The Belmond-Klemme boys’ basketball team has carried over its success from the regular season to the postseason.
After winning seven of their last eight games to close out their regular-season schedule, the Broncos have won their first two playoff games. Most recently, Belmond-Klemme downed visiting West Fork 74-52 in a second-round Class 1A District 2 game on Feb. 19.
Belmond-Klemme coach Justin Meyer was pleased with his team’s execution on both ends of the floor.
“Coming into the game, our top defensive priority was taking away West Fork’s open 3-point looks,” Meyer said. “They had shot over 50% from 3 in their previous outing, so we knew that limiting clean perimeter opportunities would be key. I was really proud of our attention to detail and defensive communication throughout the night.”
Belmond-Klemme (17-5) forced West Fork (10-14) into difficult, contested 3-point attempts, and the visitors were just 3-for-21 (14.3%).
“That kind of defensive focus set the tone for the entire game,” Meyer said.
Top-seeded Belmond-Klemme took an 18-13 lead into the second quarter before it went up by double digits, 37-21, at halftime. The second was much tighter but the Broncos had a 52-33 advantage after three quarters and cruised to victory. West Fork, the No. 5 seed, could never cut its deficit into single digits.
The Broncos hit 47.6% (30-for-63) of their shots from the field. They shot a remarkable 53.3% (8-for-15) on 3-pointers.
“Offensively, we did an excellent job of working the ball inside-out,” Meyer said.
Juniors Brody Heifner and Kysen Lamb each tallied 27 points. Heifner scored 24 of those points in the paint on 12-for-20 shooting; he also grabbed 14 rebounds, five offensively. Lamb hit 5 of 9 shots from beyond the 3-point arc, scored 12 points in the paint and added five boards. Juan Medina had 10 points, six rebounds and three assists.
“That balance made us difficult to guard,” said Meyer.
Griffin Paulsen came through with eight assists, five steals and five points. Cash Young (three points) and Kale Pletsch (two points) rounded out the scoring for the Broncos.
“As a team, we shared the ball extremely well, finishing with 20 assists,” Meyer said. “Griffin did a great job setting the table for others.”
Belmond-Klemme won the rebounding battle 32-25, including pulling down 14 boards on the offensive end. The team also had 11 steals.
“It was a really complete performance, and I’m proud of the way our guys continue to execute and play together as we move deeper into the postseason,” Meyer said.
The Westerners hosted No. 3-seeded North Union in a district championship game on Feb. 24. The winner advanced to play in the substate final on Feb. 28 at Storm Lake for the right to go to state. The state tournament runs from March 9-13.