Madison East over West

Last night got to see Madison West play for the first time and for the first time in a while I think West doesn't have as much talent but, they play a lot harder then they have in the past. Time and time again I've thought West couldn't have a very good team but, they just haven't come to play. This year I didn't think West was going to be that great of a team but, after watching them they play really hard. On the other side Madison East should be one of the top teams in the conference and they are a middle of the pack team that struggles at times. I've only watched East's bigger games but, I just can't figure out why they are struggling with the talent they have.

Throughout the entire game it felt like Madison East was going to run away with it but, West kept fighting back making a game of it. Early on it seemed that West really wanted to run which cause East to come back pushing the tempo as well. With West pushing the tempo they were getting some easy looks in transition they were just struggling to make some very easy buckets. In transition the West players just weren't gathering themselves and finishing through contact and when they looked to the post they were just throwing the ball off the rim and I mean throwing and the ball would bounce out. The lone bright spot early on was the play of 6'4 Isaiah McFadden who used his length and athleticism to score around the paint. For Madison East it was the calming influence of 6'4 senior Deang Deang who was the big factor all game long and also the play of 5'11 junior Cameron Cratic. This was the first game that I've seen Cratic start and he scored five early points to set the tempo. East was able to take a 10 point lead at half after leading by 14 points at one time.

In the second half Madison West came out gunning forcing turnovers and getting out and running. 6'3 junior Terrell Carey had a monster second half scoring all 16 of his points in the second half. Carey used his quick hands to pick passes and then his strength to finish around the rim through contact. Despite Carey's best efforts and West trimming the lead to four it was Deang who sealed the deal. Deang matched Carey basket for basket. Deang was able to get to the rim at will where he finished at the rim or went to the foul line where he made his free throws. In the end East won 82-76.

Top Players 
Deang Deang 6'4 senior Madison East- I've said most of it but, just to reiterate. Deang got to the rim at will, hit his free throws, and has a tremendous stop and pop shot from about 15 foot.

Cameron Cratic 5'11 junior Madison East- Really attacked the rim strong going to his left and showed the ability to knock down the three.,

Terrell Carey 6'3 junior Madison West- Played the passing lane really well stealing passes and was so strong finishing around the rim through the contact.

Isaiah Mc Fadden 6'4 senior Madison West- Used his length and athleticism to finish around the rim. Fouled out early in the second half which hurt his impact.

Box Score
East 82- Deang 26 Cratic 15 Steven Wooten 12 Keshawn Justice 11 Tre'vone Irby 8 Kenny Jones 4 Chris Warren 3 Davion Washington 2 Nevonte Hilliard 0 Israel Oby 0 Demarco Douglas 0 Courtland Cuevas 0 Donovan Tomony 0 Ali Saffold 0
West 76- Carey 16 Simeon Parker 14 Sam Meyer 10 Isaiah McFadden 10 Greg Wright 10 Larry Hawkins 9 Nassir Vick 4 Ari Davis 2 Chris Jones 0

Watching this game it looks like East may have finally turned the corner and West could very easily upset anyone they play and could cause some problems come tournament time.

Lodi, Madison Memorial, and Middleton get the Ws

This past week I took in three straight days and didn't have a chance to do any writing. Lodi came up with the huge upset of Lakeside Lutheran. Memorial seems to have rounded it to form defeating Madison East in a game where East controlled the entire game. Middleton faced their biggest challenge of the year taking down Arrowhead. 

Lodi 62 Lakeside Lutheran 54

I think Lakeside Lutheran played pretty poorly and the only guy that could get things going was 6'3 senior Mason DeNoyer who ended with 19 points. DeNoyer was able to hit jumpers all game long from deep two point range and out to three point range. 6'0 senior Austin DeNoyer struggled all game long forcing bad shots and just couldn't get things going at all. On the other side Lodi used a tremendous high low game with their two big men 6'6 senior Peyton Fulkerson and 6'5 senior Derek Paulson. Paulson gets most of the attention but, Fulkerson was just as impressive as each player took turns catching the ball in the high post and then feeding his team mate in the low post. Paulson had the one advantage with his ability to handle the ball and the ability to knock down the three. In the end it was Lakeside inability to knock down the outside shot that allowed Lodi to seal the game. 

Top Scorers

Lodi- Paulson 23 Fulkerson 16 Logan Walzer 10

LL- DeNoyer 19 A DeNoyer 12 Cameron Kuepers 10

Madison Memorial 63 Madison East 56

This was a very strange game because East totally controlled this game throughout until the final five minutes or so when Memorial finally took the lead. This game had by far the best atmosphere I have seen all year long. The energy level was there and the crowd was as loud and intense as any gym has been this year. East came out applying the pressure and Memorial just wasn't ready for it as they turned the ball over again and again early on. In the half court offense East was moving the ball pretty well and when they were missing their shots Memorial was doing a poor job of boxing out and East was dominating the offensive glass. Thankfully for Madison Memorial 6'5 junior Jake Ferguson had another great night rebounding and scoring in the post. Personally I think Ferguson is their most valuable player and every once in awhile he has a great game that shows what he's capable of. In the second half Memorial was the one that dominated the offensive glass and East just couldn't put Memorial away. 6'4 senior Deang Deang did his best to carry his team an East had a lead late but, a double technical totally changed the game and momentum. 6'2 East senior Oliver Allison got tangled up with Ferguson and some pushing and shoving happened and Allison got nailed with two Ts and Memorial hit three of four free throws to put them within one then a basket on the next possession gave them the lead. Madison East came back to hit a huge three but, it was Ferguson who scored on the next possession and Memorial hung onto the lead hitting the free throws. 

Top Scorers

Memorial- Ferguson 19 Chris Knight 15 Logan Knecht 11

East- Dean 17 Allison 11 Kenny Jones 6 

Middleton 81 Arrowhead 78

This was probably Middleton's biggest test of the year as Arrowhead is battle tested and plays in a very tough conference. Middleton blitzed them early on but, Arrowhead slowly climbed back into this one until they were in striking distance late. Middleton was able to get out in transition on the Arrowhead turnover which gave some easy baskets to 6'4 junior Tyree Eady who got out in transition to score. Eady also did a nice job of moving without the ball and finding easy buckets around the rim. Another player that moved extremely well without the ball was 5'11 junior Storm Murphy who came off the screens and was ready to shoot immediately and Murphy is never shy about taking shots. For Arrowhead it was really all Trevell Cunningham a 5'11 junior thats lighting quick and no one on Middleton could stay in front of him. Cunningham was able to get to the basket at will where he would score or find open team mates for easy baskets. It was Cunningham late that hit a pair of huge threes and Middleton struggling that gave Arrowhead a chance. With seconds left Cunningham caught the inbounds pass and pumped fake, which cost him because the buzzer sounded, and Cunningham shot the ball just after the buzzer and of course the shot fell. Middleton escaped Arrowhead and Cunningham with a hard fought victory. 

Top Scorers

Midd- Murphy 27 Eady 23 CJ Germanich 12

Arrow- Cunningham 22 Brian Wilman 12 Alec Hamilton 11 

Was a pretty good three days of basketball. All three games were very good that were close throughout each game. 

Week 8 Rankings

Its Sunday so time for new rankings.....

Division One
Sheboygan North lost to De Pere but, couldn't see dropping them, so they stayed at five. Oshkosh North lost to Kaukauna and Appleton West, dropping to 11 just ahead of  De Pere who lost to Bay Port but, just behind Arrowhead who lost to Middleton. Sussex Hamilton lost to Milwaukee Marquette which allowed Superior to jump into the rankings at 15.

1. Stevens Point
2. Milwaukee Riverside
3. Middleton
4. Racine Park
5. Sheboygan North
6. Madison Memorial
7. Milwaukee Marquette
8. Sun Prairie
9. Muskego
10. Arrowhead
11. Oshkosh North
12. De Pere
13. Germantown
14. Neenah
15. Superior

Division Two
Onalaska lost to La Crosse Central falling down to eight.. Cedarburg lost to Homestead which knocked them back to 11. Hortonville lost to Fond du Lac falling to 15 while both Wausau East who lost to Stevens Point and Milwaukee Morse Marshall who lost to Milwaukee Washington was able to stay at 13 and 14.

