By Jason Arndt
Staff Writer
Against a surging Westosha Central High School boys basketball squad, host Wilmot Union High School just could not keep up with its crosstown rival Dec. 22, when the Falcons picked apart a Panthers team still in search of an identity.
The Falcons, who entered the showdown unbeaten in Southern Lakes Conference play, outscored the Panthers 36-18 in the second half en route to a 70-47 win.
According to 5-foot-11 Falcons senior Tre Williams, who was held to eight points, Westosha Central felt energized entering the second with a 34-29 lead.
“We didn’t really have a good first half, but in the second half, we really came out alive,” said Williams.
With the Falcons ahead 38-33 in the second half, 6-3 sophomore Dylan Anderson, who finished with 15 points, sparked a 10-0 run capped off by two sophomore Jaeden Zackery free throws.
Zackery, a 6-0 guard, scored nine of his 13 points in the first half.
Falcons’ coach James Hyllberg believes the two sophomores are coming into their own.
“They are not scared, they play with a lot of confidence, and they executed well,” he said.
Williams agreed, adding Anderson has been less hesitant in the low post, where he scored eight of his first-half points.
“The first couple of games, he had jitters, so tonight, he had a lot of confidence,” said Williams. “He was shooting the ball well.”
Meanwhile, Falcons’ leading scorer Nic Frederick contributed 11 of his 17 points in a 21-6 surge to close out the game.
Panthers coach Jake Erbentraut, whose team dropped to 1-6 (0-3 SLC), said they could not match up against both the inside and outside game of Westosha Central.
“They got us to turn the ball over, we weren’t snapping those passes to where we needed to. I give them credit, I thought those guys got a lot of length and they more length than I anticipated,” said Erbentraut.
Wilmot’s leading scorer, junior Latrell Glass, who knocked in a school record 49 points at Delavan-Darien, was held to 15 against the Falcons.
Along with the 5-11 Glass, the Falcons held the Panthers’ other perimeter threat, 6-2 junior guard Jeremy Bruton, to nine points.
“We know who their shooters are, we know guys can get hot,” said Hyllberg, referring to both junior scorers. “Our game plan was to stay consistent, come with a lot of energy and come out with the will to win.”
Along with protecting the outside shot, the Falcons were impenetrable inside, with Anderson grabbing a team-leading seven rebounds.
In addition to stellar defense, Hyllberg attributed the Falcons’ victory to a strong bench.
“I am just happy we held them to 47 points,” Hyllberg said. “Our bench guys, any of them can strike, and they came in with some confidence.”
Entering the contest, Erbentraut prepared for Falcons’ 6-5 senior Lucas Graveley, but did not expect to see Anderson nor the 6-4 junior Cooper Brinkman, who had six rebounds.
“It was a hard to get a spot when they got a lot of length,” said Erbentraut. “We were ready for Graveley, and we talked about it, he has really improved… and then they got somebody else.”
The Falcons improved to 3-1 (3-0 SLC), extending their win streak to three games.