Big run propels Lady Hodags past Antigo

The Rhinelander High School girls’ basketball team responded Friday night after Antigo inched ahead in a Great Northern Conference match.

The Hodags slammed the door with a 25-2 run midway through the first half and cruised to a 66-45 victory over the Robins at the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium.

Aubryn Clark had her fifth 20-plus-point game of the season. The Hodag freshman scored 24 to lead all scorers and the big first half run was more than enough to keep Rhinelander (4-2, 2-0 Great Northern) afloat after the team’s 3-point shooting started to cool in the second half.

“I don’t think we played very well, but I kept it pretty light in the locker room,” Hodag coach Ryan Clark said afterward. “We still got the win, but we’ve got to get better to beat the top teams in our conference.”

The game was a tug-of-war between Rhinelander’s transition game and 3-point shooting and Antigo’s methodical half-court offense. Tristin Arlen had 14 points and 12 rebounds for the Robins, including a pair of offensive putbacks that helped Antigo (1-3, 1-1 Great Northern) take a 13-11 lead 5 1/2 minutes into the opening half. 

Then Rhinelander caught fire. 

    Rhinelander’s Aubryn Clark drives in for a layup past Antigo’s Keelyn Zwirschitz during the first half of a GNC girls’ basketball game at the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium Friday, Dec. 1. Clark finished with 24 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists in the Hodags’ 66-45 win. (Bob Mainhardt for the River News)
  

Lily Treder had 15 points for the Hodags, including a 3 that kicked off the Hodags’ decisive run. Aubryn Clark had 11 points in the stretch and Leah Jamison knocked down a couple of 3s as Rhinelander went ahead 36-13 with 3:30 remaining in the half. 

Rhinelander hit seven triples during their run and eight 3s overall in the first half to lead 38-22 at the break. Jamison finished with 15 points as she, Treder and Aubryn Clark were all in double figures after 18 minutes.

“We always want to get three kids in double figures,” coach Clark said. “That’s been a program goal since I’ve been here. I thought Lily had another good game, and Leah made some big shots early for sure.”

Antigo inched to within 13 on a couple of occasions during the second half before Rhinelander finally put the game out of reach. Aubryn Clark rattled home a 3, made a driving layup and dished ahead to Vivian Lamers for a fast break basket that put Rhinelander up 61-41 with 3:20 to play. Aubryn Clark added seven rebounds, eight assists and five steals for the Hodags in the contest. 

Despite being held to 37% shooting on the night, Antigo ended with three players in double digits. Jenna Czerneski had 15 points to go along with Arlen’s 14 and Keelyn Zwirschitz added 10. The Robins gobbled up 15 offensive rebounds. That led to a 14-2 advantage in second-chance points. 

“We never could put Antigo away,” coach Clark said. “I give (Antigo) coach Carla (Wissbroecker) a lot of credit. She kept them hanging around the whole time. I think they got it back down to 13 late in the second half, and we never really put it away. Just too sloppy defensively again. We were in foul trouble, which has been kind of a constant for us, put them at the free throw line way too many times and then not rebounding.”

Rhinelander also cooled off offensively again in the second half. After shooting 57% from the field and 8 of 14 from 3 in the first half, the Hodags were only 34% in the second half and 3 of 19 from beyond the arc. Many of those attempts came early in possessions. While coach Clark said several players on the team have the green light to shoot the 3, the team needs to be a little more selective, especially while playing with a second-half lead. 

“I think, when the defense gets back and set, I think we’re taking a 3 after one or two passes, and we could probably still get that 3 after four or five passes,” he said. “So make the defense work a little bit. Sometimes we take a pretty quick shot and, if it’s not falling, we’re back on defense too often.” 

The Hodags have the rare commodity of four straight practice days this week before returning to conference play on the road at Northland Pines Friday night, something coach Clark said the team will try to utilize to the fullest. 

“We’ve had games so much,” he said. “We can really go back and clean some things up, get some more shots up, and we don’t have to be so forced to be game-ready.”

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].