1. New Berlin Eisenhower
2. Kaukauna
3. La Crosse Central
4. Pewaukee
5. Waunakee
6. Milwaukee Washington
7. Monona Grove
8. Onalaska
9. Whitnall
10. Greendale
11. Cedarburg
12. Pulaski
13. Wausau East
14. Milwaukee Morse Marshall
15. Hortonville

Division Three
Lakeside Lutheran was upset by Lodi dropping them all the way down to 13. Brown Deer lost to Pewaukee and dropped just a bit to 10. Edgewood lost to Waunakee which caused them to just drop two spots to 12. Watertown Luther Prep lost to Columbus and Cambridge and Ripon lost to Kettle Moraine Lutheran and Waupun dropping both from rankings and are replaced by Valders and Kettle Moraine Lutheran.

1. GET
2. Wrightstown
3. Waupun
4. Lake Mills
5. Xavier
6. Prescott
7. Evansville
8. Marshall
9. Brookfield Academy
10. Brown Deer
11. Southern Door
12. Madison Edgewood
13. Lakeside Lutheran
14. Kettle Moraine Lutheran
15. Valders

Division Four
Kenosha St Joes was forced to forfeit their first six games which I guess bumps them from the rankings which allows Wabeno/Laona in to the rankings at 11. Marathon lost to Edgar, who jumps into the rankings replacing Aquinas who lost to La Crosse Central and Holmen. Cochrane Fountain City lost to Arcadia but, holds on to 15 while Marathon is at 13.

1. Melrose Mindoro
2. Dominican
3. Cameron
4. Unity
5. Amherst
6. Destiny
7. Deerfield 
8. Markesan
9. Iowa Grant
10. Eau Claire Regis
11. Wabeno/Laona
12. Edgar
13. Marathon
14. Darlington
15. Cochrane-Fountain City

Division Five
Gresham lost to Port Edwards and dropped to six Bangor lost to Melrose Mindoro and fall to 11. Shullsburg lost to Potosi and drop just one spot to 15. Barneveld lost to Prairie du Chien falling from the rankings and are replaced by Young Coggs Prep at 14.

1. Hillsboro
2. McDonnell Central
3. Port Edwards
4. Columbus Catholic
5. Solon Springs
6. Gresham
7. Almond Bancroft
8. Clayton
9. Seneca
10. Washburn
11. Bangor
12. Hustisford
13. De Soto
14. Young Coggs Prep
15. Shullsburg

Midwest Players Classic

Just a quick run down of the Midwest Players Classic best of my recollection since it's been a few days since the actual games. I do have to say that the Midwest Players Classic might be the best tournament out there for regular season. 

St Croix Lutheran MN 69 Waverly-Shell Rock IA 57

Story of this game was Waverly-Shell Rock tried to pound it into their big man 6’9 junior Austin Phyfe but, St Croix did a good job to combat Phyfe with 6’6 senior Trenton Krueger. Krueger is a very long 6’6 and really did a nice job of Phyfe who got most of his points when Krueger was sitting with foul trouble. Waverly-Shell’s guards were able to hit the outside shots to take the early lead but, St Croix did just enough to stick around early and in the second half their athletes took over. I remember thinking early on that St Croix had the better athletes but, Waverly Shell was the better team. The St Croix team took over with their athletes rebounding and getting out and running led by 6’5 senior Ade Murkey who completely controlled the glass and used his athleticism to get out and run in transition.

Top Scorers

St Croix- Murkey 26 Krueger 11 Venkat Valluri 10

WSR- Camry Moore 16 Christian Mosley 13 Phyfe 12

Caledonia MN 85 DeForest 45

Not much to say here. Caledonia just run and gunned DeForest to death. Caledonia pressed much of the game and DeForest just couldn’t handle it which allowed Caledonia to get out and run and they love to shoot the three ball. Size will always being a problem with this Caledonia team as they really only have one guy over 6’1 in 6’5 senior Gavin Schroeder who does a tremendous job scoring on the inside while 6’0 sophomore Owen King is a killer from the outside knocking down threes.

Top Scorers

Cal- O King 25 Schroeder 14 3 with 9

DF- Bryson Girten 8 Corian Davis 7 Jimmy Klein 6 Andrew Stouffer-Lerch 6

Rushford-Peterson MN 43 La Crosse Aquinas 22

Another game that was over early. The big storyline was 6’8 senior Matt Culhane for Rushford-Peterson. Culhane was 6’8 and is probably pushing 300. Not fat by any means just a real big solid kid. Culhane didn’t move great but, knew his roll and used his size to score with soft hands on the inside. On the defensive end Aquinas had to always go around the big guy and even though he didn’t block shots he took up a lot of room and didn’t allow them to drive right at the hoop. Aquinas shot terrible and turned the ball over against the Rushford 2-3/1-3-1 zone defense.

Top Scorers

RP- Culhane 12 Landon Goree 10 Noah Carlsen 6 Caleb Thompson 6

LA- Conley Malone 7 Chris Ancius 6 Eddie Harwick 4

Maple Grove MN 75 Milwaukee Riverside 61

Maple Grove was a big team that really played solid and disciplined. Riverside tried to throw the full court press and push the tempo of the game but, Maple Grove led by the point guard 6’3 junior Brad Davison really handled it extremely well and didn’t rush things. Early on Maple Grove struggled a bit to hit their shots but, Davison was money all game long and carried his team in the first half. For Riverside outside of 6’6 junior Terrence Lewis no one could really get things going and they really struggled in the halfcourt set as they were unable to turn Maple Grove over. The offensive struggles were very evident late as Riverside was unable to hit the deep shot to help them get back in this game. Late in the game Maple Grove’s big man 6’10 senior Reed Nikko got things going as the bigs of Riverside wore down and Riverside also extended their defense leading to easy buckets on the backside.

Top Scorers

MG- Davison 39 Nikko 17 Jack Hutchinson 12

MR- Lewis 25 George Dixon 11 Alondes Williams 6

Stevens Point 89 Champlin Park MN 73

The headed monster was fully loaded with 6’6 senior Sam Hauser, 6’2 senior Trev Anderon, and 6’7 sophomore Joey Hauser. Early on it was Sam Hauser that was unstoppable from long range hit threes all game long and the majority of the time he really wasn’t open but, just shot over his defenders. Anderson really struggled from the outside which is a rariety but, in the second half he really attacked the rim going hard to his left most of the time. Joey Hauser just had a solid game throughout controlling the inside. Champlin was put in a bit of a hole when their big man 6’9 junior Theo John was strapped with two early fouls and never really got going in this game. Champlin hung around in this game though behind the strong play of 6’1 junior McKinley Wright IV, who was able to get to the rim at will and finish around the bigger defenders. Also big push for Champlin was the play of 5’6 junior Brian Smith off the bench who hit big three after big three to get Champlin close before Point closed it out.

Top Scorers

SP- S Hauser 35 Anderson 24 J Hauser 22

CP- Wright 22 Aaron Kloeppner 14 Smith 13

Kaukauna 80 La Crosse Central 65

Kaukauna’s 6’2 junior Adam Smith pretty much ended this game from the get go knocking down five three pointers before Central could even take a breath. In the first half Kaukauna was up nearly 20 before Central started to climb back in to it but, in reality this game was never in question. Central just didn’t anything from anyone outside of their two junior stars 6’1 Bailey Kale and 6’4 Kobe King who scored 48 of the teams 65 points. Kale used his quickness to just take the ball coast to coast to score in transistion while King used his athleticism to simply just shoot over the defenders and really showed a nice mid range jumper. Well Smith carried Kaukauna early it was 5’11 sophomore Jordan McCabe and 6’3 senior Marcus Moreau late. McCabe did his thing throughout setting up his team mates for open shots and then did a nice job of forcing contact to get to the free throw line where he doesn’t miss. Moreau was just a beast on the inside scoring with his back to the basket and rebounding on the inside.

Top Scorers

Kau- Smith 25 McCabe 20 Moreau 19

LC- King 28 Kale 20 TJ Pangier 6 Isaiah Dahman 6

Top Players

Ade Murkey 6’5 senior St Croix Lutheran- Just a superb athlete that dominate the glass on both ends and was able to get up and down the court running in transition.

Owen King 6’0 sophomore Caledonia- Just a smart heady player that controlled the teams tempo all game long and really knocked down the outside shot.

Terrence Lewis 6’6 junior Milwaukee Riverside- Long rangy guard that was able to drive to the lane and use his length to finish in the lane with floaters or at the rim.

Brad Davison 6’3 junior Maple Grove- Easily most impressive player of the day running the point. Got to the rim at ease and was able to really hit the step back jumper.

Reed Nikko 6’10 senior Maple Grove- Big man that could really score from the high post driving to the hoop and finishing.

