Bulldogs Battle in Recent Hoops Matchups

The Milbank Area Bulldogs continue to battle for wins in high school boys basketball. The Dawgs downed the Wilmot Wolves but fell to Sisseton and Clark-Willow Lake within the past week of action. Milbank sits with a 3-5 overall record.

Milbank Area 60, Clark-Willow Lake 62

So close! Milbank Area put together an exciting comeback drive, but could not quite get over the hump as the Bulldogs fell 62-60 to #1 rated Class B Clark-Willow Lake on Tuesday, January 9, at the Milbank Armory.

Milbank fell behind early in the contest and trailed 20-13 after one quarter of play. The Dawgs struggled to get its offense in sync in the second period and scored just eight points. Clark-Willow Lake was hot in the first half with 61 percent shooting from the field, and held a solid 39-21 advantage at the midway mark.

That’s when the tides changed to Milbank’s favor. The Bulldogs came out firing and poured in 22 points in the third period while holding the Cyclones to 11 points. The deficit was cut to 13 points at 50-43 heading into the final stanza.

Milbank shot 68 percent from the field and found their stroke from three point land in the second half. Jonny Ash hit five three’s on the night, and Jake Fox nailed three. Braden Brandriet found the net on two three-pointers and Derrick Aho and Mitch Quade had one apiece. Clark-Willow Lake went cold in the second half and shot just 39 percent, but Milbank could not quite overcome the early deficit and lost the game by just two points at 62-60.

Ash led the team with 17 points, two rebounds, one assist, one steal and one blocked shot. Fox followed with 13 points and six rebounds. Brandriet and Preston Morton added eight points each. Morton grabbed six rebounds and had one blocked shot, and Brandriet had one rebound. Aho finished with five points, two boards, two steals and three assists while Quade had five points and one assist.

Also contributing to the totals for Milbank were Jordan Riley, two points; James Weber, two points, one rebound and two assists, and Max McCulloch, one rebound and one assist.

Milbank went 23-for-43 from the field for an overall percentage of 54 percent shooting. The Dawgs ended with 24 rebounds, 10 steals, eight assists, two blocked shots and 18 turnovers.

Clark-Willow Lake made 50 percent of its shots from the field, making 21 of 42 attempts in the contest. The Cyclones squeaked by the Dawgs with 18 rebounds, 16 steals, one assist, one blocked shot and 11 turnovers.

Milbank 73, Wilmot 53

The Milbank Bulldogs stomped over the Wilmot Wolves 73-53 in non-conference high school boys basketball action Monday, January 8, at the Milbank Armory.

Milbank took charge from the start and poured in 21 points in the opening quarter to take the commanding 21-10 lead. The locals continued to dominate the game. The second quarter ended with big three pointers by Jake Fox, Jonny Ash, and a buzzer beater by Braden Brandriet to widen the gap to 44-21 at the midway mark.

The Dawgs found a little trouble in the third period and produced just nine points. Wilmot had its biggest quarter of the game with 17 points, but Milbank remained in control at 53-38 heading into the final stanza. The Bulldogs fired in 20 more points in the final period to secure the victory.

Ash produced a double-double to lead the Dawgs. He fired in 15 points and snared 11 rebounds in addition to three steals and one assist. Mitch Quade tallied 10 points and six rebounds while Jake Fox followed with nine points, two rebounds, two assists and one steal. Brandriet contributed eight points, three boards and one assist. Max McCulloch chipped in with seven points, three rebounds and three assists, and Chandler Peery also added seven points and two rebounds for Milbank.

Also adding to the total for the Bulldogs were Preston Morton, six points and two rebounds; Derrick Aho, five points, one board and one steal; Jordan Riley, four points, five rebounds and one steal, and Mason Riley, three rebounds.

Milbank made 44 percent of their shots from the field, hitting 28 of 64 attempts. The Dawgs secured the victory with 43 rebounds, 12 steals, seven assists and 14 turnovers.

Wilmot went 25-for-53 from the field for 47 percent shooting in the contest. The Wolves finished the game with 25 rebounds, 13 steals, one assist and 14 turnovers.

Milbank 47, Sisseton 61

The Milbank Bulldog boys basketball team dropped a Northeast Conference game, 61-47,  to the Sisseton Redmen Saturday, January 6, in Sisseton.

“As we get better with our attention to detail, I think we can compete with anyone,” stated Bulldog head coach Logan Diede. “We have a tough conference, and a tough schedule. We will continue to get challenged every night out, which is exactly how it should be, but I like the direction my guys are going.”

Milbank got out to a slow start and trailed 17-3 at the end of the first quarter. “We came out slow and lethargic,” said Diede. “That will get you in a hole against a team like Sisseton every time.”

The Dawgs outscored the Redmen in both the second and third quarters. Milbank trailed 28-17 at the midway mark and 42-32 heading into the final stanza. Sisseton added 19 points to its total in the final period while Milbank dropped in 15 points, but could not overcome the early deficit. “I was proud of my guys in getting dialed in to our game plan, although late, and battling the rest of the way. It was a close game throughout the final three quarters. We cut the deficit to six points a couple other times, but could not overcome.”

Jonny Ash led the Bulldogs with 12 points. Jordan Riley followed with nine points. Jake Fox tallied eight, and Mitch Quade and Braden Brandriet added six points each. Also contributing to the point totals for Milbank were Max McCulloch, four, and James Weber, two. Additional stats were not reported.

Pictured above: senior Chandler Peery during the Wilmot game.