I first started at the Bemidji (Minn.) Pioneer as an intern in the summer of 1996. That would begin six years as a news reporter, sports reporter and copy editor for a small, six-day-per-week daily newspaper in northern Minnesota. I wrote a large range of stories from multiple beats, to features to sports, my favorite being the coverage of the Red Lake Reservation High School basketball team named the Warriors. Here is a collection of my stories from my time at the Pioneer.
Jan. 16, 1999
By Devlyn Brooks
CASS LAKE -- Conventional wisdom would have told Cass Lake-Bena basketball fans to stay at home Friday.
But there was nothing conventional about the way the Panthers (5-6) pushed the No. 4-ranked Red Lake Warriors (11-1) to the final minutes before bowing 71-66.
And don't let the final score fool you, the game was as close as 68-66 before Red Lake's Gerald Kingbird sank two clutch free throws with 14 seconds left to clinch the game.
In their first contest, on Dec. 8, Red Lake blew out the Panthers 101-51, but it wasn't about to happen again.
"We can play with anyone. We wanted to show we do have entertaining basketball," Panthers coach Dan Ninham said about his team's efforts. "From Day 1, two years ago, I've tried to instill the pride in people that they can get after it with anybody."
Stepping up their defense on their home court and trying to squeeze Warrior Delwyn Holthusen out of the paint proved effective in keeping the Panthers in the game.
But when the final seconds ticked off the clock, Kingbird and Holthusen had still combined for 43 points on 19-of-40 shooting to outpace Cass Lake-Bena.
But, other than that, the Panthers didn't change their defense from their matchup with Red Lake earlier this year, and they proved more effective on their home court.
On the other hand, the Warriors' defense was sloppy early in the game, but improved enough late to shut down several Panther rallies.
"Our first half defense wasn't that good," Warriors assistant coach Bill Rutledge said. "In the second half, we played a little better, and in the fourth (quarter), they played like they had to."
Red Lake only outscored the Panthers by one in the final two quarters, but it was their "Johnny-come-lately" defense that closed an eight-point CL-B run at the end of the third and beginning of the fourth that preserved the game.
Sitting comfortably with a 54-45 lead with less than half of the third left, Red Lake looked to be running away with another one.
But the Panthers surged again, scoring eight and making the score 54-53, sending the message that they weren't going to be embarrassed in their own house.
Red Lake righted its own ship just in time, posting a six-point string in the fourth to stay ahead 62-55, but the Panthers rallied one last time to come within 68-66.
Then Kingbird sank his two free throws, putting an end to the the drama.
"We thought we would have a run there being up seven, but to their credit, they came back," Rutledge said. "(Roman Brown) played a super floor game for them. His penetration gave us problems all night."
But, as important as Brown was to the Panthers, Kingbird was more so to the Warriors.
In the final quarter, Kingbird ran the floor for the Warriors, a switch since he was moved to the two guard position early this year.
"When the game is close, you have to get the ball in Gerald's hands," Rutledge said of Kingbird's dominance in the fourth. "You have to get it into the hands of Gerald and Delwyn. They're our money men."
Holthusen led all scorers with 22. Kingbird followed with 21, and the Warriors' Clyde Perkins hit double digits with 10.
For the Panthers, LeRoy Fairbanks led four in the double-digits with 17. The others included Brown (14), Jonas Northbird (10) and Kyle Raisch (14).
RED LAKE 17 18 19 17 -- 71
CASS LAKE-BENA 15 16 20 15 -- 66
RED LAKE (71)
Clyde Perkins 4-8 1-2 10, Gerald Kingbird 8-20 5-8 21, Harold Graves 3-5 0-0 6, Scott Pemberton 1-3 1-2 3, Dustin Thunder 2-2 2-2 6, Byron Graves 1-2 1-2 3, Delwyn Holthusen 11-20 0-1 22. Team totals: 30-60 10-17 71.
CASS LAKE-BENA (66)
Roman Brown (7-15 0-1 14, Tim Lindgren 0-0 0-0 0, Justin Johnson 1-1 4-4 6, Kevin Erickson 1-9 3-4 5, Jonas Northbird 5-9 0-0 10, LeRoy Fairbanks 5-11 4-4 17, Kyle Raisch 6-9 0-1 14. Team totals: 25-54 11-14 66.
3-pointers: RL 1-9 (Perkins 1-4, Kingbird 0-4, H. Graves 0-1), CL-B 3-10 (Brown 0-3, Erickson 0-2, Northbird 0-1, Fairbanks 3-4).
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