HURON — After withstanding a barrage of long-range jumpers by the Lower Brule Lady Sioux, the Ethan Rustlers found their rhythm and were able to secure their fourth straight trip the the Class B State Girls’ Basketball Tournament with a 68-46 victory in a Round of 16 game Thursday at Huron Arena.
“I am just really proud of the girls; every one of them contributed,” Ethan coach Tom Young said. “It’s been a long journey, but it’s been a fun journey. We’ve grown up a lot and hopefully it’s been a worthwhile journey for them and they learned a lot more than just basketball.”
With its first nine points all coming on  3-point field goals by three different players, the Lady Sioux were able to open a 9-5 advantage and led much of the opening quarter.
“From our scouting report I told the girls they are going to hit some threes; they have good shooters,” Young said. “Our main focus was to take No. 22 away and knowing those other girls are going to hit some. We talked about getting some good short closeouts on their shooters and we did and they still hit some.
“We took away the rim pretty well; they are just a good shooting team,” he said. “They have a nice young team, so you have to give them credit for shooting the ball well.”
The Rustlers would take their first lead of the game late in the first quarter as junior Mollie Miller followed a conventional 3-point play by sophomore Maddie Miller, with a steal and dish to sophomore Jessica Bartscher, who was fouled on a layup attempt. Bartscher converted on a pair of free throws to give Ethan a 13-12 advantage, which lasted until the end of the opening quarter.
With a combination of success from the perimeter and the presence in the paint it had been looking for, Ethan put up the first nine points of the second quarter to build a double-digit advantage at 22-12.
Junior Karly Gustafson scored from her post position to start the rally and freshman Cameryn Logan had a pair of baskets, which were separated by a 3-pointer from Bartscher.
A 14-0 run helped the Rustlers stretch their advantage to as many as 19 points during the second quarters, which ended with Ethan carrying a 36-20 lead into the break.

“We hit some threes and we hit some elbow jumpers; they were trying to take away the block,” Young said of the spark, which propelled his team in the second quarter. “When we got to the rim we were able to either score or get to the line and that has got to be our game.
“Early on I thought we settled for too many threes, but once we got it going then we got the inside-out three, which is a lot better than just cranking it,” he said.
Continuing with the tone they had set during the second quarter, the Rustlers lead was never seriously threatened during the final 16 minutes of the play.
Gustafson would finish with a game-high 25 points for Ethan, which improved to 21-2. Also reaching double figures were Logan with 15 points and Maddie Miller with 12 points.
Mollie Miller and Gustafson each had five rebounds for the Rustlers. Mollie Miller also had three assists, while Gustafson recorded five steals.
Lower Brule would finish with nine 3-pointers, including four from Molly Jandreau. She finished with 15 points to lead the Lady Sioux, which ends the season at 17-6. Chasidy LaRoche also reached double figures with 11 points.
Madison Wells was the leading rebounder for Lower Brule, while Bariah LaRoche had six assists and two steals.
Ethan, which was the 2015 Class B champion, advances to the Class B State Tournament, which is scheduled March 8-10 at the Barnett Center in Aberdeen.
“This is our fourth state tournament in a row for Ethan and overall in the 50 some years its only the fifth, so I am really proud of the girls,” Young said. “I think they have had one of the best years in Ethan’s girls’ or boys’ history.”

Ethan         13 36 55 68
Lower Brule     12 20 34 46
Ethan: Karly Gustafson 7 10-12 25; Cameryn Logan 6 3-6 15; Maddie Miiller 4 3-4 12; Jessica Bartscher 1 4-5 7; Callie Hohn 2 0-0 4; Adaya Plastow 1 0-0 3; Lexi Lingemann 1 0-0 2. Totals: 22 20-27 68.
Lower Brule: Molly Jandreau 5 1-2 15; Chasidy LaRoche 4 0-0 11; Madison Wells 3 2-2 8; Bariah LaRoche 2 0-0 5; Arianna Traversie 2 0-0 5; Maleighya Estes 1 0-0 2. Totals: 17 3-6 46.
FG: Ethan - 22-43 51%; Lower Brule - 17-42 40%. 3-pt FG: Ethan - 4-12 (Bartscher 1, Maddie Miiller 1, Gustafson 1, Plastow1); Lower Brule - 9-25 (Jandreau 4, C. LaRoche 3, B. LaRoche 1, Traversie 1). Rebounds: Ethan - 27 (Mollie Miller 5, Gustafson 5); Lower Brule - 23 (Wells 8). Assists: Ethan - 9; Lower Brule 9. TO: Ethan - 12; Lower Brule - 18. Steals: Ethan - 11; Lower Brule 5. Fouls: Ethan - 11; Lower Brule - 19.

MIKE CARROLL/PLAINSMAN
Ethan’s Maddie Miller dribbles against defensive pressure by Maleighya Estes of Lower Brule during their Class B Round of 16 game Thursday at Huron Arena.