Not many coaches have any good memories, let alone records, in "The Pit" at Laconia.
Winnebago Lutheran coach Mason DeNoyer is now 1-0 there.
"I love playing at "The Pit,'" DeNoyer said. "It was a blast. [The Laconia] fans are great, and our fans traveled great; it was just a great Friday night experience."
DeNoyer's team got out to a quick start and withstood several second-half runs to earn the 66-62 road conference win on Friday night.
The Vikings led 10-2 nearly five minutes into the game; their largest first-half lead was 12. Laconia tightened it up, using a 15-4 run to cut the halftime deficit to 3.
WLA's Gannan Schwartz continued his terrific start to the season with a team-high 22 points, putting pressure on Laconia's defenders with his ability to drive to the rim.
"Everybody thought [Laconia] was going to be the best in the conference," Schwartz said. "Our mindset going in was that this is a big one. If we can beat this team, we should be able to beat everybody."
That dribble penetration allowed Schwartz to find open teammates for 3-pointers. WLA (4-3 overall, 2-1 in Flyway) made eight triples on the night, including three from junior Marcus Christensen.
One of the key junctures of the game was a minute stretch with about 5:50 left in the game. WLA scored on three-straight possessions, including two 3s from junior Spencer Loehr.
Both of the shots were from nearly the same spot on the left wing and both coming off of terrific ball movement against the Laconia (3-1, 2-1) zone.
"Those were huge," Schwartz said. "They were just on their big run to get back into the game and then he hit one and he was going crazy. Then that second one was deep, and he made that and, wow, I was shocked.
"I screamed at him, everybody was screaming. It was very exciting."
That stretch put the Vikings up 57-51 and they would not trail again.
In addition to the hot outside shooting, the Vikings exploited the zone by getting two bigs on the floor and running a high-low from the short corner and the high post.
It allowed both Miles McAuly and Max Hansmann to find a cutting Sam Ferguson on separate occasions in the second half. Ferguson scored 8 of his 10 points in the second half.
"I was just so proud of how unselfish they were," DeNoyer said. "We were giving up good looks to get great looks and that's what winning teams do and it's contagious.
"Once somebody starts doing that, the whole team follows through, and it was just a beauty to watch on the sidelines."
Laconia's offensive production came from the usual suspects, for senior Ethan Pinno had a game-high 27 and junior Cash Farrell added 17. The rest of the Spartans combined for just 18.
"We knew that those two kids were special," DeNoyer said. "Some of those plays, I tell my players you've just got to tip your hat, those kids are special. They make tough shots and sometimes that's all you can do.
"I was proud of how they just kept coming back. They might've got beat a couple times, but they just kept fighting. That's the kind of effort and attitude we have."
PHOTO GALLERY: WLA at Laconia boys basketball - 12/20/2024
