The Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé girls and boys basketball teams finished up the last of their games in Las Vegas on Thursday during the Tarkanian Classic tournament.
Overall the girls Crimson Bears were 3-1 with a 12-team bracket. Wednesday the JDHS girls faced off against Mt. Eden High School, coming out on top with a final score of 61-19. Overall, JDHS had 36 rebounds, six turnovers, 14 assists, eight steals, two blocked shots and shot 5-11 on free throws. Top scorers were senior Skylar Tuckwood with 25 points, junior Mila Hargrave scored 16, senior Ashley Laudert scored 10, and nine out of 10 players scored in total.
The girls then played against El Rancho High School on Thursday, once again walking away with the win with a final score of 58-20. The girls had 39 rebounds, 14 turnovers, seven assists, six steals, four blocked shots and shot 12-18 on free throws. Top scorers were freshman Gwen Nizich with 15 points, senior Mariah Schauwecker scored 13, Skylar Tuckwood scored 11 and Laudert had 10. Head coach Tanya Nizich said it was a great preseason for the team and they’re now excited to get home and start prepping for the Capital City Classic.
“I am impressed with their hustle and not being afraid to dive on the ground for a loose ball,” Nizich said. “They have the grit.”
Hargrave said that overall her teammates played well as individuals and as a team.
“Our guards recognized when the posts were open and they got the ball inside to us a lot,” Hargrave said.
Skylar Tuckwood said that in addition to the tournament being a lot of fun, it was a great learning experience, as well.
“It was a good experience and we got good exposure and now know what we need to work on but overall I think the team played really well together,” Tuckwood said. “I’m excited to see the team progress over the season and just work hard and have fun.”
Laudert echoed the sentiments of her teammates and added that after playing in the Tarkanian tournament, she’s excited and ready for the full season of games to start.
“I think we have a very solid team this year and that this tournament gave us experience with different level teams,” Laudert said.
JDHS boys team played against Muir High School on Thursday after a victory against Bonanza Wednesday night. It was a close game at the half, according to head coach Robert Casperson, but the boys team ultimately fell to Muir with a final score of 52-65
“We had a 2-point lead at halftime, but lost by 12 today after we stopped scoring in the second half,” Casperson said. “We had a lot of great looks at shots, but they rimmed out.”
Junior Sean Oliver had a big game with three three-point shots in the first-half two-points with 5-6 free throws in the second half. Junior Jhowel Estigoy had a total of six points in the first half and senior Orion Dybdahl had eight points in the first half with two points and 3-8 on free throws in the second half. Senior Kai Hargrave had six points in the first half and two in the second, with junior Alwen Carrillo putting up two points in the second half. The boys finished out the tournament with two wins and two losses.
• Contact reporter Jonson Kuhn at jonson.kuhn@juneauempire.com.
