Champlin Park 83 - Centennial 49 / 5-7

Champlin-Dayton Press:
Scott Theisen erupts as Rebels pound Centennial; Junior drops in 9 three-pointers in 83-49 winby Nick Clark(Created: Thursday, January 31, 2008 1:09 PM CST)
With leading scorer Emeka Okafor out for last Thursday's Northwest Suburban Conference match-up with Centennial, Champlin Park boys basketball coach Mark Tuchscherer had plenty of reasons to be concerned.That was until Scott Theisen started firing.The junior guard came off the bench for the Rebels and could hardly miss. By the time he was done shooting, the line read like this: 34 points, 9-of-14 on three-point attempts, five steals, four rebounds, two assists and a partridge in a pair tree."He played unreal," said Tuchscherer. "With Okafor out, we needed someone to step up, and Theisen did that. He was amazing."The outburst led the Rebels to what turned out to be a relatively easy 83-49 win over Centennial. And after losing a tough game to Blaine 73-70 Jan. 18, and getting blown-out by second-ranked Osseo Jan. 22, Champlin Park got exactly what it as looking for against the Cougars."I thought we responded really well," Tuchscherer said. "We came out with a lot of fire and a lot of intensity from the beginning and all the way to the end. We've put some good halves together this year, and even against Blaine I thought we played about a fourth of the game, and that was the last 7 minutes. We came storming back, but it was too little too late. I thought we put a full game together against Centennial. Granted, they are a 2-12 team, so we have to take that in stride, but still, to come back after getting blown out, it was a good sign."Of course, the idea now is to do it again.The Rebels will have three chances to do that this week. They were scheduled to play at Elk River Jan. 29, at home vs. Andover Feb. 1 and then at Cambridge-Isanti Feb. 2.A perfect run through the week would move Champlin Park's record back up and over the .500 mark, but it won't be easy.Elk River and Cambridge-Isanti had already combined to win 18 games, and Andover runs at you in waves, Tuchscherer said."Andover has a nice team," he said. "When we went and scouted them, they would play five, and then put in a new fresh five, and then a new fresh five in. They kind of platoon. They don't really have a lot of size, but they look to get in your face on defense. They are really aggressive and try to push the ball; it will be a tough game."The Rebels hope to have Okafor back by then. He missed the Centennial game with a strained MCL, and he's having a monster year - 13.4 points and 12.6 rebounds a game - so his presence will be needed."He's having a huge year," Tuchscherer said. "He's a game changer. He keeps people out of the lane. And [Calvin] Nolte's really sparked us since his suspension, getting 13.5 points and about six boards a game."Since Nolte's return, and after Theisen went off against Centennial, the Rebels now have three players averaging at least 10 points a game.Additionally, Kyle Zimmerman, Jasper Duberry, Rex Whitehead and Nate Dudgeon have also proven they could score on any given night, giving Champlin Park the type of balance that the Rebels think can keep them be competitive the rest of the way."I really think the best teams a lot of times in high school are the balanced teams," Tuchscherer said. "Look at Osseo right now, and they are one of the best teams out there, and they are very balanced. I always talk about making the extra pass. If you continue to move the ball and not worry about who's scoring, but if your team is scoring, that's the key and anytime you have pretty good balanced scoring, you are probably going to win quite a few of those games."

The Box: Fuller 4, Dudgeon 4, Duberry 8, Nolte 6, Williamson 4, Jesinoski 2, Witt 4, Theisen 34, Zimmermann 17.