MONROE - Behind Monroe senior Charlie Kind, the Cheesemakers had a chance to upset Badger South Conference leader Monona Grove Thursday.
Kind scored 18 of his game-high 26 points in the second half as the Cheesemakers rallied from a 13-point deficit before dropping a hard fought game 51-46 to the Silver Eagles. Monona Grove (12-2, 7-0 Badger South) was led by Mark Nelson Jr., who scored 20 points.
It could be a preview of what basketball fans may see in the regional tournament with No. 1 ranked Mount Horeb and Badger South rivals Monona Grove, Stoughton and Oregon in the same five-team regional grouping as the Cheesemakers.
"We knew going into the season that we could beat anyone or we could lose to anybody," Monroe coach Pat Murphy said. "We put ourselves in a hole. I like the fight our guys had. I thought we did a good job of getting a lot of defensive stops. We just couldn't string together enough offense."
Monroe (7-9, 2-6 Badger South) cut the Silver Eagles' lead to six points or less five times in the final 3 minutes, 41 seconds, but couldn't get over the hump. Kind banked in a shot on a slash to the basket and was fouled. He converted the conventional three-point play by knocking down the free throw to cut the Silver Eagles' lead to 40-36. That's as close as the Cheesemakers would get. Nelson answered with a traditional three-point play to push the Silver Eagles' lead back to seven points. Kind thrived in the second half cutting and finding creases in the Silver Eagles' zone, which bottled up the Cheesemakers in the second quarter, limiting them to just four points.
"We were able to get a ton of points on back doors," Kind said of the second half. "If we could have been able to figure it out earlier in the game we could have kept those hot hands going and making shots."
Monroe senior Kylan Helmeid scored on a layup late in the fourth quarter to cut the Silver Eagles' lead to 45-39. Monroe senior Jake Hirsbrunner drilled a 3-pointer with 1:02 to go to slice the Silver Eagles' lead to 47-42. Monona Grove senior Tyler Blang made two free throws with 17.8 seconds to go to help the Silver Eagles seal the win.
The Silver Eagles limited Helmeid and Hirsbrunner to a combined 2 of 20 shooting. Hirsbrunner scored five points and Helmeid added four points. Monroe senior Alex Hendrickson scored six points and had a team-high 10 rebounds.
"If those two guys go 2-for-20, we will have to really play lights-out defense," Murphy said.
Both Hirsbrunner and Helmied each had the task of guarding Nelson throughout the game. Nelson was able to penetrate to score in the lane or create shots for teammates.
"I thought Kylan and Jake did a good job on Nelson," Murphy said. "We were trying to not let him get the ball. He's so strong and quick. He demands the ball. He has a combination of everything. There is a reason why he is the best player in the league."
It looked like the Silver Eagles could open up a big lead at the end of the first quarter. Nelson made 5 of 8 free throws at the end of the first quarter when the Cheesemakers were called for two technical fouls and two fouls. Monroe senior Noah Tostrud was called for a technical foul for taunting and Murphy was called for a technical foul for walking onto the court to challenge a call and it led to a five-point possession for the Silver Eagles who took a 14-8 lead.
"That is not how you draw it up as a coach," Murphy said. "When the ref told me he (Tostrud) was called for taunting, I was shocked. It's not what we teach. I was backing our guys."
The Cheesemakers shot 33.3 percent (5 of 15) in the first half. Blang drilled a 3-pointer with 2:47 left in the second quarter to help the Silver Eagles take a 22-12 lead at the half. The Cheesemakers struggled attacking the Silver Eagles' zone in the first half with several long skip passes leading to turnovers.
"They out-rebounded us," Kind said of the first half. "We had to get the ball inside their zone. We were able to do a better job of that in the second half."
The Silver Eagles got on a roll in the third quarter with Blang hitting a jumper in the lane with 5:50 left in the third quarter to extend the Silver Eagles' lead to 26-13. The Cheesemakers attacked the zone in the second half by looking to get inside and moving the ball. Kind scored on a backdoor layup on a bounce pass from Hirsbrunner to cut the Silver Eagles' lead to 31-25. The Cheesemakers shot 48 percent in the second half and finished the game at 42.5 percent (17 of 40). The Silver Eagles shot 37 percent (16 of 43).
"Our goal in the second half was to get ball inside, kick it out or go back door," Kind said. "The key is getting the ball inside right away."
That set the stages for a competitive fourth quarter. The Cheesemakers are 0-4 against Monona Grove and Stoughton this year. Kind understands what it will take to beat one of those two teams in the postseason.
"I think we will have to be able to play good defense, rebound and stop penetration," he said. "We have to be able to stay in front of guys and be able to contain good players like Mark Nelson when we play a good team again. We just have to keep a level head and shoot with confidence."
