In a tightly contested Fox River Classic Conference matchup on Friday, January 16, the De Pere Redbirds used a strong second half to pull away from the Pulaski Red Raiders, earning a 68-55 win at home.
The game opened with energy on both ends of the floor.
Jack Bookter scored the first basket of the night on a layup, but Pulaski responded after a long defensive possession.
The teams traded baskets early, with Pulaski holding a narrow 9-7 lead midway through the first half.
Momentum swung De Pere’s way when Isaac Herlache knocked down a three-pointer to put the Redbirds up 20-15 with 6:38 remaining.
A Pulaski turnover on the next possession gave De Pere another opportunity, which Will Krueger capitalized on with a layup to extend the lead.
Pulaski didn’t go away.
Eli Brancefield hit a three, and Bohdan Schmidt made his presence felt on both ends, taking a charge and later scoring a layup to tie the game with three minutes left in the half.
Calan Bock followed with a basket to give Pulaski a brief edge, but the teams headed into halftime tied at 24-24. Schmidt led Pulaski with nine points, while Herlache and Noah Maniscolco each had five for De Pere.
De Pere came out sharper in the second half.
Herlache scored to open the period, followed by a three from Maniscolco to push the lead to five.
Bookter added another three, and the Redbirds stretched the margin to double digits with 12 minutes left.
Pulaski made another push behind Bock and Schmidt, cutting the lead to five with just over seven minutes to play.
Krueger answered immediately with a three-pointer, and although Schmidt continued to battle inside, De Pere maintained control. With 5:41 left, the Redbirds held a 51-47 lead.
Krueger and Maniscolco were key down the stretch, attacking the rim and making smart decisions.
Bookter sealed the momentum with an offensive rebound putback that pushed the lead to 10. De Pere led 61-52 with under two minutes remaining and closed out the game from the free throw line.
Head coach Brian Winchester praised his team’s effort and second-half adjustments.
“I was just really happy with how hard we fought,” Winchester said. “Pulaski played really, really well. We played aggressive and we did some really good things offensively. I was happy with our adjustments in the second half… we just did a better job offensively.”
Junior Will Krueger echoed that mindset.
“We had to control the pace of the game,” Krueger said. “The first half wasn’t great on offense, but we got it going in the second half.”
Krueger and Maniscolco each finished with 14 points, while Bookter led all scorers with 18 as De Pere secured the 68-55 conference win.
The Redbirds play next on Tuesday, January 20th against the West De Pere Phantoms.
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