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A little advice from Grand Island Central Catholic coach Bill Gavers helped Palmer earn a Class D-1 wild card berth.
Palmer coach Matt Koehler said Gavers told him that every game counts.
"That's kind of what I preached to the kids all year," Koehler said. "Play hard every game. Bill Gavers told me if you're in position to make state, every game can affect the state tournament."
The Tigers (20-3) needed a wild card after losing to Humphrey St. Francis in a district final. Palmer will play Mead (19-3) at 10:45 a.m. Thursday at Lincoln East in the school's first state appearance since the 1984 team won the Class D state title.
"It's been a long time 24 years," Koehler said. "The kids are pretty excited. The town is excited. We had a great crowed follow us to Columbus (for the district final). The fans really supported us. It was nice to go there and have your crowd win the yelling match."
The fans may have won the yelling match, but the Tigers didn't win the game. Koehler said his team played pretty well and controlled things until the final quarter.
"We had a hard time taking care of the ball," Koehler said. "They really went aggressively to the hoop. They shot 36 free throws and we shot nine."
But Koehler said the free throws didn't make the difference in the game.
"We lost the game because we broke down on fundamentals," Koehler said. "We're going to go back to the fundamentals. We'll work on the important things that seem easy. We need to do a better job of those."
Just like Palmer, Mead is entering state play after a loss. The Raiders dropped a 65-43 decision to No. 1 Fremont Bergan in a district final game.
Mead is led by 6-1 junior Eric Johnson, who is averaging 13.9 points per game. Josh Charles, a 6-5 senior, averages 11.8 and 6-0 junior Jordan Moline 10.2.
"I know they have a really good point guard," Koehler said. "They have a 6-5 kid (Charles) and a 6-4 kid (AdamTaylor). Their shooting guard (Johnson) is probably their best player.
"They're very athletic. They've played a tough schedule so I think it will be a real test for our team."
The Tigers counter with seniors like Neil Kilchriste Collins Haag and Nic Dukat. Kilchriste is averaging 21.6 points and 11.7 rebounds per game while Dukat runs the show from his point guard position and contributes 11.7 points per game.
Haag is also averaging in double figures with 14 points per game.
Koehler said it's important for his players to stay calm and not let the excitement of the state tournament get to them.
"We just have to treat it like another game," Koehler said. "It's hard when the whole community is talking about it. Our goal is to take care of business that first day. You can't look ahead. We have to be prepared to play four quarters of basketball."
Palmer (20-3)
Player H Y PPG RPG
Nic Dukat 5-9 Sr. 11.7 5.6
Niles Kilchriste 5-6 So. 0.8 0.4
Neil Kilchriste 6-2 Sr. 21.6 11.0
Daniel Friedrichsen 6-0 Jr. 5.7 1.1
John McDermott 5-9 Sr. 4.0 2.7
Scott Saltzgaber 6-0 Sr. 3.5 4.2
Blake Saltzgaber 5-11 So. 1.0 1.0
Joshua Stoppkotte 5-9 Sr. 3.0 2.2
Ian Christensen 5-9 So. 0.2 0.3
Nathan Doggett 5-9 So. 1.0 0.5
Preston Tibbetts 5-7 So. 0.0 0.0
Alex Christensen 6-4 So. 1.1 1.5
Michael McClellan 5-9 So. 0.4 0.6
Collins Haag 6-1 Sr. 14.0 4.9
Head coach: Matt Koehler
Assistant coaches: Rob Wegner, Kevin McDermott
NSAA enrollment: 67
Conference: Goldenrod
State appearances: 8
Most recent: 1984
State championship years: D/1974, D-1/1974
State runner-up years: D/1972
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