WATERTOWN — When senior center Wes Rahn threw down a rim-rocking two-handed dunk with just under a minute left, it put a much-needed win for the Warriors on ice.
In a matchup of rivals both ranked ninth in the Division 3 Coaches Poll, Rahn scored 21 points as Lakeside Lutheran knocked Luther Prep from the ranks of the unbeaten with a 65-56 road victory in nonconference play on Tuesday, Jan. 13.
“Lake Mills brought their A game and beat us handily on Friday,” Lakeside boys basketball coach Todd Jahns said. “Against Edgerton on Monday, we tried to respond but they handled us and out executed us.
“We talked to the team about getting back up, because if you don’t it’s not going to get better. We talked about competing and about how what we do moving forward matters. Tonight we flushed two bad outings. Brady Wolfram and Brecken Jimenez bounced back from a couple of tough nights offensively.”
Rahn added nine rebounds, including four offensive boards, and shot 9-for-14 from the field. He tallied three dunks on the night.
Lakeside got some welcome help in the scoring column from a host of players. Senior guard Brady Wolfram added 13 points (along with seven rebounds and four assists), senior guards Brecken Jimenez and Jackson Moore chipped in nine apiece and junior guard Oliver Povich added eight.
“Team have been defending Wes with three guys — one in front, one up top and one behind,” Jahns said. “We tried to space those defenders out. Tonight, guys like Brady skipped it and we also had a couple other guys hit 3s, which softened the defense.
“Offensively, we’d get it into Wes but not on the block. We let him have a side and face up or back down and make them act to what he did. If they came hard and doubled, he was the facing basket so he could pass it. Little things helped us as we grasped those conceptions.
“Wes very efficient. The other guys understood how to be an offensive threat when your guy goes to help on Wes. It was encouraging to see that growth.”
The Warriors (7-3), who struggled defending the dribble and 3-point line in recent consecutive losses to Lake Mills and Edgerton, held a high-powered Luther Prep team to 6-for-19 from 3-point range while forcing 18 turnovers.
“In the last two games, we gave up a combined 24 3-pointers,” Jahns said. “We also allowed those teams to shoot 50 percent from 3. Our guys did much better defending the 3-point line tonight.”
Junior guard Jonas Meyer scored a game-high 22 for Luther Prep. Senior forward Gabe Nottling added 17 and junior guard Levi Nottling contributed nine.
The Phoenix (6-1) led 14-9 early on before the Warriors stemmed the tide, taking the lead for good with 6:18 left in the opening half. Lakeside led 33-27 at the break, leading by as many as 13 in the second half. Luther pulled within 53-47 at the 6:21 mark but could not get any closer.
“We have to keep people under 60 defensively,” Jahns said. “Holding a Luther Prep team averaging 70 plus under 60 was a big goal. Defensively, we got back in the saddle.
“Oliver Povich played a really solid game. He gave us a little defensive physicality at the guard position along with quickness and agility. He played steady in what was his best game of the year. Carson Strohm was opportunistic and strategic. As a whole, our guys are starting to grow and understand.”
Junior guard Jonas Meyer scored a game-high 22 for Luther Prep. Senior forward Gabe Nottling added 17 and junior guard Levi Nottling contributed nine.
Lakeside Lutheran 33 32 — 65
Lakeside Lutheran (fg ft-fta tp) — Decleene 1 0-0 2, Povich 3 0-4 8, J. Moore 3 2-4 9, Rahn 10 1-4 21, Jimenez 4 0-0 9, C. Strohm 1 0-0 3, Wolfram 3 6-8 13 Totals 25 9-20 65
Luther Prep (fg ft-fta tp) — G. Nottling 6 3-5 17, L. Nottling 3 1-2 9, Meyer 7 7-10 22, Kieselhorst 1 0-0 2, Schultz 1 0-0 2, Fitzsimmons 1 1-2 4 Totals 19 12-18 56
Three-point goals — LL 6 (Povich 2, J. Moore, Jimenez, C. Strohm, Wolfram), LP 5 (G. Nottling 2, L. Nottling, Meyer, Fitzsimmons)
Total fouls — LL 19, LP 20
Fouled out — LP (L. Nottling)
LAKE MILLS — Senior guard Carson Strohm hit the go-ahead shot — a 3-pointer with 1 minute, 16 seconds remaining — and Lakeside Lutheran’s boys basketball team beat visiting Lodi 55-51 in Capitol North play on Friday.
“We’ve struggled finding guys aside from Brady Wolfram and Wes Rahn comfortable taking those big shots,” Lakeside boys basketball coach Todd Jahns said. “People left and double-teamed Wes before Oliver Povich hit his big 3 late in the game.
“With Carson, it was the same situation as his guy left him. Carson is starting to become an opportunistic guy putting the ball in the basket. He’s become much more reliable and you can see his confidence growing. We’ve seen some really steady growth in his offensive game.”
