3A boys: Grace Christian eliminates Bethel

March 21, 2008 at 2:07PM AKST

Roy Corral/Alaska Newspapers Inc.
Bethel's Thomas Kalikstook (2) advances into the paint past Leif Karlberg (15) of Grace Christian.

Roy Corral/Alaska Newspapers Inc.
Bethel's Alban Malaj (34) breaks down the court with teammate Christian Osentoski (3) in the second half of Friday's game for fourth place at the Alaska 3-A state basketball tournament.

Roy Corral/Alaska Newspapers Inc.
Caleb Davis (10) of the Grace Christian Grizzlies dives to control the ball against Bethel Warrior defenders.

Roy Corral/Alaska Newspapers Inc.
Kyle Chavez (14) makes a jump shot against guard Caleb Davis (10) of the Grace Christian Grizzlies.

It wasn’t just Bethel against Grace Christian.

It was brother against brother.

That’s Bethel coach Norm Boerger against older sibling Chuck Boerger, coach for Grace Christian.

The two men, and their teams, paired off in the second round of the 3A boys state basketball championship in Anchorage on Friday.

There’s no sibling rivalry, they say. They’re too many years apart.

“Nope,” said the brown-haired Norm, 50.

“That’s for the kids,” said the gray-haired Chuck, 60.

The Grace Christian boys, aided by the towering senior duo of Kellan Moll and Jordan Visher, kept an aggressive Bethel team at bay to win 56-45.

Relations on the floor were intense at times. Moll, a muscular 6-foot-8-inches, smacked a wincing Daniel Updegrove to the floor while blocking a shot, then walked away without helping his opponent to his feet.

“It’s not a wrestling match!” shouted a fan in the Bethel section.

Bethel players Thomas Kalistook, who scored a game-high 24 points, and Kyle Chavez, who added 11 points, said their team had a tough time defending Grace Christian’s big men.

“I went to steal the ball once and I was in his crotch,” said six-footer Chavez, who covered Moll.

Despite buzzer heroics by Chavez – he added a twisting layup to end the first quarter and flushed a three-pointer to end the second – Bethel ended the half down 29-22.

Bethel’s plan coming out of the locker room: quicken the tempo of the game and beat the bigger team with speed. It temporarily worked.    

The Bethel boys pulled within four when Kalistook added another three-pointer, one of his six for the game.

But back-to-back treys by Leif Karlberg, who scored 21 points, helped Grace pull away.

Alban Malaj and John Herman added four points apiece for Bethel. Christian Osentoski had two. 

The loss eliminated Bethel from the tournament. The Warriors posted a 15-14 record for the year, including its two tournament losses.

The brother coaches, similarly lean and dressed alike – slacks and ties but no coat – both said after the game that Grace’s big size was key. They harbored no animosity, they said.

They planned to sit in the stands, chat strategy and watch more games.

The brothers grew up in northern Michigan, playing ball but rarely together because of their age difference.

“He was the better basketball player," Chuck said. "He grew and I didn’t."

Norm said he learned a lot from his older brother, including Bethel’s man-to-man pressure defense.  

The two came to Alaska after Boerger the older convinced Norm to leave Michigan in 1980. They coached boys basketball at the Adak U.S. naval base in the Aleutian Islands.

They went their own ways and temporarily left Alaska after that stint, but remained coaches and eventually returned.

It wasn't until this decade that both men coached varsity level at the same time. They’ve squared off two or three times over the years, with Chuck’s teams winning every match. That won’t last forever.

“He just does a good job with his kids and eventually he’ll get me,” Chuck said.

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