The Bonduel High School boys basketball team entered Friday night’s contest in a three-way tie for first place in the Central Wisconsin Conference-8.
The tie was cut to two teams after Bonduel defeated visiting Iola-Scandinavia, 67-52.
Amherst kept pace with the Bears with a 57-35 win Friday over Manawa. Amherst and Bonduel meet for the second time this season on Tuesday. The Bears won the first meeting Dec. 12 in Amherst, 56-52.
Coach Duke Copp said Friday’s win was important for Bonduel, coming off a nonconference loss three days earlier to Green Bay N.E.W. Lutheran.
“It is a huge win because we did not play well on Tuesday at all,” he said. “That was not how we play, and tonight the kids stepped up and played.”
Senior Colton Dobratz scored a game-high 24 points, including 10 in the second quarter as the Bears increased an 11-9 first-quarter advantage to 29-23 by halftime.
“I was feeling really good. Everything I shot was going in, so I was taking it to the hole,” Dobratz said.
The Bears got into some trouble late in the third quarter when senior Connor Rosin committed his fourth personal foul.
Despite spending some time on the bench in the final quarter, Rosin finished with 12 points and Bonduel outscored the Thunderbirds 20-13 in the quarter.
Bonduel junior Peyton Czarapata also finished with 12 points.
Bonduel (11-3, 6-1 CWC-8) committed nine fouls in the first half and five in the second half. Iola-Scandinavia (10-2, 5-2 CWC-8), meanwhile, was whistled for 25 fouls. Bonduel hit 12 of 15 free throws in the fourth quarter to maintain its lead.
“They are just playing hard and you are going to pick up some fouls,” Copp said. “They are a strong physical team, and I challenged my guys that we have to match that.”
Iola-Scandinavia coach Sam Bertsch anticipated a physical game, but expected more from his Thunderbirds.
“We knew it was going to be an aggressive game, and we were disappointed that we probably were not able to match what Bonduel was doing,” Bertsch said.
Kristian Welch led the Thunderbirds with 13 points.
Iola-Scandinavia (52)
Mortenson 2 0-0 5, Loken 2 0-0 5, Block 1 0-0 3, Holz 1 0-0 3, Fuhs 1 2-2 4, Welch 4 5-8 13, Garbe 3 3-6 9, Lund 5 0-0 10.
Bonduel (67)
Pederson 1 6-6 8, Berry 1 2-3 4, Robaidek 0 1-2 1, Rosin 3 3-4 12, Dobratz 9 6-8 24, Vanderlinden 3 0-0 6, Czarapata 2 8-10 12.
Iola-Scandinavia 9 14 16 13 — 52
Bonduel 11 18 18 20 — 67
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