junior Bud Wilke gathered in ten boards for the Braves. Bottineau was 15-56 from the field, 8-30 from three point land and 8-14 from the free throw line.

Rugby had five players score. Junior Tucker Volk had 16 points and freshman Jove Risovi added nine points and five rebounds. Senior Rylan Hildenbrand had ten rebounds on the night as well as six points. Fellow senior Conner Klein added six points and five rebounds as well. The Panthers were 15-47 from the field, 5-16 from three point range and 7-10 from the free throw line.

Rugby led in all statistical categories but one; turnovers. The press defense by the Braves had the Panthers turnover the ball 20 times compared to 13 for the Braves. In the narrowly contested matchup, that was enough for the win and Bottineau to advance to play Des Lacs-Burlington in the semifinal round.