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Boys Hoops: Columbus Catholic, Cuba City win Thanksgiving-event titles

11/28/2021, 7:30pm CST
By Mark Miller

Columbus Catholic of Marshfield and Cuba City both entered the season with big expectations, and both squads lived up to their advanced billing over the weekend.

Columbus Catholic won the title in the Cranberry Classic at Assumption High School in Wisconsin Rapids while Cuba City captured the championship of the Just A Game Fieldhouse Tournament in Wisconsin Dells. 

Following are some observations from games played at both locations on Saturday:

Cranberry Classic


Sam Wilczek

Columbus Catholic won the 37th annual Cranberry Classic before a large gathering by downing the host Assumption Royals 73-62 in the title game Saturday evening.

Led by a very skilled, versatile and deep lineup, Columbus Catholic raced to a 38-24 halftime lead, withstood a strong Assumption rally in the second half and won going away to post their second victory in as many days after toppling Port Edwards in the semifinals of the event.

Ranked No. 6 among WIAA Division 5 schools in the preseason rankings in the Wisconsin Basketball Yearbook, Columbus Catholic's combination of zone and man-to-man defenses made things difficult for Assumption, which nonetheless appeared much improved over the last three teams at the school that went a combined 6-59.

While utilizing their quickness and aggressiveness on defense, the Dons also flashed some stellar perimeter shooting on offense, making eight three-point baskets during the contest.

Senior guard Sam Wilczek (5-11) looked particularly sharp. The all-tournament team selection scored 15 points and drilled two three-point baskets for Columbus Catholic, which extended its winning streak over Assumption to four games while also narrowing the all-time series between the two former Central Wisconsin Catholic Conference rivals to 66-79.  

Sophomore point guard Blake Jacobi (5-8) joined Wilczek on the all-tournament team. The exceptionally quick prospect used his relentless ball pressure to speed up the Assumption offense. He also contributed 12 points on offense for a Dons' offense that saw four players score in double figures. Sophomore Emmitt Konieczny (6-0) and senior Cole Noreen (6-0) each contributed 12 points to the Dons' cause. 

"We have some nice pieces, we just have to put everything together," Columbus Catholic coach Joe Konieczny said. "We have a lot of guys who are skilled. We have seven or eight kids who could be our leading scorer on any given night."  

In addition to Jakobi and Koneiczny, Lucas Kreklau (6-3) and Charlie Moore (6-0) are key sophomores for the Dons as both Kreklau and Moore came off the bench to score eight points apiece.

"We have four sophomores we play a lot, and all have had their moments thus far," coach Konieczny said. "They just need to become more consistent."

Junior guard Ryan Shaw (5-11) had a very strong showing for Assumption, which beat Nekoosa in the tournament semifinals. Shaw led Assumption with 18 points. Junior Frank Matott (6-1) added eight points off the bench for first-year Assumption coach Josh Paltz. 

In the third-place game, Nekoosa snapped a 28-game losing streak dating back to January of 2020 with a 58-51 victory over Port Edwards, despite a game-high 31 points from junior wing Nathan Gibbs (6-4). 

Nekoosa got 18 points each from promising freshman guard Nash Krcmar (5-10) and junior wing guard Jaden Hughes (6-1). 

Gibbs and Hughes were named to the all-tournament squad along with the two players mentioned above from Columbus Catholic, and Shaw and Bryson Galbreath of Assumption. 


JAG Thanksgiving Tournament


Carter Olson

Cuba City dominated Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln from the opening tip in registering a 75-49 victory Saturday afternoon in the title game of the Just A Game Fieldhouse Thanksgiving Tournament.

Coach Jerry Petitgoue's club moved to 2-0 with the victory -- the Cubans defeated Holmen on Friday -- as cat-quick and super-aggressive senior point guard Carter Olson (5-11) turned several steals into transition baskets on the way to scoring a career-best 33 points. 

Olson was the lone Cuba City player to reach double-scoring figures, but several others played key roles, including junior wing guard Max Lucey (6-3), who used his length and anticipation to team up with Olson in forming a fantastic perimeter defensive duo for Petitgoue, who has now won 986 career games during his long coaching tenure.

"I was pleased with our performance," Petitgoue said. "Today's game, like so many in basketball, was a game of spurts. We looked great at times, and not so great at others. We had too many turnovers. 

"But I like our team. Carter and Max can really defend on the perimeter and so can Will Busch, who is injured right now."

Olson added 10 rebounds and five assists to his 33 points. He has a NAIA scholarship offer from Grand View and had the head coach from Viterbo watching on Saturday. 

"Carter along had 12 deflections today," Petitgoue said. "Our goal as a team for each game is 15 and we watch that closely. For Carter to have 12 by himself is outstanding."

Cuba City, ranked No. 3 among WIAA Division 3 schools by the Wisconsin Basketball Yearbook, appears to have stellar depth.

In addition to the starting five of Olson, Lucey, Mason Reese, Ian Hinderman and Cody Houtakker, reserves Riley Rosenkrantz, Reese Rosenkrantz, Carter Niles and Blake Bussan all saw significant playing time against Wisconsin Rapids. 

Wisconsin Rapids, which beat Melrose-Mindoro on Friday, slipped to 1-2 on the season under veteran coach Dan Witter. 

Junior forward Cade Jungwirth (6-4) had 14 points to lead Wisconsin Rapids while junior Aiden Ferk (6-1) hit three shots from outside the three-point arc and finished with 10 points off the bench for the Red Raiders. 

Meanwhile, Holmen turned back Melrose-Mindoro 62-42 in the third-place game of the tournament.

Coach Ryan Meyer's club got 17 points from athletic junior forward Drew Tengblad (6-6) and 16 from senior guard Carter Paulson (6-0) while slowing pulling away from a 28-22 halftime lead. 

"It took us a while to get the ball into the middle against Melrose-Mindoro's zone," Meyer said. "Once we did, we found some opeings."

Tengblad's twin brother, junior Reed Tengblad (6-6), contributed six points while Jace Lesser had nine and Ty Lesser had eight.

"The Tengblads really work well together," Meyer said. "They have that twin intuition where they know where each other will be on the court."

Melrose-Mindoro got 23 points from stellar senior guard/forward Tristan McRoberts (6-6), who showed a soft shooting touch, solid ball-handling skills and the ability to rebound and block/alter shots. His younger brother, junior Dominic McRoberts (6-6) added 14 points for the Mustangs.

For the latest and most up to date boys' basketball news and recruiting information, follow Mark on Twitter @wisbbyearbook. Email story ideas, recruiting info, etc. to Mark by clicking here.

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