Kind scored 18 of his game-high 26 points in the second half as the Cheesemakers rallied from a 13-point deficit before dropping a hard fought game 51-46 to the Silver Eagles. Monona Grove (12-2, 7-0 Badger South) was led by Mark Nelson Jr., who scored 20 points.
It could be a preview of what basketball fans may see in the regional tournament with No. 1 ranked Mount Horeb and Badger South rivals Monona Grove, Stoughton and Oregon in the same five-team regional grouping as the Cheesemakers.
"We knew going into the season that we could beat anyone or we could lose to anybody," Monroe coach Pat Murphy said. "We put ourselves in a hole. I like the fight our guys had. I thought we did a good job of getting a lot of defensive stops. We just couldn't string together enough offense."
Monroe (7-9, 2-6 Badger South) cut the Silver Eagles' lead to six points or less five times in the final 3 minutes, 41 seconds, but couldn't get over the hump. Kind banked in a shot on a slash to the basket and was fouled. He converted the conventional three-point play by knocking down the free throw to cut the Silver Eagles' lead to 40-36. That's as close as the Cheesemakers would get. Nelson answered with a traditional three-point play to push the Silver Eagles' lead back to seven points. Kind thrived in the second half cutting and finding creases in the Silver Eagles' zone, which bottled up the Cheesemakers in the second quarter, limiting them to just four points.
"We were able to get a ton of points on back doors," Kind said of the second half. "If we could have been able to figure it out earlier in the game we could have kept those hot hands going and making shots."
Monroe senior Kylan Helmeid scored on a layup late in the fourth quarter to cut the Silver Eagles' lead to 45-39. Monroe senior Jake Hirsbrunner drilled a 3-pointer with 1:02 to go to slice the Silver Eagles' lead to 47-42. Monona Grove senior Tyler Blang made two free throws with 17.8 seconds to go to help the Silver Eagles seal the win.
The Silver Eagles limited Helmeid and Hirsbrunner to a combined 2 of 20 shooting. Hirsbrunner scored five points and Helmeid added four points. Monroe senior Alex Hendrickson scored six points and had a team-high 10 rebounds.
"If those two guys go 2-for-20, we will have to really play lights-out defense," Murphy said.
Both Hirsbrunner and Helmied each had the task of guarding Nelson throughout the game. Nelson was able to penetrate to score in the lane or create shots for teammates.
"I thought Kylan and Jake did a good job on Nelson," Murphy said. "We were trying to not let him get the ball. He's so strong and quick. He demands the ball. He has a combination of everything. There is a reason why he is the best player in the league."
It looked like the Silver Eagles could open up a big lead at the end of the first quarter. Nelson made 5 of 8 free throws at the end of the first quarter when the Cheesemakers were called for two technical fouls and two fouls. Monroe senior Noah Tostrud was called for a technical foul for taunting and Murphy was called for a technical foul for walking onto the court to challenge a call and it led to a five-point possession for the Silver Eagles who took a 14-8 lead.
"That is not how you draw it up as a coach," Murphy said. "When the ref told me he (Tostrud) was called for taunting, I was shocked. It's not what we teach. I was backing our guys."
The Cheesemakers shot 33.3 percent (5 of 15) in the first half. Blang drilled a 3-pointer with 2:47 left in the second quarter to help the Silver Eagles take a 22-12 lead at the half. The Cheesemakers struggled attacking the Silver Eagles' zone in the first half with several long skip passes leading to turnovers.
"They out-rebounded us," Kind said of the first half. "We had to get the ball inside their zone. We were able to do a better job of that in the second half."
The Silver Eagles got on a roll in the third quarter with Blang hitting a jumper in the lane with 5:50 left in the third quarter to extend the Silver Eagles' lead to 26-13. The Cheesemakers attacked the zone in the second half by looking to get inside and moving the ball. Kind scored on a backdoor layup on a bounce pass from Hirsbrunner to cut the Silver Eagles' lead to 31-25. The Cheesemakers shot 48 percent in the second half and finished the game at 42.5 percent (17 of 40). The Silver Eagles shot 37 percent (16 of 43).
"Our goal in the second half was to get ball inside, kick it out or go back door," Kind said. "The key is getting the ball inside right away."
That set the stages for a competitive fourth quarter. The Cheesemakers are 0-4 against Monona Grove and Stoughton this year. Kind understands what it will take to beat one of those two teams in the postseason.
"I think we will have to be able to play good defense, rebound and stop penetration," he said. "We have to be able to stay in front of guys and be able to contain good players like Mark Nelson when we play a good team again. We just have to keep a level head and shoot with confidence."
