De Smet Jesuit Blows By CBC In Season Finale; District Play Starts Tuesday

The Hot Read: In a game that was not as close as the final score indicated, De Smet Jesuit went on the road and defeated CBC 74-61 at DC Wilcutt Gym. The win moves the Spartans to 20-6 to the end the regular season. Nolan Berry had 26 points and 11 rebounds, and Jimmy Barton added 20 points and six assists. The Spartans had a 22 point lead at the half which ballooned higher in the third quarter.

Patch's MVP: De Smet Jesuit's Basketball IQ- The Spartans took high percentage shots, thanks in large part to finding the open man with unselfish passing. Outside of the typical Spartan stars, Brandon Shackleford had a second half layup in his sights, and instead gave it to Berry for a dunk. Joey Lodes came off the bench and had a thunderous block and pulled down several rebounds to help set the tone.

Quotable I, Nolan Berry: "We were moving the ball really well, getting high percentage shots, it helps when guys are knocking them down and defensively, you know we were talking, making everything hard for them.:

Quotable II, Coach Kevin Poelker: "It starts with energy, it starts with playing hard and hopefully by this time of year you've got those things as habit and I think tonight it showed that we've got guys playing pretty well."

What's Next: De Smet Jesuit awaits the winner of Pattonville-Parkway West Monday in a District semifinal played Tuesday at Parkway Central. A win there could lead to another faceoff against CBC next Friday in the district final.

Are you a big fan of the Spartans? You'll also want to see:

• Nolan Berry Back On The Court Thanks To Physical Therapy
• Spartans Sign National Letters of Intent

Strange Bedfellows: Chaminade Head Coach Kelvin Lee and several of his players were at the game and were actually rooting for De Smet Jesuit. The Red Devils' game against Jennings was not played due to weather, so instead, Andy Kleinlein, Will Gladson and a few teammates watched as the CBC loss gave Chaminade sole possession of the Metro Catholic Conference title.

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