ABERDEEN — De Smet is the defending state champs and they did just that on Thursday. 

Behind their suffocating brand of defense, the No. 1 Bulldogs rolled to a 60-28 win over Waubay/Summit in the opening round of the Class B state tournament at Wachs Arena. 

The Bulldogs (23-1) held the Mustangs (20-4) in check en route to the opener and will play Potter County at 6 p.m. Friday in the semifinals. “We got out and had pressure on the ball,” said De Smet’s Kalen Garry, who scored 13 points. “They were uncomfortable shooting the shots and uncomfortable passing and that’s what we wanted to do.”

Damon Wilkinson led the Bulldogs with 15 points, seven rebounds, three blocked shots and three steals. Rett Osthus added nine points and four rebounds. 

The two were again instrumental in De Smet’s defensive showcase. Wilkinson, a 6-foot-9 junior, neutralized Waubay/Summit’s J Gulbraa (6-foot-7) in the paint. 

It was a matchup Wilkinson had looked forward to leading into the contest. 

“I would rather play a bigger guy because it’s actually another post player and that’s different,” Wilkinson said. “It’s more fun to go against a bigger guy and have some competition.”

Gulbraa, who scored 12 points per game, finished 2 of 6 from the field and scored five points. 

“We knew that was going to be big and we hadn’t played a big guy here for a little while,” De Smet coach Jeff Gruenhagen said. “So we knew he would come in fired up and go at him. I am glad he did.”

Osthus, meanwhile, was a defensive menace again. He limited Damon Opdahl to eight points on 2 of 15 shooting from the field, including 1 of 6 at the 3-point line. Opdahl averages a team-high 16.6 points per game. 

“He got frustrated early, but he kept his head in the game and he didn’t get to where he normally does on the floor,” Waubay/Summit coach Mark Amdahl said. “But again credit to De Smet’s defense. Rett I would say is the best defender in Class B.”

The Bulldogs finished with five steals, but they also were disruptive in the passing lanes and going after 50/50 balls. 

“It just kind of interferes with their offense and then they are not in sync,” Garry said. “We did everything we can to stop them from being comfortable when they are on offense. That’s what we try to do every single game.”

Waubay/Summit finished 9 of 53 from the field and 4 of 21 at the 3-point line. Offensively, the Bulldogs finished 24 of 47 from the field, including a 14 of 25 shooting performance from the field. 

“Their defense is just as good as their offense and they know how to shut people down,” Amdahl said. “You can just tell their experience shined today and our lack of experience showed.”

De Smet seized control early on, scoring the game’s first 12 points and Waubay/Summit didn’t score a field goal until 1:30 left in the first quarter. The Bulldogs had a comfortable 25-4 first-quarter lead and they ballooned it to 33-14 at halftime. 

“We’ve had a lot of games this season where we’ve started out where we are maybe down 10-2,” Gruenhagen said. “Just because we were shooting cold and didn’t get a great shot up or something, but to come out and hit a few, that really gets us going.”

In the fourth quarter, De Smet led by as many as 35 points and held Waubay/Summit to 5 of 28 shooting in the second half. 

Jonathan Johnston added eight points for the Mustangs, who play Aberdeen Christian in the consolation semifinals on Friday. 

Tory Holland and Kadyn Fast finished eight points and eight rebounds apiece. George Jensen scored five points off the bench.