Boys Basketball Roundup

EBEN — Superior Central has already turned over a new leaf with second-year boys basketball coach Matt Rondeau.

The Cougars won their season, home and Skyline Central Conference opener 53-41 over Big Bay de Noc after going just 3-18 in Rondeau’s inaugural season.

It wasn’t without a little stress to the coach, however.

“This was a tale of two halves,” Rondeau said. “We came out flatter than a pancake, then really picked it up after halftime.”

Though SC jumped out to a 13-8 lead after one quarter, the Black Bears turned around and took a 23-20 halftime advantage before the Cougars re-established themselves in the third to go back ahead 37-30 entering the final quarter.

SC’s Wade Krysiak and Beau Rondeau shared top scoring honors with 15 points apiece, while the team’s lone senior, Luke Leppanen, added nine.

Nathan Chandler paced BBdN with 13 points.

The Bears won the JV game 58-56.

West Iron County 50, Westwood 41

At Iron River, the visiting Patriots whittled a 13-point deficit to just one point by halftime only to watch the Wykons pull away again in the third quarter.

“Our offense was a little stagnant in the second half,” Westwood coach Chad Hewitt said. “And then (WIC) shot their free throws better in the fourth quarter.”

Overall, the Wykons made 20 of 26 free throws (77 percent) to just 11 of 23 (48 percent) for Westwood.

WIC led 16-8 after one quarter before the Pats sliced it to 23-22 at halftime. But the Wykons re-established a 40-31 lead by the end of the third quarter.

Nathan Beckman led Westwood scorers with 13 points, while Austin Pierpont added 10. Teammate David Delarye led Patriot rebounders with eight.

WIC’s A.J. Weisnicht topped all scorers with 17 points.

Westwood, which won the JV game 28-27, hosts Ishpeming on Friday night in its Mid-Peninsula Conference opener.

Wakefield-Marenisco 63, Republic-Michigamme 43

At Wakefield, the visiting Hawks needed a full quarter to get rid of their bus legs following a 2 1/2-hour trip.

The Cardinals led 18-8 after one quarter before R-M kept them in range and trailed 31-20 at halftime. Then W-M opened up a 43-27 lead entering the final period.

“We made a little run to cut it to nine points with about 3:45 left in the fourth quarter, then we got lost on defense and Wakefield went on a run themselves,” Hawks coach Rob Carlson said.

R-M made its late comeback after top shooter and ball handler Dylan Hanninen fouled out.

“We got some intensity on defense coming off the bench and put some pressure on them,” Carlson said about the comeback.

Even though he missed most of the final period, Hanninen led R-M scorers with 13 points as teammates Kasey Ball and A.J. Ball contributed nine points apiece.

W-M’s Jacob Suzik led all scorers with 23.

The Hawks, who lost the JV game 49-24, are back on the road Thursday when they travel to Ontonagon.

Lake Linden-Hubbell 73, Baraga 34

At Lake Linden, the host Lakes used a pressure defense to take advantage of a number of Baraga turnovers and break things open in the second half.

The Vikings trailed 15-7 after one quarter and 30-19 at halftime, but a 20-3 final quarter turned the game into a rout.

Nick Denomie opened the game with a 3-pointer, but it was Baraga’s only basket of the first quarter.

“Way too many turnovers for varsity basketball players,” Vikings coach Daryl Putala said. “A lot of them were unforced turnovers, dribbling through two guys. The good side of that — we can clean that up.”

Denomie finished with four triples and a team-high 15 points. Peter Heikkinen paced LL-H with 22 points.

Baraga travels to Chassell on Thursday.

Information compiled by Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee with contributions from the Houghton Daily Mining Gazette. Brownlee’s email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.