January 3, 2018 at 1:12 p.m.
Resume builders
Hodags down regional opponents Marshfield, Waupaca
Resume builders
The Hodags doubled down with wins against a pair of Division 2 regional opponents, defeating Waupaca 67-36 last Friday in Rhinelander and Marshfield 64-61 on the road Tuesday.
"That's going to be a big one," Hodag coach Derek Lemmens said following Tuesday's road victory, the eighth straight win for his team. "This game has a new element that it never has before (with Marshfield dropping to Division 2) and it's nice to get that win when we're jockeying for (seeding) position later in the year."
Hodags edge Tigers on the road
A 16-0 run proved to be the difference Tuesday as the Hodags took the lead in the second half and held on for a three-point win over the Tigers.
It was Rhinelander's first close game in more than a month after five straight December blowouts. It showed down the stretch as the Hodags nearly relinquished a six-point lead over the final 35 seconds, but held on for the win.
Up two with just under a minute to play following a Brant Bohman 3, Reese Flores hit a pair of free throws for Rhinelander and then Brad Quade made a layup off an Owen White steal to push the lead to 62-56.
Marshfield's Seth Anderson, who scored a game-high 31 points, hit a pair of free throws with 31 seconds remaining and then Reed Miller hit a 3 following a White turnover to trim the lead to one with 20 second left.
Quade was fouled off the subsequent inbound play, hit both of his free throws and then nearly got a game-clinching steal as he knocked the ball out of bounds with five seconds left. Miller missed a long 3 for Marshfield as time expired.
"Late in the game Brad Quade made some huge plays defensively, made some big throws. Reese made some big free throws," Lemmens said.
White scored 28 points in the contest for Rhinelander. The 6-6 senior and Michigan Tech signee now has 979 points for his career with home games against Tomahawk Friday and Antigo Jan. 12 next on the Hodags' docket.
For much of the night, the game was a two-way battle between White and Anderson, who filled up the scorebook for their respective teams.
"They were definitely going back and forth at each other," Lemmens said. "That was good. Anderson's a nice player. I think I undersold him a little bit. I wasn't sure on him but he can ball. And Owen, in the second half especially, met the challenge."
Rhinelander trailed 33-31 at halftime, but Marshfield quickly pushed the lead to nine with a 7-0 run to start the second. Rhinelander answered back with a 16-0 run capped off by a White basket to take a 47-40 lead with 10:30 remaining.
"Our 1-3-1 in the second half really gave them some problems. We forced some turnovers and that really allowed us to make a big run," Lemmens said. "We had some huge shots. Owen really caught fire for a stretch there, and other guys."
Quade scored 13 points off the bend for Rhinelander, while Junior Howard added 11 points. The Hodags needed more output from other members of their back court as senior Brad Comer, who was the team's second-leading scorer entering the night, was shut out in the contest and fouled out with under six minutes to play.
Marshfield cut the lead to three on two occasions before the final minute of regulation. Miller scored 17 for the Tigers while Bohman added 10.
Hodags wallop Waupaca
The Hodags were firing on all cylinders inside and outside last Friday night, and played some stellar defense as well, as they handled Waupaca 67-36 at the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium.
White dominated the interior with 17 points and 15 rebounds while Comer scored a game-high 22 points that included not one, but two four-point plays. Meanwhile, Rhinelander's zone stifled the Comets, who shot only 31 percent on the night.
Despite struggling with turnovers early in the contest, the Hodags never trailed, as they shot 52 percent from the floor (27 of 52).
Leading 6-4 with 10:21 left in the half, Comer had a hand in in 15 of Rhinelander's next 17 points as the advantage ballooned to 23-9 with 6:02 left in the half. Comer hit back-to-back 3s to start the run, converted his first four-point play of the night at the 8:08 mark when he was fouled on a 3-point attempt, added a layup off a steal and then assisted on a Howard triple.
Comer finished 4 of 8 from distance and was 8 of 13 overall from the field in the contest.
"He's been pretty consistent as a shooter, but when he hits those first couple, he's a swagger guy. When he gets that swagger, that's a good thing for us," Lemmens said.
Leading 34-22 at half, White scored nine points as part of a 14-2 run to open the second that put the game firmly out of reach. The stretch included the highlight play of the night when Flores, driving in for a contested layup, made a no-look pass to a trailing White for an easy bucket.
The Hodags put the clamps on Waupaca's offense, minus leading scorer Brandon Wanty, in the second half. Rhinelander held the Comets to 4 of 23 from the field over the final 18 minutes as the lead ballooned to as large as 34 points.
Justin Vaughn had 17 points for the Comets, Waupaca's only double-digit scorer.
"In the second half, I thought we had better energy. We anticipated. We were in our spots early and that makes a big difference," Lemmens said.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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