Mason Palmer dribbles the ball past halfcourt for the Firebirds. (Photo by Cameron Carlson)
DEVILS LAKE — Senior Mason Palmer put on a show, while sophomore Ben Brodina made a big first impression as the Firebirds put down a season-opening win.
No. 3 Devils Lake boys’ basketball (1-0) took a 72-53 victory over Class AA Grand Forks Red River (1-3) at the Devils Lake Sports Center Friday evening. Palmer and Brodina combined for 57 of Devils Lake’s 72 points. And the defense did the rest.
“I thought our defense was on point. I don’t think we missed many assignments,” Firebirds head coach Dustin Brodina said. “So, yeah, I was proud of that. We haven’t practiced much offense. We’ve only had eight practices. The defense intensity was really good, and that’s what I was proud of. And Mason’s pretty strong. He got to the hole quite a bit, and then he finished. So it was good.”
Palmer, fresh off winning Senior Athlete of the Year and a state championship in football, had just about his whole game working. He muscled his way inside and also hit four triples.
He scored at least six points in each quarter, including nine right away to give Devils Lake the early edge.
“Legs felt fresh, first game of the season,” Palmer said. “My teammates really did a lot to help me get open, and I scored a lot.”
The Firebirds didn’t get much scoring outside of Palmer early on. But they held James Schindler and Matt Dosch, the Roughriders’ top scorers, to just seven points each in the first half.
Schindler didn’t score at all in the second half. He came in having put up 86 points in the first three games of the season. Dosch added seven points to his line in the second half.
Brodina helped out a lot on the defensive end, as the tallest member of the starting five at 6-foot-2. Coach Brodina said he liked the way Ben forced Schindler into some tough shots.
Added Palmer: “We played great defense. We played as a team. And I think that’s what really got our offense rolling.”
Brodina, after hitting a three in the first quarter, scored four points in the second. Palmer totaled a whopping 22 in the first half.
Late in the half, Palmer got his own rebound after missing a free throw. He ended up making a triple on that possession to help Devils Lake finish the quarter on a 6-0 run, extending its lead to 34-23.
Devils Lake only scored five points outside of the Palmer-Brodina duo in the half.
Brodina found a bit of a groove in the third quarter, making his second and third triple of the night. He and Palmer combined for 18 of the Firebirds’ 23 points in the quarter.
Seniors Bryar Exner and Kade Fee, while not scoring any points, opened up opportunities with their rebounding.
“I think a lot of senior leadership came out tonight,” B. Brodina said. “Mason stepped it up, and he set the tone for our offense. He does it, and we can all just roll off him. He produces for all of us other four.”
Red River’s Reese Walters scored 13 points in the second half. Otherwise, Devils Lake held the Roughriders’ big players in check, for the most part.
Palmer ended up with 37 points. It was an enormous way to get the season going for the team’s only returning starter. Brodina added a 20-point performance — more than respectable for his first varsity start.
Talan Gregory and Egain Laite each added five off the bench for the Firebirds. Starter Max Palmer had four.
The Firebirds roll right back into action Saturday on the road against another AA team, Jamestown (2-0).
“We’ve got to focus on defense,” Palmer said. “Defense will win us games. If we can hold teams to under 50 a game, I think we’ve got the shooters and we’ve got the talent and the offense inside to score.”
