Regular season ends with home win
By Greg Seubert
It was a perfect time for the Waupaca boys’ basketball team to find its shooting touch.
The Comets connected on 16 three-pointers – including 10 in the first half alone – Feb. 11 in an 85-63 win over Oconto Falls.
The win gave the Comets some momentum heading into the WIAA state tournament. Waupaca will open tournament play at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 16, at Freedom in a Division 2 regional quarterfinal. The Comets are a No. 6 seed for the tournament, while the Irish are a No. 3 seed.
It didn’t take long for the points to add up for Waupaca against the Panthers, as 18 of the Comets’ first 20 points came on six three-pointers, including a pair from Alex Pankratz.
Those six threes, along with a pair of three-point plays, helped Waupaca take a 28-9 lead in the first half. The lead grew to as many as 26 points before the Panthers used a 10-1 run to cut the deficit to 46-29 at halftime.
Isaac Raddatz’ basket cut Waupaca’s lead to 54-44 with just under 12 minutes remaining in the game, but Waupaca answered by scoring the next 14 points to push the lead back to 68-44.
A 9-0 run brought Oconto Falls to within 15 points, but it was a case of too little, too late. The Panthers never got any closer down the stretch and Waupaca took its biggest lead – 26 points – in the final minutes.
Hunter Marcom led five Waupaca players in double figures with 13 points. Pankratz and Evan Bogard added 11 points each, while Dawson Patzke and Bryce Boldt chipped in with 10.
Noah Hirst came off of the bench for the Panthers to lead all scorers with 18.
Waupaca improved to 5-15 overall and ended up eighth in the North Eastern standings at 4-14. The Panthers wrapped up the regular season with a 1-19 mark and ended up 1-17 in league play.