LA CROSSE — Onalaska High School junior Ian Kowal drove to the basket, drew pressure in the lane and fired the basketball to senior teammate Noah Chenault in the left corner of the court at the Mark Sutton Memorial Gymnasium.
Chenault, just like he’d done 32 seconds earlier, knocked down a 3-pointer that brought his teammates behind him to their feet.
There were 6 minutes, 52 seconds remaining and Onalaska was within one possession of Central for the first time since the opening minute of the game.
But instead of simply responding, the RiverHawks made a much bigger statement with an eight-point run to squash the Onalaska momentum and send themselves on the way to an important 65-53 victory on Saturday night.
Suddenly, a team that had lost to Sparta for the first time in nearly 21 years just a few nights ago, was experiencing the reality of being tied for first place in the MVC.
Central (9-5, 5-2) knocked the Hilltoppers (13-5, 5-3) out of their share of the top spot by leading from start to finish and finding a way to withstand Onalaska’s ability to cut a deficit that was once 15 points to 44-42 on Chenault’s consecutive 3-pointers from the left corner.
“Any team has a chance any given night,” Central senior Frankie Wilk said. “We lost to Sparta the other night, Onalaska beat Sparta last night, and we beat Onalaska tonight.
“(The MVC) is competitive and a lot of fun.”
The RiverHawks put an end to a busy week by playing its best basketball in the four-game stretch. After losses to Caledonia and Sparta, Central won comfortably against Tomah and fought off the challenge of Onalaska, which entered the game tied with Aquinas for first place in the conference standings.
Central pressured the ball well, rebounded well and extended possessions effectively after building a lead. The Hilltoppers, of course, made their run but couldn’t get over the hump despite a very good game from Chenault and some timely hoops from Kowal in the second half.
“I don’t know who that team was,” Central coach Todd Fergot said of the losses to Caledonia and Sparta that began the week. “Those were the kids that have been with us all year, but something was different.
“I’m really proud of how they have responded, and it’s a great lesson of life to be down and just know you have to keep fighting.”
Senior Jaylon Calvert had 15 points and 12 rebounds for the RiverHawks, and his basket off an assist from Gabe Servais capped that key 8-0 run and gave Central a 52-42 lead with 3:16 left. Derrick Pangier and Wilk started the run by converting offensive rebounds into baskets on consecutive possessions. Gabe Servais then scored to set up Calvert’s basket that capped it.
Servais had 14 points, sophomore Anthony Jones 12 and Pangier 10 on a night that included a 31-23 halftime lead before 52.9-percent shooting in the second half. The RiverHawks also made 13 of 14 free throws over the final 3 minutes and turned that 8-0 run into a 14-4 burst that gave them a 58-46 lead before Tyler Kowal knocked down a 3-pointer with 1:01 left.
The Hilltoppers were led by Chenault’s 17 points and Ian Kowal’s 13, but they made just 11 of 29 shots in the second half. Chenault’s consecutive 3s from the corner seemed to have them ready to take control, but Central never let it happen.
“I thought we really competed,” said Fergot, whose team is tied with Aquinas and sits a half-game ahead of both Onalaska and Holmen (4-2) said. “I thought we competed defensively, on the ball and off the ball. I thought offensively, we competed in terms of our execution.”
