MONROE - Senior Dylan Beaver challenged the Monroe High School boys basketball team at halftime when the Cheesemakers trailed by nine points to Whitewater in a nonconference game Thursday.
"Right before we went back out after halftime, Dylan Beaver told our guys to dig down and play tough," Monroe coach Brian Bassett said. "He said, 'Get your big pants on and play basketball.'"
Monroe (3-3) had a rough start, trailing the Whippets 40-31 at the half.
That all changed in the second half, and the Cheesemakers outscored the Whippets 46-20 to roll to a 77-60 victory.
"I just told our guys to believe in themselves," Bassett said. "A basketball game is a marathon and not a sprint. There are not many teams that are as deep as we are. We wore them down in the second half."
Monroe senior Alex Tordoff scored a game-high 24 points, and senior Carter Sawdey added 16 points.
The Cheesemakers played a variety of defenses: full-court man, 1-2-2 zone and at times a 1-3-1 zone.
"Our second group of guys put the clamps down on them in the second half and shut them down," Bassett said.
Junior Brayden Zettle added eight points. Sawdey and Zettle each hit two 3-pointers.
The Cheesemakers made seven 3-pointers as a team and were 14 of 19 from the free throw line.
Columbus 79,
New Glarus 64
NEW GLARUS - Columbus senior Tanner Perry scored a game-high 26 points and the Cardinals went on a big first-half run to pull away from New Glarus.
Columbus closed the first half with a 13-4 run to take a 10-point lead at the break, 35-25. The Glarner Knights never got closer than seven points.
Columbus senior Noah Coughlin had 25 points.
The Cardinals (7-0) shot 60 percent from the free-throw line (15 of 25) compared to the Knights, who shot 55.5 percent (10 of 18).
New Glarus junior Cullen Brooks scored a team-high 21 points and sophomore Jaden Kreklow added 17 points.
"Right before we went back out after halftime, Dylan Beaver told our guys to dig down and play tough," Monroe coach Brian Bassett said. "He said, 'Get your big pants on and play basketball.'"
Monroe (3-3) had a rough start, trailing the Whippets 40-31 at the half.
That all changed in the second half, and the Cheesemakers outscored the Whippets 46-20 to roll to a 77-60 victory.
"I just told our guys to believe in themselves," Bassett said. "A basketball game is a marathon and not a sprint. There are not many teams that are as deep as we are. We wore them down in the second half."
Monroe senior Alex Tordoff scored a game-high 24 points, and senior Carter Sawdey added 16 points.
The Cheesemakers played a variety of defenses: full-court man, 1-2-2 zone and at times a 1-3-1 zone.
"Our second group of guys put the clamps down on them in the second half and shut them down," Bassett said.
Junior Brayden Zettle added eight points. Sawdey and Zettle each hit two 3-pointers.
The Cheesemakers made seven 3-pointers as a team and were 14 of 19 from the free throw line.
Columbus 79,
New Glarus 64
NEW GLARUS - Columbus senior Tanner Perry scored a game-high 26 points and the Cardinals went on a big first-half run to pull away from New Glarus.
Columbus closed the first half with a 13-4 run to take a 10-point lead at the break, 35-25. The Glarner Knights never got closer than seven points.
Columbus senior Noah Coughlin had 25 points.
The Cardinals (7-0) shot 60 percent from the free-throw line (15 of 25) compared to the Knights, who shot 55.5 percent (10 of 18).
New Glarus junior Cullen Brooks scored a team-high 21 points and sophomore Jaden Kreklow added 17 points.
