(Shoshoni, WY) – It was a good weekend to be a Wrangler. The Shoshoni boys rolled to three straight wins over a long weekend beginning Thursday with a 45-39 win over Saratoga. Friday, they handled Upton 58-44 and finished their Wrangler Classic Saturday evening with a convincing 66-28 victory over Riverside.
All three opponents are in Class 1-A, but Upton was ranked fourth and Saratoga fifth entering the tournament.
Upton had a mixed tournament. They lost to 2-A Shoshoni and Rocky Mountain but edged the third-ranked Class 1-A opponent, Little Snake River, 48-46. The Bobcats were ranked second a week ago behind Lingle Ft. Laramie, but lost to the Lusk Tigers, and their stock began to fall.
Friday Shoshoni battled well in all facets of the game, save free throw shooting, where the Wranglers were just 12 of 21.
Balance offensively was Shoshoni’s forte. Oakley Hicks and Caden Kisling battled inside, Carson Kisling scored off the drive, and Andrew Garcia and Jordan Gilberton hit from the perimeter. That balance, combined with a solid half-court defense and good rebounding position, had the Wranglers leading from the opening tip.
Shoshoni led by eight at the half, and Upton chipped away to trail by just six with 3:15 left in the third period. The Wranglers put the game away in the fourth behind a pair of Gilbertson 3-point shots and six of nine free throw shooting.
Caden Kisling paced Shoshoni with 17 points, Gilbertson added 14 with Hicks scoring nine and Carson Kisling and Garcia each tallying eight.
SHOSHONI 13 15 12 18 – 58
UPTON 11 9 14 10 – 44
Shoshoni – Oakley Hicks 2 5-9 9, Andrew Garcia 2 (1) 1-2 8, K McConnaughey 1 0-0 2, Carson Kisling 2 4-6 8, Jordan Gilbertson 4 (2) 0-0 14, Caden Kisling 6 (1) 2-4 17. Totals 17 (4) 12-21 58
Upton – Butler 1 (1) 0-0 5, Duarte 4 (1) 1-2 12, Johnson 1 (2) 0-0 8, Schiller 2 (3) 13, Keller 1 2-4 4, McNutt 1 0-0 2. Totals 10 (7) 3-6 44