SPASH Boys Basketball Downs Marshfield
By Robert Whitmire
STEVENS POINT — The SPASH boys basketball team opened Wisconsin Valley Conference play with a 77-70 win over Marshfield at the SPASH fieldhouse Tuesday night.
The Panthers jumped out early leading 18-12 midway through the first half and increased that lead off the hot hand of Drew Blair to take a 41-32 lead into the break.
Blair poured in 17 points in the first half with senior guard Drew Cullen rattling the rim for eleven.
The Tigers refused to pack up early and battled back in the second half to knot the score at 53-53 at the 8:35 mark.
Blair scored two on a big drive to the basket and hit a free throw to put SPASH back on top as the Panthers went on an 11-5 run to build their lead back to 64-58 at the 4:24 mark.
“We played hard In the first half,” said senior forward Andrew Erdman. “We let up a little when they made their run in the second half but fought back in the end.”
Blair led all scorers with 40 points. The senior guard hauled down seven rebounds, dished out five assists, and had four steals and two blocked shots.
Erdman added twelve points and cleared six boards with eleven each from Drew Culen and Brennan Mueller. Cullen helped the cause with six rebounds and four steals on the night.
The Panthers hit twenty one 2-pointers, seven threes and shot 14 of 19 from the free throw line.
Marshfield was led in scoring by senior Seth Anderson who lit up the board with 29 points.
The Panther Junior Varsity dropped a 48-45 decision to the Tigers. Brenden Klish led SPASH with 12 points. Steffen James added eleven. The Panthers went 4 of 11 at the free throw line.
SPASH will host LaCrosse Central Friday, December 15 with tip off scheduled at 7:15 pm.
SPASH Scoring
Varsity: Drew Blair 40; Andrew Erdman 12; Drew Cullen 11; Brennan Mueller 11; Sam Simmons 2; Max Hofmeister 1.
Marshfield Scoring
Varsity: Seth Anderson 29; Tommy Olson12; Brant Bohman 11; Reed Miller 11; Issac Meverden 7.
SPASH Junior Varsity Scoring
Brenden Klish 12; Steffen James 11; Noah Streveler 6; Kaleb Schulist 6; Austin Beyer 3; Isaac Eppinger 3; Christian Zarazua 2; Jackson Gutzdorf 2.