Portland St. Patrick vs. Bellevue – – Boys Basketball – – District Tournament Semifinal – – The Bleacher Denizen – – February 28, 2024 – – by Chuck Krafft

Tonight, we are in Bellevue where the Broncos will host the Shamrocks from Portland St. Patrick in the Division 4 District semifinal.

While we get ready for the game to start, I hope you will enjoy this rendition of “Amazing Grace” from my You Tube Channel!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blOrsQkhhf0

Bellevue won the SCAA-West Conference this year and has a 16-4 record entering this game. This is the first time I have covered a Bronco game this year. Coach Joe Costello was really helpful with information about his players.

Caleb Betz runs the point for the Broncos. He is a solid ball handler and slasher who is great at slashing to the basket to score. He is also a solid three point shooter. Connor Odette is an excellent on-ball perimeter defender. Noah Loren is a tough defender and rebounder in the post. Caleb Dahlem is a fine perimeter defender who is excellent at getting out on the fast break.

Seth Keson is a strong perimeter defender. He also contributes as a midrange and three point shooter. Carson Dahlem is a fine defender on the perimeter. Levi Hughes is a strong defender and rebounder in the post. Nathan Payne has an accurate three point shot and Brady Payne is a good rebounder. I’d also like to acknowledge Chase Graham, who was the Bronco leading scorer and rebounder last year as a sophomore, but missed this entire season with an injury. I hope he gets back for his senior year!

Portland St. Patrick finished in a tie for fourth place in the rugged CMAC this year and enter the game with an 11-11 record. Brayden Simon is an excellent athlete with the size and strength to patrol the middle for the Shamrocks. He is also fast enough to cover players on the perimeter. He is a solid three point shooter who can also slash to the basket and overpower opponents to hit putbacks. Jerryd Scheurer is a freshman point guard in his second year of starting for the Shamrocks. He is a quick and athletic defender on the perimeter who can shoot the three point shot or slash to the basket. He is also a fine ball handler and passer who runs the offense well.

Brady Leonard defends well on the perimeter and is a threat from the three point line. Charlie Thelen is a strong post scorer who can either attack the basket or hit shots from the three point line. Landon Simpson is a fine athlete and perimeter defender. His ball handling and passing skills essentially give St. Patrick a second point guard. He is also a solid three point shooter who can get to the basket. Devin Cook is a strong rebounder and defender in the post. Nathan Fears is an excellent on ball defender.

It is now time to review the events of this game through the occasionally observant eyes of an Aging Bleacher Denizen who was never able to escape church league. While many people criticized the Bleacher Denizen’s lateral quickness, in my defense, I’ll point out that the Roman Sandals we wore with our uniforms in the ancient times when I tried to play interfered with most players’ movement.

Olivia Wing started off the evening by singing the National Anthem. I’m a musician myself and know a good performance when I hear one! Her pitch was excellent and I loved that she did not add a lot of frills to the melody. Nice job, Olivia!!!

St. Patrick wins the opening tap. The Shamrocks miss a layup. Bellevue throws a pass out of bounds. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the side. (OK, obviously this is a Shamrock player and not St. Patrick, himself!) Noah Loren passes to Brady Payne, who hits a reverse layup to give the Broncos a 2-0 lead.

St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the side. Bellevue misses a jump shot off the dribble from the free throw elbow. Brady Payne grabs the offensive rebound for the Broncos. Bellevue misses a sixteen foot shot from the side. Brady Payne hits a putback to make the score Brady Payne 4 St. Patrick 0.

Connor Odette gets his hand on the ball, but the Shamrocks are able to recover. The Shamrocks misfire on a threeball from the side. Charlie Thelen gets his hand on the ball and Bellevue loses it out of bounds. Charlie Thelen passes to Landon Simpson, who hits a three point shot from the side to trim the Bronco lead to 4-3.