Warriors senior guard Brady Wolfram, who scored a team-high 16 points and made all four of his field goals from beyond the arc, was fouled on a drive at the 2:40 mark, hitting both free throws to give Lakeside a 50-49 edge.
Lodi junior point guard Kale Schneider was fouled shooting a 3 with 1:56 to go and he went 2-for-3 at the stripe as the Blue Devils retook the lead.
Strohm, after the Warriors had several ball reversals in a patient offensive sequence, found space near the top of the key to connect on his big 3.
Blue Devils junior guard Bennett Nyquist was trapped on the baseline underneath the basket and turned it over with 55 seconds to play.
The Warriors (8-3, 1-1 in conference) had four players score in double figures as junior guard Oliver Povich chipped in 12 points while senior center Wes Rahn and Strohm registered 10 apiece.
“This was a typical Lodi game,” Jahns said. “They are going to play you physically. We always have to see how other teams are going to play Wes.
“We were able to score through Wes in unscripted manners, something we’ve started to improve at. We utilized Wes a little differently. We’d get Wes a touch in the 15-foot range. They’d run a double or try to set a wall and our guys made fantastic cuts or created openings. We got scores at the rim off cuts and got some 3s. It’s hard finding buckets against Lodi’s defense, which doesn’t give you anything in transition.”
Schneider led the Blue Devils (7-4, 0-2) with 19 points.
Lodi (fg ft-fta pts) — Traeder 4 3-3 14, Kurt 2 1-2 5, Waller 1 0-0 2, Schneider 6 7-8 19, Nyquist 4 2-4 11. Totals 17 13-17 51
Lakeside Lutheran (fg ft-fta pts) — Povich 5 0-0 12, J. Moore 1 0-0 2, Rahn 4 2-4 10, Jimenez 1 3-4 5, C. Strohm 3 3-4 10, Wolfram 4 4-4 16. Totals 18 12-16 55
3-point goals — LO (Traeder 3, Nyquist 1) 4; LL (Wolfram 4, Povich 2, C. Strohm 1) 7
Total fouls — LO 13, LL 14
BROOKFIELD — Senior guard Brady Wolfram scored 17 points and senior center Wes Rahn added 16 as Lakeside beat Milwaukee Pius XI Catholic 62-53 at the Luke Homan Memorial Basketball Showcase at Brookfield Central on Saturday night.
Senior forward Brecken Jimenez scored 11 points and senior guard Carson Strohm added seven for the Warriors (9-3), who trailed by as many as seven in the first half before grabbing the lead for good over the Popes (3-9) during the middle portion of the second half with an 11-3 push.
Rahn added 11 rebounds in his double-double, also notching four assists and three steals.
“This was a game of two halves,” Jahns said. “Pius is a city-style team that’s quick with great guard play. They were quicker than us at all five positions. They pressed us, leading to some bad turnovers. We couldn’t break some pressure to get good shots and we also couldn’t stop their dribble penetration.
“At halftime, we didn’t make any tactical changes. We reinforced what we needed to do with switching and defending ball screens. In the second half, they couldn’t get a shot up. When we took away dribble penetration, they struggled.
“We isolated Wes on a side and they couldn’t guard him 1 on 1. Wes took them to the hole off the dribble. Pius made a run with four minutes to go when they went to a trapping zone press. That rattled us a little, forcing a couple of turnovers. We made some free throws late and held them at bay.
“Pius’ record is not going to stand out, but that’s one of the better teams we’ve played so this win is a huge confidence boost. We had multiple guys who scored, including Brady who was balanced between the 3-point shot and getting to the hole, and Brecken, who had some nice hoops at important times.”
LAKESIDE 62, MILWAUKEE PIUS 53
Milwaukee Pius 30 23 — 53
Lakeside Lutheran (fg ft-fta pts) — Povich 2 0-0 4, L. Strohm 0 1-2 1, J. Moore 1 4-5 6, Rahn 7 1-6 16, Jimenez 2 6-7 11, C. Strohm 2 2-2 7, Wolfram 5 5-6 17. Totals 19 19-28 62
Milwaukee Pius (fg ft-fta pts) — Kirchoff 2 3-4 7, Jones 1 0-0 3, Rivera 4 7-8 16, Vinson 1 0-0 3, Springfield 1 0-0 3, Ly Phu 1 0-0 2, Baldwin 1 0-0 3, Kowalski 4 4-4 14, Simo Kamden 0 2-2 2. Totals 15 16-18 53
3-point goals — LL (Wolfram 2, Rahn 1, C. Strohm 1, Jimenez 1) 5; MP (Kowalski 2, Jones 1, Rivera 1, Vinson 1, Baldwin 1) 6
Total fouls — LL 14, MP 22