Wildcats light up nets in victory over Osawatomie

Louisburg junior Nathan Parker (1) celebrates with teammate Brady Hickey after a made 3-pointer Tuesday against Osawatomie at Pleasanton High School. The Wildcats made 13 3-pointers in the 55-point win over the Trojans to begin the Pleasanton Tournament.

PLEASANTON — For the last few games, it seemed there was a lid on the basket for the Louisburg boys basketball team.

That lid finally came off, Tuesday.

After some recent shooting struggles, the Wildcats caught fire against Osawatomie in their first game of the Pleasanton Mid-Season Tournament. Louisburg shot 48 percent from the field and knocked down 13 3-pointers.

All that turned into a 77-22 victory over the Trojans as the Wildcats evened their record to 5-5 on the season. It also ended a four-game losing streak in the process.

“That is what we told our kids is that we just need to get some confidence back,” Louisburg coach Ty Pfannenstiel said. “I know our kids can shoot the ball, but we just went through a little rough patch there for awhile, but I guess coming to the Pleasanton gym made a difference. 

“The ball was definitely going through the hoop and that is how games can really get away. I was proud of the way we played.”

The 55-point victory and 13 made 3-pointers were the highest totals of the season by far for Louisburg and it couldn’t have come at a better time. 

Four different players knocked down threes, but it was junior Nathan Parker that had the biggest impact from behind the arc. Parker knocked down six 3-pointers and finished with 18 points on the night.

His production came at a good time as starter Luke Hill, one of the team’s top shooters, is currently out for several games with an injury.

“(Nathan) can really shoot it,” Pfannenstiel said. “He is a kid that is definitely a confident shooter and that is what is great about him. Even if he’s missed a bunch in a row, he still has that shooter’s mentality. We are going to need him to spread some teams out, especially with Luke being injured. Hopefully he will be able to help do that for us.”

Louisburg got out to a fast start and put the game away early. The Wildcats took a 20-point lead after the first quarter and led 53-17 at the half.

Senior Colyer Wingfield had another big game for the Wildcats as he finished with a team-high 20 points to go along with seven rebounds, four assists and four steals.

Junior Brady Hickey knocked down three 3-pointers and finished with nine points. Senior Trey Myers added eight with a pair of 3-pointers.

Senior Mason Dobbins was active under the basket with a team-high nine rebounds and had three assists. Sophomore Conlee Hovey had seven points and seven rebounds.

Sophomore Josh Holtzen also got his first varsity time of the season and made the most of it as he scored four points.

Louisburg will try for its second straight win of the tournament tonight as the Wildcats will face off with Pleasanton. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. at Pleasanton High School.

The Wildcats will end the tournament Friday with a matchup against the NEK Nighthawks, a homeschool team out of Topeka, as they try for a tournament title.

“We tell our kids to always play with effort, no matter whether you are down or up, you always have to play with effort,” Pfannenstiel said. “If you don’t, things can get really sloppy. We still have a lot that we need to work on. Obviously we looked good out there this time, but we still made mistakes out there defensively, where that has cost us games in the past. It is important that we key on those little things and do them the right way.”

LOU 28 25 17 7 — 77

OSA 8 9 5 0 — 22

LOUISBURG (5-5): Colyer Wingfield 9-14 0-0 20; Nathan Parker 6-11 0-0 18; Brady Hickey 3-3 0-0 9; Trey Myers 3-10 0-0 8; Conlee Hovey 3-5 1-2 7; Mason Dobbins 2-7 0-0 4; Josh Holtzen 2-3 0-0 4; Brock Vohs 1-4 1-2 3; Cade Gassman 1-3 0-0 2; Isaiah Whitley 1-4 0-0 2. Totals: 31-64 2-4 77. 3-point field goals: 13, (Parker 6, Hickey 3, Myers 2, Wingfield 2)