Zack Sousek scored 11 of his 16 points in the fourth quarter as the Shawano Community High School boys basketball team rallied to beat West De Pere 52-46 Thursday to remain undefeated atop the Bay Conference.
The Hawks (9-4, 7-0 Bay) outscored West De Pere (9-3, 5-2 Bay) 22-11 in the fourth quarter after trailing by as many as 12 points earlier in the game and 10 at halftime.
“There’s not enough praise to go around,” Shawano coach Chris Kellett said. “Defensively, I thought everyone that went in played exceptionally well.”
Shawano played determined basketball in the second half, including a gutty performance by Sousek, a 5-foot-10 junior guard who suffered a deep cut on his head late in the game.
Sousek led Shawano with 16 points and had four steals, including a steal and basket with 4:07 remaining that tied the game at 39.
After West De Pere’s Jesse Owens made a pair of free throws, Zeke Gueths scored on an offensive rebound to tie the game at 41-41.
With 2:30 left, Sousek drove to the basket to give Shawano a lead and then scored again off a steal at midcourt to give the Hawks a 45-41 advantage.
West De Pere, which entered the game ranked No. 7 in the state in Division 2 by The Associated Press, battled back and took a 46-45 lead with 1:40 left to play,
Dillon Frechette, a 5-foot-10 senior guard, hit a 3-point shot to put the Hawks up 48-46.
West De Pere fouled Sousek, who suffered a cut on his head. Shawano coaches scrambled to bandage Sousek, who returned to the game and made one of his free throw attempts.
“He was fantastic tonight,” Kellett said. “Him staying in the game at that moment, I don’t know how many players with a cut that deep would have stayed. He put the Rambo stuff on his head and it fired up our guys. He led us to victory; he’s our heart and soul.”
In the final minute, Sousek went back to the line, making one of two shots. Garrett Schlise’s two free throws put the game out of reach.
West De Pere guard Connor Konshak scored 14 points in the first half, but the Hawks shut down the 6-2 junior guard in the second half, allowing him only a single basket in the third quarter.
“It was pretty easy looking at the book at halftime,” Kellett said. “Connor Konshak had 14 at the half and that was mostly our fault for leaving the triangle and stepping out too far. Once we corrected that, they really struggled moving the basketball. Our guys made some stops and made some buckets. We got the momentum and kept it going.”
Chandler Diekvoss joined Konshak in double figures with 10 points.
“Kyle Quinn did a great job on Chandler Diekvoss,” Kellett said. “Jack Lacy did a phenomenal job on Cody (Schwartz),” who finished with seven points and only one field goal.
The win gives the Hawks sole possession of first place in the Bay Conference with a one-game lead over Seymour, which Shawano defeated earlier this season.
West De Pere (46)
Owens 1 2-2 6, Fink 1 0-0 2, Konshak 8 0-0 16, Diekvoss 3 3-4 10, Schwartz 1 5-6 7, Bostedt 1 0-0 3, Pannier 1 0-0 2
Shawano (52)
Sousek 6 3-8 16, Schlise 0 2-2 2, Lacy 3 0-0 7, Kyle Quinn 3 0-0 6, Gueths 2 3-4 7, Hintz 0 1-2 1, D. Frechette 3 2-2 10, Mueller 1 0-0 3
West De Pere 15 17 3 11 — 46
Shawano 10 12 8 22 — 52
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