DARLINGTON - On senior night, Darlington decided to mix up the lineup, giving all of its seniors plenty of floor time and adding two new starters to the lineup. The Redbirds didn't miss a beat and knocked off a young squad from Fennimore (4-17, 2-11 SWAL) 63-37.
"These kids have been playing together for a long time, so they know how each other plays on the court," Darlington coach Mike Hopkins said. "It really wasn't a surprise at how well they played together."
Cody Erickson and Allen Merriam each picked up spot starts, and both contributed big to the win. Merriam hit a crowd-pleasing 3-pointer in the second half and Erickson opened the game with hustle and electricity.
"It's a great feeling being in there at the start," Erickson said. "It's been a long season and I was going to give it my all and bring as much emotion as I could."
Erickson opened up the first position with a block on defense, then scored the game's first bucket on a dish from fellow senior Alex Erickson. Cody Erickson finished the night with three steals, two blocks and a handful of rebounds.
"I just wanted to help out," Cody Erickson said.
Alex Erickson, one of southwestern Wisconsin's shooting leaders by averaging nearly 22 points per game, had the hot hand early, scoring 12 of his team's first 14 points in the first quarter. The Redbirds led 24-6 after the opening frame and went into the half ahead 36-16, with the lead reaching 22 points on multiple occasions.
"It's nice to get all the other guys in and still have success and execute our offense," said Alex Erickson, who scored a game-high 25 points despite playing in just parts of three quarters. "We have good faith in our team. It was nice to get Cody and Allen a start."
Hopkins had a rotating lineup throughout the game, using both big and small lineups, and at times in the first half allowing his entire starting lineup to sit.
Darlington (19-2, 12-1) led 53-24 after the third quarter and not one regular starter played in the fourth quarter. In that final frame, several new Redbirds reached the scoreboard, sending the crowd into a noisy frenzy.
Ten players scored in the game for Darlington. Keying the charge from the inside was senior Derek Larson, who scored eight points, and Brandon Hardyman off the bench, adding seven. As a team, the Redbirds had six blocks and over a dozen steals, five of which coming from senior Tucker Wiegel. Alex Erickson had two steals in a 30-second time frame, leading to a hoop and the harm layup and a crowd-pleasing one-handed dunk.
Darlington has just one more test before playoffs start March 1, a game next Thursday at Cuba City.
"It's a different atmosphere down there. We need to come out the way we did tonight," Hopkins said. "Last year we came out slow in the first quarter and got down big at their place. We came to within one and had a chance to win it, but missed our shot."
If Darlington wins this year's rematch - the Cubans (19-2, 13-0) handed the Redbirds its second loss of the season on Jan. 18 - the two teams will tie for the SWAL Conference title for a second-straight season.
"We have to stay sharp," Alex Erickson said. "Then we have to get ready for playoffs."
Hopkins pointed out that the Redbirds have had its share of playoff-like games this year - Cuba City, Mineral Point, Platteville and New Glarus.
"Like Cuba City, I'm good friends with New Glarus' coach Travis Sysko. They're competitors and they gave us a close game. Neither team had anything more than a 5- or 6-point lead all game," Hopkins said.
"These kids have been playing together for a long time, so they know how each other plays on the court," Darlington coach Mike Hopkins said. "It really wasn't a surprise at how well they played together."
Cody Erickson and Allen Merriam each picked up spot starts, and both contributed big to the win. Merriam hit a crowd-pleasing 3-pointer in the second half and Erickson opened the game with hustle and electricity.
"It's a great feeling being in there at the start," Erickson said. "It's been a long season and I was going to give it my all and bring as much emotion as I could."
Erickson opened up the first position with a block on defense, then scored the game's first bucket on a dish from fellow senior Alex Erickson. Cody Erickson finished the night with three steals, two blocks and a handful of rebounds.
"I just wanted to help out," Cody Erickson said.
Alex Erickson, one of southwestern Wisconsin's shooting leaders by averaging nearly 22 points per game, had the hot hand early, scoring 12 of his team's first 14 points in the first quarter. The Redbirds led 24-6 after the opening frame and went into the half ahead 36-16, with the lead reaching 22 points on multiple occasions.
"It's nice to get all the other guys in and still have success and execute our offense," said Alex Erickson, who scored a game-high 25 points despite playing in just parts of three quarters. "We have good faith in our team. It was nice to get Cody and Allen a start."
Hopkins had a rotating lineup throughout the game, using both big and small lineups, and at times in the first half allowing his entire starting lineup to sit.
Darlington (19-2, 12-1) led 53-24 after the third quarter and not one regular starter played in the fourth quarter. In that final frame, several new Redbirds reached the scoreboard, sending the crowd into a noisy frenzy.
Ten players scored in the game for Darlington. Keying the charge from the inside was senior Derek Larson, who scored eight points, and Brandon Hardyman off the bench, adding seven. As a team, the Redbirds had six blocks and over a dozen steals, five of which coming from senior Tucker Wiegel. Alex Erickson had two steals in a 30-second time frame, leading to a hoop and the harm layup and a crowd-pleasing one-handed dunk.
Darlington has just one more test before playoffs start March 1, a game next Thursday at Cuba City.
"It's a different atmosphere down there. We need to come out the way we did tonight," Hopkins said. "Last year we came out slow in the first quarter and got down big at their place. We came to within one and had a chance to win it, but missed our shot."
If Darlington wins this year's rematch - the Cubans (19-2, 13-0) handed the Redbirds its second loss of the season on Jan. 18 - the two teams will tie for the SWAL Conference title for a second-straight season.
"We have to stay sharp," Alex Erickson said. "Then we have to get ready for playoffs."
Hopkins pointed out that the Redbirds have had its share of playoff-like games this year - Cuba City, Mineral Point, Platteville and New Glarus.
"Like Cuba City, I'm good friends with New Glarus' coach Travis Sysko. They're competitors and they gave us a close game. Neither team had anything more than a 5- or 6-point lead all game," Hopkins said.