Sam Hauser 6’6 senior Stevens Point- Sharp shooter from the outside that just shot over the smaller defenders and was able to drive past the bigger defenders.

Trev Anderson 6’2 senior Stevens Point- Used his quickness and strength to drive to the rim where he finished or got fouled.

Joey Hauser 6’7 sophomore Stevens Point- Just solid over all game knocking down the jumpers and scoring in the paint. Also did a great job rebounding all game long.

McKinley Wright IV 6’1 junior Champlin Park- Like I said earlier really used his quickness to get by the defenders and was able to finish at the rim strong.

Bailey Kale 6’1 junior La Crosse Central- Used his quickness to push the ball up the court and finish at the rim.

Kobe King 6’4 junior La Crosse Central- A superior athlete that used his athleticism to finish over defenders and was able to rise up and finish over the defenders.

Jordan McCabe 5’11 sophomore Kaukauna- A great passer that is a little flashy at times but, I really think he’s a smart player and some times is thinking too far ahead for team mates and makes passes to space rather than team mates.

Marcus Moreau 6’3 senior Kaukauna- Another great athlete that rebounded incredibly well and was able to score with his back to the basket in the post.

Adam Smith 6’2 junior Kaukauna- Sharp shooter from the outside that just couldn’t miss and is hard nosed player that can really score in bunches. 

Great tournament and will be back up to the La Crosse Area in two weeks to watch the Border Battle, with match up of Wisconsin and Minnesota again. 

Week 7 Rankings

Here it is Monday so time for more rankings.

Division One
Milwaukee Riverside lost to a very good Maple Grove team from Minnesota but, again I don't hold that against them and they stay at two. Milwaukee King lost two more games again this week losing to Milwaukee North and Vincent and fall from the rankings. Germantown lost to Milwaukee Marquette and fall to 13. West Allis Hale dropped a pair of games to Wauwatosa East and Milwaukee Marquette and fall from the rankings. New teams to the rankings are both returners in Neenah and Sussex Hamilton.

1. Stevens Point
2. Milwaukee Riverside
3. Middleton
4. Racine Park
5. Sheboygan North
6. Oshkosh North
7. Madison Memorial
8. De Pere
9. Arrowhead
10. Milwaukee Marquette
11. Sun Prairie
12. Muskego
13. Germantown
14. Neenah
15. Sussex Hamilton

Division Two
La Crosse Central lost to Kaukauna and Pewaukee lost to Eisenhower so both teams actually stay put. Monona Grove lost to Stoughton, Whitnall lost to Muskego, Wausau East lost to Marshfield, and Milwaukee Morse lost to Whitefish Bay. Monona Grove checked in at nine, Whitnall 10 and Wausau East and Milwaukee Morse Marshall dropped to 13 and 14 with the teams having defeated Greendale and Hortonville are all ranked teams.

1. New Berlin Eisenhower
2. Kaukauna
3. La Crosse Central
4. Pewaukee
5. Onalaska
6. Waunakee
7. Milwaukee Washington
8. Cedarburg
9. Monona Grove
10. Whitnall
11. Greendale
12. Hortonville
13. Wausau East
14. Milwaukee Morse Marshall
15. Pulaski

Division Three
Xavier lost to Green Bay East, Prescott lost to River Falls, and Lakeside Lutheran lost to Lake Mills checking those three in at five, six, and seven. Madison Edgewood lost to Monona Grove and Brookfield Academy lost to Kettle Moraine Lutheran, so they fall in at 11 and 12.

1. GET
2. Wrightstown
3. Waupun
4. Lake Mills
5. Xavier
6. Prescott
7. Lakeside Lutheran
8. Evansville
9. Brown Deer
10. Marshall
11. Madison Edgewood
12. Brookfield Academy
13. Ripon
14. Watertown Luther Prep
15. Southern Door

Division Four
Aquinas lost to Rushford Peterson of Minnesota so they don't move at all. Only other change was my mistake of having Kenosha St Joes listed twice so Cochrane-Fountain City is new to the rankings.

1. Melrose Mindoro
2. Dominican
3. Cameron
4. Unity
5. Amherst
6. Destiny
7. Deerfield
8. Markesan
9. Kenosha St Joes
10. Marathon
11. Iowa Grant
12. Eau Claire Regis
13. La Crosse Aquinas
14. Darlington
15. Cochrane-Fountain City

Division Five
Seneca lost to Boscobel and drop down to 10. Bangor lost to Hillsboro, which should of happen so they hold strong at seven. Shullsburg lost to Cassville falling to 14.

1. Hillsboro
2. McDonnell Central
3. Port Edwards
4. Gresham
5. Columbus Catholic
6. Solon Springs
7. Bangor
8. Almond Bancroft
9. Clayton
10. Seneca
11. Washburn
12. Hustisford
13. De Soto
14. Shullsburg
15. Barneveld

Dunks of the Year

1. George Dixon 6'5 junior Milwaukee Riverside vs De Pere December 29 
A real impressive play. Dixon grabbed the defensive rebound and drove the length of the court and threw it down with two hands between two De Pere defenders.

2. Chris Knight 6'8 junior Madison Memorial vs Janesville Craig January 8
Complete play here. Had the steal jumping the passing lane took the ball and length of the court and then crossed over to get around the defender and had the one handed dunk.  

3. Kwam Clements 6'3 senior Verona vs Madison Memorial January 5
Probably have some disagreements here but, I liked this dunk. It was quick with a steal from Clements and two steps and a nice right handed dunk. This got the crowd going and I was kind of surprised as I thought he was going to just lay it up off the glass.  

4. Caleb Johnson 6'3 senior Wisconsin Lutheran vs De Pere December 30
A dunk I really liked. Johnson cut to the middle of the lane where a team mate found him and threw down a nice one handed dunk in the paint. Liked it because of size and kind of unexpected.

5. Jake Ferguson 6'5 junior Madison Memorial vs Sun Prairie December 8.
Ferguson drove the baseline and threw down a powerful two handed dunk. This one was kind of unexpected as I expected him just to lay it in but, he just went up and put it down.

6. Chris Knight 6'8 junior Madison Memorial vs Madison East December 3
Knight caught the ball just past half court and took it to the hoop in transition and threw it down one handed between three East defenders. This play got the crowd pumped up and wasn't a great dunk but, was a tremendous play overall. 

7. Taejuan Johson 6'4 junior Homestead vs Milwaukee Riverside December 28
Johnson really has some nice bounce and actually had two identical dunks in this game where he got break away dunks and threw it down with authority with the left hand. Also had a monster block to start the game. 

8. Terrence Lewis 6'6 junior Milwaukee Riverside vs Homestead December 28, De Pere December 29
Had two nice powerful dunks on break aways back to back days at the WBY. 

9.Alodes Williams 6'3 junior Milwaukee Riverside vs De Pere December 29
This one was a little unexpected so pushed it up but, hammered a nice break away dunk in transition. 

10. Grayson Knowlton 6'6 junior McDonell Central vs Living Word Lutheran December 29 
Late in a blow out game but, really liked how smooth he did the dunk in transition after taking the over the shoulder pass. 

Tri State Border Battle

This Saturday went to Just a Game field house to watch the Tri State Border Battle, which can hardly be called tri as there was only one team from Iowa and four from Minnesota. This isn't quiet as big as the WBY Border Battle but, still brings in some pretty good teams. 

Wisconsin Dells 81 Fond du Lac Ojibwe 44

I think they gave the home team the easy match up as FDL is just seemed to be extremely undermanned and short handed. FDL had only eight players, two of which were junior high players and three more freshmen. I don't want to say Dells went easy on them but, they took the game pretty easy as they were only up seven at half before blowing out FDL in the second half. FDL took lots of quick shots and turned the ball over which led to numerous fast break buckets for the Dells. Dells also shot the ball pretty well knocking shots down from three point range. FDL was just too young and Dells was just an ok team but, that's all they needed to be. 

Top Scorers

WD- Peyton Rohling 20 Dominic Morse 16 Robert Goree 10

FDL- Lester Williamson 14 Evan Butcher 8 River Heitala 6

Lake Mills 69 Spring Grove Mn 66

Lake Mills jumped out early in this one behind the hot shooting of 5'11 junior Brady Wagner who hit five threes in the first half before Spring Grove climbed back into this one. Both teams shot a lot of threes but, it was Lake Mills offensive rebounding that gave them the half time edge 43-36. In the second half Spring Grove seemed poised to take the lead behind there 1-3-1 zone defense and Lake Mills going a little cold from the outside but, their star 6'3 junior Chase Grinde picked up his fourth foul midway through the second half and sat a good chunk of the second. Lake Mills finally figured things out behind the passing of 6'3 senior Collin Moen who found 6'6 senior Simon Lensmire on back to back trips. 6'0 junior Alex Ranney also hit a pair of threes to help seal the deal with Wagner struggling in the second half. Some shotty free throw shooting game Spring Grove a shot but, Lake Mills survived as Spring Grove just ran out of time. 

