JDHS boys bitten by Wolves in Sitka den
- Klas Stolpe
- 17 hours ago
- 4 min read
Crimson Bears lose to 3A state runner-up on the road
By Klas Stolpe
Juneau Independent
The Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé Crimson Bears boys basketball team were in a fight Friday at the home of the Sitka Wolves and bitten early, JDHS had to battle back in the fourth quarter for a respectable 66-54 loss.
“Sitka did a great job running their action and getting to their spots,” JDHS coach Robert Casperson said. “Then they knocked down wide-open shots. When a team has nearly twice as many three pointers as they have two pointers, you know they're comfortable.”
Sitka led 19-9 after the first eight minutes, in which they hit four shots past the arc - two from junior Colton McGraw, one apiece from senior Brett Ross and junior Shane Carlos - and used a full-court, man-to-man press to throw off the typically hot-shooting Crimson Bears.
The aggressive Wolves also were charged with 10 first-half fouls, and JDHS hit 3-4 from the charity stripe in the stanza.
“I am not too familiar with their team,” Sitka coach Steve Compagno said of JDHS. “I have not played them in the three years I have been here at Sitka, but they are a good team and we are tough on our home floor.”
JDHS played a smart, full-court defense and were whistled for just six first-half fouls. The Crimson Bears hit just one shot past the arc in the first 16 minutes, a long bomb by senior Kurt Kuppert that was the farthest by either team on the night, and trailed by 12 points, 38-26, at the half.
The first half offense went through JDHS senior Elias Dybdahl, who scored 10 points in 16 minutes — four from the free throw line as he attracted double teams whenever touching the ball. Senior guard Brandon Casperson scored on two drives in the first half and classmate Joren Gasga one. Senior Christian Rielly scored in the second quarter and junior Logan Carriker battled inside to earn four free throws.
Sitka’s accuracy from the arc continued in the second quarter as senior Shane Tincher joined Ross, McGraw and Carlos from deep. Inside, senior Trey Johnson racked up 10 points and three blocked shots. Johnson would finish the night with five blocked shots.
“We have some shooters,” Compagno said. “And Trey Johnson is a real presence inside and outside but it all starts with our team defense. That is kind of our staple. We are going to try and defend and make our opponent uncomfortable.”
JDHS hit just three shots in the third quarter while Sitka hit three alone from past the arc and took a 54-32 advantage into the final stanza.
JDHS opened the final eight minutes with a Gasga three-point shot and a defense that forced a quick Sitka timeout.
The Wolves responded with two shots past the arc by seniors Kai Hirai and Tincher for a 59-35 lead. The two teams exchanged baskets and free throws until JDHS’ Casperson hit a pair from the charity stripe and the Crimson Bears' defense forced a Sitka full timeout with 3:02 remaining and the Wolves leading 66-41.
Sitka would not score again as JDHS found a piece of their defensive puzzle that had been missing in the first half.
JDHS’ Carriker stole the next Sitka inbounds pass and Dybdahl scored. They reversed the play on Sitka’s next possession with Dybdahl getting a steal and Carriker hitting a free throw to close to 66-46.
“I thought Elias shared a lot of his talents with the team tonight,” coach Casperson said. “He had his most difficult matchup to this point in the season and did great with scoring, rebounding and blocking shots. We will need to do more around him in a complete team effort tomorrow.”
The JDHS pressure forced another Sitka full timeout. When play resumed the Crimson Bears got the ball on a Wolves turnover and Kuppert was fouled past the arc and hit two of three from the free throw line to pull to 66-50.
JDHS senior Christian Rielly hit a pair of free throws and junior Hunter Carte scored inside to close to the 66-54 final, but the Crimson Bears had outscored the Wolves 22-13 in the final eight minutes.
“We didn’t play a complete game, I can tell you that,” Compagno said. “They kind of came back pretty good on us… We didn’t panic, though. Our practices are difficult for when we get into a game situation. We do foul too much so we have to clean that up.”
Dybdahl led JDHS with 14 points, Carriker added 10, Casperson eight, Gasga seven, Kuppert five, Rielly four and senior Noah Ault, senior Tyler Frisby and Carte two each.
The Crimson Bears hit 19-25 at the free throw line, the Wolves 8-14.
McGraw led Sitka with 17 points, while Johnson had 15, Tincher 11, Ross eight, Carlos and junior Josh Partido five apiece and senior Kai Hirai four.
“I believe we'll do our best to make some adjustments and be ready to compete tomorrow,” coach Casperson said.
JDHS and Sitka play again at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
The Sitka JV defeated JDHS JV 46-44. Wolves 46 - Fr. Owen Mork 20, Fr. Cedar Starbuck 9, So. Olen Weathers 7, Fisher Steinson 5, Chase Haskins 3, Brayden Hedrick 2. Crimson Bears 44 - Fr. Zach Polasky 9, Jr. Erik Thompson 8, Fr. Isaiah Bean-Dewitt 6, Carte 6, Jr. Alejandro Lamas 6, Sr. Ryland Carlson 4, So. Micah Nelson 3, Fr. Vinny Nizich 2.
The JDHS C team defeated Sitka C 58-38. Crimson Bears 58 - Fr. Adler Janes 12, Nizich 11, Lamas 11, Bean-Dewitt 9, So. Jordan Geary 8, Fr. John Croasmun 4, Jr. Surin Pyare 3. Wolves 38 - Jackson Wolfe 10, Boyd Branch 9, Silas Marley 8, TJ Dotson 4, Emman Malassalo 3, Wyatt Kirkness 3, Gunnar Ojala 1.
• Contact Klas Stolpe at klas.stolpe@gmail.com.
