Wolverines blitz Paton-Churdan early for district title

PANORA — Power forward Nathan Andrews had a simple explanation for Nodaway Valley’s dominance of 20-4 Paton-Churdan here Thursday night, 66-48, for the Class 1A District 13 championship,

“We just do what we do,” said Andrews, who had a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds as Nodaway Valley improved to 18-6.

That formula Thursday included the usual dose of 3-point marksmanship (12 made triples) and harassing fullcourt pressure defense that rushes and rattles an opponent. Paton-Churdan had 17 turnovers to Nodaway Valley’s 11.

“I just think we struggled with rhythm a little bit tonight,” said Paton-Churdan coach Chris Stimson. “You can’t get into a track meet with those guys. Nodaway Valley is the real deal. We knew we had our hands full tonight. They don’t get rattled, and they were really shooting it tonight.”

The Wolverines raced to a 23-9 lead before the first quarter ended with a 23-15 margin. At halftime, Nodaway Valley already had nine 3-pointers — five by Jackson Lamb — in taking a 39-21 lead.

Lamb had 17 points at halftime and finished with a game-high 30. He also contributed a team-high six steals, seven rebounds, five assists and two blocked shots.

Nate Venteicher made three triples, point guard David Schweitzer added two and Andrews had one. The Rockets opened in a 1-2-2 defense with big 6-4 center Noah Juergensen located at the top to bother the perimeter, but all that did was create opportunities for Venteicher and Andrews in the corners.

“I’ve been practicing that corner shot for a long time,” Venteicher said.

Two schools with different types of postseason traditions will meet Saturday in Atlantic at the substate level. Fremont-Mills (20-5) got past Sidney Thursday, 67-62, with an 11-0 fourth-quarter spurt for the right to take on the Wolverines.

Fremont-Mills will be seeking its first ever state tournament appearance.

Nodaway Valley, on the other hand, is at the substate level for the ninth time in the past 10 years, and is seeking a sixth trip to state. Andrews said the consistency is linked to the steady, hard-working approach of veteran coach Darrell Burmeister.

“We put in so much work,” Andrews said. “Coach B never changes his routine. Me and Jackson were going through his cabinets at school and we saw practice sheets from 2006 and it’s the same thing we’re doing! We just work at it and never give up.”

Burmeister has labeled this team his “blue collar boys” and says their improvement from last summer is unprecedented in the program’s proud tradition.

“We weren’t very good last summer, and they know that,” Burmeister said. “This team has come further than any team I’ve had. We would have taken an 11-10 regular season record at the time.”

It all starts with Lamb, the all-state candidate on the perimeter averaging 25.1 points and shooting nearly 40 percent from behind the arc. Venteicher is another shooting threat and has height to bother opposing guards in Burmeister’s presses.

Schweitzer is playing under control on both ends now, Burmester said, and adds another shooting threat if teams give Lamb extra attention. Andrews has become a double-double machine and Tanner Armstrong is a strong presence in the post.

“Tanner Armstrong has stopped a lot of good post players and doesn’t always get a lot of credit for it,” Burmeister said. “He’s a strong kid.”

Sam Marnin has been the steady sixth man for the Wolverines and adds athleticism to the defense as well as the Wolverine transition offense.

“We kept them out of their rhythm with a couple different presses tonight,” Burmeister said. “We wanted to speed them up a little bit. They were rushing the ball, I thought.”

“They had a good record, but they haven’t see the intensity that we bring,” Venteicher said. “They probably don’t see a press like ours. We wanted to speed that team up. I can’t wait until Saturday!”

PATON-CHURDAN (48) — Jake Carey 7 0-2 16, Noah Juergensen 6 3-3 15, Colton Fitzpatrick 4 0-0 10, Joe Tower 1 0-0 3, Jake Berns 1 0-0 2, Dylan Burgart 1 0-2 2. Totals — 20 3-8 48. 3-point goals — 5 (Carey 2, Fitzpatrick 2, Tower 1). Turnovers — 17. Team fouls — 17. Fouled out — None.

NODAWAY VALLEY (66) — Jackson Lamb 8 8-13 30, Nathan Andrews 5 2-2 13, Nate Venteicher 3 0-0 9, Tanner Armstrong 3 0-1 6, David Schweitzer 2 0-0 6, Sam Marnin 1 0-0 2. Totals — 22 10-16 66. 3-point goals — 12 (Lamb 6, Venteicher 3, Schweitzer 2, Andrews 1). FG shooting — 22-42 (52.4 percent). Rebounds — 25 (Andrews 10, Lamb 7, Armstrong 3). Assists — 16 (Lamb 5, Andrews 4, Venteicher 3, Schweitzer 3). Steals — 10 (Lamb 6, Andrews 2). Blocked shots — 5 (Lamb 2, Andrews 2). Turnovers — 11. Team fouls — 12. Fouled out — None.

P-C — 15 21 34 48

NV — 23 39 57 66