Back from the abyss: Muskego boys continue surge

Muskego - The journey back from the brink by the Muskego boys basketball team continued last week with two more victories.

The Warriors downed Oak Creek, 42-39, on Friday and Kenosha Bradford, 53-42, on Jan. 10 to come into this week with four triumphs in five games after an 0-8 start to the season.

"We had a meeting with the players before our game with Milwaukee Reagan (on Dec. 28)," head coach Andy Capes said. "We talked about expectations, about how hard we were playing and about playing as a team, not as individuals."

The message took hold.

Muskego went on to win that game, 61-47, but then lost to Franklin. Undaunted, the Warriors won their next three, upsetting then-Southeast Conference leader Racine Case before sweeping last week's games.

"Our seniors stepped up and became more vocal," Capes said. "Also, our younger players are more comfortable now. (Juniors) Josh Breider, David Kucharski and Jake Van Fleet are playing well. Van Fleet is now our starting point guard."

Forward Jim Mock added, "We came together as a team. We switched the lineup around a bit to find what works best. We want to use the strong suits of everybody."

Muskego also learned to finish off games after losing four contests by less than 10 points during the 0-8 start.

Most importantly, the Warriors tightened up their defense after their opponents were consistently in the 50s and 60s early in the season.

"Defense has been our emphasis," Capes continued. "Also, we are more patient on offense and not turning the ball over as much as we did."

Muskego trailed Oak Creek 22-18 at the half of Friday's game but outscored the Knights 24-17 in the second half. David Mlachnik led with 12 points, while Kucharski tallied nine on a trio of 3-point field goals and Sam Weier seven points.

Against Bradford on Jan. 10, Muskego nursed an 18-17 lead into the second half, then put up 35 points after the intermission. Mlachnik tallied 17 points, Mock 13 points and Jeff Glisch seven points.

Capes also credited guard Nick Schwabe for his solid defense last week.

Muskego came into this week at 3-4 in the Southeast Conference and 4-9 overall. The Warriors visit Racine Horlick (4-3, 7-5) at 7:15 p.m. Jan. 20. In the first meeting with the Rebels, Muskego led by 11 points in the fourth period but lost, 60-53, and Capes is hoping his team can reverse that result and keep its turnaround going.