(Greenfield) The Nodaway Valley/O-M boys basketball team is 4-3 at the holiday break. The team sits at 4-1 in the Pride of Iowa Conference.
Coach Jeremy Blake says the Wolverine’s defense has stood out. “The biggest thing I feel like is the defensive side of the ball. Against Mount Ayr we didn’t score the last four minutes of the game, so to pull off an 11-point victory against a really, really good Mount Ayr team gives all the credit to the defense. Trying to limit teams to one shot is a big emphasis for us.”
Coach Blake says his offense is at its best when they are sharing the ball. “The more that we are able to pass the ball and the more assists that we have in the game, we tend to win those games. The three losses we didn’t have nearly as many assists. That was something I made sure to point out to the guys. We have to continue to emphasize it.” Blake says, “The energy that comes off of that from not only the guys on the floor, but also the bench and the crowd is awesome to be able to have.”
Their wins have come against SW Valley, Wayne, Martensdale-St. Marys, and Mount Ayr. Two of their three losses are against Hawkeye Ten Conference opponents.
Three players average in double figures scoring with Boston DeVault, Dawson Nelson, and Avery Phillippi. Beyond that, coach Blake says their is a balanced supporting cast. “I have guys that on any given night I know can get 8-10 points. The teams that have 4-5 of those guys are really tough to match up with. In the Mount Ayr game Tyson Ross, Jase Davidson, Blake Lund, and Paul Berg combined for 12 points for us which was huge for that group right there to be able to do that.”
The Wolverines have until January 6th before their next game. They’ll host Lenox next Friday.
Nodaway Valley/O-M coach Jeremy Blake:
