BY JIM MISUNAS
jmisunas@gbtribune.com
KINGMAN — Great Bend basketball coach Kyle Kriegh learned his lesson well.
The Panthers were happy when longtime Haven basketball coach Lonnie Paramore left to coach at Halstead after recording 423 high school wins.
One year after getting shackled by Haven's 1-3-1 zone defense in a 53-41 loss, the Panthers created a fast tempo with an aggressive defensive game plan that keyed a dominating 78-44 rout over the Wildcats in Thursday's Kingman Basketball Classic.
The Panthers' trapping defense and quick transition game led to 12 of 15 shooting and a 30-11 lead after one quarter. By halftime, Great Bend led 47-24. The Panthers shot 72% inside the 3-point stripe (23 of 32).
"We didn't take them lightly," Kriegh said. "It was nice to see our guys play like that."
As usual, all-stater Ian Premer set the offensive tone with four slam dunks and 29 points off 12 of 14 shooting. Haven's fouling strategy was effective when Premer converted 4 of 10 foul shots. Premer scored 15 first-quarter points.
Kid brother Alec Premer continues to stand tall next to his 6-6 brother with 10 points and 4-of-5 shooting. Point guard Daxton Minton continued his recent hot streak with solid ballhandling and 11 points off a perfect shooting night.
"Alec has to pave his own way," Kriegh said. "He plays more athletic every day."
A slow tempo was the Panthers' Kryptonite twice last year. Hesston shocked the Panthers 53-41 in a similar low possession game.
The Panthers defense delivered two signature plays. Jumping jack Cooper Ohnmacht soared into the air to reject a 3-point attempt by Zade Turner. Defensive standout Minton coaxed Haven's pesky Daelon Mahaney into a charging foul.
The Panthers' defense shut out Haven's Brogan Wray after he converted four 3-pointers for a 13-point first half.
Great Bend's bench produced 21 points with an effective attacking style.
Defending 2A state champion Sterling (4-0) matches up perfectly with the No. 3 ranked 5A Panthers (4-0) in Saturday's championship showdown. Sterling is keyed by 6-6 Boston Ekart and feisty point guard Blake Smith, virtually assuring a high-tempo matchup. The Minton versus Smith matchup at point guard is worth the price of admission.
"We have a ton of respect for Sterling, and we'll have our work cut out for us," Kriegh.
Haven 11 13 12 8 — 44
Great Bend 30 17 21 10 — 78
HAVEN (FG/3/FT/TP)—Wray (4-5) 1-2 13; Martin 3-8 (1-5) 1-2 8; Jacques 2-6 (1-4) 1-3 6; Turner 3-8 (0-2) 0-2 6; Altvater 2-4 (0-1) 1-3 5; Brawner 0-0 4-4 4; Mahaney 0-0 2-4 2; Bontrager 0-4 0-0 0; Boice 0-1 0-0 0; Totals 14-36 (6-17) 10-20 44
GREAT BEND (FG/3/FT/TP)—Ian Premer 12-14 (1-2) 4-10 29; Minton 3-3 5-5 11; Alec Premer 4-5 (1-2) 1-2 10; Jacob Hall 3-8 (0-1) 3-4 9; Ohnmacht 2-3 (0-1) 1-2 5; Unruh 2-2 (1-1) 0-0 5; Stroup 1-2 (1-1) 0-0 3; Brown 1-2 (1-1) 0-0 3; Mazouch 1-1 0-0 2; Wondra 0-1 1-2 1; Prilling 0-1 0-0 0; Totals 29-42 (5-9) 15-25 78
KINGMAN BOYS CLASSIC—1ST—Sterling 74, Great Bend 62; 3RD—Meade 65, Haven 54; 5TH—Clearwater 55, Kingman 49; SECOND ROUND—Great Bend 78, Haven 44; Sterling 76, Kingman 34; FIRST ROUND—Great Bend 77, Clearwater 37; Meade 57, Kingman 35; Sterling 73, Meade 44; Haven 48, Clearwater 34;
