John Unterreiner, Notre Dame

Notre Dame's John Unterreiner is certainly not the Bulldogs top offensive player as his average of 6.8 points per game this season is the fewest of any Notre Dame starter.

But Unterreiner, playing in the district title game against Sikeston on Saturday, showed that he knows how to score when his team needs him to do so.

The junior netted 16 points in Notre Dame's 59-36 victory over Sikeston. He combined with teammate Ryan Willen, who had 23 points, to outscore the entire Sikeston squad by three points.

"He really stepped up tonight," Notre Dame's Mark Himmelberg said. "John can do it. He doesn't get a lot of credit because he doesn't score the most points and doesn't take a lot of shots. But when it comes down to when we need him, John knows when he needs to step up and he's great at attacking the basket and dishing the ball off. He's a great defender and he just does a lot of things well."

Unterreiner was especially strong in the third quarter, scoring 10 of Notre Dame‚s 18 points that period. He helped give Notre Dame a comfortable 20-point cushion entering the fourth quarter.

"He'll go some games and won't score," Notre Dame coach Paul Hale said. "He plays good in big games. He's a competitor. Usually the bigger the game, the better he plays. He had a good game tonight."