Clark scores 41 on record night

ASHLAND — After struggling and getting benched late in the second half of a loss a couple of weeks ago to Wisconsin Rapids Assumption, freshman Aubryn Clark received some words of wisdom from the player whose production she is trying to replace on this year’s Rhinelander High School girls’ basketball team.

Ava Lamers, in town on winter break from college, pulled Clark aside and told her to keep her chin up after going scoreless in the second half of a 60-46 defeat to the top-ranked team in Division 5. 

“The message was that she is so talented and has put in so much work that it will come naturally to her,” Lamers said. “Just enjoy the process and play simple and it will come to her.”

Ten days later, Lamers was on hand as Clark came within a whisker of claiming her school single-game scoring record. 

Clark finished with 41 points, including a school-record nine 3-pointers, as the Hodags defeated Ashland 75-39 Thursday night on the road.

Clark’s 41st point came on a top of the key triple with 5:35 to play. That surpassed Kenedy Van Zile’s mark of eight 3s in a game, set on a couple of different occasions, and put Clark within a point of Lamers’ mark of 42 points, set in an overtime loss at Rice Lake in November 2022. 

She rattled out a 3 a short time later before checking out of the game with the Hodags up by 31 with 3 1/2 minutes to play. At the time, neither she nor Hodag coach Ryan Clark realized how close she was to the record. 

“I literally thought I was only in the 20s. I was mostly just thinking of my team. I wasn’t even focused on myself and my stats,” Aubryn Clark said. 

“I figured high 20s. I knew she was shooting it well. I thought she made six or seven 3s for sure. I didn’t realize she had that many,” Ryan Clark added. “Ava’s record will stay for another day for sure, but she shot it really well. I’m happy for her because she’s worked really hard on her shot.”

Lamers, sitting in the top row of the gym, knew where Aubryn Clark stood and said she was hoping coach Clark would put his daughter back in late for one final shot at the record.

“We’re like ‘Put her back in! Put her back in!’ I really would love to see her do it, especially as a freshman and all the hard work she’s put in,” Lamers said.

Aubryn Clark, who’s averaging 24.1 points per game, has played well in the two contests since Lamers’ pep talk. She didn’t miss a shot from the field, scoring 19 points despite being tightly guarded, in a 73-45 win over Merrill Dec. 21. She followed that up by going 14 of 26 on Thursday, including 9 of 19 from distance as she became just the third 40-point scorer in school history — joining Lamers and Kenedy Van Zile (40).

“When she comes, she’s like a coach to me off the court. She helps me in every game,” Aubryn Clark said of Lamers’s presence. “She said to relax a little bit, not get in my head, just make the simple move against my defender and play it through. I’m going to have bad games but respond to them and prepare for the next game.”

Clark scored 28 in the first half alone on Thursday as the Hodags led wire-to-wire. She either scored or assisted on every basket in the first half as the Hodags took a 36-19 lead to the break. Ashland opened the second half on a 7-3 run to get to within 13, but Rhinelander answered with a 24-6 push that put the game out of reach with 7 1/2 minutes to play. 

“I thought Ashland did a good job of staying out of the trapping area and prevented a lot of live-ball turnovers,” coach Clark said. “We allowed them to set their zone up a little too much in the first half. We shot it well. I thought we moved pretty well against the zone. Defensively, we had some breakdowns. The second half we didn’t rebound as well, but I think our firepower was just too much for them. We were never worried that the game was every in jeopardy just with our ability to shoot.”

    Rhinelander’s Lily Treder attempts a 3 over Ashland’s Ellie Miller during the first half of a non-conference girls’ basketball game at Ashland Thursday, Dec. 28. Treder finished with 18 points and the Hodags made 16 3s in the contest, tying a single-game program record. (Jeremy Mayo/River News)
  

Lily Treder added 18 points and made four triples in the contest while Leah Jamison made three 3s and finished with nine points. The 16 3-pointers tied a program record set in a Nov. 24 win against Athens. It marked the third time this season that the Hodags have hit at least 15 3s in a contest.

“It’s kind of pick your poison. If you guard Aubryn, you’re leaving Leah and Lily wide open and they got hot in the second half,” coach Clark said. “We’re not real big. We’re not real good on the boards, but it’s fun to coach a team that can shoot it. I couldn’t believe we hit that many 3s again. It was a good night.”

Morgan Anderson had a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds to lead Ashland while Hannah Bochler had 13 points and nine boards. Overall, however, the Hodags held the Oredockers to 33% (13 of 39) from the field and forced 25 Ashland turnovers. Rhinelander finished the night 44% (27 of 61) and was 16 of 39 from distance.

The Hodags (8-3, 4-0 Great Northern) return to action tonight at Wisconsin Rapids ahead of a big showdown against at GNC-leading Lakeland this coming Friday night. 

“That January is going to be the telltale sign of our season,” coach Clark said, looking at the tough schedule ahead.

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].