Lady Hodags snap skid, run past Tomahawk

The Rhinelander High School girls’ basketball team got back home, and back in the win column, Monday night in a Great Northern Conference make-up game.

Teagan Clark scored 30 points, her sister Aubryn Clark added 21 and the Hodags raced away from Tomahawk 72-33 at the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium.

It took a few minutes for the Hodags (8-9, 5-4 Great Northern) to find their footing, but they pulled away once they did. 

    Rhinelander’s Ella Miljevich drives in for a layup against Tomahawk’s Lily Krueger during the first half of a GNC girls’ basketball game at the Jim Miazga Community Gymnasium Monday, Jan. 26. (Bob Mainhardt for the River News)
  

Rhinelander took the lead for good on an Ella Miljevich transition basket with 12:35 left in the first. That sparked a 26-5 run to close out the half for the Hodags, who went ahead 34-15 at the break. The lead stayed around 20 points until the 11-minute mark of the second half, when the Hodags embarked on another big run — 25-4 this time — that put the game out of reach. 

Hodag coach Ryan Clark said his team did a good job overcoming a slow start as it snapped a three-game losing streak in its first home contest since Jan. 9. 

“I thought we were flat-footed (in the first half). I thought we were just kind of playing slow,” he said. “Second half, much better. I thought we were rebounding harder. We got some run-outs and some easy transition baskets. Shot the ball OK, I thought. But just the little things, it’s just the details … It’s still a good win. We just got to keep getting better.” 

The Hodags shot 44% from the field (29 of 66), their best shooting night since a 49% effort in a 81-40 win over Wausau West back on Nov. 29. A large part of that could be credited to the Hodag defense, which forced Tomahawk (9-7, 3-5 Great Northern) into 33 turnovers. Rhinelander scored 46 points off turnovers and 16 points in transition. 

Teagan Clark reached the 30-point mark for only the second time in her freshman campaign and though Aubryn Clark was above 20 points for the eighth time this season, she was only 8 of 26 from the field on the night and 4 of 14 from deep as she continued to struggle to find her stroke. She’s shooting just 30.4% from the field overall on the year and 24% from beyond the arc. 

“I just think Aubryn’s trying too hard. I thought Teagan had a nice game. She was really competing hard. Aubryn missed a couple easy ones,” coach Clark said. “She’s got to focus on the little details. Not worry so much about the offense, whether to go in or not. But I thought she did a pretty good job tonight. We talked about keep the ball moving, let the game come to you a little bit. Don’t put so much on your shoulders. We’ll be fine. I think everyone else is looking to score more. They’re getting a little more confident. She’s got to keep being just relaxed and the shots got to fall and she’s working on it, so it will.”

Vivian Lamers added 14 points in the win for Rhinelander. Tomahawk forward Freya Alberg, who came into the night averaging nearly 17 points and 13 rebounds a game, was held to 16 points and four rebounds on Monday. Coach Clark said he was pleased, especially in the second half, with how the Hodags guarded Tomahawk’s best player.

“I thought we worked a little bit better. We fronted her. We had some backside help sometimes over on the weak side. Thought we made her work for spots,” he said. “And then when she did shoot it, I thought we stayed vertical and we put a body on her. The first half, I thought she could shoot it and just go get her own miss. But she’s tough. She’s a nice inside player for them. Good, physical athlete.”

A large lead allowed the Hodags to extend their rotation a bit. Junior Kara Monk benefited from the extra minutes, getting three assists and a steal during the second half.

“Kara is one of those kids that works so hard. She’s an energy giver for our basketball team. Never complains, hard-working kid. And I wanted to give us some minutes more early in the second half with some of our regular rotation players out there, and she did a really good job,” coach Clark said. “That’s a kid who does everything right, always listens. And then when she went on the floor, she executed our press exactly how we needed it to. So she’s a great role model for the younger kids too. She could take advantage of the minute she gets. I was hoping we’d get her a basket. But she did a really good job just executing the press.”

The Hodags are back home tonight to face Antigo to kick off another girls/boys doubleheader at the Jim. Rhinelander won the first meeting 68-29 in Antigo Dec. 12, but led by only 14 points at halftime of that contest. Coach Clark said a faster start will be key for the Hodags tonight.

“The last few times we played Antigo, it’s been a really physical grind in the first half, and maybe like a 14-point lead, but just real physical and really too many dead-ball turnovers and just not much rhythm,” he said. “So we want to try to see if we can clean up what we worked on tonight and then just play a little more clean game.”

Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.

Jeremy Mayo may be reached at [email protected].