By Thomas Gunnell
Republican Journal
CUBA CITY — In a heavyweight battle between two SWAL rivals who are highly ranked in Division 4, No. 3 Darlington Redbirds landed the first stunning blows, but the top-ranked Cuba City Cubans counter-punched their way to an 86-61 in front of a standing-room only crowd in the Jerry Petitgoue Gymnasium on Thursday, Jan. 16.
Darlington (11-1 overall, 5-1 SWAL) was dialed in from distance early, sinking five 3-pointers in the opening eight minutes to jump out to a 20-14 lead of the host Cubans (11-0, 6-0).
“It was a big win for us. Let’s face it, Darlington’s got a really nice team and the way they started out I was kind of shell-shocked to be honest,” said Cuba City head coach Jerry Petitgoue.
The Cubans countered with a pair of 13-0 scoring runs — separated by a pair of baskets by Redbirds’ junior Cayden Rankin, who scored 12 of his 14 points in the opening half — to turn a six-point deficit into a 42-27 halftime advantage.
“You can’t get down to them. You got to keep it close,” said Darlington head coach Tom Uppena. “It is what it is — and it was a thorough butt-kicking. We got our butt’s whipped by a very good team.”
The Cubans outscored the ‘Birds 28-7 to closed the first half, while hitting six of their seven first-half treys during that run. Three Cubans scored in double figures in the first half, led by senior point guard Brady Olson with two 3s and 12 points. Junior forward Jack Misky added 11 points and one 3, and junior guard Brayden Dailey chipped in with three treys and 10 points in the half.
“It’s tough to match up with them when you have five shooters out there who can get to the rim and also hit the three,” said Uppena about the Cubans’ offensive balance.
Junior Carter Lancaster, Darlington’s leading scorer on the season, was held to just three points in the first half after early foul trouble put him on the bench leading to the Cubans’ comeback.
“We got off to a nice start. After he had to come out and sit, that’s when things shifted a little bit,” Uppena said.
Lancaster went off for 19 of his team-high 22 points in the second half to try and spark a Redbirds’ comeback. A 3-pointer by junior guard Curtis Stone got the ‘Birds to within 13 early in the stanza, however the Cubans used a 21-6 scoring burst to open up their largest lead of the night at 68-40.
Darlington never got closer than 23 the rest of the night as the top-ranked Cubans took sole possession of first-place in the SWAL by ending a four-game losing streak to the Redbirds.
Each team buried eight shots from beyond the 3-point arc and the Redbirds held a slight 9-8 edge over the Cubans from the foul line, but the real difference came inside the lane where the hosts held a 27-14 advantage.
Misky poured in 16 of his career-high 27 points in the second half to lead the Cubans to their 11th consecutive victory. He also had six rebounds and two blocked shots.
Olson recorded a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds to go along with his four assists and three steals. Senior guard Jackson Noll scored 18 points, dished out six assists and registered seven defensive deflections in the win, while Dailey finished with 16 points, nine rebounds, three assists and three blocked shots for the Cubans.
“I thought the difference tonight was our guard play. Noll and Olson were able to get in the middle against them and create a lot of shots, especially for Misky. The secret to our success is how well the kids share the ball,” Petitgoue said.
Lancaster pulled down five rebounds to go along with his 22 points. Stone sank five triples on his way to 15 points and tallied two steals, while Rankin finished with 14 points and four boards on the night.
“It’s a learning experience. we got a lot of adjustments we can make. Obviously, we’ll try some different things next time,” Uppena said. “We can’t hang our heads too long because we turn around and play Mineral Point on Tuesday.”
Darlington will hit the road for games against Iowa-Grant in SWAL action at Livingston on Friday, Jan. 24, and against Wisconsin Heights in a non-conference affair at Mazomanie on Tuesday, Jan. 28.
