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Recko Helmerson-Skildum went up for a lay-up against Cromwell-Wright. Staff photos Brian Larsen
The Cook County boys’ basketball team played back-to-back games last Friday and Saturday and although coming close, lost both games.
On Friday, February 25 Cromwell got off to a lead early and led the Vikings 33-24 at the half. During the second half of play the Vikings got within eight points a couple of times and looked like they could catch the Cardinals. However, that changed dramatically because with eight minutes left the Cromwell coach called for his team to mount a full court press. The Vikings had trouble inbounding the ball, turning it over three or four times in a row which resulted in quick buckets for the Cardinals. With six minutes to play Cromwell had stretched its’ lead to twenty and the Vikings hope of a win was over. The Vikings lost 67-44 despite the outstanding play of junior guard Paul Dorr, who ended his night with 22 points and five rebounds. Junior guard Derek Smith finished with 11 points and was disruptive on defense, especially intercepting or deflecting Cromwell passes. Senior forward Jacob Dorr battled hard all night and had six points. Freshman guard Rohan Rude three points and three rebounds, and rapidly improving sophomore forward Recko Helmerson- Skildum added a bucket and pulled down six rebounds.
Paul Dorr was nearly unstoppable driving through the lane against Fond du Lac. Paul scored 31 points the game, most coming on drives like the one pictured above.
Following the game Viking Head Coach Andy Feddema commented on his team’s play. “We were competitive into the second half, cutting the Cromwell lead to eight at one point, but eventually they pulled away from us. The boys played hard all night, just didn’t have enough steam to stay with Cromwell.”
Vikings face Fond du Lac
Before the February 26 game, High School English teacher Michael McHugh read a nice tribute about the late Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa leader Norman Deschampe, who loved watching the kids play sports and was a strong advocate of youth sports. Norman was born on February 26, 1953, and passed away February 9, 2019, after dedicating more than 40 years of service to the Grand Portage Band, 27 years as Charmain.
The game
On Saturday the Vikings laced up their sneakers and faced a very young, but very talented Fond du Lac team. There were no seniors on the Fond du Lac roster. Fond du La played at a very fast pace, pushing the ball down the court any chance they got. They were led by 6’2-inch sophomore Jordell Brown who was a wizard passing the ball. He hit his teammates in stride with a variety of no look or touch passes. Remember his name. This kid has mad skills.
That said, the player of the game was Viking guard Paul Dorr. Late in the game with Vikings down 15, Dorr drove the lane repeatedly, fighting through the Fond du Lac defense to get to the hoop where he was either fouled or he scored. Unfortunately, Paul, normally a good free throw shooter, showed the effects of playing two hard games in a row, and he missed four straight free throws down the stretch. Those misses came on the heels of his brother Jacob going one for two from the line. That made five straight missed free throws with less than two minutes to play.
Jacob Dorr also had a good game, fighting for rebounds, playing solid defense. He hit a big bucket late before being fouled and going on for two at the line when the game was getting really exciting. Freshman guard Jordan Backstrom also made some good plays on defense down the stretch, stealing or deflecting some Fon du Lac passes. Unfortunately, the Vikings ran out of time, falling 54-47.
“This was a tough loss for us today,” said Coach Feddema. “We were down by 11 at half, and kept chipping away in the second half, but it just wasn’t enough in the end. The boys never gave up and kept battling all game long. Very proud of their effort.”
Paul Dorr led the Vikings with 31 points, Jacob Dorr added 13, and Recko Helmerson-Skildum battled hard all night long. He scored two points and pulled down a half a dozen rebounds.
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