The Wild Rose Wildcats established a 66-48 win over the Montello Hilltoppers in Feb. 7 boys’ basketball action.
Wild Rose Coach Jacob Lund pointed out “it’s always tough playing back-to-back,” having beaten Princeton/Green Lake the night before. “We started out a little flat, but I’m proud of how we finished.”
Despite how sluggish the Wildcat play appeared to be, four players kept Wild Rose in the first half of play as Evan Tratz came up with 11 points and Austin Erickson 10, with Erickson hitting a 3-point shot and 3 of 4 free throws. Jonah Williams helped himself to 8 points, going 2 for 2 at the free throw line, and Brett Wilbert contributed 5 points, going 3 for 3 at the line.
The hosts held a 34-28 lead at halftime, having just committed 2 fouls.
The Hilltoppers had 3 scorers in the first half, with Braedy Alberts producing 15 points, ending with a 3-point shot. Bodie Bloom gathered 11 points with three 3’s.
The visitors didn’t help themselves by committing 11 fouls in the half.
Both teams scored fewer points in the second half, but Wild Rose only had 2 fewer point to keep well ahead.
The same four Wildcats scored in the second half, possessing a 20-point lead with about 8:30 remaining in the game. Six Hilltoppers worked on reducing their deficit, to as little as 13, but the hosts kept up their efforts. With 1:59 remaining. Erickson got the call to shoot 2 free throws as the Montello coach was charged with a technical foul. The shots were good, and Montello came up with one more score with several seconds remaining on the clock, only to fall victim to Wild Rose, 66-48.
Tratz produced 15 points in the second half, including a 3, and led Wild Rose with 26 points on the night. Erickson put up 10 points in the half with two 3’s and 4 of 4 free throw for a total of 20 points, three 3’s and 7 of 8 free throws on the night. Wilbert gathered 6 points in the second half and totaled 11 points, going 3-3 at the free throw line. Williams totaled 9 points on the night, going 3-6 at the line.
The Wildcats registered 14 of 20 free throws, four 3-point goals, and 11 fouls.
Ayden Drew gathered 3 points in the second half for Montello, including a 3-point goal. Domanick Lopez put up 4 points, going 2-2 at the free throw line. Bloom put up a 3 to total 14 points, with four 3-point goals. Logan Ross and Gabe Lopez each contributed a 3-point goal, while Alberts led the visitors with 15 points featuring a 3-point goal.
The Hilltoppers hit eight 3-point goals on the night, 2 of 5 free throws, and 17 fouls.
