Colfax boys let halftime lead slip away, lose to Durand-Arkansaw Panthers

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by Marlys Kruger

Sports Correspondent

DURAND — After having a home basketball game against Mondovi postponed due to the cold weather, the Viking boys traveled to Durand for a Dunn-St. Croix Conference matchup after an eight-day layoff Friday, January 24.

Colfax had two conference losses and were hoping to stay in contention for a conference title with Durand-Arkansaw, Spring Valley and Elk Mound who all had just one conference loss. After a strong first half, the Vikings let things slip away and lost to the Panthers 67-49.

Colfax struggled with the 2-3 zone defense the Durand-Arkansaw Panthers threw at them most of the game which resulted in several turnovers.

Russell Polkoski put down a slam dunk early in the game but Durand-Arkansaw pulled ahead 10-2. Aiden Fischer halted the streak with a bucket and Polkoski drilled a triple before a Panther three point shot found the mark. Logan Swartz scored on a nifty reverse layup for Colfax but two shots from long range were off the mark which led to a pair of fast break layups for the Panthers. 

Down 19-9, Swartz scored on a put back, Fischer added a fast break layup, Swartz added another bucket and Polkoski drained his second trey of the half and the Panther lead was cut to 21-18. Swartz and Fischer both it a single free throw and Swartz connected on a jumper in the lane and added a free throw. 

With the score knotted at 25-25, Polkoski scored off an in-bounds pass and tacked on a free throw for a 28-25 Viking lead. The Panthers pulled back ahead 29-28 and Theo Hovde ended the half with a slick steal and end-to-end layup for a 30-29 halftime lead for the Vikings.

The second half started with a flurry of back and forth scoring starting with a Panther bucket to regain the lead. Fischer took it back with a shot in the paint, Durand-Arkansaw scored with a deuce, Charlie Charbonneau scored his first points of the game for Colfax for a 34-33 advantage, but the Panthers scored the next seven points and moved ahead 40-34.

Fischer finally scored on a drive and free throw but the Vikings couldn’t get the ball in the hoop on their next three possessions and the Panthers took advantage by pulling ahead 47-37.

Polkoski canned his third triple and Orion Nichols came up with his first two points of the contest and suddenly the Vikings were down by just five points. Swartz used his 6’ 6” frame to swat a Panther shot away and a few seconds later he knocked down a pair of free tosses. After Fischer hit a jumper from the top of the key, the Vikings were still down but only by three at 49-46 with around six minutes left in the game.

Things just fell apart for the Vikings at that point.

The Panther defense forced several more Colfax turnovers and the Vikings were off the mark with four attempts from long range, allowing the Panthers to use an 11-point run for a 60-46 advantage. Fischer dropped in a free toss and Levi Elwood scored the final points for the Vikings with a shot in the lane.

Swartz and Polkoski both scored 14 points for Colfax while Fischer, the leading scorer for the Vikings this season finished 10 points below his average with 13 points. The Vikings were 8-for-11 from the charity stripe with three triples, all from Polkoski.

Luke Weber, who averages 14 points a game, led the Panthers with 26 points and Parker Almstead finished with 16. The team was 17-for-23 from the foul line with four shots from behind the arc.

Colfax (3-3, 4-8) traveled to Cochrane-Fountain City for a non-conference game this past Monday. The Vikings return home Thursday, January 30, to open a five-game home stand versus the Bulldogs of Boyceville. They welcome Spring Valley next Tuesday, February 4.