Landon Simpson knocks the ball away from Bellevue and Jerryd Scheurer picks it up for St. Patrick. The Shamrocks miss a three point shot from the side. Caleb Betz passes to Nathan Payne, who hits a three point shot from the side for Bellevue. St. Patrick misses a fourteen foot shot off the dribble in the lane. Caleb Betz hits a three pointer off the dribble from the top of the key to give his Broncos a 10-3 lead.

The Broncos are called for kicking the ball; the Shamrocks retain possession. Caleb Dahlem blocks a Shamrock layup. Bellevue misses a threeball from the side. The rebound goes out of bounds and St. Patrick takes possession. The Shamrocks misfire on a triple try from the top of the key. Charlie Thelen knocks the ball away from Bellevue and Landon Simpson picks it up for St. Patrick. Charlie Thelen passes to Landon Simpson, who hits a three point shot from the wing. The score is now Bellevue 10 Landon Simpson 6.

Bellevue misses a three pointer from the side and fouls on the rebound. St. Patrick misses a driving layup. Bellevue reciprocates and misses a driving layup. Levi Hughes gets the offensive rebound for the Broncos. Bellevue loses the ball out of bounds. St. Patrick misses a three pointer near the top of the key. Seth Keson passes to Levi Hughes, who hits a layup to extend the Bronco lead to 12-6.

Caleb Betz steals the ball for the Broncos and hits a fast break layup. Nathan Payne steals the ball and hits a fast break layup for the Brondos. St. Patrick misses a threeball from the top of the key. The rebound goes out of bounds and the Broncos take possession. Caleb Dahlem passes to Levi Hughes, who is fouled on a reverse layup and hits one of his two free throws to give Bellevue a 17-6 lead with 2.4 seconds left in the quarter.

St. Patrick has no time to shoot before the quarter ends.

After one quarter, Bellevue has a 17-6 lead.

Bellevue inbounds the ball to open the second quarter. The Broncos miss an eight foot shot off the dribble in the lane. St. Patrick misfires on a threeball from the wing. The Broncos miss a threeball from the side. Nathan Payne hits a putback to give Bellevue a 19-6 lead.

St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the side. Brady Leonard gets the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. Nathan Payne blocks a St. Patrick layup. Charlie Thelen gets his hand on the ball, but Bellevue is able to recover. Brayden Simon steals the ball for the Shamrocks. Connor Odette blocks a Shamrock layup; St. Patrick recovers the loose ball. Jerryd Scheurer passes to Brady Leonard, who hits a three point shot from the side to trim the Bellevue lead to 19-9.

Caleb Betz drives to the basket. Brady Leonard knocks the ball loose, but Caleb Betz recovers and hits a layup for Bellevue. Jerryd Scheurer passes to Brayden Simon, who hits a three point shot from the wing for St. Patrick. Brayden Simon steals the ball and hits a fast break layup to cut the Bronco lead to 21-14.

Bellevue misses a twelve foot up and under shot from the side. Brayden Simon banks in a twelve foot shot off the dribble from the side for St. Patrick. Seth Kegan passes to Caleb Dahlem, who hits a layup for Bellevue. Landon Simpson hits a layup to trim the Bellevue lead to 23-18.

Brayden Simon knocks the ball away from Bellevue and Brady Leonard picks it up for St. Patrick. The Shamrocks miss a three point shot near the top of the key. Jerryd Scheurer and Brayden Simon team up to tie up the ball. The Possession Arrow and its Garden Club appreciate the fine hustle and vote to award the ball to the Shamrocks. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the wing. Caleb Betz passes to Caleb Dahlem, who hits a layup to give Bellevue a 25-18 lead.

Caleb Betz steals the ball for the Broncos. Connor Odette passes to Caleb Betz, who is fouled on a layup. Caleb Betz hits one of his two free throws to give Bellevue a 26-18 lead with 2:11 remaining in the first half.

