Previewing the Best Boys Basketball Games for December 18-20

Two of the top teams and contenders in the Southeast will square off for the first time Thursday night. Park is coming off it’s lone loss of the year last Friday to Franklin and is led by junior duo Zare Gwinn and Cole Betker. Case has a win over Franklin from earlier in the season, the lone same opponent between these two squads.

Science is one of the top teams in the state, but are still looking to play at full strength. Audubon on the other hand has played very well early on, including knocking off Dominican in a game earlier in the year.

Appleton North fell for the first time on a buzzer beater on Monday night against Kaukauna. The Lightning are looking to bounce back, but not welcome in Kimberly, a squad that has been tested early on and are 3-0 in the FVA. Every night in the FVA is a battle as it’s extremely difficult to go through the league calendar unscathed.

Two undefeated teams squaring off in a pre-Christmas cross-conference battle. What more could you want as a hoops fan? Howards Grove is a bit of a surprise team after losing Trent Grunewald and Conor Cruz to graduation from last year. Head coach Wade Georgeff has done a great job with the Tigers. Oostburg is a powerhouse in Division 3 and one of the top contenders to get to Madison. If you’re in the area, get to Oostburg on Thursday night.

River Ridge has been a contender in the Six Rivers-West consistently over the years and have a senior point guard in Brandon Davis that is one of the top players in the league. Belmont on the other hand is a youthful squad that is primed to break through to the top of standings. This game could be a look into whether Belmont is ready to contend this year or may still be too early to tell.

The two best teams in the SWC will face off in round one of two on Thursday night. Platteville has been the model of consistency in the league for years, always at or near the top of the standings come seasons end. Lancaster is looking to win its first conference title in boys basketball in a long time.

Two of the top teams in the Middle Border conference, and two of the better mid-sized teams on the western part of the state in general, will square off for the first time on Thursday night. Keaton Wollan of Amery and Greysen Becker of Altoona play club ball together in the spring and summer and are next level recruits on the hardwood. Thursday night, they’re opponents and lead their squads that are looking for a leg up in the Middle Border standings.

This game will be a measuring stick for a Black River Falls team that has started the season off 5-1 and is scoring the ball at a torrid pace, led by junior Braylon Backaus’ 36.2 points per game. West Salem has been the measuring stick in the Coulee for the past few seasons, and looks to be that once again. The story will be whether the Tigers can score at the pace they have through six games against one of the top teams on their schedule.

These are the top two teams in the FRCC conference. De Pere has reloaded despite the graduation of a large amount of talent over the past two seasons. Bay Port was going to be good, but having AJ Ivy and JT and JJ Meyer move into the district has been a huge jolt of talent. On a night loaded with really good basketball games, this is the one to pay attention to in the northeast part of the state and contender for game of the night in the entirety of the state.

Germantown was ranked in most preseason polls coming into the season. Greater Metro losses to Brookfield Central and Wauwatosa West have left the Warhawks at 2-2 and 1-2 in league play. Brookfield East on the other hand has looked like one of the top teams in the state. They are 6-0 and rolling through the competition. It’s a big game for Germantown, who is looking to not fall too far behind in the Greater Metro standings, a league that every win will matter come seasons end.

Game two of three for a gauntlet week for a Slinger squad that is coming off a Jack Kohnen game winner over Whitefish Bay on Tuesday. Homesetead is 4-1 with the lone loss a 100-96 fun one against Nicolet. These two teams are North Shore conference contenders, extremely talented, and very well coached. Homestead will be a good place to be on a chilly Thursday night if you’re a hoops fan in the area.

Both schools are coming off losses and looking to regroup. The Prairie School has dropped back-to-back league games to Kenosha St. Joseph and Dominican while St. Cats fell to Martin Luther on Tuesday. It’s a Metro Classic showdown on Thursday night of a season where the league has given plenty of drama already through the first month of the season.

Another really good Greater Metro matchup on the calendar as Tosa West welcomes in a surging Brookfield Central squad. The Lancers have Green Bay commit Henry Gruetzmacher in the middle who will get to square off with future Phoenix teammate Matthew Kloskey. This game has plenty of talent across the board, two incredible coaches, and conference standing implications. What more could you want?

Marshfield is 47-1 in the Wisconsin Valley conference over the past four seasons, including a 26 game win streak. To say the Tigers have been dominant is an understatement. The Evergreens are looking to break that streak. Head coach Jake Schalow has done a great job early on in his first year with the squad but now has his first WVC test with Chris Fischer and the Tigers.

Kickapoo is one of the top teams in Division 5. They’re experienced, balanced, and well coached. Luther does a great job of scheduling teams with larger enrollments to battle test for the eventual drop down come playoff time. This Saturday afternoon game will be a fun one to watch and one I plan to be at.

Two very solid squads in Division 1 will challenge each other in a non-conference game to watch on Saturday afternoon. Jacob Misslich has been a scoring fiend for the Sabers through four games, while Arrowhead has been balanced and looked the part of the fourth-ranked squad in Division 1.

The 60Eight Basketball Tournament is one of the top events in the state and this matchup will headline Saturday night. Two of the top four teams in Division 2 will square off as Mount Horeb is led by one of the top scorers in the state in Josh Manchester. This is game three of a challenging week for Slinger, and one in which they’ll be coming off a North Shore battle with Homestead on Friday night. Star power, scoring, great atmosphere. Get to Madison College on Saturday.

These two squads are a combined 10-0 as of Thursday afternoon. Both are looking to compete for league titles in 2026 and have a good combination of experienced skill players back with newcomers making an impact.

It’s not often you get conference matchups on a Saturday, let alone one of this caliber. The top two contenders in the Mississippi Valley Conference will face off for the first of two times in La Crosse. Craig Kowal and Brad Reinhart are two very respected coaches that have done a great job of building programs and being consistently competitive year in and year out. There’s plenty of team and individual talent in this one and the game to watch on the western side of the state.

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