Player of the Year Tayt Vincent, a senior at Sioux Valley, headlines the Class A All-State Boys’ Basketball squad, which was selected by the South Dakota Basketball Coaches Association.

“The bigger the game, the better he played,” said Cossack head coach Bill Vincent. “He has handled being our leader very well; he makes players around him better.”

Five of the six first-team performers are guards. The group is split evenly with three seniors and three juniors.

Joining Vincent on the first team are Chamberlain senior Seth Friesz, Vermillion junior AJ Plitzuweit, Tea Area senior Ethan Freidel, Flandreau junior Dylan LeBrun and Madison junior Aaron Fiegen.

Vincent and Freidel are both repeats on the first team – the former missed much of his sophomore season due to an injury but was a second-team honoree as a freshman.

Vincent helped lead the Cossacks to a 19-3 record and the top seed in the Sweet 16.

The 6-foot-3 guard averaged 22.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, 7.4 assists and 3.5 steals.

“Tayt became the face of our program over his career,” Coach Vincent added about the six-time letter winner. “He was our leader on and off the court. He has made a lasting impact on the youth of our program and our communities.”

Vincent is Sioux Valley’s career leader in points (1,837), assists (511), steals (241) and 3-pointers (247).

Friesz led the Cubs to a 20-5 season as they placed seventh at the state tournament.

“Seth has been an integral part of our program and our success for the last three years,” said Chamberlain coach Adam Nelson. “He has been a great example to our young kids for the amount of dedication it takes to become a great player. He attended every open gym and was always the last to leave every practice as he put in extra time to work on his game. All of his success as a player was due to the amount of time he put into the game and all the hours getting game shots up.

“Seth’s ability to hit the deep 3 stretched the floor for his teammates and also allowed him to be able to attack the basket or use his mid-range pull up. Those combinations made him tough to guard.”

The 6-1 guard averaged 23.7 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.

Friesz was a second-team selection in 2016 and a third-team pick in 2015.

He finished as the Cubs’ all-time leading scorer with 1,556 points.

Plitzuweit shined in his first year of basketball in South Dakota, averaging 23.6 points to go with 6.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists and two steals per contest.

“AJ had a really nice season for our basketball team,” Vermillion coach Jay Drake said of the 6-2 guard. “He is a very skilled basketball player that can score in a number of ways, but it was his performance on both ends of the floor that really helped our team this season. He is a very complete basketball player as he defends very well and was solid rebounding the basketball for us. He was a big reason for the success our team had on the floor this past season.

“And he was named the MVP of the Dakota 12 Conference, which we feel is a very good conference in this state.”

The Tanagers (16-4) were the top seed in Region 4A before falling in the semifinals.

Freidel was at his best in the state tournament, averaging 23.7 points per game while shooting 51.2 percent (21-of-41) from the field and 90 percent (18-of-20) at the free-throw line.

He dropped in 29 points in Tea’s 72-65 win over Madison in the championship matchup as the sixth-seeded Titans (21-4) picked up their first state title.

“Ethan is one of those players that plays with a lot of passion and has a tremendous drive to be successful,” said Tea Area coach Chris Fechner. “He has always been known as a shooter, and rightfully so, but his biggest improvement has been on the defensive end of the floor and his rebounding. He became a better on-ball defender and averaged almost five boards a game for us.

“As for the offense, we ran many sets for him and a lot of points he created on his own. He was always quick to credit his teammates for a screen or a pass, and would celebrate their success as much as his own. He has meant a great deal to our program and to see him go out on top was very special.”

For the year, Freidel, a 6-1 guard, averaged 21.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists and two steals.

He is the Titans’ all-time leading scorer with 1,427 points.

LeBrun, a 6-6 point guard, is a dynamic player for the Fliers.

"Dylan has always been a great scorer,” said Flandreau coach Brendan Sheppard. “With his increased size and strength, he became a big factor defensively and on the boards. He more than doubled his assist total, as well. Dylan's game has evolved so he is a dominant factor at all times.”

