Saturday marked Holy Angels’ second game of the 2017-18 season. For Stars coach Dan Woods, however, it was his first.

Along with his basketball duties, Woods has spent 30 years helping coach the Holy Angels football team. With the Stars playing in Friday’s Class 4A state championship, Woods missed the basketball season opener to fulfill his role as wide receivers coach.

With Woods back on the sideline, Holy Angels responded from an opening-night loss to Dowling Catholic in Iowa to thump Rochester Lourdes 72-37 in the finale of the Thanksgiving Tip-Off at the University of St. Thomas.

When watching the Stars (1-1), Woods’ presence is quickly known. His voice carries across the arena as he yells out specific instructions to his players in regard to movement on the floor. The orders come while his team is on both offense and defense.

“They respond differently to me,” Woods said. “I think me not being there threw them off. They played well tonight and know the high expectations I have for them.”

On the offensive end, Woods echoed his philosophy of working inside then going to the outside. This is much easier done for Holy Angels with junior forward Destinee Oberg on the floor. On nearly every offensive possession the 6-foot-2 post presence received a pass. From there, she had the option to go to the rim or pass it back outside to her teammates.

In the first half Saturday, Oberg’s best option was inside. While the Stars, who are No. 2 in the Class 3A Minnesota Basketball News rankings, struggled from three-point range in the first half, Oberg scored eight of Holy Angels’ first 17 points.

After halftime, Oberg’s options on the perimeter increased. Junior guard Alex Walker opened the second half with a pair of three-pointers and went on to finish with 17 points.

Woods said after the win that Oberg’s point total isn’t a priority for the junior and it’s more about helping the team. Oberg mirrored that opinion.

“When I’m getting doubled down low, it’s nice to have that option,” Oberg said. “It definitely gets some pressure off of me.”

Defensively, the Stars were a consistent thorn in the side of the Eagles (0-2). Holy Angels gave up just 10 points in the first half. By the time Rochester Lourdes’ offense was putting up points, the Stars were in complete control.

This is the second consecutive night the No. 3-2A Eagles have faced a top-tier opponent from a larger school. Rochester Lourdes opened the season with a 67-51 loss to No. 6-4A Cretin-Derham Hall on Friday.

Eagles coach Aaron Berg said after the game he hoped that his offense would be farther along. His roster is all upperclassmen outside of one sophomore.

“Our defense is always ahead of our offense,” Berg said. “When we go up against these bigger schools, it only makes us better. There’s nowhere to go from here but up.”

Holy Angels doesn’t have quite the experience of Rochester Lourdes, but Woods’ expectations continue to be high. When referring to his team’s 2017 season, which resulted in a third-place finish in the Class 3A state tournament, he used the word “struggle.”

This season, Woods said he likes what he sees from his offense. His team, meanwhile, likes to see him back on the hardwood floor.

“Yesterday was a crazy day with everything going on,” Oberg said. “Tonight, we got back in our flow.”

After both teams dropped their season opener, Holy Angels was the one to end the weekend on a high note, notching a 72-37 win over Rochester Lourdes in the Thanksgiving Tip-Off Tournament at the University of St. Thomas on Saturday night.

The Stars (1-1) were led by junior Destinee Oberg. The standout post made her presence in the middle known with 19 points and 9 rebounds in the win.

Junior guard Alex Walker also stood out in the win with a 17-point performance, which included a pair of three-pointers to open the second half for Holy Angels, which is ranked second in the Class 3A Minnesota Basketball News rankings.

The Eagles (0-2) struggled once again while going up against a larger school. Rochester Lourdes just managed 10 points in the first half.

In the second half, the No. 3-2A Eagles were able to nearly triple their first-half output. They were led by senior Wynter Bergner, who had 18 points in the loss. Alyssa Ustby contributed with 10 points.

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