Top Scorers

LM- Wagner 30 Linesmire 15 Moen 11 Ranney 10

SP- Grinde 24 Alex Engelhardt 17 Alex Folz 15

Pleasant Valley Iowa 44 Ripon 31

Really wasn't as close as the score shows. Pleasant Valley had a ton of size and is a pretty good team, they start four guys between 6'5 and 6'8. Ripon's real only size is 6'7 junior Bennett Vander Plas who is a very good player but, has probably never played a team that has four different guys that can all guard him and are as big as him. Along with the size issue Vander Plas had no help as the number two scorer 6'3 junior Edward Muench just couldn't find his shot all game long and I'm not sure if he hit a three all game long. On the defensive end they had a 5'10 guy guarded Valley's best player 6'7 senior Will Carius. Carius didn't really force things and didn't seem to be his game but, he could get his shot off any time he wanted and look over the defender and find the open team mate. Valley was very content just running their offensive and taking their time which helped to keep this a lower scoring game. For Ripon Vander Plas really pressed and forced a lot of bad and off balanced shots and there was rarely a second chance basket to be had. 

Top Scorers

PV- Carius 19 Carter Milam 10 John Czarnicki 6

R- Vander Plas 13 Muench 8 Marshall Morrin 5

Caledonia Mn 80 Brookfield Academy 79

This was the game of the day and honestly I'm not sure how Brookfield Academy lost this game. I think Caledonia led 6-0 early and then 80-79 and that was the only two leads they had all game. BA was up 10 late in the second half I believe but, some so so free throw shooting and some very poor passing against the press allowed Caledonia to pull this one late. 6'5 Brookfield Academy senior Joseph Lemon was raining threes from the corners all game long and 6'1 senior Ryan Clarey was his normal self. As much as the two big guns hit the threes for BA Caledonia's 6'0 sophomore Owen King matched them and 6'5 senior Gavin Schroeder had his way on the inside. This was a good battle and Caledonia never went away and in the end Brookfield Academy simply couldn't handle the pressure. 

Top Scorers

C- Schroeder 29 King 22 Colton Lampert 12

BA- Lemon 35 Clarey 24 Alexander Setzer 8 

Top Players 

Peyton Rohling 6'0 junior Wisconsin Dells- Did a very solid job of running the offensive and not forcing things. Was able to hit the open threes when they were there.

Dominic Morse 6'0 senior Wisconsin Dells- Really got out and ran in the transition and was able to finish at the basket with a variety of moves. 

Lester Williamson 6'3 senior Fond du Lac Ojibwe- Played hard and showed the athleticism to finish at the rim and was able to knock down a couple of threes as well. 

Brady Wagner 5'11 junior Lake Mills- Just couldn't miss from three point range in the first half and I love his step back shot. Also had a couple nice floaters in the lane. 

Simon Lensmire 6'6 senior Lake Mills- Moves so well for a big man and loves to get out and run in transition. Showed some nice moves with his back to the basket. 

Collin Moen 6'3 senior Lake Mills- Not a huge scorer but, really made a difference with his passing setting up his team mates with easy buckets. 

Chase Grinde 6'3 junior Spring Grove- Can really score the ball primarily driving to the hoop and did a nice job of guarding Lensmire on the post. 

Alex Engelhardt 6'3 senior Spring Grove- Played very very hard in this one and got to the rim and hit a couple of big threes. 

Alex Folz 5'9 freshmen Spring Grove- Never would of guessed he was a freshmen and he was huge coming off the bench and hitting some huge threes.

Bennett Vander Plas 6'7 junior Ripon- Big man that showed the ability to get out and move. Handled the ball and can shoot the three ball. 

Will Carius 6'7 senior Pleasant Valley- Really loved this kid. Can tell he's the best player on the court but, he doesn't force things. Yes he score 19 points but, I don't think that he missed a shot. Definitely a guy that can play on the perimeter in college. Very nice mid range shot that he could make over smaller defenders. 

Joseph Lemon 6'5 senior Brookfield Academy- Said it all earlier, just couldn't miss from three point range. Clarey gets the hype but, Lemon is the key to their success. 

Ryan Clarey 6'1 senior Brookfield Academy- Handled the ball really well in the game and was able to get in the lane and score. 

Owen King 6'0 sophomore Caledonia- In the second half every three Brookfield Academy hit, King was there to hit the three for Caledonia. Just a settling force on the court and great shooter. 

Gavin Schroeder 6'5 senior Caledonia- To be completely honest I didn't notice him a ton but, he ended up finishing with 29 points so he was pretty big. 

Colton Lampert 6'0 senior Caledonia- Didn't score a ton or do anything overly impressive but, it was his pressure defense that allowed them to take the lead late in the game. 

Was another long fun day of basketball seeing some of the best teams in the state and this coming Saturday will be another one at the Midwest Players Classic where I will once again get to see some of the best in Wisconsin and Minnesota. 

Week 6 Rankings

It is Sunday again so time for my updated rankings. Appears that there have been some major changes as some top teams lost some games and even one team lost a pair of games.

Division One
Milwaukee King was the team to lose two games losing to Milwaukee Morse Marshall and Milwaukee Washington and drop to six with all the other top teams losing, which allowed Sheboygan North to stay put even though they lost to Bay Port. Oshkosh North lost to Hortonville and drop just one spot while, Germantown dropped a game to Cedarburg and fall to nine. Muskego lost to Oconomowoc, Sun Prairie lost to Madison West, and West Allis Hale lost to New Berlin Eisenhower and Brookfield Central, bring all three teams in at 13, 14, 15. Janesville Craig lost to Madison Memorial and fall from the rankings allowing Milwaukee Marquette to jump into the rankings at 12.

1. Stevens Point
2. Milwaukee Riverside
3. Middleton
4. Racine Park
5. Sheboygan North
6. Milwaukee King
7. Oshkosh North
8. Madison Memorial
9. Germantown
10. De Pere
11. Arrowhead
12. Milwaukee Marquette
13. Sun Prairie
14. Muskego
15. West Allis Hale

Division Two
A minor upheaval here as Kauakauna lost to Appleton East, La Crosse Central to La Crosse Logan, and Pewaukee to Greendale. These three were the elite in my mind so hang tough at two, three, and four. Despite the big win Greendale lost to Milwaukee Pius dropping to 13, followed by Hortonville who lost to Neenah, followed by Pulaski who lost to De Pere. West De Pere lost to Appleton Xavier and fall from the rankings allowing Milwaukee Morse Marshall to get in the rankings at a much deserved spot.

1. New Berlin Eisenhower
2. Kaukauna
3. La Crosse Central
4. Pewaukee
5. Onalaska
6. Waunakee 
7. Milwaukee Washington
8. Monona Grove
9. Whitnall
10. Wausau East
11. Cedarburg
12. Milwaukee Morse Marshall
13. Greendale
14. Hortonville
15. Pulaski

Division Three
Evansville lost to East Troy and Madison Edgewood lost to Middleton dropping Edgewood to eight and Evansville to nine. Marshall lost to Mount Horeb which is a tough one because they beat both Brookfield Academy and Ripon, so I dropped them to 12 behind BA and ahead of Ripon. Brookfield Academy lost to Caledonia Mn which I will not count against them, same for Ripon who lost to Pleasant Valley Iowa.

1. GET
2. Xavier
3. Wrightstown
4. Waupun
5. Prescott
6. Lake Mills
7. Lakeside Lutheran
8. Madison Edgewood
9. Evansville
10. Brookfield Academy
11. Brown Deer
12. Marshall
13. Ripon
14. Watertown Luther Prep
15. Southern Door

Division Four
Amherst lost to Auburndale falling to five followed by Destiny who lost to a very good Brookfield Academy. Kenosha St Joes lost to Racine St Cats and fell to nine. Aquinas lost to Onalaska dropping just a spot to 13. Prairie School lost to Dominican and Kenosha St Joes both two very good teams so they hang on to the 15 spot.