St. Patrick misses a layup. Charlie Thelen knocks the ball away from Bellevue and Landon Simpson picks it up for St. Patrick. Levi Hughes knocks the ball away from St. Patrick. Noah Loren picks the ball up and hits a fast break layup for Bellevue. Charlie Thelen drives and hits an eight foot shot from the side for St. Patrick to shave the Bellevue lead to 28-20.

Bellevue misses a fourteen footer from the side of the lane. St. Patrick misfires on a threeball from the wing and fouls on the rebound. Caleb Betz dribbles and hits a turnaround jumper from the free throw line as the halftime buzzer announces the end of the second quarter.

Bellevue has a 30-20 lead at halftime.

Landon Simpson has 8 points to lead the Shamrock halftime scoring and Brayden Simon has 7 points.

Caleb Betz has 10 points to lead Bellevue and Nathan Payne has 7 points.

While we are in half time, I hope you can enjoy a couple tunes from my You Tube Channel.

Here’s “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” – an instrumental featuring me and trumpeter extraordinaire John Rickert!! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1MxOus8t44

Here is a somewhat silly version of “Chopsticks!” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIqXxw1t5V0&t=49s

Bellevue inbounds the ball to get quarter number three underway. The Broncos miss a ten foot shot in the lane. Brady Payne steals the ball for the Brondos. Bellevue misses a ten footer from the side of the lane. St. Patrick misses a three pointer from the wing. Connor Odette passes to Nathan Payne, who hits a layup to give the Broncos a 32-20 lead.

Charlie Thelen passes to Jerryd Scheurer, who hits a three point shot from the top of the key for St. Patrick. Bellevue misses a jump shot from the free throw elbow. Landon Simpson is fouled on a fast break reverse layup. He is given an extra free throw on a Bellevue lane violation; officially he hit one of two to trim the Bellevue lead to 32-24 with 6:05 to play in the third quarter.

Bellevue misses a driving layup. Levi Hughes gets the offensive rebound for the Broncos. Bellevue misses a layup. Levi Hughes hits a putback for the Broncos. He is fouled on the play and hits his free throws. With 5:51 to play in quarter number three, the Bellevue lead is at 35-24.

Levi Hughes blocks a Shamrock threeball from the corner. St. Patrick recovers the ball and watches as a three point shot from the wing goes in and out of the basket. Seth Keson drives and dishes the ball to Levi Hughes, who drives and hits a layup for Bellevue. Charlie Thelen tosses a cross court pass to Brayden Simon, who hits a three point shot from the wing to shave the Bellevue lead to 37-27.

Nathan Payne hits a three point shot from the side for Bellevue. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the top of the key. Devin Cook gets the offensive rebound for the Shamrocks. Levi Hughes blocks a St. Patrick eight foot shot in the lane; the Shamrocks recover the loose ball. St. Patrick misses a three pointer from the top of the key. Bellevue turns the ball over. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the top of the key. Bellevue misses a three pointer from the wing. Charlie Thelen is fouled on a fast break layup and hits two free throws for the Shamrocks. With 2:39 remaining in the third quarter, Bellevue holds a 40-29 lead.

Bellevue misses a three point shot from the wing. Nathan Payne grabs the offensive rebound for the Broncos. Bellevue misses a twelve foot shot from the side and St. Patrick fouls on the rebound. Caleb Betzz hits a twelve foot shot from the baseline for Bellevue. Brayden Simon drives and hits a layup for the Shamrocks. He is fouled on the play, but misses his free throw. With 1:58 to go in the quarter, the Bronco lead is at 42-31.

Devin Cook dives and knocks the ball out of bounds; Bellevue retains possession. Caleb Betz hits an eight foot shot off the dribble from the side of the lane for Bellevue. St. Patrick misses a layup. Brayden Simon is fouled on a putback and hits one of his two free throws for St. Patrick. Jerryd Scheurer gets the offensive rebound and passes to Brayden Simon, who hits a three point shot from the wing for the Shamrocks. Seth Keson is fouled and makes two free throws to give the Broncos a 46-34 lead with 36.0 seconds remaining in the third quarter.

