SHULLSBURG – On a night that senior center Joey Meyer joined the 1,000-point club at Shullsburg High School, the Miners defended their #1 state ranking for the first time by knocking off the host Potosi Chieftains, 67-43, in a Six Rivers West boys’ basketball game on Thursday, Jan. 26.
    Meyer netted his 1,000th career point on a left-handed baby hook in the lane with 3:51 left in the first half– which put his team up 21-10 at the time– and the 6’9” University of Minnesota-Crookston recruit would add eight more points in the game to finish the night with 1,008 career points and help lead the Miners to their 14th win in a row.
    Meyer is just the sixth basketball player– boy or girl– in school history to achieve the 1,000-point career benchmark.
    “It is an outstanding achievement to reach the 1,000-point milestone. Joey has persevered in the post and is really coming into his own this season to become a complete basketball player,” said Shullsburg head coach Mark Lierman.
    Last season, Shullsburg went to Potosi and left town on the short end of a 48-37 decision. This time around, the Miners (14-0 overall, 7-0 SRW) weren’t going to let the Chieftains (10-5, 5-3) get the best of them.
    A 7-0 run to start the game gave Shullsburg a lead it would never lose, however a 7-2 run by Potosi capped by a 3-pointer by freshman Nick Edge cut the gap to 9-7 with 12:38 to play in the first half. Neither team could find the bottom of the net over the next three minutes until senior Hunter Matye scored on an inbound play with 9:41 remaining to jump-start a 27-5 run which put the Miners ahead 36-12 at the half.
    Meyer scored his milestone basket during the run, and then scored on the Miners’ next possession to make it 23-10, while Matye scored 10 of Shullsburg’s next 13 points– including a pair of 3-pointers and an alley-oop dunk– to make it 36-10.
    A pair of free throws by Edge closed the scoring in the first half.
    “We ran a couple sets for Hunter that he was able to finish and that boosted his confidence. The other guys did a good job of recognizing that he was hot and got him the ball in good places. Confidence is contagious and the rest of the team used that to their benefit during that run,” declared Lierman.
    Shullsburg extended the lead to as many as 35 points in the second following back-to-back baskets by seniors Lance Lierman and Noah Wand with just over five minutes remaining, and the Miners rolled on to secure a season-sweep over the Chieftains.
    “This was a very good TEAM victory. They were trying to be physical with us and we did not back down. It is always more difficult to win on the road and our team showed a lot of poise throughout this game,” Lierman stated. “The key to this win was our defense once again. Defense travels wherever we go and it proved to be solid again tonight.”
    Matye finished with a game-high 22 points to lead the Miners, while Meyer and N. Wand contributed 14 points apiece to the effort. Senior Cameron Doyle sank three 3s to add nine points for Shullsburg.
    Alex Udelhofen netted 14 points and Ethan Groom scored 10 for Potosi. Edge finished with seven points on the night.
    The Miners will put their unbeaten record and #1-ranking on the line when they head to Barneveld on Friday, Feb. 3, to face the #2-ranked Golden Eagles (11-1) in the first-place game of the 13th annual Six Rivers Cross Challenge. The junior varsity game will be held at 6 p.m., and the varsity game will follow around 7:30 p.m. Tickets should go fast so plan on being there very early if you want a spot in the cozy BHS gym
    The Miners also have upcoming home games against Argyle (2-12) on Monday, Feb. 6, and against Cassville in a SRW make-up game on Tuesday, Feb. 7, starting at 6 p.m.
 
Shullsburg……… 36    31 – 67
Potosi…………… 12    31 – 43
    Shullsburg – Lance Lierman 5, Hunter Matye 22, Jeremiah Bailey 1, Jacob Berendes 2, Noah Wand 14, Joey Meyer 14, Cameron Doyle 9. Totals – 25  8-11  67.
    Potosi – Udelhofen 14, Bierman 5, Curtis 2, Spriggs 4, Schmitz 1, Groom 10, Edge 7. Totals – 16  9-12  43.
    3-point goals– S 9 (Matye 2, N. Wand 4, Doyle 3), P 2 (Bierman 1, Edge 1). Total fouls– S 12, P 13. Fouled out– None.