1. Melrose Mindoro
2. Dominican
3. Cameron 
4. Unity
5. Amherst
6. Destiny
7. Deerfield 
8. Markesan
9. Kenosha St Joes
10. Marathon
11. Iowa Grant
12. Eau Claire Regis
13. La Crosse Aquinas
14. Darlington
15. Kenosha St. Joes

Division Five
Washburn lost to Solon Springs and fall all the way to 13 just behind them. Pecatonica lost to Barnveld, who replaced them at 15.

1. Hillsboro
2. McDonnell Central
3. Seneca
4. Port Edwards
5. Gresham
6. Columbus Catholic
7. Bangor
8. Almond Bancroft
9. Clayton
10. Shullsburg
11. Hustisford
12. Solon Springs 
13. Washburn
14. De Soto
15. Barneveld

Memorial over Craig

Tonight took in the Madison Memorial verse Janesville Craig game. This was my first chance seeing a much improved Craig team this year. I knew Craig had a good point guard and some nice size, otherwise didn't know much. One disappointment was that Craig had five players not suited up. I have no idea if these players are big rotation players or not but, it just felt like I was missing something with those five guys not playing and maybe that affected Craig's playing being that they really only played six guys.

Off the bat it was all Memorial as they absolutely controlled the glass on the offensive end getting two or three shots every time down the court. Memorial jumped out to a 10 point lead but, a scoring drought  allowed Craig back into the game as they scored most of their first half points from the free throw line. I was surprised Craig really didn't attack the hoop, specifically their point guard 5'9 junior San'trell Payton. From what I had heard Payton was a pretty impressive player but, he really didn't look to shoot the ball a whole lot and never really attacked the rim. A bright spot for Craig was the first half play of 6'11 senior Riley Jensen who used his size to score in the paint and seemed to have things going until three first half fouls sent him to the bench. Outside of the rebounds it was the strong play of 6'0 junior Billy Wilson who carried Memorial, hitting a pair of threes and then getting a put back basket on an offensive rebound of course. Craig had a one point half time lead.

In the second half it was all Memorial junior 6'8 Chris Knight. Knight used his athleticism to score in the paint and grab second and third chance points. Knight also got things going in the transition game getting a pair of steals leading to dunks, one where he had a nice cross over and dunk finish. There was also one nice play where Knight had the big assist to a team mate. Despite Knight's best efforts Memorial just couldn't put Craig away. Late in the game Craig was fouling and Payton was finally looking to score, as he scored 10 of his 12 points in the final four or five minutes. Memorial made there free throws late to get the win.

Top Players
Chris Knight 6'8 junior Madison Memorial- Really played a great game on the defensive end blocking shots and getting steals. Knight got a ton of rebounds like always and did his thing on the inside putting the ball in the hoop.

Billy Wilson 6'0 junior Madison Memorial- Was the offensive early on scoring eight points in the first five minutes with those two threes and offensive rebound basket.

Matt Caropreso 6'6 junior Madison Memorial- Not a great game but, really rebounded well in the game teaming with Knight and fellow junior Jake Ferguson to dominate the glass.

Riley Jensen 6'11 senior Janesville Craig- Had some nice plays scoring in the paint on the offensive end but, foul trouble really hurt him.

Box Score
Memorial 52- Knight 22 Wilson 13 Caropreso 10 Ferguson 4 Logan Knecht 2 Jason Weah 1 Chase Danielson 0 Terrel Goodwan 0 Robert Bennett 0
Craig 45- Jake Negus 11 Payton 10 Jensen 10 Adam Anhold 5 Zach Gestrich 5 Nick Cramer 2 Cody Brault 0

I would really like to Craig use their size a little more and pound things inside being that they start a 6'9 and 6'11 player. Also I'd like to see them penetrate the paint a little more in particular Payton who has the quicknes to get to the hoop just needs to be a little more aggressive in my opinion. For Memorial I think things will really hinge on the play of Knight and if Ferguson and Caropreso can stay out of foul trouble. The last few games I've watched both Ferguson and Caropreso have had some foul trouble which really limits the Memorial rotation.

The first half of the Big Eight is nearly over and things still seem pretty muddled. Middleton seems to be the cream of the crop and La Follette and Parker are bottom dwellers but, everyone else is pretty mixed up and state team a year ago Madison East seems to be rounding into form.

Dunks of the year

Updated rankings on dunks I've seen.  

1. George Dixon 6'5 junior Milwaukee Riverside vs De Pere December 29 
A real impressive play. Dixon grabbed the defensive rebound and drove the length of the court and threw it down with two hands between two De Pere defenders.

2. Kwam Clements 6'3 senior Verona vs Madison Memorial January 5
Probably have some disagreements here but, I liked this dunk. It was quick with a steal from Clements and two steps and a nice right handed dunk. This got the crowd going and I was kind of surprised as I thought he was going to just lay it up off the glass.  

3. Caleb Johnson 6'3 senior Wisconsin Lutheran vs De Pere December 30
A dunk I really liked. Johnson cut to the middle of the lane where a team mate found him and threw down a nice one handed dunk in the paint. Liked it because of size and kind of unexpected.

4. Jake Ferguson 6'5 junior Madison Memorial vs Sun Prairie December 8.
Ferguson drove the baseline and threw down a powerful two handed dunk. This one was kind of unexpected as I expected him just to lay it in but, he just went up and put it down.

5. Chris Knight 6'8 junior Madison Memorial vs Madison East December 3
Knight caught the ball just past half court and took it to the hoop in transition and threw it down one handed between three East defenders. This play got the crowd pumped up and wasn't a great dunk but, was a tremendous play overall. 

6. Taejuan Johson 6'4 junior Homestead vs Milwaukee Riverside December 28
Johnson really has some nice bounce and actually had two identical dunks in this game where he got break away dunks and threw it down with authority with the left hand. Also had a monster block to start the game. 

7. Terrence Lewis 6'6 junior Milwaukee Riverside vs Homestead December 28, De Pere December 29
Had two nice powerful dunks on break aways back to back days at the WBY. 

8.Alodes Williams 6'3 junior Milwaukee Riverside vs De Pere December 29
This one was a little unexpected so pushed it up but, hammered a nice break away dunk in transition. 

9. Grayson Knowlton 6'6 junior McDonell Central vs Living Word Lutheran December 29 
Late in a blow out game but, really liked how smooth he did the dunk in transition after taking the over the shoulder pass. 

10. Jai'Vionne Green 6'4 senior Wauwatosa East vs Cedarburg December 30
More a celebratory thing but, it was a nice two handed dunk to a seal a huge five point win over Cedarburg. 

Madison Memorial over Verona

Not sure if this wasn't that great of a game or I was just tired but, this game didn't seem that interesting from the get go. Memorial had the game in hand right away and gave Verona some hope but, in the end they really cruised to victory.

From the get go Verona was missing shots and I'm not sure if it was that Memorial's defense was that great or they simply were settling for outside shots and they weren't falling. In particular I noticed that 6'2 senior Cole Schmitz, I have seen Schmitz play before and typically he attacks the rim a little more but, he seemed to be settling for deep threes when he really wasn't that open. Fellow senior 6'2 Keaton Knueppel hit a couple early threes to keep Verona around but, after the early minutes he kind of disappeared.

On the other end it was 6'5 junior Jake Ferguson that got things going scoring six quick points. Ferguson looked like he was going to continue the strong play from the last game I saw against Middleton but, then some foul trouble strapped him for the remainder of the half. Some big threes from the Memorial junior guards 6'0 Billy Wilson and 5'11 Logan Knecht gave Memorial a lead but, some careless turnovers and some Verona fast break points, highlighted by a turnover a nice dunk by 6'3 Verona senior Kwan Clements.

In the second half in was all Memorial and in particular 6'8 junior Chris Knight who didn't do anything overally impressive but, controled in the interior on both ends of the court. Knight had a couple nice blocks that I can recal and scored the majority of his 21 points in the second half. Knight was scoring at will on the inside or getting fouled where he shot pretty well from the free throw line. Clements did his best for Verona to get them back in the game but, in the end Memorial built too big of a lead and actually the final of 58-42 makes the game appear closer then what it actually was.

Top Players
Jake Ferguson 6'5 junior Madison Memorial- Was limited by foul trouble but, when he was in really looked to score and showed a nice fade away shot which is where nearly all his made shots came from

Chris Knight 6'8 junior Madison Memorial- First game I've seen of Knight where he had a nice smooth touch around the rim and was making all of his shots from the inside. Dominated the glass like he does every game and had three or four blocks in the game.

Keaton Knueppel 6'2 senior Verona- Shot the three pretty well in the game and showed the ability to drive to the paint and score.

