Each week we are going to preview the best matchups, storylines, etc twice a week for the entirety of the boys basketball season. Monday we will preview the games played Monday-Wednesday, then on Wednesday we'll preview Thursday-Saturday's slate.
See below the best matchups for Monday, December 15 through Wednesday, December 17.
Don't forget to use the hashtag #wisbb when talking about any Wisconsin high school basketball stories, scores, and big performances this season.
Click the links for the games and see the preview of each game with a tale of the tape in terms of numbers, stat comparison, and other info on Bound.
Follow Colton on ‘X’ for more basketball content throughout the year.
Monday, December 15
Two ranked teams out of the Metro Classic will do battle on a chilly Monday night in southeast Wisconsin. The Prairie School is coming off its lone loss of the season, and welcome in the higher scoring Knights offense. The Hawks do a great job of controlling the tempo and pace of the game, limiting possessions. The Knights on the offer hand want to score, so it’s a clash of styles.
Spencer is led by senior forward Sam Bezlyk that is a double-double machine and can dominate games, something he’s done to help lead the Rockets to a 4-0 record. Loyal is 2-0 and facing its biggest competition yet on Monday night. In a Cloverbelt-East conference that could have more teams in the race than not come seasons, every league win is important.
Both of these squads aspire to compete for a Trailways-East conference title this season, so an early season matchup gives one a leg up. Lourdes has already fallen to Oakfield in league play, so the Knights are looking to hand Horicon its first conference loss.
Others to Watch
Tuesday, December 6
Both of these squads are going to contend for the FRCC title despite heavy losses to graduation from a season ago. For De Pere, Noah Maniscalco and Will Krueger have stepped up as go-to scorers for head coach Brian Winchester. With the Golden Raiders, Blake (2026) and Rylan (2028) Buhr are the two leading scorers, rebounders, and facilitators on the team.
Another big time matchup in the Metro Classic that could go a long ways in showing if Kenosha St. Joes is a contender for the title come seasons end. Lutheran lost to St. Cats last week in a one-point thriller, as it seems these two teams are top of the chain in the Metro Classic. St. Joes however knocked off The Prairie School and Saint Thomas More in back-to-back games and are 4-0 early on.
Both of these squads have started the year off winning and winning impressively. The Norskies are 4-0 and are led by their senior Brooks Ohmen who is averaging 16.8 points per game. Sophomore Jayden Doedens and freshman Ben Pritzl are major contributors for DeForest as well, averaging 22.8 and 11.2 points respectively. Like DeFo, Onalaska is led by a senior wing in Ian Kowal, and have major underclassmen contributors, sophomores Gavin McRoberts and Tyler Kowal.
Another day, another tough matchup in the North Shore. This is game one of a gauntlet week for Slinger with games against Homestead and Mount Horeb on Friday and Saturday. Whitefish Bay has been equally impressive this season with the only loss an eight-point defeat to ranked Arrowhead.
Two of the top contenders for the FVA title will square off in this Tuesday night tilt. Kaukauna senior big man and DePaul commit has been incredibly efficient and dominating early in the year, averaging 20.2 points, 11.0 rebounds, and 3.2 blocks per game. He also recently crossed the 1,000 point mark. The Lightning are incredibly balanced up and down the rotation and can light up the scoreboard by a handful of different players.
Two very good division 3 teams make this one of the better non-con games to pay attention to this week. The Warriors are led by senior Wes Rahn who has been dominant through two wins. Jake Burow and Ethans Hans lead the Lightning, a team that has won its three games by an average of 25.7 points.
Others to Watch
Colton Wilson serves a contributor and member of Bound Wisconsin. Wilson has worked in high school sports for 10 years, covering the state of Wisconsin in various sports. He has had roles in content creation, boys basketball coverage, director of events, and data management. Wilson is a graduate of Richland Center High School where he will currently serves as the Varsity Reserve boys basketball coach, entering his eleventh year coaching at the high school level. Wilson also has officiated basketball and organized youth tournaments for multiple years. You can follow him on Twitter at @ColtonWilson23 or reach him at [email protected].