CUBA CITY — Darlington is here to prove that last year’s runner-up finish to Mineral Point was a deviation from the norm. The Redbirds did just that with a 79-53 win at Cuba City on Dec. 12.
What’s more impressive about #1 Darlington’s 2-0 start to the season is that it’s done so with a minimum of three days’ less of practice. The earliest date for practice for boys’ basketball per the WIAA website is Nov. 17. With the Redbirds’ football team competing in, and winning, the D6 State championship three days after the said start date, Darlington’s had an accelerated timeline to the open of its season.
“I haven’t had any issues from the short turnaround, other than conditioning,” Redbirds head coach Tom Uppena said. “That will come as we catch up to everyone else as far as time on the court. As far as being locked in on basketball and bringing energy to practice, I can’t ask for anything more. The guys were ready from day one and are working their butts off. It’s a very fun group to work with. Practices are competitive and everyone is contributing in some way.”
A wide open three for the hosting Cubans (0-2, 0-1 SWAL) kicked off scoring 40 seconds in, but the deficit didn’t last long. Broker Buschor responded in kind, tying the game 20 seconds after. The teams then traded missed shots over the next 2:30, before Zeke Zuberbuhler found Grady O’Brien in the paint for the only lead change of the night. The 5-3 scoreboard was a precursor to a 20-5 run through 11:30 in the first half, and a 52-25 advantage as the teams went into the locker rooms.
The view was more comfortable compared to Darlington’s (2-0, 1-0) season opener at Dodgeville eight nights prior, where the Redbirds were looking at a 39-26 lead at half. Much of that can be directly attributed to a better shooting percentage in Friday’s win, 70-44.1.
“We wanted to be more efficient on offense [at Cuba City], so that was an emphasis in practice after our Dodgeville game,” Uppena said. “The first half, we were very efficient, and it helps when shots go in.”
The shots fell in the second half, though not enough to initiate a running clock as the Redbirds cruised to their win. Three ballplayers — Ryder Fitzsimons (27 pts), Buschor (19 pts), and Zuberbuhler (15 pts) — paced the traveling team’s offense in the win. Buschor and Zuberbuhler each either co-led — assists with six apiece — or fought for the team lead — the former had seven rebounds to the latter’s six — in other major categories.
Despite the positives, Uppena is looking for improvements from his squad.
“We cooled off in the second half, and didn’t execute as well as I’d like,” he said. “We started to stand around, which is partly due to fatigue and subsequently loss of focus. Those are things we will continue to work on. We saw some things on film to limit [Carson] Collins, and Broker and others did a great job of executing that plan. [Hudson] Kieler had a nice game, so we need to find ways to slow him down for our next game. He’s a great player and made some tough shots, so you have to give credit to him.”
Darlington has one final opportunity ahead of Christmas to extend its season-opening win streak — a home opener against Fennimore on Dec. 18. The Golden Eagles (4-0, 1-0) are off to a hot start following their fourth-straight win in a home game against Riverdale on Dec. 12, 68-39.
