FLANDREAU — It’s been a long, difficult road back to the hardwood for Flandreau’s Luke Sheppard.

The 6-foot-5 forward sustained a serious neck injury during a game against Parker on Jan. 25, 2025 last season that went from a typical stinger to something bigger than basketball.

“I went up to block a shot and the kid shot faked, and when I was coming down, he went up with the ball and his head hit my chin and I got folded back like a PEZ dispenser like 90 degrees,” Sheppard said. “I instantly felt a shock go through my arms so we kind of figured it would go away after a few days but it didn’t.”

Days after the injury Sheppard went in for X-rays and an MRI that revealed a pinched nerve and multiple torn ligaments in his neck, effectively ending his junior year and a promising season for a deep Flandreau boys basketball team.

“There wasn’t much you could do with an injury like that,” Sheppard said of the recovery. “I was in a neck brace for about a month or so, but after that you can’t really do much, just basically sit there and rest. That was tough for me to sit the bench and watch last year with all the special seniors we had.”

It was an injury that came as a shock to the team and the Sheppard family as he was hoping to return to basketball a few days later. 

“We were actually ready to have him come back and practice, we were just waiting for the results of an MRI,” said Brendan, Luke’s dad and Flandreau boys basketball coach. “The MRI came back and they basically said to get him in a neck brace because he has no stability in his spinal cord. You just go from hoping he comes back to playing basketball to just being thankful that he can walk still.

“We didn’t even think he would ever play again because the doctors said the risks are too high," Brendan said. “It seems like he’s recovered well enough now and it’s going well.”

Sheppard spent months resting and recovering from the injury and finally made his way back on the court late in the summer.

Flandreau's Luke Sheppard (32) shoots a three-pointer in the Fliers 58-44 win over Wolsey-Wessington at the Round Ball Classic in Volga on Jan. 10, 2026. (Jon Akre / 605 Sports)

Now back for his senior season, Sheppard has the Flyers in a similar spot as last season with an 8-3 record, with the only three losses coming against Class A No. 4 Hamlin, Class A No. 3 Clark/Willow Lake and Class B No. 3 Castlewood.

“I think it’s went pretty good so far,” Sheppard said. “We have five seniors that are all pretty solid. We’ve played with each other since we were third graders so our team chemistry is really good. We stand out on our defense, pretty much all of the games this season we’ve held teams to 10 or below their season average.”

Flandreau graduated seven seniors from last season, including three starters on the varsity squad, but the depth that was created from a year ago has helped transition this year’s all-senior starting lineup into bigger roles.

“Last year we were extremely deep, we had those seven seniors that could all play and then we had us five juniors that were capable of playing,” Sheppard said. “That made practices really competitive last year and it also prepared those other juniors that didn’t start last year that are seniors now to start on varsity.”

And Sheppard hasn’t missed a beat since the injury, averaging 19 points, nine rebounds and five assists per game this season. The four-year starter says he prides himself on his “ability to see the court and make the right read.”

“I’m more of like a driver and a facilitator so I kind of like getting to the rim and making the right decision of either scoring it or passing it for a layup or a three,” Sheppard said.

“You’re probably not going to find a kid that’s going to work harder or compete harder than Luke does,” Brendan said of Luke. “It’s not just his athletic ability that makes him a good player, it’s his understanding for the game and how hard he’s going to play.”

Sheppard’s days with the Flandreau boys basketball program goes back to elementary school as a water boy where he first fell in love with the sport.

“Just a really cool experience going to all the practices and riding the team bus to the games,” Sheppard said. “Experiencing all that with the team and seeing what was going on got me kind of excited for the future and my love of basketball branched out from there.”

Flandreau's Luke Sheppard shoots the basketball during a boys basketball game against Hamlin on Dec. 16, 2026, in Flandreau. (Jon Akre / 605 Sports)

He was in and out of the starting lineup as an eighth grader when the Fliers made it to the 2022 state boys basketball tournament for the first time since 2004.

“When I was an eighth grader I was on that team that went to state,” Sheppard said. “Being able to experience that and having the whole town of Flandreau cheering us on just meant so much. That’s caused me to work so hard to try to get back there and do something pretty cool for Flandreau.”

And the whole Sheppard family shares the same love of basketball as Luke. Luke’s older sister, Claire, is a redshirt freshman for the South Dakota State women’s basketball team while younger sisters Morgan (sophomore) and Rhegan (eighth grader) are standout players for the Flandreau girls basketball team.

“All four of us are pretty competitive,” Luke said. “When I was young me and my older sister Claire would always go to the gym with our dad and play one-on-one and do some competitive stuff all the time.”

And Luke’s relationship with his father extends beyond the typical father-son bond, but he’s enjoyed having him as his coach.

“I enjoy it,” Sheppard said of his dad’s coaching. “He’s hard on me compared to others but I’m used to it because he’s been around forever and I kind of enjoy it, too. Even though he’s hard on me, I know he loves me and cares for me so he’s been a really good coach.”

But most importantly, he gets to close out his high school basketball career on his own terms.

“I’m just thankful I was able to come back and play my senior year of basketball, that’s for sure,” Sheppard said.