Topper boys win two-point thriller on homecourt over rival Bulldogs Monday February 7
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FASTBREAK LAYUP — Glenwood City senior Drew Olson was all alone when he scored on this break-away layup. Olson netted ten points in the Hilltoppers 45-43 home win over the rival Bulldogs February 7.
—photo by Shawn DeWitt
by Joel DeWitt
Sports Correspondent
GLENWOOD CITY — While both the Boyceville and Glenwood City boys’ basketball teams have had their struggles this year, the match up last Monday, February 7 would indicate otherwise. The game would feature six lead changes and clutch shots down the stretch by both teams.
The Bulldogs would hold the advantage for most of the game, including a ten-point lead when Caden Wold would put in a fast-break layup with 11:40 remaining in the game to stretch the lead to 29-19. However, the scrappy Hilltopper team was not going down without a fight.
Over the next ten minutes, the Hilltoppers would go on a 24-8 run to take a six-point lead at 43-37 with 1:47 remaining when Drew Olson would drive the lane, make the shot, and convert the conventional 3-point play.
However, consecutive buckets by Boyceville’s Chase Hollister, Simon Evenson, and Grant Kaiser would knot the score at 43 apiece with 32 seconds remaining in the game.
The ensuing Hilltopper possession would see Brady McCarthy attempt a ten-foot jumper from the right elbow and get fouled in the process. He’d connect on both foul shots for the two-point lead. A long inbound pass by the Bulldogs would go awry, and with it a chance to win as Glenwood City secured the 45-43 win.
“It was a back-and-forth game almost the entire way through and you end up learning a lot more from these close games,” Boyceville coach Colby Dotseth said.
The Bulldogs would jump out to the early lead at 9-5 at the 10:40 mark of the first half when Braden Roemhild would drive the baseline and find an open Kaiser for the bucket.
Nevertheless, the Hilltoppers would battle back. Layups by Max Jason and Olson, along with a 3-pointer by Brady McCarthy would give the Hilltoppers the 12-11 lead with 4:30 remaining in the half.
For the remainder of the half, Boyceville would turn the tables and attack the Hilltopper defense. A 3-popinter by Wold, two buckets by Simon Evenson, and another by Chase Hollister in the paint kept the Hilltoppers on their heels and allowed Boyceville to take the 20-17 lead into halftime.
INSIDE GAME — Boyceville sophomore post player Grant Kaiser split a pair of Hilltopper defenders to score two of his team-leading 13 points in a February 7 game in Glenwood City. The Bulldogs fell a few points short as the Hilltoppers rallied to win the Dunn-St. Croix boys’ basketball contest, 45-43. —photo by Shawn DeWitt
Boyceville would control he temp for the first six minutes of the second half. After a quick bucket by McCarthy to cut the Bulldog lead to one, a 9-0 run by Boyceville would put the Hilltoppers in a hole.
A 3-pointer by Evenson would start things off to extend the lad to 23-19. Buckets in the paint by Kaiser and Jack Phillips, along with a fast-break layup by Wold would stretch it to 29-19.
The Hilltoppers would punch back with their own run, this time a 13-2 run and would take the lead when Olson would steal a pass for an easy layup and then follow that up with a 3-pointer from the corner to propel his team to the 32-31 lead with 6:00 remaining in the game.
THE BULLDOGS’ Chase Hollister (center) tried to get off a shot while being defended by the Toppers’ Elek Anderson (left) and Nicholas Hierlmeier (right) during a boys’ conference basketball game in Glenwood City February 7. Hollister finished with eight points. —photo by Shawn DeWitt
“We needed to follow our game plan and continue to provide pressure,” Glenwood City coach Patrick Olson mentioned on the comeback. “We also did not shoot the ball well until later in the game after we became more aggressive”
Three pointers would be the key for the Hilltoppers down the stretch. Along with Olson’s trey, Bryce Wickman and McCarthy would connect from deep to extend the lead and set the stage for the dramatic finish.
“I give Glenwood City credit we forced them to beat us from the outside and they ended up knocking down five threes throughout the game with three of them coming down the stretch which was huge momentum for them,” Dotseth commented.
While the Toppers were able to connect five times from long range, Boyceville could only hit on 2-10 from deep. They were however very efficient in the paint, of their 43 points on the evening 30 of them came within the lane. Accordingly, Kaiser paced his team with 13 points. Evenson and Hollister were close behind with nine and eight points, respectively.
Glenwood City had a trio of players in double digits. McCarthy led his team with 13 points, including three, 3-pointers. Both Olson and Elek Anderson had ten apiece.
The loss and another at Colfax later last week puts Boyceville at 0-11 in conference play. A home win over Independence on February 8 upped the Bulldogs overall mark to 4-15. Boyceville resumed play traveling to Elk Mound on February 15 and then host Elmwood/Plum City this Friday, February 18.
Meanwhile, the win for the Hilltoppers doubles their conference win record to 2-9. Overall, they sit at 5-14 going into the final two weeks of play. They traveled to Mondovi February 15 and then host conference leader Durand on February 18.