December 18, 2019 at 2:31 p.m.
Rhinelander gives up late run, falls to Medford
Rhinelander gives up late run, falls to Medford
The Raiders scored eight unanswered points over the final 92 seconds to defeat the Hodags 63-55 at the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium.
Trailing by seven with less than three minutes remaining, the Hodags made a push to tie the game on a Jacksen Smith runner with 1:41 remaining. But the Raiders beat Rhinelander's press on the ensuing inbound, Peyton Kuhn found Justin Sullivan for the go-ahead layup on a 2-on-1 fast break and Medford controlled the rest of the contest.
"We just didn't finish well," Hodag coach Derek Lemmens said. "The moment, they were ready for it. They got rolling at the right time and we found ourselves chasing. We're just not good enough to chase. We ran out of gas and they pulled away."
Peyton Erikson had an 8-foot pull-up jumper spit out of the basket after going halfway down on Rhinelander's next possession. Down two with just under a minute to play, the Hodags elected to play for the steal instead of fouling Medford to put the Raiders in the bonus. Medford made the Hodags pay for that choice with crisp ball movement as it found Doug Way underneath for an open layup with 30 seconds remaining. After Jackson Labs missed a quick 3 on the other end, Medford chucked the ball ahead to Kuhn for a layup that essentially iced the game with 14.8 seconds left. Kuhn added two more free throws in the final seconds to account for the final margin.
The Hodags fell to 2-4 on the season despite holding second-half leads in five of their six games so far this season. Rhinelander led 47-42 with 10 minutes remaining when it went cold from the field. The Hodags went the next 7:05 without a field goal.
"I thought their defense bothered us," Lemmens said. "Even though we didn't turn the ball over a lot, they really dictated what we did offensively, so another thing we'll work on."
In that time, Medford used a 13-1 run to take control. Kuhn hit a 3 to cut the lead to two with 7:26 left and then Ty Baker got a steal and transition basket to tie the game at 47 with 6:45 remaining.
Baker added another layup, Sullivan added a two in transition and back-to-back buckets by Onyi Ekwueme made it 55-48 with 3:35 remaining.
Labs sparked the Hodags' comeback with a corner 3 with 2:55 remaining. After a stop, the Hodags found Drake Martin for a deuce on the right block before Smith hit the game-tying shot.
The Hodags lost despite shooting 49% from the floor (24 of 49). Rhinelander was extremely successful inside, but was only 6 of 21 from distance.
"We had a lot of good looks all night," Lemmens said. "We've got to make them. We can't shoot under 30% from 3, especially how open of looks we're getting. Those are things we're going to improve on."
Martin tied for a game-high with 14 points for the Hodags on 7 of 9 shooting. It marked the second straight game Martin led the team in scoring, but Lemmens wanted to see more out of his 6-2 forward on Tuesday.
"I didn't think Drake was as aggressive at times when he had an opportunity and, on quick swings, instead of a hard post up he was kind of standing there," Lemmens said. "If we can get that quick swing and that inside touch, he does great things. He's a great passer from there. He's got great body control and I've just been really impressed with his game."
Though Rhinelander was called for only 15 fouls in the game, foul trouble plagued the team for much of the contest and, once again, the foul line also played a role. Rhinelander was only 1 of 3 from the line in the game while Medford was 11 of 17.
Travis Towne scored 12 points for Rhinelander, including 11 of the team's first 18 points as the Hodags held a two-point lead with 8:02 remaining in the first half. But Towne picked up his second foul with 6:54 left in the half and scored only one more point the rest of the way before fouling out with 3:12 remaining. Erikson also was hampered by foul trouble, saddled with his third with 4:14 remaining in the first half.
"The fouls really hurt because it really messed up what we're trying to do," Lemmens said. "There was uneven rest. I think some guys were getting a little gassed at the wrong times. I think subbing probably could have improved from my end. As we looked in that last minute, the guys that were on the floor just didn't have the gas in the tank."
Kuhn and Sullivan each scored 14 for the Raiders (5-1, 3-0 Great Northern), who shot 54.8% from the field (23 of 42). Baker and Logan Baumgartner each added 10 points.
Rhinelander led by six points with 4:18 left in the half, but Medford closed on a 12-2 run to take a 31-27 lead to the break.
The Hodags had momentum after a road win at Mosinee, but now find themselves 1-2 in the GNC, with both losses coming on their home court.
"It's unfortunate. We're not in the spot we want to be but it is what it is," Lemmens said. "We just have to work to be the best team that we can be and move forward. We know that we still don't give consistent effort at all times on the court. Every time we seem to relax, someone burns us. Those are things, if we can just shore up, this team is just going to be that much better."
The Hodags will be idle until Dec. 28 when they face West De Pere at Menominee Nation Arena in Oshkosh, the home of the Wisconsin Herd of the NBA G League.
Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].
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