Kraemer’s big night not enough to put Rangers past Patriots

WAUSAUKEE – Seth Kraemer turned in a nice double-double for Wausaukee against Goodman/Pembine on Thursday, Feb. 8 but the Rangers fell behind in the second half and lost the contest 68-60.

Kraemer poured in 26 points to go along with 10 boards, three assists and three steals while teammate Connor Schroeder also turned in a double double with 13 points, 10 rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block.

Bulldogs fall behind in first half, lose to Storm

KEWAUNEE – Peshtigo got another big night out of Dominik Baxter, as well as a double double from Will McMahon in Kewaunee on Thursday, February 8 but Thomas Stangel, on his way to collecting his 1,000th career point for the Storm, and the home team offense came out on top 68-55. 

“We gave up almost 70 points again last night. I think our effort was there, it’s just that we were late on rotations, not knowing when we were in man or when we were in zone,” said Peshtigo head coach Jason Boucher. “Their best player was hot, obviously. Stangel killed us. He didn’t miss many and then their other big guy, Riha, he’s 6’8, 275 pounds, we had a hard time with him. We had chances in the second half and then, turnovers at crucial times, we couldn’t overcome their pressure and the game just got away from us in the last five to six minutes.”

A three pointer from Baxter early in the contest gave Peshtigo an 8-4 advantage but the Storm tied it at 9-9 with about 13 minutes to play in the opening half before opening up a 36-23 lead at the break.

The second half of play saw the Peshtigo offense get sparked several times, only to have Kewaunee pull away, the gap never getting closer than 11 the rest of the way.

Baxter led the Bulldogs’ scoring effort with 25 points to accompany his seven rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block. McMahon had 10 points, 10 boards, six assists, three steals and a bloc. 

Badgers ground Eagles

NIAGARA – The Badgers improved their M&O Conference record to 10-4, good enough for third place heading into the season’s final games, with a 50-39 victory over Suring on Friday, Feb. 9.

Tommy Martin was the game’s high scorer with 24 points in addition to nine rebounds, five assists, six steals and a block. Blake Holmes added 15 points and nine rebounds in the win.

Suring was led by 16 points from Jacob Cornell, followed by 10 from Michael Bailey. 

Tigers crush Wildcats

LENA – Gillett overwhelmed Lena on both sides of the ball Friday, Feb. 9 in a 74-34 win.

Aydin Franti finished with 21, Ben Matczak added 20 and Jesse DeBauch scored 17 in the win for the Tigers while the Wildcats were led by 15 points from Caleb Schlosser and 13 from Mason Belongia.

Tigers lose high-scoring contest to Blazers

GREEN BAY – The Gillett boys got a huge 34-point game from Aydin Franti on Monday, Feb. 5 but couldn’t keep up with the Blazers in a 75-68 decision that saw the Tigers fall in non-conference play.

Franti’s 34 points were accompanied by his three boards, three assists and four steals while teammate Tyler Frank finished with 12 points, a steal and five rebounds.

Bulldogs bury Vikings

PESHTIGO –  Only a few days removed from their dramatic 45-42 victory at the buzzer ver Algoma, the Peshtigo boys notched a straightforward 57-43 victory over Gibraltar on Monday, Feb. 5.

“Tonight was probably the first night in a long time, maybe since the beginning of the year, where we actually came out and had a fast start,” said Bulldogs’ head coach Jason Boucher. “I thought our defense was very solid. Offensively, we ran our stuff and got (Dominik) Baxter some wide-open shots. He was hot tonight.”

The Bulldogs, up by 17 at the break with the scoreboard reading 29-12, got 29 points, seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block from Dominik Baxter while Will McMahon turned in nine points, seven boards, five assists and three steals.

“We’ve been talking about it in practice lately, we have to be better on defense as a team. We don’t have the offensive firepower this year to score in the 60s, the 70s,” Boucher said of his team’s defensive efforts improving as of late. “I think, the two or three games before, we gave up almost 80 points and we come out on the losing end. OSo our guys have been buckling down on defense and that’s probably the main reason we’re winning basketball games.” 

Maroons squeeze past Mountaineers

IRON MOUNTAIN – The Menominee boys, for the third game in a row, prevailed in overtime as they defeated the Mountaineers in Iron Mountain on Monday, Feb. 5 by a final score of 60-58.

“I don’t think that either team had their best offensive night of the season. Part of that was due to the pressure and physicality of the game,” said Menominee head coach Sam Larson. “After being in our third overtime game in a row, I think our kids are becoming more comfortable in those close games. We don’t seem to blink if we get behind a couple points, we just continue to play and execute which is an important quality to have for March.”  

It was another high-output game for Trevor Theuerkauf, who finished with 22 points, four assists and two rebounds while Tanner Theuerkauf turned in 16 points, 11 boards and an assist.

“Realistically, this game does not mean anything for seeding or tournament purposes, but I think there is somewhat of a confidence boost to winning on the road with a team that has the U.P. and state rankings that Iron Mountain has,” coach Larson commented. “We need to come back to work this week still looking to improve over these next few weeks leading into playoffs.” 

Martin, Badgers bring down Rangers

WAUSAUKEE – Niagara’s Tommy Martin dropped 46 points, a school record for most scored in a single game, in Wausaukee on Tuesday, Feb. 6 as the Badgers beat the Rangers in a 75-27 M&O Conference clash.

Martin also had nine rebounds, an assist and five steals while teammate Blake Holmes turned in a double double with 14 points, 11 boards, two assists and four steals.

Wausaukee got six point apiece from Blake Seehawer, Gavin Thomson and Seth Kramer while Conner Schroeder pulled down 10 boards. 

Maroons lose close game to Spartans

OSHKOSH – Playing at the former Menominee Nation Arena on Saturday, Feb. 10, the Maroons ran into some tough competition in the Laconia Spartans, who used their size advantage over the Maroons to capture the 73-65 victory.

“This was a great opportunity to play in a very cool arena against a quality opponent,” said Menominee head coach Sam Larson. “I thought we started the game relying on the three point shot a little bit too much, and we weren’t hitting.”

The top three Menominee scorers were Trevor Theuerkauf with 17, Kaiden Bell with 16 and Tanner Theuerkauf with 15. 

“I thought Eli Beal competed at a high level. He was aggressive offensively and battled on the boards for us,” said coach Larson. “There were a lot of positives for us in this game, but once again, being consistent with all five guys on the court for the entire duration of the game has been a challenge this year. We are sitting in a great place right now where we control our own destiny for the district seeding. The focus has to be on becoming better in the next two weeks instead of coasting into the tournament.”