Kwan Clements 6'3 senior Verona- Really attacked the basket strong and plays with a high energy the rest of the team lacked.

Box Score
Veron 42- Knueppel 13 Clements 11 Nathaniel Buss 6 Brycen Smith 3 Schmitz 2 Robert Wagman 2 DeAngelo Dixon 2 Josh Hernandez 2 Colton Reiber 1 Nick Pederson 0 Max Fink 0 Tyler McClure 0 Nick Young 0 Brian Murphy 0 John Van Handel 0
Memorial 58- Knight 21 Knecht 11 Matt Caropreso 9 Ferguson 8 Wilson 5 DeUndra Moore 2 Ian Brown 2 Jason Weah 0 Chase Danielson 0 Robert Bennett 0 Joseph Harper 0

Without being to rough Verona just isn't tat good of a team this year and they have a long way to go. Not a big team and not a ton of athletes. I like Memorial because their a very balanced team but, after watching the teams from the WBY I can pretty confidently say that they probably aren't one of the top teams in the state but, there is some chance and very interested to see them a year from now.

Dunks of the Year

Got a few more dunks under my belt now after the WBY shootout. I realize now after seeing so many games it gets a little hard to remember each dunk. Now watching nine games a day three days straight isn't the norm so maybe it won't be as hard but, I found myself having to write down the dunks and having a hard time remembering from a week ago. 

1. George Dixon 6'5 junior Milwaukee Riverside vs De Pere December 29 
A real impressive play. Dixon grabbed the defensive rebound and drove the length of the court and threw it down with two hands between two De Pere defenders. 

2. Caleb Johnson 6'3 senior Wisconsin Lutheran vs De Pere December 30
A dunk I really liked. Johnson cut to the middle of the lane where a team mate found him and threw down a nice one handed dunk in the paint. Liked it because of size and kind of unexpected.

3. Jake Ferguson 6'5 junior Madison Memorial vs Sun Prairie December 8.
Ferguson drove the baseline and threw down a powerful two handed dunk. This one was kind of unexpected as I expected him just to lay it in but, he just went up and put it down.

4. Chris Knight 6'8 junior Madison Memorial vs Madison East December 3
Knight caught the ball just past half court and took it to the hoop in transition and threw it down one handed between three East defenders. This play got the crowd pumped up and wasn't a great dunk but, was a tremendous play overall. 

5. Taejuan Johson 6'4 junior Homestead vs Milwaukee Riverside December 28
Johnson really has some nice bounce and actually had two identical dunks in this game where he got break away dunks and threw it down with authority with the left hand. Also had a monster block to start the game. 

6. Terrence Lewis 6'6 junior Milwaukee Riverside vs Homestead December 28, De Pere December 29
Had two nice powerful dunks on break aways back to back days at the WBY. 

7.Alodes Williams 6'3 junior Milwaukee Riverside vs De Pere December 29
This one was a little unexpected so pushed it up but, hammered a nice break away dunk in transition. 

8. Grayson Knowlton 6'6 junior McDonell Central vs Living Word Lutheran December 29 
Late in a blow out game but, really liked how smooth he did the dunk in transition after taking the over the shoulder pass. 

9. Jai'Vionne Green 6'4 senior Wauwatosa East vs Cedarburg December 30
More a celebritory thing but, it was a nice two handed dunk to a seal a huge five point win over Cedarburg. 

10. Chris Knight 6'8 junior Madison Memorial vs Sun Prairie December 8
Typical steal and break away dunk that resulted in a nice little two handed dunk. Almost looked too easy though.

Again I am only ranking top 10 dunks of the year and every time I see a dunk worthy of being ranked I will update the rankings.

Week 4/5 Rankings

Sunday time again so time for my personal updated rankings. Again these are solely for my fun and mean nothing. Has been lots of big games over the holiday break and has been about a week and a half of games played so there is quite a bit of changes.

Division One
Germantown lost to Arrowhead and Stevens Point dropping to seven. Milwauke King lost to two California teams and an Arkansas team but, I don't hold that against teams cause we have no idea how good these teams are same can be said for Riverside who lost to a team from Minnesota and Madison Memorial who lost to a pair of teams from Florida. Racine Park lost to Milwaukee Pius and dropped to seven. Muskego lost to New Berlin Eisenhower and Stevens Point and drop just spot to nine. Sun Prairie lost to Milwaukee Washington and fall 10. Kimberly lost to Hortonville and Madison East falling from the rankings as did Neenah who also lost to Madison East. Arrowhead lost to Milwaukee Vincent and Oshkosh North and fall to 14. De Pere lost to Milwaukee Riverside, which isn't a bad lose so they moved up a spot to 13. Janesville Craig is the new team to the rankings.

1. Stevens Point
2. Milwaukee King
3. Milwaukee Riverside
4. Middleton
5. Sheboygan North
6. Oshkosh North
7. Germantown
8. Racine Park
9. Muskego
10. Sun Prairie
11. West Allis Hale
12. Madison Memorial
13. De Pere
14. Arrowhead
15. Janesville Craig

Division Two
Onalaska lost to Prairie du Chien but, beat Greendale, so the two hold strong at five and six. Milwaukee Washington lost to Kaukauna and drop just a spot to eight. Cedarburg lost to Wauwatosa East and fall all the way to 13. Seymour lost to Bay Port and Pulaski who replaced them in the rankings at 14. Waunakee lost to Middleton but, still moved up to seven. Whitefish Bay lost to Greendale and fell from the rankings and are replaced by West De Pere.

1. Kaukauna 
2. La Crosse Central
3. New Berlin Eisenhower
4. Pewaukee
5. Onalaska
6. Greendale
7. Waunakee
8. Milwaukee Washington
9. Monona Grove
10. Hortonville
11. Whitnall
12. Wausau East
13. Cedarburg
14. Pulaski
15. West De Pere

Division Three
Lake Mills lost to Edgewood, which allowed Edgewood to jump to seven and Lake Mills fell to eight. Ripon lost to Brookfield Academy and Marshall, who did lose to Lodi but, also beat Brookfield Academy, Ripon dropped all the way to 13, Brookfield Academy fell to 11, and Marshall to 10. Brown Deer lost to Milwaukee Washington and drop just a spot to 12.

1. GET
2. Xavier
3. Wrightstown
4. Waupun
5. Prescott
6. Evansville
7. Madison Edgewood
8. Lake Mills
9. Lakside Lutheran
10. Marshall
11. Brookfield Academy
12. Brown Deer
13. Ripon
14. Watertown Luther Prep
15. Southern Door

Division Four
Destiny lost to Racine Case and Kenosha St Joe lost to Kenosha Tremper both D1 schools so both teams only fall to three and four. La Crosse Aquinas lost to Appleton Xavier and Eau Claire Regis lost to Waupun dropping both teams to 12 and 13. Darlington lost to Dodgeville falling to 15. Racine Lutheran lost to Racine Horlick falling from the rankings and are replaced by the Prairie School at 14.

1. Amherst
2. Melrose Mindoro
3. Dominican
4. Destiny
5. Kenosha st Joes
6. Cameron
7. Unity
8. Deerfield
9. Markesan
10. Marathon
11. Iowa Grant
12. La Crosse Aquinas
13. Eau Claire Regis
14. Prairie School
15. Darlington

Division Five
Pectanica lost to Darlington and fall to 14. Wausau Newman lost to Marathon and Amherst and fall from the rankings replaced by Desoto at 15.

1. Hillsboro
2. Washburn
3. McDonnell Central 
4. Seneca
5. Port Edwards
6. Gresham
7. Columbus Catholic
8. Bangor
9. Almond Bancroft
10. Clayton
11. Shullsburg
12. Hustisford
13. Solon Springs
14. Pecatonica
15. Desoto

Swingfam Showcase

Saturday took in the the Swingfam Showcase at the Just a Game field house in the Dells here. I really love the idea of having teams come that have players that play with the Swing AAU, all in one place The only real complaint I have is that there was no roster or program available at the door. It really isn't a big deal but, caused me not to be able to keep my normal scoring and is it really a big deal to get a list of the players from each team and print a bunch of copies on a page? It was a minor thing but, just hurt my keeping score.

