More often than not, going left is just right for Marmion senior Sam Dalmann.
Keeping the 6-foot-5 Dalmann — the team’s only post player — on track also is a pretty big deal when it comes to the continuing success of the Cadets.
“I am right-handed,” Dalmann said, although there may be a few opponents he has faced this season who would be surprised to hear it.
Dalmann shoots his jump shot and free throws right-handed, but when he goes to work in the lane, he boasts a wicked left-handed jump hook. He shoots layups with either hand.
Being ambidextrous is more of a blessing in basketball than in most sports.
“It works out because most of the time the defender thinks because I’ve shot right-handed that I’m more comfortable going right,” Dalmann said. “It’s why I’ve worked a lot on a left-handed hook.
“To be honest, I’m probably more comfortable finishing with my left hand than my right.”
Dalmann was right on target Tuesday night, scoring 13 points and grabbing eight rebounds for Marmion in a 66-58 nonconference win over visiting Ottawa on senior night in Aurora.
Junior guard Ali Tharwani tallied team highs of 17 points and four steals for the Cadets (17-13). Junior center Owen Sanders had a game-high 18 points and three rebounds for Ottawa (9-17).
For Dalmann, it was just another day at the office.
“Sam has been tremendous for us the entire season,” Marmion coach Joe Piekarz said. “He’s our biggest kid. We have a lot of guards, and he provides us with an inside presence.
“He rebounds. He’s active. He provides so much to our team.”
Dalmann used both hands Tuesday, scoring layups with each off feeds from senior guard Ryan Catey and Tharwani in a first quarter that featured a 15-point Marmion lead.
In the third quarter, his 3-point play on a left-handed layup followed by that lefty jump hook on a roll down the lane staked the Cadets to their largest lead of the game at 46-25.
“My role has been, basically, to do most of the dirty work as they call it,” said Dalmann, who added three steals, a blocked shot and an assist. “I’ve gotta work to get the boards, find my teammates when they’re open, guard the big guys and also try to do my part in scoring and getting to the line.”
In the fourth quarter, Dalmann drove the baseline and finished off a reverse layup with his right hand for a much-needed basket.
“I could use even more confidence with my shot,” Dalmann said. “I scored decently this game, but if I’m able to knock down more, it’s a lot harder for the defense having to worry about me and the rest of our players.
“We have four really good shooters. I can always rely on them to be confident and ready to shoot if I kick it out to them.”
Ottawa later made its sixth 3-pointer of the fourth quarter to pull within 64-58 before Dalmann tipped in a teammate’s missed free throw to close out the scoring with 14.5 seconds left.
“It might have been a foul if he had boxed me out, but he also went for the rebound,” Dalmann said of Sanders’ effort on the play. “So I just tipped it over him.”
Marmion finishes the regular season Thursday at home against Bartlett in another nonconference game before opening play Feb. 26 in the Class 3A IMSA Regional against Wheaton Academy.
A likely date with top-seeded Kaneland (26-1) looms for the winner.
“I’m actually really proud of what we’ve done,” Dalmann said.
The Cadets have four sophomores among their top eight or nine players.
“We’re a really young team,” Dalmann said. “We struggled a little bit early, learning how to play with each other. Now, we work really well together. We rely on each other a lot.”
