Amidst a stretch of critical region matchups, No. 2 Devils Lake boys’ basketball is playing its best all-around game.
Earlier in the season, it was easy to marvel at the heroics of someone like Wylee Delorme or Parker Brodina, who often seemed to carry the team in its pivotal moments. And neither of those two have slowed down. But as the season’s gone on, the Firebirds have morphed into a deeper group that’s done a better and better job of playing together, turning them into one of the most dangerous teams in the state.
This is the way they’ll need to play with No. 3 Four Winds/Minnewaukan and No. 4 Grafton coming up.
And on Thursday night, the latest edition of Devils Lake basketball was on full display. The Firebirds traveled to Central Valley High School, a little building on the side of Highway 81, which runs parallel to I-29 between Grand Forks and Fargo. Devils Lake (14-1, 4-1) handled Hillsboro/Central Valley (6-7, 1-4) by a score of 81-40, attacking from every angle and guarding relentlessly whenever the Burros had the ball. It was the Firebirds’ 11th consecutive win.
“We were able to control the game,” head coach Dustin Brodina said. “We wanted to play an up-tempo game, get the ball out and go right away, and we were able to do that. And on the defensive end, I thought we did a good job of keeping them away from the basket.”
Both teams came out playing small, and it was 4-4 in the early minutes. But a Joel Nelson three-pointer helped build a 10-0 run and gave Devils Lake a large lead it would never relinquish.
Nelson has been a key part of making this team deeper and better. He’s grown more consistent as the season has progressed, and at this point he’s become a reliable point scorer rather than just the occasional flash in the pan for a quarter here, a quarter there. Nelson has also reduced the fouls that were plaguing him before. He put up 11 points Thursday night and played until the regulars were pulled in the third quarter.
“With Joel, it’s just a matter of playing smart,” Brodina said. “Earlier in the season, he wasn’t focused. And when you have four fouls in the first half, you’re not on the court so you don’t get to do much. So he’s just being a smarter player. I thought defensively tonight, he was a fantastic player. He was in position, not reaching, not getting stupid fouls.”
Delorme brought his typical athleticism to the show, showing a steady variety between making long shots and muscling his way in for athletic layups. It’s easier to miss what Delorme is doing when the team is playing so well around him, but he’s still likely the team’s best player. He led the squad with 20 points Thursday night.
“My teammates just find me, man,” Delorme said. “It’s nothing but my teammates.”
In the second quarter, Delorme nabbed a steal, ran down the court and made a dunk as the Firebirds sprinted away with the lead. They led 32-14 at that point, with the Burros only making two baskets through the first four minutes of the quarter.
“The best thing about Wylee is he’s allowing the game to come to him,” Brodina said. “He’s not forcing the game to come to him.”
Beau Brodina swished a three in the second quarter, helping him achieve a seven-point game to complement the consistent defensive effort he brings. His dad has stressed how valuable he is to this team beyond the points-scoring column, but lately he’s started to chip in with some baskets here and there.
Beau might not be the team’s leading scorer, but the guarding ability he brings on a game-to-game basis is reflected in the opposing team’s low point total. The fact that he can shoot a little, too, just adds another layer to the onion of this basketball team.
“I make sure every day I bring my defensive effort,” Beau said. “On the offensive end, I make sure I get the ball to the scorers, like Wylee Delorme… That’s my role on the team, and I’m okay with that.”
With the score all the way up to 64-24 in the third quarter — a rout — Devils Lake started to mix in some of the backups. But being that this team has so many options, the guys off the bench held their own too. Josh Deckert, Brett Mertens, Mason Palmer and Bryar Exner all contributed points at the end of the game to get the team to its ultimate total of 81.
“They’re doing the same things we’re doing every single day. They’re doing all the drills,” Brodina said. “They don’t get the limelight or the glory that some of the other guys get. So it’s kind of nice to see the guys get on the main floor, playing at the varsity level and showing what they can do.”
The supporting players, whether it’s Beau on the defensive end or point scorers off the bench, help support a pyramid that starts at the top with Delorme but only slopes down on a shallow decline. It’s not merely Delorme’s superstardom that makes Devils Lake so lethal. It’s what these players can do from top to bottom, and the amount of depth pieces they have to pick each other up.
“We have a deep team, man,” Delorme said. “We could play about four guys coming off the bench. They can come in and help us change the game.”
Parker Brodina quietly had 10 points, joining Delorme and Nelson in double digits on Thursday. That was one thing that made the Firebirds so hard to defend: they had multiple styles of attack, different ways that they’d get towards the basket, and with different players. They were unpredictable, quick, and able to muscle their way through any kind of defensive pressure.
They’re gelling as a team more smoothly and effortlessly than they have all season.
“We come to practice every day working hard,” Beau said. “We make sure everyone’s accountable for their mistakes. And it translates to the game.”
Devils Lake’s team camaraderie is going to be crucial in its next matchup against No. 3 Four Winds/Minnewaukan — the only team to beat Devils Lake this season. It happened back in mid-December, when the Indians were yet to win a game and the Firebirds hadn’t found their full force quite yet. A lot has changed since then. But with FW/M just one spot behind them in the polls, it’s going to be a tough battle.
“We have to think better and make better decisions going into the game,” Delorme said. “We have to get to the rim. We have to maintain getting to the rim because we’re tall. If we get to the rim, I think it’s gonna be a different outcome.”
If any version of the Devils Lake Firebirds is up to the challenge of defeating FW/M — and beating Grafton again after last matchup’s barnburner — it’s this version. They’re playing like a team in the true sense of the word, understanding where their strengths and weaknesses lie, and playing into those strengths. Every player has his own role, and it seems they understand those roles better than they have all season.
The Firebirds’ highly anticipated faceoff with the Indians will take place at Devils Lake Sports Center on Tuesday at 7:15 p.m.
“If we can trust in each other all the way ‘till the end of the season, it’s gonna be hard to beat us,” Brodina said.
Joseph “Mojo” Hill is a reporter covering Lake Region sports for the Devils Lake Journal. Contact him on Twitter @mojohill22 or at jhill@devilslakejournal.com for any tips, questions or story ideas.
