The Gillett High School boys basketball team used a 15-6 run over seven minutes to open the second half to pull within 3 points of visiting Coleman.
After the run, however, the Tigers managed just 12 points in the final 10 minutes and 46 seconds as Coleman eased to a 64-44 victory Monday night.
“We tried to come out with a little intensity and just try to do things with the ball that we could be more sure of. I think they were,” Gillett head coach Todd Carlson said. “I think we had a little bit of a lapse where (we) had a couple of turnovers. All of a sudden, we are not in it anymore. You just have to take those little lapses out.”
The Tigers turned the ball over on four consecutive possessions after their run, allowing Coleman to get into fast breaks to score easy baskets to extend its lead back up to 13 points in a matter of minutes.
The Cougars switched from a 2-3 zone into an attacking 1-3-1 zone that put more pressure on Gillett’s inexperienced ballhandlers.
“We have a pretty athletic team,” Coleman head coach Time Forner said. “We anticipate, force bad passes and transition, and that’s what turned the game quickly.”
Coleman’s 6-foot-3 forward Blake Margis scored 14 of his game-high 19 points in the second half.
The Cougars’ run seemed to kill the confidence of the previously energized home squad. Gillett (0-5, 0-3 Marinette & Oconto Conference) hung in the game, even showed that it was capable of coming back from an early deficit against the Cougars (4-1, 3-0 M&O).
“I think we’re making strides and going in the right direction,” Carlson said. “It’s just going to take some time, and I’m very proud of our kids and what they’re doing. They’re in the game in the second half, and we’re competing, so that’s all I can ask.”
The Tigers fell behind early in the game due to to hot shooting from senior guard Jody Stcyzynski, who made his first four 3-pointers to give the Cougars a 12-8 advantage. Throughout the rest of the half, Coleman used its size advantage to slowly extend the lead to 27-19 at halftime.
Kahler scored 7 second-half points en route to his team-high 10 points.
“They’ve got to understand they can play with these teams,” Carlson said. “They’re just as good if they play intense and just do fundamental basketball that we like to have them learn. I think the confidence can build off that.”
Coleman (64)
Sailer 2 0-2 4, Styczynski 5 0-0 15, Kostreva 0 1-2 1, Tachick 2 2-4 6, Marquardt 2 2-2 8, Woulf 4 3-4 11, Margis 7 5-7 19.
Gillett (44)
Krause 1 0-0 3, Warden 2 1-9 6, Kahler 4 2-7 10, D. Sexton 0 1-2 1, Zahn 3 2-2 8, G. Sexton 2 1-2 6, Wiese 3 0-0 8, Taylor 1 0-0 2.
Coleman 29 35 — 64
Gillett 17 27 — 44
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