SPASH boys have WVC home win streak snapped
Portage County Gazette
The Stevens Point Area Senior High School (SPASH) boys basketball team had its 41-game Wisconsin Valley Conference (WVC) home win streak come to an end with a loss to Marshfield Friday, Jan. 18.
The Panthers (9-5, 5-1) couldn’t hold on to an early lead, while Marshfield (8-4, 4-2) hit a jumper with 6.2 seconds left to pull out a 54-53 win at the SPASH Fieldhouse.
SPASH jumped out to a 10-0 lead to start the game, before Marshfield battled back to tie the game at 16-16 midway through the first half.
After Marshfield built a 30-24 lead, the Panthers used a 7-0 run to go up 31-30 with 1:19 to play in the first half, but Marshfield scored a basket just before the buzzer to take a 32-31 lead into halftime.
The game went back and forth throughout the second half, as junior guard Evan Vollendorf scored on a backdoor cut for a layup with 43.9 seconds remaining to give SPASH its first lead since the 7:04 mark of the second half at 53-52.
Marshfield let the clock run down and knocked down a jumper with 6.2 seconds to go to take a 54-53 lead, while senior guard Nolan Blair missed a three-pointer from the top of the circle just before the buzzer, as the Panthers fell 54-53 to lose a conference game at home for the first time since a 45-39 defeat to Wausau East Jan. 31, 2012.
Senior center Elliot Eron shot 6-of-6 from the field and 8-of-9 from the free-throw line and finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds to lead SPASH, while Vollendorf had 15 points and three blocked shots, and Blair added nine points and three assists.
SPASH is scheduled to play at Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln at 6 p.m. Friday, Jan. 25, and then will travel to take on Merrill at 7:15 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 29, before returning home to face D.C. Everest at 7:15 p.m. Friday, Feb. 1.
Merrill won 66-41 over Wausau West Tuesday, Jan. 22, to improve to 6-1 in the WVC and take a half-game lead at the top of the conference over SPASH (5-1), followed by Marshfield (4-2), Wausau East (3-4), D.C. Everest (3-4), Wisconsin Rapids (2-4) and Wausau West (0-7).