Columbus 56 Cuba City 51
Didn't get to this game until after half time so not really sure what happened in the first half. Columbus is always a mystery to me. Every time I see them play they look pretty good and I could see them making a nice playoff run and finishing towards the top of their conference but, when I look at their record later on there like a .500 team and finish down towards the bottom of the conference. Now the last few years the Capital North has been a very good conference but, I really think Columbus could be better. From what I saw in this one Cuba City really pounded the ball inside to use their height advantage and on the defensive end they played a 2-3 zone defense. The zone led to Columbus shooting lots of threes which allowed them take the lead in this one led by 6'2 senior Kevin Hussey who hit three threes in the second half. For Cuba City for whatever reason late in the game they stopped looking inside and when they got down decided to start shooting threes rather then sticking with there game. In the end Columbus hit the free throws while Cuba City missed the threes.

Top Players
Kevin Hussey 6'2 senior Columbus- Really did a nice job hitting the outside shot against the zone defense in this one.
Benjamin Burkholder 6'4 senior Cuba City- Did a nice job of holding off his defender in the post and using his size to score on the inside.

Madison Edgewood 69 Lake Mills 67
This was the reason that I went to the showcase. Two D3 teams that are both ranked in the top five. Early on Lake Mills was hitting the threes and jumped out to the early lead but, Edgewood just hung around all game long. The game went back and forth but, Edgewood really made their move when 6'4 sophomore Mandela Deang came into the game. Deang honestly doesn't look like the greatest athlete or the most talented but, he can really shoot the ball and comes in looking to score. Edgewood had a pretty nice lead late in this one but, Lake Mills made a run late behind the strong play of 6'0 junior guard Alex Ranney who hit the threes, ran the offense, and was able to use his strength to score in paint. At the end of this one Lake Mills had their shot as they missed a pair of threes and a pair of put backs as the ball went out of bounce as time expired.

Top Players
Mandela Deang 6'4 sophomore Edgewood- Pretty much said it all earlier. Just a scorer off the bench and can really shoot the three.
Sam Noyce 6'1 senior Edgewood- Really attacked the rim hard and almost reckless at times. Was able to knock down the spot up three pointer from outside.
Alex Ranney 6'0 junior Lake Mills- Extremely improved over last year. He shot the ball off the dribble extremely well, used his strength on the inside to score in the post, and ran the offense.
Simon Linsmire 6'6 senior Lake Mills- Rebounded extremely well and can be a one man fast break when he grabs those rebounds. Can really handle the ball well in transition and runs like a deer.

Waunakee 63 Beaver Dam 61
After looking at both teams records I thought Waunakee would run away with this one but, was surprised when Beaver Dam made this game and played a really good game. Waunakee didn't do anything extravagant but, just played a solid overall game throughout not turning the ball over and scoring around the rim. Every time Waunakee took a big lead Beaver Dam would storm back with their three point shooting. This game was tied late and I thought for sure I was gonna see a repeat of Waunakee 6'3 sophomore Mitch Listau hitting a game winning shot. Unfortunately Listau did hit a game winner but, it was from the free throw line after a touch foul. With 4.4 seconds left Beaver Dam had a chance and more then I thought as 6'0 junior Garrett Nelson drove the length of the court and had his running layup bounce off the back of the rim and out.

Top Players
Riley Freeman 6'4 senior Waunakee- Just a real calming force in this game rebounding and scoring on the inside.
Mitch Listau 6'3 sophomore Waunakee- Nothing spectacular this game but, did a nice job of controlling things on the perimeter and made his free throws.
Garrett Nelson 5'11 junior Beaver Dam- Doesn't look like much but, was probably the most impressive player in this game. Used his quickness to get to the rim and create space from three point range where he was able to knock the shots down.
Sam Wiersma 6'0 senior Beaver Dam- Did a good job of picking up the scoring burden when Nelson was saddled with foul trouble. Was able to hit the deep threes or get out in transition and score.

I know I didn't have the greatest write ups here but, I'm alttle worn out from all the basketball this past week. Should be back to normal this week with just games here and there like before.

WBY Shootout

Well I saw a lot of games in the three days that I spent at the WBBY Shootout so I will just do a quick two or three sentences about each game the best I can from memory. With watching so many games you forgot things and games start to blend in together. I nice change this year is that the Shootout has changed their name to the Rick Majerus WBY Shootout, with the family of Rick Majerus making donations to help fund the shootout, donation plaques for MVP of each game, and then giving out eight scholarships to players that are participating in the shootout. Here is my very quick run down of each game I saw and then some of the top players.

Day One

St. Thomas More 69 Living Word Lutheran 45

Living Word just simply seemed to be over their head in this one. St Thomas is just an OK team but, Living Word is a very young team, I liked there point guard 6’2 sophomore Jacob Bolwerk but, there was just no help for him. There was a very long stretch where Living Word didn’t score.

Onalaska 62 Greendale 43

Greendale came out and played absolutely terrible, lead by their star 6’7 senior David Pulizos who really played bad in this one. Onalaska’s two 5’10 junior guards Jalen Zubich and Noah Fredrickson were very impressive handling the ball and knocking down the open shots.

Dominican 58 Kettle Moraine Lutheran 56

Don’t remember a ton about this game but, the difference was the play of Dominican’s sophomore point guard 6’0 Jacoby Jones. Jones was just too quick for the KML guards and 6’9 senior Kostas Antetokounmpo had an OK game but, he was the one that hit the game winning shot a buzzer beater from a mid range baseline shot.

Brookfield Academy 64 Ripon 62

Ripon missing their point guard 6’4 junior Luke Loewe really hurt them but, they battled it out all game. Brookfield Academy seemed poised to run away with this one late but, the outside shooting of Ripon’s 6’3 junior Edward Muench kept them in the game and the solid play throughout and 6’7 junior Bennett Vander Plas had a very good game but, forced things at times late. Ripon had the chance at the buzzer but, got off a very poor shot.

Cedarburg 75 West Allis Hale 53

This game was never really in question as the hot shooting of Cedarburg early was just too much for Hale and they were never in the game. Cedarburg’s 6’3 sophomore Jordan Johnson had 18 first half point and that was really all that was needed in this one as each of Cedarburg’s starters scored in double digits.

Milwaukee Vincent 68 Arrowhead 62

This game surprised me a bit, I really thought Arrowhead would win this one but, the pressure of Vincent was just too much. Arrowhead did have a size advantage but, Vincent’s big man 6’5 junior Jamel White did a good job of neutralizing that by controlling the glass on both ends using his athleticism.   

Milwaukee Riverside 67 Homestead 49

Another game where a city school used their pressure to take over the game and control the tempo. 6’5 junior George Dixon controlled the inside despite not scoring a ton while the guards did most of the scoring spreading it around between their four starting guards. To be honest this Homestead team just isn’t up to pair with the teams of the past.

Kaukauna 85 Milwaukee Washington 77

This was suppose to be a match up of two of the best point guards in the state with 5’11 sophomore Jordan McCabe of Kaukauna verse 6’1 senior Te’Jon Lucas of Washington. Unfortunately Washington showed up extremely late for the game with half their team missing most of the warmups. Washington started extremely slow and Lucas never got things going and Washington was forced to play from behind the entire night but, they were never able to overcome McCabe and company. McCabe came out firing early and often launching deep threes all game long and about midway through the first half he got things going and it was his game from there, leading to 34 points. I feel like the weather really ruined this game forcing Washington behind the eight ball all game.

Day Two

McDonell Central 84 Living Word Lutheran 42

Another game where Living Word was over their head and McDonell Central was extremely impressive and they are now my pick to win Division Five. MC has tremendous size starting three guys at 6’5 or taller and have a very solid guard in 6’1 senior Ben Retzlaff.

St Marys Springs 81 Shoreland Lutheran 51

Unfortunately the reason that Shoreland was in the Shootout was missing in 6’6 senior Lucas Wendt who is out with an injury. Shoreland was unable to get anything going offensively and really looked like they were missing that offensive piece. St. Mary’s is just a very solid balanced team that really doesn’t have a true star. They really did a great job of pounding the ball inside to their big men that had the size advantage.

Kettle Moraine Lutheran 56 Prairie du Chien 49

Battle of two similar teams, without big time stars, that are both very balanced. The play of KML’s guards was the difference headlined by 5’11 senior Colin Biesterfeld who used his quickness to his advantage and knocked down the open shots.

Onalaska 56 Wauwatosa East 36

Once again Onalaska got a team that played a very bad game and just never got things going at all. The shots weren’t falling and they couldn’t get anything going towards the hoop. Once again it was Onalaska’s guards that sealed the game and they got the transition game going behind 6’4 junior Jalen Sample.

Marshall 56 Ripon 44

Without Lowe Ripon really struggled in both of their games. For Ripon Vander Plas was just forced to do too much and just wore down as the game went. Marshall really put forth a team effort as no one could really get going but, everyone did just enough to the win.

