Boys basketball: Rose becomes Westosha’s all-time leading scorer

Jack Rose (right) hugs teammate Michael Mulhollon after Rose secured Westosha Central’s all-time scoring record Jan. 14 (Jason Arndt/The Report).

Senior shooter breaks 33—year-old school record

By Jason Arndt
Editor

Jack Rose needed 23 points to break Westosha Central’s all-time school scoring record set 33 years ago entering a Jan. 14 Southern Lakes Conference meeting with visiting Badger.

Considering Rose’s consistency, noted by averaging nearly 20 points per game, the Westosha Central senior had a legitimate shot to become the boys basketball program’s top scorer in school history.

However, after the first half, where Rose knocked in five points, reaching the program milestone on his home court didn’t seem obtainable.

“They played good defense on me in the first half, it was hard to come off the screens,” Rose said. “They were tight on me. Credit to (Badger), but I knew what I had to do in the second half.”

Rose, who admits he struggled to find a rhythm in the first half, eventually discovered his shot as he scored 18 points in the final frame to surpassed Tim Cates’ school scoring record of 1,265 points established between 1986-89.

Westosha Central coach James Hyllberg, who called a timeout, set up a screen play for Rose on the opposite side of floor for a 3-pointer.

With 6:36 left in regulation, and the Falcons up 61-32, Rose buried the triple in front of his own student section and caused the crowd the erupt in cheers.

“The adrenaline got to me when I hit that shot right by the student section, it felt good having all my friends right there celebrating with me, and most importantly just having my brothers on the court with me,” Rose said. “It is hard to put into words. It is an accomplishment that I will remember forever.”

Once he made the shot, and with the game out of reach for the Badgers, Hyllberg pulled Rose from the contest won by Westosha Central on a 73-44 decision.

Hyllberg, who recognized the pressure placed on Rose, decided to keep his senior guard on the court because Rose wanted to break the record in front of his home crowd instead of on the road at Pewaukee the next day.

“It is a lot of pressure when everyone knows you got to score 23. He had a lot of ins and outs in the first half,” said Hyllberg. “The plan was he was going to get 23 at all costs. He was going to stay in until he got it eventually.”

Meanwhile, as for the Falcons, they stayed undefeated in conference play at 6-0 with the route of Badger.

The Falcons, who carried a 32-19 advantage into halftime, outscored Badger 41-25 in the second half to come away with the victory.

According to Hyllberg, he felt his team showed better ball control in the second half, where the Falcons committed just two turnovers.

“We had too many turnovers in the first half, we had seven turnovers and only two in the second,” Hyllberg said. “I thought we had better defense in the second half and controlled the ball much better. Once we got settled down, we got into a rhythm.”

Senior guard Kenny Garth, meanwhile, finished second among Westosha Central scorers with 12 points.

Garth, according to Rose, should become a key player for the Falcons during the final stretch of the season.

“I think Kenny is about to take off, he is getting to the basket more, he is getting more motivated and he is going to be a big piece to what we do down the stretch,” Rose said.

Senior Ty McGreevey scored a team-leading 18 points for Badger (3-9, 1-5 SLC)

Early promise
Rose has multiple NCAA Division 1 scholarship offers, according to WisSports.net, noting George Washington, Maryland, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee as some of schools showing interest in the Falcons’ senior.

His journey to breaking the school record began as a freshman varsity player.

“He had a good chance (to break the record),” Hyllberg recalled. “He came in here with a lot of talent and he has worked hard.”

Rose, however, said the journey wouldn’t have been possible without mentors such as Jaeden Zackery and Dylan Anderson.

Zackery, third in program history with 1,250 career points, starts as a point guard for Division 1 Boston College.

“In my freshman year, (Jaeden) kind of brought me in and got me comfortable and I learned a lot from, so having those mentors, Dylan Anderson and JZ, is beneficial,” Rose said.

“The biggest thing is I couldn’t (break the record) with my team and my brothers on the court. Ultimately, they were the ones finding me for the shot. I couldn’t do it without them.”

Rose, meanwhile, still has many more games left to play and will likely extend the school scoring record.

“He has worked hard,” he said. “He has a lot of games left to (extend) this record by quite a few,” said Hyllberg.

Falcons fall to Pewaukee
The Falcons, however, couldn’t extend their winning streak to three games the following day in Pewaukee.

Westosha Central, ranked seventh in the Division 2 WisSports.net Coaches Poll, fell to second-ranked Pewaukee on a 79-35 verdict.

The Falcons dropped to 9-2 overall on the season with the loss to Pewaukee.

Pewaukee, up 34-10 at halftime, outscored Westosha Central 45-25 in the second half.

Nick Janowski, of Pewaukee, drained seven 3-pointers and scored a game-high 34 points in the non-conference contest.

Rose finished with a team-leading 10 points.

Westosha Central returns to league play on Friday against the Broncos in Union Grove before hosting non-conference opponent Waukesha West the next day.


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