The Becker Bulldog boys basketball team went 1-1 in the Breakdown Capital City Classic last weekend.

Last Saturday, Becker dominated with a 73-35 win over St. Paul Harding in a game that saw Senior Nathan Weiss set the program’s all-time record for made three-pointers with his 161st career make from beyond the arc.

Head Coach Cory Nuest emphasized that the milestone reflected much more than individual success. 

“As a coach, it’s always hard to know how much to highlight individual accolades because every record is built on the teamwork behind it,” Nuest said. “Nathan does so many other great things for us. He leads our team in assists, has been guarding one of the other team’s top scorers, and has been rebounding at a high level. That makes it easy to celebrate his accomplishments.”

Overall, the Bulldogs were unselfish on the offensive end, recording 23 assists while committing just nine turnovers.  Nuest’s squad battled on the boards, with 17 offensive rebounds despite being undersized. 

Bryce Paumen led the scoring with 27 points (nine rebounds), while Isiah Boyer finished with 12 points (seven rebounds).  Other notable stats included Troy Nuest with eight rebounds and six assists, and Saul Kreft with seven points and seven rebounds.

Nuest also credited the entire roster for the culture the Bulldogs are building. 

“All of our guys are unselfish, and that’s what makes this group really fun to coach,” he said.

South

A night earlier, Becker suffered its first loss of the season, 80-82 in double overtime, on a buzzer-beater against Minneapolis South.

Becker entered the matchup ranked #7 in the state and was tested throughout by a South team with talented guards who shot the ball well and consistently put pressure on the Bulldogs’ defense.

“South took us out of our formula for winning basketball games,” Nuest said. “They broke down our defense, hit open shots, and when they missed, they extended possessions on the glass.”

Despite the loss, Becker showed toughness and competitiveness, battling through regulation and two overtime periods. 

Boyer led the Bulldogs with 30 points, nine rebounds, and four assists, while Bryce Paumen added 24 points and a team-high 12 rebounds. Weiss contributed 11 points, six rebounds, and nine assists, and Troy Nuest chipped in 11 points, four rebounds, four assists, and three steals.

“Our guys played hard and competed the entire game,” Nuest said. “This was a great opportunity for us to be in a game like this early in the season. It showed some areas we need to clean up, and that’s how you learn and get better.”