By Ryan Deal 

605 Sports

White River has qualified for 17 straight state tournaments and Dylan Marshall has been along for every single ride. 

Marshall, the oldest son of White River coach Eldon Marshall, was attached to his dad’s hip for postgame interviews, spent time as a student manager and just capped his career as the Tigers’ point guard at another state tourney. 

So it’s not a stretch to say no other player in this year’s field has experienced more Class B boys basketball tournaments than Marshall. 

“I had a lot of emotions going on,” said Marshall, whose last prep game was a third-place win over Potter County at Wachs Arena on March 19. “I was really excited getting out there for such a big game and knowing it is my last game was kind of saddening. I had mixed emotions going on out there.”

But just like every other game as a Tiger, Marshall had familiar faces by his side. In addition to Eldon coaching him, Dylan’s younger brother Nicolas was again in the starting lineup. 

“It was very emotional knowing that I am saying goodbye to them,” said Dylan, who plans to play college basketball and hasn’t made his decision yet. “But at the same time I am opening up another chapter in my life. It’s really heart warming knowing I got to play my last game with both of them alongside me.”

In his final game as a Tiger, Dylan Marshall left a lasting impression. The 6-foot guard racked up 18 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds. He finished this season averaging 15.4 points, 5.2 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game, while finishing with more than 1,000 career points. 

Marshall’s impact goes beyond stats, said junior teammate Joe Sayler. 

“He just brings a lot of energy and he works really hard for us,” Sayler said. “We are sure going to miss him next year, but we just have to have guys step up.”

White River's Nicolas Marshall attacks the basket against Freeman Academy/Marion's Matthew Hagen (1) and Connor Epp (2) on March 17 at Wachs Arena. (Ryan Deal / 605 Sports)

Sayler added a game-high 37 points and 10 rebounds in the third-place win. Nicolas Marshall finished with nine points and three assists. The two, along with Kendrell Cuevas and Gavin Folkers, will headline next year’s returners. 

Nicolas said they’ll also miss Dylan’s presence on the court and praised him for holding him accountable. Nicolas, who has also been a regular at the state tournament, said he also had a number of emotions going into the third-place game. 

“We kind of talked about it before and how next year was going to be tough without him,” Nicolas said. “(White River assistant coach) Justice (Morrison) talked with me about it a lot and just said enjoy the moment and go have fun with it.”

Dylan, who was a reserve guard as a freshman, was inserted into the starting lineup as a sophomore and he’s been the point guard ever since. Eldon said he always handled the expectations of manning the Tigers’ point guard position and playing for him.  

“He’s done an amazing job dealing with it,” Eldon said. “We’ve learned together and we’ve grown together. That’s the most important thing. I love him more than anything and I am really proud of him. I am a proud coach and a proud dad.”

White River coach Eldon Marshall hugs his Dylan and Nic (3) after their third-place game on March 19 at Wachs Arena. (Ryan Deal / 605 Sports)