By Greg Higgins

Brothers help take North Battleford Vikings to Hoopla provincial tournament

Mar 15, 2016 | 5:51 PM

Sibling rivalry will take on a new meaning at Hoopla, Saskatchewan’s provincial basketball tournament. The Dutton brothers from North Battleford Comprehensive High School will take on the Dewar brothers, Saskatoon’s Marion M. Graham Collegiate best players.

Matthew Dutton is the older of the two, in Grade 12. “He is the first player I have ever kept from Grade 9 to Grade 12. What makes this kid special is his work ethic around basketball,” NBCHS Vikings head coach Jamie Sommerfeld said. “He is our best defender and the glue that makes our team function at its peak performance.”

Sommerfeld said Matthew’s young brother Damon, in Grade 10, is his best all-around player. “His defense is exceptional and he’s an enormous weapon on offence. Other teams have to plan their defense based on what he does. When put together they’re a lethal combination.”

On the other side, Sommerfield said the Dewar brothers are “by far” Saskatoon’s best players. “Lethal weapons on offense, so we’re going to put our best defenders on them and let the rest of the team beat us.”

This is the first time Coach Sommerfeld has taken a 5A division team to the big tournament. He said it’s an amazing achievement for a young team to make it Hoopla.

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The Vikings qualified for Hoopla at a tournament in Yorkton over the weekend. They defeated home team Yorkton 82-61 in the first round. They then scraped together a solid victory against the Moose Jaw Peacock Toilers 85-74.

“We were 0-2 on the year against them,” Sommerfeld said. “We faced them at our own tournament and they kind of took it to us, so we were looking for a good game.”

The Vikings didn’t fair to well in the finals against St. Mary’s, losing 116-86. That was the highest scoring game Sommerfeld has been a part of. “Both teams ended up hitting about fifteen 3’s each so yeah, there were a lot of bombs going off.”

Coach Sommerfeld said the team has already risen beyond his expectations and the season has been a success, whether they win or lose at Hoopla.

ghiggins@jpbg.ca            

On Twitter: @realgreghiggins