Titans end season with loss to Dakota Valley

On Friday, March 1 the Tea Area High School boys’ basketball team traveled to Dakota Valley to take on the Panthers in the second round of Region 4A playoffs. 

Tea Area went toe to toe with one of the top teams in the state, leading by six in the fourth quarter. However, Dakota Valley didn’t go down without a fight and outscored Tea Area 27-10 in the fourth to get the 72-61 victory, ending the Titans’ season. 

“It’s always very difficult to end the season, especially when we came up just short of our goal, but I was very impressed with how we played in this game. Dakota Valley is one of the top 2-3 teams in the state and we pushed them to the brink for 3+ quarters,” said Titan head coach Drew Weber. “Unfortunately, every time we thought we had them down, they would make some very difficult shots and eventually they overtook us.”

The Titans shot 52 percent from the field while Dakota Valley shot 48 percent. The Panthers were 12 of 16 at the foul line while the Titans were five of nine. 

“This game really showed the importance of home-court advantage. I thought we played a tremendous game, but it just wasn’t quite enough,” said Weber. “We proved that we were one of the top teams in the state again, but having to play a top tier team on the road in the Regions is a tough ask. I couldn’t be prouder for the way that we played and our heart and effort all season.”

Leading the Titans against Dakota Valley was Sam Almas who finished the night with 20 points. He also had two rebounds and two steals. Boston Willemssen finished with 11 points, three rebounds, one assist and one steal. Grifin Wiebenga added nine points and grabbed four rebounds. Marshall Smythe had eight points, five rebounds, and six assists in the game. Garrett Wiebenga finished with six points, two rebounds and Jessen Wiebenga provided four points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals. Keeton Newborg finished with three points and had one steal. Brenner Konrad grabbed three rebounds, had three assists and team high four steals. The Titans ended their season with a 12-10 record.