Spring Valley uses fourth quarter run to run over Pepin

• Spring Valley's Corey Blaedorn

Pepin defenders can't stop Corey Blaedorn from scoring two of his game-high 27 points.

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SPRING VALLEY - Pepin High School's boys' basketball team played like an underdog prize fighter fighting the champ in Tueday's WIAA Division 4 Arcadia Regional Tournament, first round match-up Tuesday.

The No. 7 seeded Lakers went to-to-toe with the No. 2 seeded Cardinals for three quarters.

But then in the fourth, Spring Valley found that sweet spot on Pepin's jaw that knocked them out flat with a good uppercut. In the case of the hardwood, it was a 25-4 fourth quarter margin that won the contest for the Cardinals 55-32.

Pepin led at halftime 19-16 and upped that lead to 21-16 early in the third quarter after a basket by Nathan Stein. The Lakers continued to stay close to Spring Valley through the rest of the quarter, only trailing by two.

"By this point we just wanted to win," Spring Valley head coach Rob Bosshart said. "We didn't care what our seed was or theirs or what the score was at halftime or what would be at the end of the game so long as we were on top. I found that the sign of a very mature basketball team."

Pepin had held SV's point guard Tyler Bosshart scoreless in the first half and limited him to just two points for the game, including no field goals.

But point guards also distribute the ball and once Bosshart started to do that effectively in the fourth quarter, the Lakers started taking multiple hits.

"For as many points as he scores he's a very unselfish player," Bosshart said. "He knows defenses are going to key on him so getting the ball to his teamates in positions to score as just as important as how many points he gets."

Bosshart got the ball to the game's leading scorer, Spring Valley's Corey Blaedorn, who finished with 27 points. He also sent passes to Cardinal sophomore forward Kyler Gotzman, who finished with 12 points and Dylan Webster who scored eight. Spring Valley soon went on a small 5-0 run to lead by seven at 35-28.

"Corey's did a good job holding us up in the first half with the points he scored," Bosshart said. "I thought Kyler played one of his best games of the season tonight, especially when it came to finishing at the rim."

Pepin called time-out and sensing the momentum shifting, had his team put on a fullcourt press to disrupt Spring Valley's offense and force turnovers.

Instead, with Bosshart leading the way, the Cardinals blew right through the Laker press for easy transition baskets.

Pepin called time-out again but by then the rout was on and the Lakers were on the short end of a 25-4 run.

The Cardinals also limited the effectiveness of Pepin's Travis Heit, holding him to four of his team-high 10 points in the second half. Kevin Haglund also finished with 10 points for Pepin.

Spring Valley improves to 13-8 overall and moves on to Thursday's regional semifinal contest at home vs. Alma. Pepin closes their 2008-09 season at 5-16 overall.

Tags: wiaa, basketball, springvalley, pepin