Brodina's Show Stoollights Fires up Devil Rays as Playoffs Close, Stats Hint at Changes Ahead
Mar. 17—GRAND FORKS — If there was any doubt Devils Lake sophomore Ben Brodina was ready for an expanded role, the youngest member of a standout basketball family put that to rest in mid-January. With Devils Lake seniors Max and Mason Palmer out of the lineup for six weeks after Christmas, Brodina scored a school-record 49 points in a game against Grafton.
Brodina went on to average 24 points per game in the Palmers' absence. Now, as the Palmers returned to the lineup for Devils Lake's stretch run, the Firebirds are jelling at the right time entering the North Dakota Division A state tournament. Devils Lake, the No.
1 seed, opens the state tournament against Dunseith at 6:30 p. m. in Fargo.
"It's tough because both (Palmer brothers) were averaging 25 points per game, so there's 50 points gone," said Ben, who recently turned 16. "Not that I had a green light to do whatever I want, but it was a lot more creating for myself. Those two free us up a lot.
Now, we have a lot of guys we are confident in to get it done. " Ben, a 6-foot-2 guard, is the youngest of the Brodina family. His oldest brother Beau plays baseball at Lake Region State College, brother Parker plays basketball at the University of Mary and sister Tylie is one of the state's best guards as a high school junior.