Warriors dominate back-to-back games
GILMAN BOYS BASKETBALL
Games on back-to-back nights proved to be much more fun for the Neillsville Warriors, who stayed in contention for the Eastern Cloverbelt Conference boys basketball championship Tuesday with a 93-33 win over the visiting Gilman Pirates.
Neillsville improved to 8-2 in league play and sits just a half-game back of 8-1 Columbus Catholic and Greenwood.
The Pirates are 0-9 in the conference and 1-10 overall after their second loss to Neillsville in as many nights.
The Warriors’ offense got going a little sooner than it did the night before and piled up 61 first-half points. They led 61-23 and then outscored Gilman 32-10 in the second half.
Fourteen players got into the game and into the scoring column for Neillsville, led by 16 points from Braden Trunkel, 14 points from Santana Subke and 13 more from Bryce Erickson.
Andrew Hecker led Gilman with 18 points and Branden Ustianowski, Caleb Marion and Gabe Brunner also got into the scoring column.
The Pirates host Spencer Friday and Colby Monday in conference action. Both games start at 6 p.m.
Neillsville 79, Gilman 24
On Monday, the Pirates’ young squad had arguably its best night in handling full-court pressure, but shots didn’t fall nearly enough and Neillsville dominated with rebounding in a 79-24 win in game one of the teams’ back-to-back meetings.
The Warriors struggled from the field early against Gilman’s 2-3 zone, but eventually they used offensive putbacks and inside shots to find their rhythm. Late in the first half, 3-pointers by Alex Roman, Trunkel and Andrew Brown broke the game open as Neillsville took a 31-3 lead and settled for a 41-11 bulge at halftime.
Gilman didn’t get a field goal under Andrew Hecker’s driving layup with 5:07 left in the first half. In fact, the standout senior was the only Pirate to make a shot from the field and finished with a game-high 22 points. Caleb Marion added a first-half free throw and Ustianowski made one in the second half.
Hecker hit eight shots from the field, including two 3-pointers, and was four of four from the free throw line.
The Warriors put five players in double figures, led by Teagen Dillenbeck’s 13 points. He scored 11 of those points in the second half.
Trunkel, a first-team All-Eastern Cloverbelt selection last year, scored 11 points as did Neillsville’s 6-6 center Mason Roenz, who was a brick wall in the paint that Gilman could not move on either end of the court. Kaleb Walsh and Subke scored 10 points apiece.
Richard Streveler went off for 20 firsthalf points and got help from several teammates in Colby’s 81-35 win over visiting Gilman Thursday evening.
Streveler hit five 3-pointers in the half and added a couple of slashing drives to the basket, while Kaden Wiese hit a trio of 3s and scored 13 points in the half as the Hornets buzzed out to a 60-21 lead.
Streveler finished with a game-high 23 points. Wiese had 15 and the Hornets got balanced scoring out from nine different players after that.
Hecker tried to keep up for Gilman, scoring 13 points in the first half and finishing with a game-high 21. Junior post Zack Marion scored four points in each half to finish with a varsity personal-best of eight points. Ustianowski scored five points and Brunner added a free throw.
