It started out with a bang and the fireworks just kept coming.
From a dunk on its opening possession to a barrage of three-point field goals, the South racked up a record number of points on the way to a 125-83 victory over the North during the South Dakota All-Star boys' basketball game at Wachs Arena Tuesday night.
"We were just out there having fun," said Bryce Koch of Dell Rapids, who set the tone for the night with slam just 18 seconds into the contest. "We played pretty good."
Pretty good might be the understatement of this all-star game.
The South shot a blistering 65 percent from the field, including 58 percent from three-point range. When it did miss, the South was able to corral 13 offensive rebounds to seemingly score on nearly every possession.
"Honestly, I've never been in a game like this before, ever," said South guard Alex Robertson of Canistota, who led all scorers with 22 points. "All week we were practicing and shots were going in, so we were just hoping that we'd come out and do the same as we did in practice."
Those shots came from all angles and all players as the South placed eight players in double-figure scoring and nearly added a ninth.
"They put it in every chance it went up, it seemed like," said North player Kory Schwan of Aberdeen Roncalli. "There wasn't even a chance for a rebound. That was unbelievable. I've never seen shooting like that."
The South exploded for 36 points in the first period and never scored less than 25 points in any of the nine-minute quarters.
When it appeared the North was about to get a little something started, the South simply went on another run and extended the margin even farther.
"Our shots were going in and some of their shots weren't," Robertson explained. "They had plenty of makeable shots that just didn't fall that normally do."
The South not only outshot the North, but also outrebounded its opponent by nearly a 2-to-1 ratio.
"I was waiting for them to bounce off the rim and they just didn't come," Schwan said of potential rebounds. "It was turning into a track meet running back and forth, because they were just going through the net every time."
Nate Cole of Sioux Falls Roosevelt added 18 points to the South attack, followed by Andrew Hora of Viborg-Hurley with 15, Brock Zeller of Elk Point-Jefferson with 14, Jesse Taylor of Kimball and Koch with 13 apiece, Trevor Jacobsen of Viborg-Hurley with 12 and Falcon Albers of Red Cloud with 10. Hora grabbed 12 rebounds and Koch contributed 11.
Northern State recruit Tanner Heiser of Watertown led the North with 19 points. Latrell LaRoche of Lower Brule and Tage Hargens of Arlington each tossed in 11 and Schwan finished with 10.
North guard Mitchel Foster of Flandreau tried to keep things in perspective following the lopsided loss.
"They did not miss a shot at all, but it's an all-star game, so we're here to have fun and just keep playing," Foster said. "Losing is never fun, but it's an all-star game."
And while the record books will show that the South dominated every facet of the contest, Koch knows that the ball just did not bounce the North's way on this particular night.
"They're still a good team. I think we just had a better shooting night," Koch said. "They were just kind of off, but they're still a good team."
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SOUTH: Nate Cole (Sioux Falls Roosevelt) 8-13 0-0 18, Jesse Taylor (Kimball) 5-8 1-2 13, Trevor Jacobsen (Viborg-Hurley) 5-8 0-0 12, Brock Zeller (Elk Point-Jefferson) 5-10 0-2 14, Bryce Koch (Dell Rapids) 6-10 3-5 13, Alex Robertson (Canistota) 8-10 2-3 22, Falcon Albers (Red Cloud) 4-9 0-0 10, Austin Krier (Vermillion) 3-5 1-2 8, Andrew Hora (Viborg-Hurley) 6-8 0-0 15. Totals 50-77 7-14 125.
NORTH: Zachary Dockter (Mobridge-Pollock) 2-5 0-0 4, Tanner Heiser (Watertown) 7-15 1-2 19, Brady Mohr (Aberdeen Central) 2-13 0-0 5, Trecy Zirbel (Summit) 2-6 0-0 6, Latrell LaRoche (Lower Brule) 5-12 0-0 11, Mitchel Foster (Flandreau) 3-7 0-0 9, Tage Hargens (Arlington) 5-5 0-0 11, Branden Carmody (Elkton) 3-7 0-0 8, Kory Schwan (Aberdeen Roncalli) 4-7 1-2 10. Totals 33-77 2-4 83.
South|36 61 87 125
North|18 35 58 83
3-point field goals -- South 18-31 (Cole 2-4, Taylor 2-4, Jacobsen 2-4, Zeller 2-4, Robertson 4-6, Albers 2-4, Krier 1-2, Hora 3-3); North 15-40 (Dockter 0-1, Heiser 4-10, Mohr 1-7, Zirbel 2-3, LaRoche 1-4, Foster 3-7, Hargens 1-1, Carmody 2-3, Schwan 1-4). Total fouls -- South 8; North 12. Rebounds -- South 50 (Hora 12, Koch 11); North 26 (Heiser 5). Turnovers -- South 13; North 14. Assists -- South 25 (Jacobsen 5); North 18 (Heiser 7). Blocked Shots -- South 5 (Koch 2, Hora 2); North 0. Steals -- South 8 (Cole 4); North 7 (Zirbel 2). Officials -- Derick Oliver, Ross Effling and Paul Witcraft.