By Chris Bennett
Correspondent
The Elkhorn Area High School boys basketball team responded with two wins after a rough stretch of play, and is in strong position to close out the regular season and move into the postseason.
The Elks beat Delavan –Darien 57-49 Feb. 20 in a Southern Lakes Conference game at Delavan and defeated non-conference opponent Williams Bay 57-35 Feb. 17 at home.
Elkhorn (11-10, 4-9 SLC) plays tonight at Wilmot in a SLC contest. The Panthers beat the Elks 63-52 Jan. 16 at Elkhorn in a SLC game.
“As far as Delavan-Darien, we really needed a conference win, and got one,” Skatrud said of the Elks victory against the Comets. “We had some stretches where we looked really good.”
The Elks led the Comets 27-19 at halftime. The two teams played to a 30-30 second-half tie.
“Offensively, we established our inside game in the second and third quarters,” Skatrud said. “Defensively, it helps us so much in having some guys who can really take away shooters.
“Aaron (Wales) can take the other team’s best scorer out of a game, and Jon (Wulff) has, time and time again, shut down big-time shooters.”
Alex Easterday led the Elks with 14 points. Joe Konopski scored 12 and Aaron Wales added 11. Austin Ryan led the Comets (5-14, 2-11 SLC) with 15 points.
The Elks swept the season series with their arch rival Delavan-Darien. Elkhorn beat the Comets 62-54 Jan. 23 at home.
Against Williams Bay (11-9), the Elks held the Bulldogs to single digits in each quarter.
“It was really good for us to get back on track after a couple of rough outings,” Elks coach Josh Skatrud said of the recent wins. “Williams Bay was a solid overall effort, with contributions from a bunch of guys.
“It always feels good to get a win on Senior Night, and it was great to celebrate some guys who have invested so much time into the program.”
Elkhorn led Williams Bay 31-17 at halftime, and outscored the Bulldogs 26-18 in the second half.
Easterday led the Elks with 21 points. Konopski scored 10. Jake Olson led Williams Bay with 10 points.
The Elks open postseason play in the WIAA Division 2 playoffs March 3 with a regional semifinal game at home against Westosha Central.
The Falcons are 9-12 overall and 4-9 in the SLC through games played as of Feb. 25, and play tonight at Burlington (16-5, 10-3 SLC) in a SLC game.
Elkhorn lost twice to Westosha in SLC play during the regular season. The Falcons beat the Elks 62-49 Dec. 9 at Central and 55-52 Jan. 30 at Elkhorn.
The Elks are seeded fourth in the regional and the Falcons are fifth. The winner plays at No. 1 seed Waterford March 6 in the regional final.
