Spencer boys solidly defeat Washburn, end playoff run at Hurley

The Spencer boys had a bit of a delay in competing in the WIAA Division 4 regional playoffs as bad weather delayed their first game from March 4 to March 6. The team played at home against Washburn in the first round and advanced to play against Hurley the following evening where they fell 75-65 to end the 2024-25 season.

At the game played at home, the Rockets and the opposing Castle Guards both struggled to get any points scored in the opening minutes, with shots made bouncing off the rim or rolling out on several occasions for both teams. Ever so slowly, Washburn creeped to an early 6-0 lead before Spencer’s Sam Bezlyk broke through with a shot. A foul called on the play allowed him to go 1-for-1 at the line. Mathers McHone brought the team closer with another basket made off a steal.

It wasn’t until the 12-minute mark where the action started to heat up and the players were able to connect their shots with the basket. Bezlyk and McHone both scored to push Spencer briefly in the lead before the Castle Guards tied the game at nine with a 3-pointer. The two teams were tied again shortly after at 11 points and at 13 points before Weston Nieman went 2-for-2 on a penalty shot at the 9:03 mark to put them up 15-13.

After that, the Rockets took off and the home crowd filled the Dome with cheers after every point scored. Nieman scored twice in a row, which was followed up with a 3-pointer by Drake Johnson. Washburn scored once to break up the streak, but Spencer was back at it quickly as Bezlyk added six more points to the board.

In the last five minutes of the opening half, Spencer continued to score and dominated on defense, rebounding the ball and making clean passes between the players to keep the ball mostly out of Washburn’s hands. McHone shot a 3-pointer to add to their score and Nieman was 2-for-2 on a penalty shot at the 2:18 mark, giving the Rockets a 33-19 lead at halftime.

Coming back from the break, Spencer got right down to business with a 3-pointer. Washburn put up some fight, with back-and-forth scoring between the two teams during the next few minutes, and the Castle Guards just barely edging out the Rockets by scoring 10 points to the Rockets’ nine.

At the 14:30 mark, McHone went 1-for-2 at the line for Spencer. He followed that up a short time later with a 3-pointer. Then at the 12:49 mark, Breckin Miller went 2-for-2 at the line.

After that, Washburn had a short run to add six points to their score before McHone got Spencer to 50 points with a basket. The Rockets began to take control again after that, with additional points scored by Bezlyk – who also went 2-for-2 at the 7:37 mark – Ben Felgner – who shot a 3-pointer – and McHone, giving them a 20-point lead with the score 61-41.

The Rockets were able to maintain and even slightly grow this lead in the final portion of the game. Points were scored by Felgner and Bezlyk to oppose the Castle Guards and steals began to become a more regular occurrence as the Rockets reached the 70-point mark.

With less than five minutes left to play, Spencer continued to push hard, scoring nine more points as the crowd roared and the clocked ticked down. The game ended solidly 79-54 in Spencer’s favor, sending them to play against Hurley on March 7 where they were defeated.

At the March 6 game, Bezlyk led the Rockets in scoring with 24 points, which included one 3-pointer and a 3-for-3 record at the free throw line. McHone scored 19 points, including two 3-pointers and a 1-for-3 record at the free throw line. Nieman contributed 17 points, with one 3-pointer and a 4-for-4 free throw record.

Reporter Cheyenne Thomas contributed to this article.

At above left, Mathers McHone flies for a basket made early in the Rockets’ game against Washburn on March 6. McHone was one of Spencer’s lead scorers in the game, making 19 points for the team. Sam Bezlyk (middle) was the top scorer for Spencer, leading the team with 24 points scored in the team’s first playoff game. At above right, Weston Nieman tosses up the ball to add to the Rocket’s lead. He scored 17 points for the Rockets during the game.

CHEYENNE THOMAS/STAFF PHOTOS