Greyhound boys take win over Dons
By Harry Toufar Lessons from his mentor have helped Loyal boys basketball coach Brandon DeSmet mold the Greyhounds into a team to be reckoned with.
“I have a good relationship with Joe (Konieczny). We are good friends,” said DeSmet.
As a high schooler, DeSmet played under Konieczny at Columbus Catholic. On Jan. 7, the Loyal Greyhounds demonstrated what they were capable of as DeSmet finally turned the tables on his former coach in a home win. Reed Stieglitz started things off for the Hounds with a basket. That was followed by 3-pointers from Parker Smith and Bryce Deegan, prompting Columbus Catholic to call an early timeout. After the timeout, Hunter Walter scored inside, followed by a basket from Stieglitz, putting the Hounds up 12-0. The Dons finally were able to get on the board with a free throw. Deegan scored again, followed by two free throws and a bucket by Stieglitz. Rhett Lamovec scored and Stieglitz hit another free throw. The Dons did manage to put seven more points on the board, closing the gap to 23-12 at the half.
A minute into the second half, Cain Toufar scored, followed by two Walter baskets. Smith (3-pointer) and Lamovec scored while the Dons were only able make three free throws. Stieglitz hit two more free throws and Lamovec scored, pushing the Hounds up by 20 points. The Dons’ Carter Sommer made a basket plus one before Toufar scored five points on two baskets and a free throw. While the Dons were putting some points up, Stieglitz scored twice, pushing Loyal’s lead to 21 points. Over the last seven minutes, Lamovec made three free throws with Smith adding one more. Deegan scored once more while Carson Prien rounded out the scoring with two free throws. With the horn sounding, Loyal came away with a 67-39 win.
Reed Stieglitz was the only Hound to hit double digits, making five baskets and five of six free throws. He had ample support as both Deegan and Lamovec scored nine points. Walter added eight points with Toufar and Smith each dropping in seven points. Prein rounded out the scoring with two free throws at the end.
After traveling to Gilman on Friday, Loyal will host second place Owen-Withee on Thursday, Jan. 16.
