Written by Dan Genzler, who writes The Genz blog at www,genzmania.com. Check it out.

With both Mitchell (SD) teams ranked #1 in both girls and boys basketball, it begs the question of how many times a high school has won both championships in the same year?

With the help of the South Dakota High School Activities Association yearbooks, dual boys/girls championships by the same high school has occurred six times in 36 years, since the start of girls championships in 1975.

Before listing the six schools that have won boys/girls titles in the same year, it should be pointed out that the girls’ first champions were Jefferson (65-33 over Mobridge/NWLA) in Class B and Yankton (39-34 over Watertown) in Class A. The boys championships date back to 1912 when Redfield defeated Lake Preston, 33-25, in the original one-class system.

The six dual boys/girls champions include:

1978: The Yankton Bucks captured the boys A title in a 58-35 win over Watertown while the Yankton Gazelles defeated Belle Fourche, 64-54, for the girls A crown.

1982: The Pierre Governors won the boys A crown, 56-43, over Rapid City Central; while the girls defeated Yankton, 43-37 for the A title.

1990: Mitchell boys defeated Sioux Falls Lincoln, 56-55, in AA (three-class system). The Kernels girls team upended Yankton, 57-49, for the AA title.

1991: Northwestern won both the boys and girls B crowns (three-class system). The Northwestern boys defeated Crow Creek, 71-55, while the girls team upended Willow Lake, 36-27.

1994: Mitchell boys defeated Aberdeen Central, 63-55, to win Class AA (three class system). The Kernels girls team defeated Yankton, 42-32, for the AA crown.

2000: The Sioux Falls Roosevelt boys team defeated Rapid City Central, 55-54, for the AA title (three classes). The Rough Riders girls team upended Mitchell, 75-49, for the AA crown.

Schools with both boys and girls titles: A total of 30 schools have won both a girls and boys title over the past 36 years. Also, 52 other schools have won only a boys title (since 1912) while 13 others have only a girls title (since 1975). Those with both a boys and girls championship in South Dakota include Armour, Belle Fourche, Brandon Valley, Brookings, Dell Rapids, Elkton/Elkton-Lake Benton, Hamlin, Howard, Hurley, Huron, Lennox, Milbank, Miller, Mitchell, Mitchell Christian, Northwestern, Onida/Sully Buttes, Pierre, Pine Ridge, Platte/Platte-Geddes, Salem, SF O’Gorman, SF Roosevelt, SF Washington, Sisseton, Vermillion, Wakonda, Watertown, West Central and Yankton.

Five Class B Boys Teams Undefeated; Wagner Only Girls Unbeaten

In South Dakota boys prep hoops, just five teams remain unbeaten and they all reside in Class B. The teams include #1 White River (12-0), #2 Canistota (13-0), #3 Rosholt (13-0) and #4 Faith (13-0), along with unranked Olerichs (11-0). Class A #1 Wagner (15-0) is the only girls team that remains unbeaten.

Speaking of White River, they have been a dominant team in Class B, winning every game by at least 11 points. Aside from White River’s 60-49 victory over McLaughlin, they have won every game by at least 20 points, including a recent 63-43 verdict over then #3 Viborg/Hurley. White River has a 994 to 501 point differential against opponents with six wins by 43 or more points. In similar fashion, Faith has served notice that they can hoop it up. The Longhorns sit 13-0 after knocking off previously undefeated Dupree (11-1), 75-64. They, too, have won every game by double digits.

Four Averaging Double-Doubles
A total of four players in South Dakota boys and girls basketball are averaging double doubles. Shayne Gottlob of Class A #4 McCook Central/Montrose leads the way at 20.2 ppg, 13.8 rpg., while Bryce Koch of Class A #1 Dell Rapids is at 14.3 ppg., and 11.3 rpg. Ashley Robinson of Class B Hanson (13-3) is averaging 19.8 ppg., and 10.2 rpg. Baltic’s Allie Waltner is scoring 12.1 ppg., and 10.3 rpg., for the 11-3 Class A squad. Heidi Hoff isn’t averaging a double double but the Class AA Brandon Valley standout leads all girls players in scoring at 22.4 ppg., and assists (57). Cody Willett of Canton is averaging nearly a double double at 19.3 ppg., and 8.6 rebounds per contest. Ben Schultz of Brandon Valley leads SD boys in scoring at 21.0 ppg.

Prep Shorts
~ In Class AA girls, #1 Mitchell sits at 13-1 and has won eight straight games.
~The Mitchell boys are 12-1 with 11 straight wins since a loss to Pierre in week two.
~Brandon Valley’s Heidi Hoff , who earlier this year had 45 points (second best ever single game point performance in state girls history) tied a school record with 11 assists in a win over Huron on Jan. 28.
~Centerville’s Kieran O’Malley, who has more than 1,600 career points and 280 assists, continues to shine and had a season-high 33 points in a win over Kimball/White Lake. Her teammate Samantha Blake has recently gone over 1,000 career points. Another recent player to go over 1,000 points is Beresford’s Alison Klostergard.
~ Class B Girls #3 Summit has moved to 14-2 and owns a nine-game winning streak, dating back to a loss to Class A #5 Sisseton on Dec. 27. In that December encounter, last year’s Class A (Sisseton) and Class B (Summit) champions played. Recently, Summit defeated Class B #2 and previously unbeaten Estelline, 50-36.
~ Led by Ashley Robinson, Hanson continues to make noise in Girls Class B. Hanson has won nine straight to run its record to 13-3.
~ Boys Class A #3 St. Thomas More (11-2) had a big week after knocking off previously unbeaten Spearfish (9-2), 59-50, at home and Winner (10-3) on the road. STM defeated Winner, 53-46, as standout guard Skye Warwick hit six three-point field goals and scored 28 points.
~ Shayne Gottlob, recently named the KSFY’s Taco John’s Athlete of the Week, has helped #4 (KSFY/KWSN rankings) McCook Central/Montrose (10-3) back into the top five in Class A. He helped MC/M win its fourth in a row this past week. However, last week, he had three straight double doubles with 17 and 10 in a win over Madison; 29 points with 22 rebounds in a victory against Flandreau and 16 points and 21 boards in the conquest of Sioux Valley. During that run Gottlob averaging 20.4 points and 18 rebounds per game and had two consecutive 20 plus rebound games.