Building on excellence

At the beginning of the season Superior Bobcat Basketball Head Coach Chris Toivonen talked about wanting his team to be one that could do well in both seasons of play.

During the regular season the Bobcats won the conference for the second year in a row and went undefeated at home for the first time in over 30 years.

“Over the last two seasons, these boys are 34-10 with two conference championships,” Coach Toivonen said. “Considering that only two years ago the team was 2-18, their accomplishments are especially remarkable. I am extremely proud of these kids. They are a wonderful group, and I am very thankful to have coached such great young men.”

Coach Toivonen and his Bobcats headed to Hamilton this week to compete in the Western C Divisional Tournament and started things off with a match up against defending divisional champion Twin Bridges.

“We prepared very hard all week for this game and went in highly focused and ready to play,” Coach Toivonen said.

The first quarter started with both teams going back and forth in a fast-paced high intensity dual. Both squads played extremely physical on defense and the Bobcats utilized both full-court and half-court presses on defense to begin to generate momentum.

In the second, Superior continued to play tough on defense and generate several turnovers. The Bobcats were able to capitalize on the turnovers and make what Coach Toivonen called “some big shots” to take a 14-point halftime lead.

The second half saw the Bobcats continue to play tough defense and smart offense to crank up the intensity and seal the victory 62-46.

As a team the Bobcats forced 17 Twin Bridges turnovers and out rebounded the Falcons by 10.

“We forced 17 Falcon turnovers and out rebounded them by 10 boards. Overall, it was quite possibly the best game we had played all year,” Coach Toivonen said. “Juniors Clint Voll, Jarrod Tippens and Tucker Smith combined for 44 points while Bill Smith and Adam Kay totaled eight steals. Voll once again led the Cats with 12 rebounds and Zach Benda flashed his defensive prowess by keeping the Falcon’s great guards from penetrating into the lane. Tucker Smith added eight assists for the Bobcats.”

The victory against Twin Bridges placed Superior in the semifinals against “the ultra talented” Mustangs of Ennis.

Ennis came out strong, riding the momentum of a huge fourth quarter victory against Drummond on Wednesday, and made several early three-point shots.

The Bobcats weren’t out of it however and used what Coach Toivonen called “nifty” ball movement and several mid-range jump shots from Benda to climb back in the game.

“Unfortunately, Clint Voll and Jarrod Tippens had to sit the last five minutes of the second quarter due to foul problems and the physical Mustangs took advantage in pushing their lead up to 31-18 at the half,” Coach Toivonen said.

In the third quarter a revitalized Bobcat squad took to the floor and began to scratch their way back into the game, led primarily by the efforts of Clint Voll – who had a series of big layups and steals to help pull Superior to within six points at the end of the third.

“Unfortunately for the Cats, Voll fouled out with six minutes left in the game and the Mustangs used free throws and rebound baskets to closeout a nine point victory,” Coach Toivonen said. “The Cats played hard on defense, but ultimately couldn’t overcome the fast start by Ennis and foul trouble for their posts.”

Prior to fouling out, Voll had 14-points for the Bobcats and senior Zach Benda contributed 11.

“Bill Smith and Tucker Smith led the Cats in assists while Wyatt Zylawy battled hard inside and had a great all around game, including hitting a big three pointer during the third quarter,” Coach Toivonen said.

The loss to Ennis forced a quick turn around for Superior, who had to face off against conference rival Arlee the next morning.

“Saturday morning loser out games are always especially tough on teams who play in the semifinal the night before, and this contest was no different,” Coach Toivonen said.

“Superior was never able to muster the energy to play their trademark defense and the Warriors took the win.”

Superior was led by Voll and Jarrod Tippens, who combined for 30-points.

Looking back on the season as a whole, Coach Toivonen called it a “big success” and thanked his seniors in particular.

“They believed in what we were doing and battled through injuries and the many obstacles along the way to lead our team,” Coach Toivonen said. “I am going to greatly miss coaching those three kids.”

Coach Toivonen also mentioned six players – Billy and Tucker Smith, Benda, Tippens, and Zach and Josh Benda – who never missed a practice during the season.

The future continues to look bright for Bobcat basketball and while the squad will lose three seniors, both Voll and Tippens will return along with a talented group of underclassmen.