Photo by Samantha Davis New Ulm’s Levi Hopp surveys the Marshall defense during a Big South Conference boys basketball game Tuesday at Marshall High School.

By Samantha Davis

sdavis@marshallindependent.com

MARSHALL — Attempting to cut a double-digit deficit most of the game, the New Ulm boys basketball team fell to Marshall 81-58 Tuesday evening in its season and conference opener after the Tigers came out firing on all cylinders offensively and defensively.

Mitchell Hopp led the way for New Ulm with 11 points.

“We knew we were going to have to come in and battle and be ready,” New Ulm head coach Matt Dennis said. “I think our guys battled. We made our fair share of mistakes, both on offense and defense, but I’m proud of the boys. I’m proud of the effort they put forth, and never gave up. That’s got to be the trademark of this team.”

New Ulm was down by 12 points at the half, and despite an early run in the second, it wasn’t able to overcome the Tigers, who only continued to build its lead. In addition to Hopp, Owen Castleman followed with 9 points, while Levi Hopp, Brady Dennis, Zach Hubbard and Joey Wise all finished with 7 points.

New Ulm stepped onto the court for the first time this season after a successful 21-8 overall 2023-24 campaign. It will look to build off last year’s strides, as the Eagles were named Big South Conference champions and were Section AAA runners-up after falling to Mankato East in the section title game.

New Ulm’s roster looks a bit different after graduating eight seniors last season. Dain Barie and Nicholas Risen are the team’s two seniors now, followed by juniors Brady Dennis and Hubbard.

“We’re talking about playing with joy and just enjoying every moment, and understanding that some things aren’t going to go your way, but this is what we’re here for,” coach Dennis said. “We just have to keep understanding that we are young and it’s okay to make mistakes if we learn from them … We want to be really ready by March. So, that’s really the goal, is definitely keep getting better every game.”

The two times the Eagles played the Tigers on Dec. 15 and Jan. 26 last season, New Ulm won by double digits at 84-70 and 88-78, respectively.

However, Marshall got its revenge Tuesday night.

The starting five for the first game was Mitchell and Levi Hopp, Brady Dennis, Hubbard and Risen.

The first half brought some early challenges with both teams struggling with ball handling errors, but it was Marshall that got its momentum going with an early lead with efforts from both ends of the court. Hubbard led the team at half with 7 points, while Brady Dennis had six.

Jayden Meister won the tip-off for the Tigers, who was the tallest player on the court standing 6-foot-6, which resulted in a Marshall 3-pointer from the top of the key.

The Tigers immediately got a steal following, and was fouled on the fast-break layup, but missed both free throws.

Marshall was aggressive offensively, both crashing the paint and being efficient from the 3-point line. It also had a handful of steals and tips out of bounds on New Ulm’s offense, which continued to build pressure on the Eagles.

New Ulm got on the board off an inbound play with a jump shot from Hubbard who was fouled, and made the free throw. Hopp got two fouls in the first five minutes of play, but didn’t collect any others throughout the half.

Happening on a few occasions throughout the half, Castleman hit a 3-pointer to cut the Eagles’ early deficit to 11-6, but Carson Mensink for Marshall hit one in the corner on the next possession. Wise shortly after hit a three and was fouled to bring some momentum back to New Ulm. He did not make the free throw.

Hubbard was able to sink a jumper over Meister, while Marshall still held a 28-17 edge, but the opponents got the points back right after with a corner three.

Both teams made a handful of shots from behind the arc, most times coming right after one another.

New Ulm went on a quick 5-0 run with a 3-pointer from Mitchell and a layup from Levi, but Alexander Franson again sank a 3-pointer for the Tigers, who had four in the night and led all scorers with 20-points, to stop a bigger run from taking place. Aiden Bly grabbed Marshall’s second charge on the night following an Eagles fast break attempt.

Both teams were in the bonus in the final minute of the half. Marshall had 10 team fouls, while New Ulm had nine. The half ended with an exchange of steals between Joshua Leibfried for Marshall, and Wise again for the Eagles.

Both steals resulted in easy layups, and the Eagles went into the locker room with a 49-37 deficit.

“We wanted to stay aggressive, and we wanted to make sure we were doing a better job on their ball screens,” coach Dennis said. “On-ball screens in the second half, we did better. Still, some weak areas that we have to improve on.”

New Ulm came into the second half with a bit more heat, going on a 6-0 run after a 3-pointer.

Wise, Castleman and Levi all went in for layups consecutively, either on a drive or off a steal for a 64-48 trail.

But, Braxton Koster hit a jump shot for Marshall to stop the Eagles’ early momentum.

New Ulm’s Dennis and Marshall’s Franson ran into a collision early in the half, which resulted in Dennis going out of the game after appearing to get an open cut to the face.

Franson stayed in the game with no apparent injuries, and Brady Dennis returned later in the half with a bandage over his left eyebrow.

Meier grabbed Marshall’s third charge on the night after Mitchell sank a 3-pointer for New Ulm, showing the Tigers weren’t slowing down on either end.

After Franson found himself open on the wing for another three, Marshall jumped to a 20-point lead at 71-51 with just over seven minutes left.

The remainder of the game was a shutout, with the Tigers maintaining a strong double digit lead, leaving New Ulm answerless.

New Ulm will next look to keep the momentum going as it hosts Jackson County Central on Friday with a 7:30 p.m. tipoff.

“Always next play, always next game. It’s always got to be that mindset,” coach Dennis said. “We’re going to learn a lot from tonight that we’re going to try to apply in the next game. We’re going to make our fair share of mistakes in the next one, and that happens, but we’re going to learn every single game.”