Mitchell Republic's Kernel Corner is the one-stop landing page for complete Mitchell Republic coverage of the Mitchell High School boys basketball team for the 2021-2022 season .
Links to every story, score and photo gallery can be found below and will be updated throughout the season with new content.
For Kernel girls basketball coverage,
click here
.
Features
Dec. 8: Ryker Kreutzfeldt took over as Mitchell High School boys basketball in the summer of 2021. A look at what the Kernels have done in preparation for Kreutzfeldt's first varsity basketball coaching campaign.
Feb. 1: Coming into the season, Mitchell needed to find playmakers to capitalize on the attention given to Caden Hinker. Junior forwards Steele Morgan and Charlie McCardle have answered that call alongside Hinker in the Kernels' frontcourt.
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Feb. 11: Early in the season, Mitchell was reliant on a high-powered offense to outscore teams. But after a midseason shift in focus, the Kernels are rounding into form on the defensive end.
Feb. 15: Caden Hinker became the second-leading scorer in Mitchell High School boys basketball history earlier in the season. Now he's closing in on the all-time assists record.
March 1: Mitchell has competed with other top teams at every opportunity this season, but has come up short in all five contests against top-six teams. Entering the postseason, the Kernels feel close to a breakthrough.
March 14: Mitchell, like many Class AA teams, will have played one game in 19 days leading up to its quarterfinal matchup with Harrisburg. But a lack of game action is actually more of a benefit, according to the Kernels.
Game stories
Dec. 11:
Mitchell 61, Huron 47
Locked in a tight, four-point game after three quarters, the Kernels outscored Huron 24-14 in the fourth quarter to win their season opener at the Corn Palace.
Dec. 14:
Mitchell 76, Watertown 62
After scoring 30 points in the first half, the Kernels used a 31-point outburst in the third quarter to separate themselves from Watertown.
Dec. 17:
Mitchell 67, Brookings 44
Another big third quarter, this time in the form of a 16-0 run out of halftime, gave the Kernels a comfortable advantage as they rolled to a 23-point win in their first road contest of the season.
Dec. 28:
Mitchell 53, Thunder Basin (Wyo.) 61
The top-ranked team in Wyoming's 4A division was too much for the Kernels, using a 20-6 second-quarter run to hand Mitchell its first defeat of the season on day one of the Hoop City Classic.
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Dec. 29:
Mitchell 84, Campbell County (Wyo.) 79
Four Kernels scored in double-digits, as Mitchell scored its most points in seven seasons to hold off a hot-shooting Campbell County (Wyo.) team that set the Hoop City Classic record for 3-point field goals made in a game.
Jan. 4:
Mitchell 59, Harrisburg 68
Mitchell and Harrisburg were locked in a tie game after three quarters, but 26 fourth-quarter points by the Tigers helped them knock off the fifth-ranked Kernels.
Jan. 7:
Mitchell 69, Yankton 55
The Kernels led wire-to-wire, scoring 20-plus points in the first and fourth quarters to pick up a 69-55 win over Yankton in Eastern South Dakota Conference action.
Jan. 11:
Mitchell 64, Huron 51
Playing without starting point guard Macon Larson, the Kernels earned a double-digit road victory in a rivalry matchup with Huron that played out in a similar fashion to the first meeting.
Jan. 13:
Mitchell 69, Pierre 54
Caden Hinker's career-high 35 points lifted the Kernels to a third-straight rivalry win and the second away from home without starting point guard Macon Larson.
Jan. 21:
Mitchell 59, Sturgis 29
The Kernels allowed their fewest points since Jan. 28, 2011, in the first of back-to-back games out west, limiting the Scoopers to 20.5% shooting.
Jan. 22:
Mitchell 76, Spearfish 56
Spearfish stuck around for a half, but the Kernels' lead ballooned to as much as 26 points in the second half as Caden Hinker dropped in 32 points on 13 of 18 shooting.
Jan. 29:
Mitchell 66, Sioux Falls Lincoln 60 (OT)
Trailing by 12 points with 5 1/2 minutes to play in regulation, Mitchell rallied with a 17-5 run to force overtime, where it completed a comeback win over Sioux Falls Lincoln to improve to 10-2.
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Feb. 1:
Mitchell 45, Sioux Falls Jefferson 54
Mitchell cut an 18-point second-half deficit to seven, but offense was hard to come by all night in the Kernels' lowest-scoring game to date.
Feb. 4:
Mitchell 54, Sioux Falls Roosevelt 55
Mitchell had a pair of looks to end the Rough Riders' 23-game winning streak, but came up just short of taking down top-ranked Roosevelt on its home court.
Feb. 8:
Mitchell 69, Aberdeen Central 62
Neither team had much difficulty putting the ball in the basket, but the Mitchell defense got stops late when it needed them most to win a top-five matchup.
Feb. 15:
Mitchell 66, Sioux Falls Washington 71
A second-quarter run was the difference in the contest, as the Kernels weren't able to overcome a nine-point halftime deficit in their third loss to a Sioux Falls high school team in two weeks.
Feb. 18:
Mitchell 59, Rapid City Stevens 60
The Kernels held the lead for much of the second half, but untimely miscues down the stretch opened the door for Stevens to hit a game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Feb. 19:
Mitchell 65, Rapid City Central 42
It took a couple of quarters to shake off the prior night's defeat, but once they did the Kernels ran away from the Cobblers at home.
Feb. 22:
Mitchell 59, Brandon Valley 46
Righting some of the early-game woes that had plagued them, the Kernels controlled the Lynx to clinch Mitchell's first ESD basketball title in a decade.
Feb. 25:
Mitchell 50, O'Gorman 68
The Kernels stuck with the Knights for three quarters, but physical play and a barrage of 3-pointers proved too much, as Mitchell dropped its regular-season finale.
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March 5:
Mitchell 64, Rapid City Stevens 52
Mitchell got the rematch it wanted from Feb. 18 and made good on the opportunity, putting together a strong second half to advance to the program's second-straight state tournament.
Photo galleries
Photos from Mitchell Republic photographer Matt Gade:
Dec. 11:
Mitchell vs. Huron
Dec. 14:
Mitchell vs. Watertown
Dec. 28:
Mitchell vs. Thunder Basin (Wyo.)
Dec. 29:
Mitchell vs. Campbell County (Wyo.)
Jan. 4:
Mitchell vs. Harrisburg
Jan. 7:
Mitchell vs. Yankton
Jan. 11:
Mitchell vs. Huron
Feb. 1:
Mitchell vs. Jefferson
Feb. 8:
Mitchell vs. Aberdeen Central
Feb. 18:
Mitchell vs. Rapid City Stevens
Feb. 19:
Mitchell vs. Rapid City Central
Feb 22:
Mitchell vs. Brandon Valley
News, notebooks and previews
Dec. 7:
Season preview | Mitchell Kernel boys basketball aims to continue steady rise in 2021-22
Dec. 13:
Notebook | First win is a high note for new coach Kreutzfeldt + more
Jan. 3:
Notebook | Offense centers around Caden Hinker post touches + more
Jan. 19:
Update | After strong start, Kernel boys prepare for challenging second half of regular season
Jan. 25:
Update | Class AA boys basketball midseason update: Kernels lead chase as Roosevelt, O'Gorman clear No. 1, No. 2
March 5:
SoDak 16 preview | Kernel boys get rematch they were hoping for in SoDak 16
