In anything but a run-of-the-mill late-season high school basketball game after playoff seeds have already been established, Port Washington and Cedar Grove-Belgium put on a show Monday night in front of a sizeable crowd with spirited student sections.
The game featured three players with more than 1,000 career points each, and all came to play in a playoff-like atmosphere.
Port’s Cal Loose didn’t score his first points until there were five minutes left in the first half. He caught fire in the second half, scoring 19 points in a nine-minute stretch to lead the Pirates to a 79-64 win. He finished with 29 points on 11-for-16 shooting. He went 7-for-11 on three-pointers.
“The atmosphere, the crowd — everything was electric,” Loose said.
“In the second half, I knew I had to turn it up to get the team going.”
The Rockets began the game hot, taking a 16-9 lead. Owen Gulke, who eclipsed 1,500 career points this season, had 14 of his 21 points in the first half. He shot 8-for-14 from the field.
Carter Schmitz warmed up late in the game and finished with 28 points on 11-for-19 shooting.
“We were in control of the whole first half here,” Gulke said.
“I think it’s good to show us where we’re at going into the playoffs,” Schmitz said.
Port tied the game at 39 by halftime, then went on a run early in the second half and never looked back.
The Pirates went to 22-1 and the Rockets went to 18-5. Port is in Division 2 and Cedar Grove-Belgium is in Division 4, but the teams looked closer than their enrollment differences.
“They’re a good team. That was a good game for us to see where we’re at. We felt like we had a lot of self-inflicted wounds. I think if we play clean, which we can, we’re right there,” Cedar Grove-Belgium coach Jake Hock said. “It showed us where we can be with a team of that caliber.”
“That’s why we schedule these guys. We knew they had talent,” Port coach Garrett Hoffmann said.
Hoffmann, an Ozaukee High alumnus, regularly faced the rival Rockets in high school.
“I had a lot of friends from Cedar Grove when I was playing there. It’s always fun to compete against them,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of respect for Jake, too. He’s a great guy doing a great job over there.”
Port’s Grady Karrels had 21 points on 7-for-17 shooting and eight rebounds. Aiden Mitchell had eight points, and Izaiah Scheftgen had seven. Finn Pashak had a two-handed, crowd-pleasing slam dunk.
For the Rockets, Thomas Wiesner had seven points, nine rebounds and five assists before fouling out. Griffin Knight had nine rebounds and four blocks.
It was senior night for Port. The Pirates honored Loose, Karrels, Scheftgen, Mitchell, Pashak, Struckman, Nolan Michaels, Jack Lorier. Even senior team manager and cross country star Jamison Koebel got in the game late, sending his teammates and Port’s student section into hysterics.
“It’s fun celebrating the guys. Taking the time to reflect and think about their journey, how they’ve grown and where they are now,” Hoffmann said.
The Pirates had secured a share of the Glacier Trails Conference title a couple of weeks ago. Last Friday, it ensured it alone on top with a 68-56 win at Sheboygan South.
Loose had 19 points, Karrels had 17, Pashak had 10 and Will Theisen had nine.
“That means a lot. We cut the net down a little early, some teams may say. We were just that confident,” Loose said.
The Rockets celebrated senior night last Thursday with a 92-38 win over Random Lake. Their seniors are Wiesner, Schmitz, Gulke, Noah Lukens, Brad Mentink, Nate Wegner, Wylan Reichle, Davis Wieberdink and Davion Bretz.
“I love this group. I’ve had them for four years. I feel really close with them. There’s a good bond. The vibe is so great,” Hock said.
The Rockets beat St. Mary Catholic, 73-72, on Feb. 17. Gulke had 25 points. Wiesner had 17. Knight had nine points and 10 rebounds. Schmitz had 12 points.
Port plays at Plymouth on Thursday, Feb. 26. The Rockets play at Sheboygan Christian on Thursday, Feb. 26.
For the first time since 2015, Port got a 1 seed in the playoffs. They host either No. 8 Milwaukee Marshall or No. 9 Obama SCTE on Friday, March 6.
The Rockets got a 2 seed and host either No. 7 Heritage Christian or No. 10 Chilton on Friday, March 6.
Grafton loses a couple
Grafton, 3-20, lost at West Allis Hale, 78-73, on Feb. 17, and at Slinger, 85-37, last Friday.
Against Hale, Josiah Gonzales had 20 points, DJ James had 12, Paxton Rechcygl had 11 and Parker Shaw had 10. Against Slinger, Shaw had 12 points.
Grafton hosts Cedarburg on Thursday, Feb. 26. It got an 11 seed in the playoffs and plays at No. 6 West Bend West on Tuesday, March 3.