He ended up with 23 points, nine rebounds, five assists, 1.5 steals and two blocks per game. LeBrun, who was on the third team as a sophomore, is Flandreau’s all-time leading scorer with 1,519 points.

The Fliers went 17-5, falling in the Region 3A semifinals.

Fiegen, the lone forward on the first team at 6-6, averaged 15.6 points and 5.2 rebounds.

The top-seeded Bulldogs went 20-5 and placed second at the state tourney.

“Aaron is an exceptional player with a tremendous work ethic,” said Madison coach Michael Ricke. “His ability to score from both inside and outside made him tough for our opponents to match up with.

“Aaron became the go-to guy on a team filled with playmakers and seemed to get better with every game. He has the ability to be a difference maker on both ends of the court.”

The second team is made up of St. Thomas More senior Isaac Kortemeyer, Aberdeen Roncalli senior Gus Reede, Vermillion senior Cooper Williams, Dakota Valley senior Robert Rosenquist, Sioux Falls Christian junior Koln Oppold and Tri-Valley senior Will Steineke.

Williams is a repeat selection to the second team, while Kortemeyer improved on his third-team status from the previous year.

Third-team picks are Sioux Valley junior Trevor Olson, Chamberlain senior Tiegen Priebe, Sioux Falls Christian senior Dejay Fykstra, Miller junior Steven Fernholz, Madison senior Mason Leighton and Tea Area sophomore Noah Freidel.

CLASS A ALL-STATE BOYS’ BASKETBALL TEAM

Selected by the South Dakota Basketball Coaches Association

First Team

Player of the Year – Tayt Vincent, Sioux Valley, 6-3, sr., guard (22.5 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 7.4 apg, 3.5 spg)

Seth Friesz, Chamberlain, 6-1, sr., guard (23.7 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 2.3 apg)

AJ Plitzuweit, Vermillion, 6-2, jr., guard (23.6 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 2.7 apg, 2 spg)

Ethan Freidel, Tea Area, 6-1, sr., guard (21.9 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.4 apg, 2 spg)

Dylan LeBrun, Flandreau, 6-6, jr., guard (23 ppg, 9 rpg, 5 apg, 1.5 spg, 2 bpg)

Aaron Fiegen, Madison, 6-6, jr., forward (15.6 ppg, 5.2 rpg)

Second Team

Isaac Kortemeyer, St. Thomas More, 6-8, sr., center (13.8 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 2.6 apg, 2.1 bpg)

Gus Reede, Aberdeen Roncalli, 6-2, jr., guard/forward (19.7 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 2.2 apg)

Cooper Williams, Vermillion, 6-0, sr., guard (16 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 5.7 apg)

Robert Rosenquist, Dakota Valley, 5-11, sr., guard (17.5 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 4.2 apg, 1.7 spg)

Koln Oppold, Sioux Falls Christian, 6-4, jr., guard/forward (21 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2 apg, 1.2 spg)

Will Steineke, Tri-Valley, 6-5, sr., forward/center (16.8 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 2.8 apg, 2 bpg)

Third Team

Trevor Olson, Sioux Valley, 6-4, jr., guard (21 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2 apg, 1.2 spg)

Tiegen Priebe, Chamberlain, 5-9, sr., guard (16.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 4.6 apg)

Dejay Fykstra, Sioux Falls Christian, 6-6, sr., forward (12 ppg, 5 rpg, 3 apg)

Steven Fernholz, Miller, 6-3, jr., forward (22.1 ppg, 8.1 rpg, 1.6 apg, 1.5 spg)

Mason Leighton, Madison, 6-1, sr., guard (11.4 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 6.4 apg, 3 spg)

Noah Freidel, Tea Area, 6-4, so., guard/forward (17.3 ppg, 6 rpg, 3.2 apg, 2 spg)