Brayden Simon passes to Landon Simpson, who hits a three point shot from the side for St. Patrick. Bellevue misses a turnaround three point shot from the wing as the third quarter buzzer makes its presence known.

With three quarters in the books, Bellevue has a 46-38 lead.

St. Patrick has the ball to begin the fourth quarter. Connor Odette knocks the ball away from St. Patrick and Caleb Betz picks it up for Bellevue. Devin Cook hits the floor to steal the ball for St. Patrick. Landon Simpson drives from the side and hits an eight foot floater for St. Patrick. Nathan Payne drives and hits a layup to give Bellevue a 48-40 lead.

Charlie Thelen passes to Landon Simpson, who hits a three point shot from the side for the Shamrocks. Nathan Payne passes to a teammate who is fouled on a layup, but misses both his free throws. Bellevue fouls on the rebound. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the wing. Connor Odette pulls down the rebound and goes coast to coast to hit a layup to give Bellevue a 50-43 lead.

St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the side. Bellevue misses a six foot banked shot. St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the side. Connor Odette passes to Noah Loren, who hits a layup and Bellevue has a 52-43 lead.

St. Patrick misses a three point shot from the corner. Bellevue misses a driving layup. Jerryd Scheurer passes to Charlie Thelen, who hits a three point shot from the wing for St. Patrick. Caleb Betz finishes a Bronco fast break by hitting a turnaround eight foot shot in the lane. St. Patrick misses a jump shot from the free throw elbow. Bellevue misses a driving layup and fouls on the rebound. Brayden Simon passes to Charlie Thelen, who hits a three point shot from the corner to cut the Bronco lead to 54-49.

Bellevue misses a driving layup. Noah Loren grabs the offensive rebound for the Broncos. Bellevue is fouled on a layup and misses two free throws. St. Patrick misses a three point shot near the top of the key. Charlie Thelen knocks the ball away from Bellevue and Landon Simpson grabs it for St. Patrick; he gets the ball back to Charlie Thelen, who hits a fast break layup to bring St. Patrick to within three points at 54-51.

Bellevue misses a layup. Noah Loren is fouled on a putback and hits one of his two free throws for Bellevue. With 1:39 left on the clock, Bellevue holds a 55-51 lead.

Jerryd Scheurer passes to Brayden Simon, who hits a three point shot from the side to pull St. Patrick to within one point. Bellevue misses a twelve footer off the dribble in the lane. Brayden Simon passes to Jerryd Scheurer, who drills a threeball near the top of the key to give St. Patrick its first lead of the game at 57-55 with just 41.3 seconds to go.

Bellevue calls a timeout. Devin Cook steals the ball for the Shamrocks. St. Patrick is whistled for a traveling violation. Bellevue misses a three point shot from the wing. Bellevue commits its third and fourth fouls of the quarter. The Shamrocks are fouled with 3.2 seconds remaining in the game, but miss both free throws. The rebound goes out of bounds and Bellevue gets the ball back with 1.7 seconds to score.

The Broncos miss a three point shot from the corner as the final buzzer sounds.

St. Patrick wins this game 57-55 and will play in the District Final Friday evening.

Caleb Betz had 16 points to lead the Bellevue scoring. Nathan Payne supported his teammate with 14 points. Levi Hughes chipped in with 8 points. Noah Loren put in 5 points. Caleb Dahlem and Brady Payne each added 4 points. Connor Odette and Seth Keson each notched 2 points.

Brayden Simon led the Shamrock scoring with 19 points. Landon Simpson contributed 17 points. Charlie Thelen joined his teammates in double figures with 12 points. Jerryd Scheurer scored 6 points and Brady Leonard had 3 points.

Here is a link to the second game of the semifinal doubleheader where Fulton faced Fowler. https://thebleacherdenizen.com/2024/02/29/fulton-vs-fowler-boys-basketball-mhsaa-district-tournament-the-bleacher-denizen-february-28-2024-by-chuck-krafft/