Nevis backed up its No. 3 ranking in the state Class A boys basketball poll by splitting games against two other rated teams at the Granite City Classic on Dec. 27-28.
The Tigers lost to No. 2 Dawson-Boyd 67-62 at St. John’s University on Dec. 27 and rebounded for a 77-62 win over No. 7 Heritage Christian Academy at St. Cloud State University on Dec. 28.
Nevis will enter 2025 with a 4-1 record. Dawson-Boyd improved to 6-1 while Heritage Christian Academy fell to 6-3.
COLLEGEVILLE – Isaac Bessler hit five 3-pointers and scored 22 points and Alex Lester followed with 19 points in the Tigers’ loss to Dawson-Boyd.
Isaac Bessler and Lester hauled down six rebounds each while AJ Bessler had five rebounds. Devan Lindow dished out nine assists with Isaac Bessler and Payton Benson having three assists each. Isaac Bessler led the Tigers with two steals.
Brayson Boike (20), Gunner Liebl (17) and Jaxton Hastad (15) scored in double figures for the Blackjacks, who made nine 3-pointers.
“In a game between two of the top teams in Class A, both teams matched up pretty well against each other. Both teams have quality post players as well as very good guard play. The game played out that way as after D-B took an early lead, we were able to even it up and the game never got beyond a 5-point lead after that,” said Nevis head coach Scott Kramer. “We were able to take leads late in the game, but they always answered and basically just made a few more plays than us to get the win. On the one hand, it was nice for us to know that we can compete with the top tier teams with some new faces in the rotation. On the other hand, there are some things that we need to work on that will help us as we move forward.”
NEVIS: I. Bessler 22, Lester 19, Benson 5, Buckholtz 5, AJ Bessler 7, Lindow 2, Kramer 2.
DAWSON-BOYD: Boike 20, Liebl 17, Hastad 15, Stratmoen 8, Hjelmeland 7.
Halftime: Dawson-Boyd 33, Nevis 30. Three-pointers: I. Bessler 5, Benson 1, Buckholtz 1, AJ Bessler 1, Liebl 3, Stratmoen 2, Boike 2, Hjelmeland 1, Hastad 1.
ST. CLOUD – Lester led the Tigers with 23 points and Isaac Bessler hit four 3-pointers and scored 21 points as the Tigers defeated HCA at St. Cloud State University.
AJ Bessler chipped in 12 of his 16 points in the second half and grabbed eight rebounds while Lindow just missed a triple-double with 11 assists and 10 rebounds to go along with 7 points. Lester hauled down nine rebounds and had three assists and two steals while Isaac Bessler had four assists.
Leading HCA were Joshua Sokeye (14), Aaron Palmer (12) and Owen Haag (11), who combined to score 37 points.
“This was a very important game for us as we were hoping to rebound from a tough loss the day before against Dawson-Boyd. We had to be ready to play as Heritage is a full-court pressing team with quick guards. I thought we played really well at times, and between Lester in the paint and Isaac Bessler from the perimeter, we were able to build on our 4-point halftime lead to put it away down the stretch,” said Kramer. “Even though we turned the ball over way too many times against their press, our defense was solid. I was really happy with the way our guys came back to play on Day 2 of the tourney on short rest and the fact that we are not as deep off the bench as in the past and that a few of our guys were battling illness. It was a quality win against a state tournament team from last year who will have a chance to get back there themselves.”
NEVIS: Lindow 7, I. Bessler 21, Benson 5, Buckholtz 5, Lester 23, AJ Bessler 16.
HERITAGE CHRISTIAN ACADEMY: Sokeye 14, Moulton 8, Haag 11, Synstelien 3, Palmer 12, Booms 9, Tarawallie 5.
Halftime: Nevis 38, HCA 34. Three-pointers: I. Bessler 4, Benson 1, Sockeye 2, Moulton 1, Haag 3, Synstelien 1, Booms 1. Team fouls: Nevis 10, HCA 20. Fouled out: Booms.
1982 Dawson-Boyd High School graduate
1987 Moorhead State University graduate
Sports reporter for Park Rapids Enterprise since 1987