NEW GLARUS - It's taken 16 years, but Travis Sysko has finally defeated Cuba City head coach Jerry Petitgoue. The New Glarus head coach entered the game 0-8 against Petitgoue, the state's all-time winningest coach - seven of those games came in the postseason.
"Coach just really hammered this one (beforehand), because he was 0-8 against coach Petitgoue. And we really wanted to get this one for him," Knights senior Cullen Brooks said after his team's 86-73 victory Tuesday. Brooks finished with a double-double - 21 points and 12 rebounds.
New Glarus (14-0) came into the game ranked second in the state in Division 4 according to Monday's AP poll. For the first 32 minutes, the Knights played up to their billing.
"I'm happy for the boys that they got a win tonight," Sysko said. "It feels pretty good to get a win over those guys. It was a fun game to be a part of."
New Glarus trailed just once in the game - at 3-2 in the opening minute. After that the Knights went on a 15-2 run to open the game wide open thanks to a high volume of fast break points.
"It's nice to have guys leak out like that," said Brooks, who on multiple occasions threw the ball down the court and let his teammates go get it. "We practice running and jumping. All around good job by everybody."
Cuba City (7-5) had four turnovers in the first four minutes of the game, and the Knights rattled the Cubans' cage all night. By the end of the first half, Cuba City had 14 turnovers to just 4 for New Glarus, and after the final horn that mark was up to 23-14.
"I thought our defensive pressure in the first half set the tone," Sysko said. "We forced them into some things that they didn't want to do and made them uncomfortable on offense. We were able to capitalize."
Brooks dominated the paint in the first half, scoring 15 points and pulling down 8 rebounds. The Knights led by as many as 24 points in the opening period and went into the break with a 45-25 advantage.
"I thought (Brooks) did a nice job when the ball came in. If he had an opportunity to score, he scored. He also passes well out of there and finds other guys open from the post," Sysko said.
In the second half, it was Jaden Kreklow's turn to take over. The junior scored 18 of his team-high 25 points in the second and helped the Knights keep Cuba City down by 20 or more points throughout much of the half.
"Once the game goes on it just opens up a little bit more for me. Everyone gets a little tired and I have a little more stamina," Kreklow said. "That's when I play my best."
Sysko, sensing the dominating W, started replacing his starters with 3:56 left in regulation and his team ahead by 25 points at 77-52. Petitgoue kept his starters in and loaded a cheat code into the hard drive. The Cubans would rattle off a 16-1 run, hitting circus shots and 3-pointers with Rookie Mode ease. Sysko put his starters back into the game with the advantage at 10 with 1:13 remaining.
That's when Kreklow took over, scoring on a hoop and holler within seconds of re-entering the game. Kreklow would add five straight free throws to help seal the win.
"Jaden did a good job down the stretch taking care of the basketball and hitting free throws," Sysko said.
The Knights finished with four players in double figures - Kreklow's 24 paced the lineup, followed by Brooks' 21, Zach Feller's 16 and Trevor Gassman's 10. Feller played much of the night in foul trouble. Dishawn Gale had 8 points off the bench for New Glarus, which hit 17 of 24 free throws as a team and finished with seven total 3s.
Brady Olson paced Cuba City with 30 points, including 21 in the second half. Jackson Noll had 23 for the Cubans. The two players hit nine 3s combined.
"Coach just really hammered this one (beforehand), because he was 0-8 against coach Petitgoue. And we really wanted to get this one for him," Knights senior Cullen Brooks said after his team's 86-73 victory Tuesday. Brooks finished with a double-double - 21 points and 12 rebounds.
New Glarus (14-0) came into the game ranked second in the state in Division 4 according to Monday's AP poll. For the first 32 minutes, the Knights played up to their billing.
"I'm happy for the boys that they got a win tonight," Sysko said. "It feels pretty good to get a win over those guys. It was a fun game to be a part of."
New Glarus trailed just once in the game - at 3-2 in the opening minute. After that the Knights went on a 15-2 run to open the game wide open thanks to a high volume of fast break points.
"It's nice to have guys leak out like that," said Brooks, who on multiple occasions threw the ball down the court and let his teammates go get it. "We practice running and jumping. All around good job by everybody."
Cuba City (7-5) had four turnovers in the first four minutes of the game, and the Knights rattled the Cubans' cage all night. By the end of the first half, Cuba City had 14 turnovers to just 4 for New Glarus, and after the final horn that mark was up to 23-14.
"I thought our defensive pressure in the first half set the tone," Sysko said. "We forced them into some things that they didn't want to do and made them uncomfortable on offense. We were able to capitalize."
Brooks dominated the paint in the first half, scoring 15 points and pulling down 8 rebounds. The Knights led by as many as 24 points in the opening period and went into the break with a 45-25 advantage.
"I thought (Brooks) did a nice job when the ball came in. If he had an opportunity to score, he scored. He also passes well out of there and finds other guys open from the post," Sysko said.
In the second half, it was Jaden Kreklow's turn to take over. The junior scored 18 of his team-high 25 points in the second and helped the Knights keep Cuba City down by 20 or more points throughout much of the half.
"Once the game goes on it just opens up a little bit more for me. Everyone gets a little tired and I have a little more stamina," Kreklow said. "That's when I play my best."
Sysko, sensing the dominating W, started replacing his starters with 3:56 left in regulation and his team ahead by 25 points at 77-52. Petitgoue kept his starters in and loaded a cheat code into the hard drive. The Cubans would rattle off a 16-1 run, hitting circus shots and 3-pointers with Rookie Mode ease. Sysko put his starters back into the game with the advantage at 10 with 1:13 remaining.
That's when Kreklow took over, scoring on a hoop and holler within seconds of re-entering the game. Kreklow would add five straight free throws to help seal the win.
"Jaden did a good job down the stretch taking care of the basketball and hitting free throws," Sysko said.
The Knights finished with four players in double figures - Kreklow's 24 paced the lineup, followed by Brooks' 21, Zach Feller's 16 and Trevor Gassman's 10. Feller played much of the night in foul trouble. Dishawn Gale had 8 points off the bench for New Glarus, which hit 17 of 24 free throws as a team and finished with seven total 3s.
Brady Olson paced Cuba City with 30 points, including 21 in the second half. Jackson Noll had 23 for the Cubans. The two players hit nine 3s combined.