Milwaukee Riverside 89 De Pere 55

Riverside once again used their press defense to turn De Pere over time and again and De Pere was just too slow to play with Riverside. Riverside’s star 6’6 junior Terrence Lewis had a huge game knocking down the corner three point shot all game long and getting out in transition. Dixon did his thing on the inside and was able to score in transition.

Dominican 66 Wisconsin Lutheran 56

Once again this isn’t the Wisco of old and honestly this isn’t the Dominican of old. This game was a little hard to watch. Once again Jacoby Jones was dominating scoring 20 points. Lutheran doesn’t have the shooters or the athletes to speed things up like they have in the past.

Oshkosh North 68 Arrowhead 62

1-3-1 defense of North was very tough in this one and Arrowhead’s shooting slowed up late in the game and the shots weren’t falling. North just basically wore them out as the game went on.

Kaukauna 70 Homestead 52

Kaukauna controlled this one from the get go and I actually left this game at half time. Homestead fought early and kept it close but, just worn down as the game went on.

Day Three

St Thomas More 63 University School 62

Got to this game late and not sure what happened but, University was up big and from the moment I got there it was all Thomas More. University led this game all the way until the end of the game went Thomas More hit a runner at the buzzer giving them the win.

McDonell Central 46 Prairie du Chien 44

This was a very good defensive battle back and forth  but, in the end I really think it was MC’s size that won this game. Prairie du Chien could never really get things going on the offensive end.

Greendale 75 Whitefish Bay 68

If Greendale had played the way they played in this game against Onalaska they may of won that game. Greendale looked inside and used their size to score and hit their three point shots as well. On the other side Whitefish Bay was extremely undersized but, really fought tell the end. Greendale blitzed them early but, Bay fought back all game long and they shot the ball extremely well but, the lead they gave Greendale was too much.

Marshall 69 Brookfield Academy 67

Might of been the best game of the entire showcase. This game was back and forth all game long and seemed to be a three point contest. Every time one team would go up by about seven or eight points the other team would claw there way back and take the lead. Marshall loves to shoot the three and BA followed suit shooting the threes of their own. With Marshall up three, Brookfield Academy’s star 6’1 senior Ryan Cleary hit a three from the corner and then Marshall’s star 6’4 senior Adam Link drove the length of the court and hitting a running floater off the backboard and in to get the win.

De Pere 66 Wisconsin Lutheran 63

Despite having the size advantage it was the guards of De Pere that helped them get this win. De Pere jumped out early and Wisco got back into the game actually hitting threes this game but, De Pere was able to beat their pressure behind the strong play of their 6’2 senior guard Jordan Barthels. Barthels hit midrange jumpers all game and was able to seal the game late from the free throw line.

Oshkosh North 77 Milwaukee Vincent 70

This was a great battle between junior point guards, Vincent’s 5’9 Justin Brookens and North’s 5’7 Shane Wissink. Both guards were dropping threes all game long but, Wissink got a little more help and North turned the ball over a lot less then Vincent.

Wauwatosa East 56 Cedarburg 51

Cedarburg had this game completely in hand but, then some selfish play and some poor ball handling allowed Wauwatosa East to get back in this game very late and take the lead.

Stevens Point 77 Germantown 64

Everyone was there to watch Stevens Point and this game was no one near as close as this score appears. Point dominated from the start to finish and Germantown only made it respectable when Point pulled their starters and Germantown’s star 6’0 senior Juwan McCloud hitting three, three pointers late. For Point 6’6 senior Sam Hauser struggled to find his shot but, fellow senior 6’2 Trev Anderson was knocking down threes all game long in route to scoring 31 while Sam’s brother 6’7 sophomore Joey Hauser played very well and seems to be much improved from last year despite being so good a year ago. This game realistically was a 20 to 30 point game throughout.

All Tournament Team

1^st Team

Trev Anderson 6’2 senior Stevens Point- Has really improved his three point shot seems like he shoots about 75% from long range. Ultimate competitor that won’t let his team lose.

Jordan McCabe 5’11 sophomore Kaukauna- Best ball handler in the state. Really shoots the three well off the bounce and yes he shoots a lot but, he sets his team mates up a lot too. He is involved in almost every basket for his team.

Terrence Lewis 6’6 junior Milwaukee Riverside- Runs like a dear and is a real smooth player. He’s money from the corners from three point range doesn’t force things and lets the game come to him.

Joey Hauser 6’7 sophomore Stevens Point- Another very smooth player that lets things come to him and everything he does just looks so smooth and not rushed. Rebounds very well and can score in the post or outside.

John Diener 6’4 sophomore Cedarburg- A tough kid can that can score with the best of them. Shot it well from the outside and had a handful of and one baskets in each game he played.

Gacoby Jones 6’0 sophomore Dominican- Lightning quick point guard and no one could stay in front of him. When he wasn’t scoring he was finding open team mates.

Juwan McCloud 6’0 senior Germantown- Handle the ball extremely well and lit it up from the outside.

George Dixon 6’5 junior Milwaukee Riverside- Dominated the glass on both ends of the court and really showed the ability to handle the ball on the outside.

Ryan Cleary 6’1 senior Brookfield Academy- Big time scorer that can really put points on the board. Also a sharpshooter from the outside.

Bennett Vander Plas 6’7 junior Ripon- Might be a big man but, he can do a little bit of everything. Brings the ball up the court, can shoot the three, and can score in the paint.

2^nd Team

Elijah Moore 6’0 senior Whitefish Bay- Another big time scorer that can really hit the three and was able to get in the paint and score over bigger defenders.

Jalen Zubich 5’10 junior Onalaska- Really impressed me this week. Can really shoot the spot up three and is tough as nails on the court.

Shane Wissink 5’7 junior Oshkosh North- Just the perfect high school point guard in that he can run the offense and knock down the three point shot.

Justin Brookens 5’9 junior Milwaukee Vincent- High energy point guard that can knock down the three from anywhere on the court and can get in the lane and score over bigger defenders.

Brandon Neuberger 6’2 senior Marshall- Three point sharpshooter that doesn’t need a lot of room to get the shot off.

Jordan Johnson 6’3 junior Cedarburg- Big time scorer that can really light it up from the outside.

Edward Muench 6’3 junior Ripon- Another big time three point shooter that really carried his team at times from long range.

Adam Link 6’4 senior Marshall- Had an OK tournament but, put him over the top with a game winning shot.

Ben Retzlaff 6’1 senior McDonell Central- Was the high scorer on a team full of scorers. When he gets it going from down town he’s very tough to stop.

Noah Fredrickson 5’10 junior Onalaska- Another point guard that I really liked and has everything you look for in a high school point guard. Can really score but, also passes to teammates and does a great job of drawing the defense to him and kicking the ball out.

HM

Adam Smith 6’2 junior Kaukauna

Jason Klatt 5’10 junior St Thomas More

Caly Kuajwa 6’8 junior Greendale

Wes Meister 6’0 senior Arrowhead

Kostas Antetokounmpo 6’9 senior Dominican

Joseph Lemon 6’5 senior Brookfield Academy

Jordan Barthels 6’2 senior DePere

20plus Scorers

Jordan McCabe Kaukauna 34, 21

Trev Anderson Stevens Point 31

Terrence Lewis Milwaukee Riverside 30, 22

Ryan Cleary Brookfield Academy 28

Juwan McCloud Germantown 26

Jason Klatt St Thomas More 26

Bennett Vander Plas Ripon 25

Ryan McNeive St Thomas More 23

Jacob Burden Shoreland Lutheran 23

Edward Muench Ripon 23

Clay Kuajwa Greendale 23

John Diener Cedarburg 23

Elijah Moore Whitefish Bay 22

Austin Feyen St Mary’s Springs 22

Joey Hauser Stevens Point 21

Nakell Martin Milwaukee Washington 21

Colin Biesterfeld Kettle Moraine Lutheran 21

Walter Taylor University School 20

Ja’Vionne Green Wauwatosa East 20

Kurt Mueller St Mary’s Springs 20

Shane Wissink Oshkosh North 20

Brandon Neuberger Marshall 20

Adam Smith Kaukauna 20

Jordan Johnson Cedarburg 20

Gacoby Jones Dominican 20

Wes Meister Arrowhead 20

Was a fun but, very long three days and a must see for any basketball junkie. It’s a great time to see the best teams in the state of Wisconsin. After watching all these games it appears that the junior and sophomore class are both extremely talented and are probably more talented than the senior class. I’m alittle basketballed out so I may need a little break for the next few days.