New Bonduel High School boys basketball coach Duke Copp got off on the right foot Tuesday, helping his team win its season opener in Gillett 46-33.
With a young team, Copp wasn’t sure what to expect.
“It was exciting,” Copp said. “It was a battle.”
Junior Connor Rosin led the Bears’ attack by hitting four baskets from beyond the 3-point arc for 12 points. Rosin, a 6-foot-2 guard, is the only returning starter for the Bears and controlled the offense most of the night.
“I think he’s actually a little disappointed,” Copp said. “He’s a really good shooter, and he’s going to have some big nights for us. He controls it, and it’s awesome when he’s on the floor. He runs the show. It’s great.”
Junior Hunter VanderLinden added nine points, most coming inside near the net. Colton Dobratz and Zach Zernicke each had seven points.
The Bears built a 23-17 lead by halftime but really took control in the second half, expanding their lead to 16 on a 8-1 run beginning with 3:28 left in the third period.
“I don’t think we did a whole lot different (in the second half),” Copp said. “I think we just made some shots. We missed a lot of shots in the first half. We amped up our defense a little bit. … It comes down to making shots, ultimately.”
Gillett, which was also debuting a new coach in William Greenwood II, was held in check, despite a few breakaways by 6-foot-2 senior Jacob Kasten, who led the Tigers with 12 points. Junior Adam Werner chipped in eight points.
“We have a lot of kids who haven’t played varsity before,” Copp said. “They got a lot of experience tonight.”
Copp, who takes over for 12-year coach Jerry Reinke, said he wants his program to be competitive.
“We want to be competitive every game,” Copp said. “We have a lot of kids who haven’t played a lot, and we want to get better as the season goes on. There’s some good teams in our conference, when we play them we want to compete. If we’re not quite good enough, so be it.”
Bonduel (46)
Rohloff 0 2-2 2, Acker 0 1-4 1, Pedersen 1 2-2 4, Berry 2 0-0 4, Rosin 4 0-0 12, Dobratz 3 1-2 7, VanderLinden 4 1/1 9, Zernicke 2 3-6 7
Gillett (33)
Kasten 6 0-0 12, Peterson 3 0-0 6, Simpson 1 0-0 2, Kahler 1 0-0 2, Bubolz 1 0-0 2, Torres 0 1-2 1, Werner 2 3-6 8
Bonduel 9 14 13 10 — 46
Gillett 4 13 10 6 — 33
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