Hopes rest on the shoulders of key shooters

Christian Janssen soars to the hoop in a game last season. The senior has a chance to land on the All-SLC first team this season.
Christian Janssen soars to the hoop in a game last season. The senior has a chance to land on the All-SLC first team this season.

By Jason Arndt

Staff Writer

For the Wilmot Union High School boys basketball squad, it will be a collective effort to prevail in a highly competitive Southern Lakes Conference.

The collective effort paid off for the Panthers in its season opener, winning 87-83 last week against visiting Elkhorn.

Sophomore Latrell Glass, a 5-foot-11 guard, scored a team-leading 27 points, collected five rebounds and contributed four assists for the Panthers.

Meanwhile, 6-foot-3 senior guard Bobby Brenner added 26 points, and steered the team’s defense with 12 boards.

Brenner is coming off a junior season where he notched first-team all-SLC honors.

Another senior contributing a double-double was 6-2 guard Christian Janssen, who poured in 21 points, grabbed 11 boards with two blocked shots.

The performance is what fourth-year coach Jake Erbentraut had in mind entering the season.

“Any successful team I’ve coached, we’ve been able to come together for a greater cause,” he said. “We’re going to need that more than ever.”

The team, which lost second-team all-conference Bryce Kothe and honorable mention Brennan Frisby, will rely on shooting depth and speed to offset the loss of both graduated senior, noted for their size by Erbentraut.

The coach will also rely on sophomore 6-0 guard Jeremy Bruton, senior forwards Matt O’Connell (6-2), Brett Muzzy and Sean Collins (6-4) to shoulder the load.

Bruton, who saw limited action last year as a sophomore, could step up further for the Panthers this year.

“In losing Bryce, we’ll ask Jeremy Bruton to play our point guard position. He has worked extremely hard in the weight room and on the court to get ready,” Erbentraut said.

Bruton scored five points, collected a rebound and had two steals in the season-opener against Elkhorn.

The fourth-year coach remains optimistic as the season moves forward, citing tremendous depth.

“We have a deeper bench, however, than in the past and I would anticipate playing 9-11 players on any given night,” he said.

The coach acknowledged it will be a difficult task to compete with every team in the SLC, which includes defending champion Lake Geneva Badger (12-2), Burlington (11-3) and Waterford (9-5).

Additionally, he noted an improved Westosha Central as another contender for the conference title.

The Panthers finished 8-6 (15-10 overall) for fourth place in the SLC last year.

“It’s a very balanced conference. The toughest teams will be Westosha, Burlington and Badger,” Erbentraut said. “That being said, there will be no easy nights against any opponent in the conference.”


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