Britton-Hecla has seen enough of the Ell brothers in the past two weeks.
Kyler Ell made all five of his three-point attempts in the first half to lead Groton to a 67-52 win over Britton-Hecla on Monday in the opening round of the District 1A Boys' Basketball Tournament in Aberdeen. On Feb. 15, Reilly Ell erupted for 33 points in Groton's win over the Braves.
"We have got some good shooters, and Kyler really got us off to a good start," Groton coach Greg Kjellsen said. "That kind of set the tone for us, and we never had to play from behind."
What Kyler Ell started in staking Groton to a 33-22 halftime lead, teammate Wyatt Lone finished for the seniorless Tigers. Lone went to work inside in the second half, when he collected 10 of his 17 points as Groton extended its lead to 20 four minutes into the half.
"We made a conscious effort to get it inside," Kjellsen said. "Wyatt had a size advantage on the kid who was guarding him, and he made a couple of nice baskets."
Kyler Ell said the win was a total team effort. "We worked well together and shot the ball well," he said. "We also played good on defense."
Kyler, who ended with 19 points, said after his second three-pointer went in, he knew his shots were on their mark. He said he has never made five in a row in a game before. "It felt pretty good," he said.
Among the many contributors for Groton was Reilly Ell, who had 12 points, 10 rebounds and three assists. Also, Mason Madsen had 10 points, Luke Sternhagen had four steals and Kasey Kurtz three assists.
Parker Rossow also had an important three-pointer for the Tigers in the first half. Groton was six of 12 from three-point range.
"We spread it around and our kids did what they were supposed to do for the most part," Kjellsen said. "We turned the ball over a little too much and we missed way too many free throws (10). But the big thing is to get the win, and it doesn't matter how pretty it is."
Britton-Hecla was led by multi-sport standout Dallas Goedert with 20 points and eight rebounds. A.J. Andresen added 12 for the Braves.
Groton (10-9) now will play Aberdeen Roncalli (14-4) at 7 p.m. Thursday for the district title at the Roncalli gym.
BRITTON-HECLA: A.J. Andresen 4 1-2 12, Preston Holland 2 2-4 6, Dallas Goedert 8 3-4 20, Caleb Wenz 2 2-3 6, Eric Wegleitner 2 0-2 4, Tanner Roehr 1 0-0 2, Jadrian Guy 0 2-2 2. Totals 19-55 10-17 52.
GROTON: Reilly Ell 5 2-4 12, Wyatt Lone 8 1-2 17, Mason Madsen 3 4-7 10, Kyler Ell 7 0-0 19, Kasey Kurtz 1 0-2 2, Luke Sternhagen 0 4-6 4, Parker Rossow 1 0-0 3. Totals 25-40 11-21 67.
Britton-Hecla (6-13)|13 22 33 52
Groton (10-9)|17 33 49 67
3-point field goals -- Britton-Hecla 4, Andresen 3, Goedert; Groton 6, K. Ell 5, Rossow. Fouled out -- Britton-Hecla, Goedert; Groton, Madsen. Total fouls -- Britton-Hecla 21; Groton 18. Rebounds -- Britton-Hecla 21 (Goedert 8); Groton 26 (R. Ell 10). Turnovers -- Britton-Hecla 11; Groton 17. Officials -- Ryan Neale, Scott Witlock, Paul Rozell.