GAME OF THE WEEK (Jan. 26–Feb. 1)
BOYS BASKETBALL: Shullsburg (13–0, 6–0 SRW, #1 in Division 4) at Potosi (10–4, 5–2 SRW), Thursday, Jan. 26, 7:30 p.m., KIYX (106.1 FM)
Shullsburg ascended to the top spot in the Division 5 rankings after Barneveld’s (10–1) loss to undefeated Darlington last week. Coach Mark Lierman’s Six Rivers West-leading Miners improved to 13–0 with a 61–45 victory over Southwest Wisconsin Conference leader Platteville (10–4) Monday night. The Miners can make it a two-team race (with Highland 10–4, 6–1) for this year’s SRW title, but don’t sleep on Potosi. Coach Mike Uppena’s Chieftains handed Shullsburg one of its two conference losses a year ago. Potosi fell to 10–4 on the year with a 56–42 non-conference loss at Galena on Tuesday. Shullsburg senior center is just six points away from 1,000 for his career.
BOYS BASKETBALL: Other area games of note
Darlington (14–0, 7–0 SWAL) at Fennimore (8–5, 4–2 SWAL), Thursday, Jan. 26, 7:30 p.m., WGLR (97.7 FM)
The second-ranked Redbirds have been rolling through the Southwestern Wisconsin Athletic League this year. The young Golden Eagles are the next challenger. Fennimore pulled off a 61–56 non-conference victory at Lancaster (5–9) Monday night. They will need a much better effort to upset SWAL-leading Darlington tonight. The Redbirds hammered Fennimore 84–45 on Dec. 9 at DHS.
Southwestern (6–8, 3–4 SWAL) at Iowa–Grant (6–6, 4–3 SWAL), Thursday, Jan. 26, 7:30 p.m.
In a battle of evenly matched teams fighting for a spot in the top half of the conference, Coach Ryan Hill’s Panthers will host Coach Clint Nemitz’s Wildcats. Iowa–Grant clawed its way back to .500 with a pair of lopsided wins over Riverdale and Belmont in the last week. Senior Chad Thomas has 28 points and 14 rebounds in a 70–37 victory over Riverdale on Friday. Nemitz’s Wildcats defeated I–G 63–47 back on Dec. 9.
GIRLS BASKETBALL: Area games of note
Cuba City (10–4) at Platteville (10–4), Monday, Jan. 30, 7:30 p.m., KIYX (106.1 FM)
The SWC-leading Hillmen will host Cuba City in an interesting non-conference showdown Monday night at PHS. Coach Brandon Temperly’s team lost sixth-man freshman Izzy Carroll to a broken collar bone last Friday night, but improved to 5–0 in the SWC with a dominating 66–38 win at Lancaster before suffering a humbling 76–55 non-conference loss to Black Hawk on Saturday. The Cubans improved to 6–2 in the SWAL with a 47–40 win at Riverdale (10–3, 4–3) on Tuesday.
Richland Center (13–1, 5–1 SWC, #7 in Division 3) at Dodgeville (4–8, 3–2 SWC), Friday, Jan. 27, 6:30 p.m.
Junior Hannah Jones, the Southwest Wisconsin Conference’s leading scorer, and Dodgeville will host second-place Richland Center in a key conference matchup Friday night. The seventh-ranked Hornets defeated the Dodgers 67–41 on Dec. 9. Jones leads the league in scoring at 25 points per contest. Richland Center senior Brooklyn Liegel, who recently surpassed the 1,000-career point mark, averages 22.3 points per game.
PREP WRESTLING: This week’s events
SWC Duals
Prairie du Chien/Wauzeka–Stueben (8–2, 2–2 SWC) at Lancaster (11–0, 4–0 SWC), Thursday, Jan. 26, 7 p.m., WPVL (1590 AM)
The Flying Arrows can clinch the outright SWC dual meet title with a victory over visiting Prairie du Chien/Wauzeka–Steuben tonight at home.
Dodgeville (1–4, 1–3 SWC) at Richland Center (2–4, 2–2 SWC), Thursday, Jan. 26, 7 p.m.
Belmont/Platteville (2–4, 0–4 SWC) at River Valley (8–1, 3–1 SWC), Thursday, Jan. 26, 7 p.m.
SWAL Duals
Fennimore (19–2, 4–0 SWAL) at Riverdale (11–5, 3–2 SWAL), Friday, Jan. 27, 7 p.m.
Mineral Point (11–7, 4–1 SWAL) Darlington/Black Hawk (7–4, 2–3 SWAL), Friday, Jan. 27, 7 p.m.
Boscobel (2–7, 0–5 SWAL) at Iowa–Grant/Highland (7–3, 3–2 SWAL), Friday, Jan. 27, 7 p.m.
PREP GYMNASTICS: River Valley Invitational, Saturday, Jan. 28, 10:30 a.m.
The Blackhawks will host a nine-team invitational on Saturday at River Valley High School. Participating teams include: Baraboo, Dodgeville, Mount Horeb, Platteville/Belmont/Lancaster, Prairie du Chien/Fennimore, Sauk Prairie, Southwestern/Cuba City/Benton, Virouqa and host River Valley.
