Sivertson drops 43 points on Vikings
By Holly Neumann
Home wins over Winnebago Lutheran and Oconto have the Iola-Scandinavia boys’ basketball team two wins away from its first trip to state since 2008.
The Thunderbirds wrapped up a WIAA Division 4 regional championship March 7 with an 89-65 win over Winnebago Lutheran.
They also handed Oconto a 61-46 defeat March 6 in the semifinal round.
I-S 89, Winnebago Lutheran 65
Justin Sivertson’s 43 points led the T-Birds to a 24-point win over the Vikings.
The T-Birds and Vikings came into the game after posting an 11-1 record in the Central Wisconsin Conference East Division and the Flyway Conference, respectively.
Iola-Scandinavia led 45-31 at halftime and outscored the Vikings 44-34 the rest of the way.
“We knew they played fast and they got into transition,” Sivertson said. “We knew we had to get back on defense and the rest would fall into place.”
He credited his teammates for helping him score.
“The team got me the open looks,” he said. “They set screens and did everything they need to do to make it easy for me to get those shots.”
Sivertson also recognized coach Sam Bertsch.
“Coach has been our rock all year,” he said. “He has been putting in the right game plans and doing all the right stuff. He needs to keep doing what he is doing.”
“We came in with a defensive game plan that we thought it would be pretty successful,” Bertsch said. “We did not think they were as good defensively as Oconto was and we knew we could put up some points tonight.”
Parker Prahl also finished in double figures for the T-Birds with 23 points, while Donovan Schwartz led Winnebago Lutheran with 20.
Seeing it all coming together was pretty special, according to Bertsch.
“It was the seniors’ last game on their home floor,” he said. “It’s a lot of fun to win a regional championship.”
I-S 61, Oconto 46
The T-Birds outscored the Blue Devils 28-19 in the first half and 33-27 in the second half.
Connor Kurki led the T-Birds with 25 points and Sivertson added 14.
Josh Woller led Oconto with 15 points.
Next up for the T-Birds is a sectional semifinal matchup with Lourdes Academy at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 12, at Kimberly High School.
“Lourdes is a very good defensive team,” Bertsch. “They have a kid named Preston Ruedinger who is one of the best players in the state. He is going to be a tough assignment for our defense, but we are up for the challenge. It should be another fun game.”