STOUGHTON - The race for the Badger South Conference title is up for grabs after Stoughton stunned Monroe 62-56 Friday night.
"They out-fought and out-hustled us," Monroe coach Pat Murphy said. "They wanted to win more than we did."
The Vikings (4-11, 1-6 Badger South) looked nothing like a team in search of its first conference win Friday night. Stoughton scored eight straight points late in the fourth quarter, highlighted by junior Connor Kowalkowski and senior Ryan Nyhagen's 3-pointers that gave the Vikings a 54-45 lead with 2 minutes, 47 seconds left.
Monroe (12-2, 6-1) answered back in a flurry. Monroe sophomore Alex Barenklau scored on a layup and senior Bryan Tordoff drilled a 3-pointer to cut the Vikings' lead to 56-52 with 1:22 to go. Fellow senior Michael Barrett, who scored a team-high 18 points, scored on a layup with 1:06 left to slice the Vikings' lead to 57-54 with 1:06 left. That's as close as the Cheesemakers would get.
Both Tordoff and Barenklau missed 3-pointers in the final minute that could have tied the game. With Monroe trailing 60-56, the Vikings turned the ball over on a wild homerun pass. With less than 10 seconds to go, the Cheesemakers hopes were dashed when Barenklau's shot was blocked. The Vikings made 6 of 10 free throws in the final 1:18 to seal it.
"We are not out of it (the conference race) by any means," said Tordoff, who finished with 14 points. "It's only one game. We still control our own destiny. As far as who wins conference, it's anyone's guess."
Murphy was critical of the Cheesemakers after some uncharacteristic late game shot selection and defensive breakdowns.
"The way we defended we would have had a hard time beating anybody," he said. "We wanted to attack the basket. We settled for too many 3's. We just didn't do the things good teams do."
It was all Stoughton out of the gate in the first quarter. The Vikings opened the game with a 15-5 run led by senior Ben Cleveland. Cleveland scored 10 of his game-high 21 points in the first quarter.
Monroe senior Michael Turek scored down low and was fouled with 6:33 to go in the second quarter. He converted the conventional three-point play by knocking down the free throw and cut the Vikings' lead to 18-9. Nyhagen answered with a 3-pointer for the Vikings to extend the lead to 21-9.
Barenklau buried a 3-pointer to cut the Vikings' lead to 25-18 with 2:51 left in the second quarter. Tordoff later hit a 3-pointer that chipped the Vikings' lead down to 28-23.
Every time the Cheesemakers made a run, the Vikings answered. Kowalkowski hit a 3-pointer that helped Stoughton take a 33-28 lead.
The Cheesemakers came out strong in the third quarter. Barrett drilled a jumper and Tyler Barta's jumper cut the Vikings' lead to 39-38. Monroe senior Andrew Armstrong scored down low late in the third quarter to give the Cheesemakers a 40-39 lead. The Cheesemakers trailed 43-40 to start the fourth quarter. That set the stages for a frantic fourth quarter.
Armstrong scored eight points and Barenklau added seven. Tordoff noticed a difference late in the fourth quarter.
"We got down and we just started chucking," he said. "It's not the formula for success. We got down as far as fundamentals go."
Murphy said the conference was up for grabs at the start of the season.
"There is zero wiggle room now," he said.
"They out-fought and out-hustled us," Monroe coach Pat Murphy said. "They wanted to win more than we did."
The Vikings (4-11, 1-6 Badger South) looked nothing like a team in search of its first conference win Friday night. Stoughton scored eight straight points late in the fourth quarter, highlighted by junior Connor Kowalkowski and senior Ryan Nyhagen's 3-pointers that gave the Vikings a 54-45 lead with 2 minutes, 47 seconds left.
Monroe (12-2, 6-1) answered back in a flurry. Monroe sophomore Alex Barenklau scored on a layup and senior Bryan Tordoff drilled a 3-pointer to cut the Vikings' lead to 56-52 with 1:22 to go. Fellow senior Michael Barrett, who scored a team-high 18 points, scored on a layup with 1:06 left to slice the Vikings' lead to 57-54 with 1:06 left. That's as close as the Cheesemakers would get.
Both Tordoff and Barenklau missed 3-pointers in the final minute that could have tied the game. With Monroe trailing 60-56, the Vikings turned the ball over on a wild homerun pass. With less than 10 seconds to go, the Cheesemakers hopes were dashed when Barenklau's shot was blocked. The Vikings made 6 of 10 free throws in the final 1:18 to seal it.
"We are not out of it (the conference race) by any means," said Tordoff, who finished with 14 points. "It's only one game. We still control our own destiny. As far as who wins conference, it's anyone's guess."
Murphy was critical of the Cheesemakers after some uncharacteristic late game shot selection and defensive breakdowns.
"The way we defended we would have had a hard time beating anybody," he said. "We wanted to attack the basket. We settled for too many 3's. We just didn't do the things good teams do."
It was all Stoughton out of the gate in the first quarter. The Vikings opened the game with a 15-5 run led by senior Ben Cleveland. Cleveland scored 10 of his game-high 21 points in the first quarter.
Monroe senior Michael Turek scored down low and was fouled with 6:33 to go in the second quarter. He converted the conventional three-point play by knocking down the free throw and cut the Vikings' lead to 18-9. Nyhagen answered with a 3-pointer for the Vikings to extend the lead to 21-9.
Barenklau buried a 3-pointer to cut the Vikings' lead to 25-18 with 2:51 left in the second quarter. Tordoff later hit a 3-pointer that chipped the Vikings' lead down to 28-23.
Every time the Cheesemakers made a run, the Vikings answered. Kowalkowski hit a 3-pointer that helped Stoughton take a 33-28 lead.
The Cheesemakers came out strong in the third quarter. Barrett drilled a jumper and Tyler Barta's jumper cut the Vikings' lead to 39-38. Monroe senior Andrew Armstrong scored down low late in the third quarter to give the Cheesemakers a 40-39 lead. The Cheesemakers trailed 43-40 to start the fourth quarter. That set the stages for a frantic fourth quarter.
Armstrong scored eight points and Barenklau added seven. Tordoff noticed a difference late in the fourth quarter.
"We got down and we just started chucking," he said. "It's not the formula for success. We got down as far as fundamentals go."
Murphy said the conference was up for grabs at the start of the season.
"There is zero wiggle room now," he said.
