16 teams set to do battle in Medford Men’s Basketball Classic

MEDFORD BASKETBALL CLASSIC

The fourth annual Medford Basketball Classic is set for Friday and Saturday at Medford Area Middle School and is expected to feature some of the top men’s basketball talent in the region.

The tournament has grown to 16 teams, who will each play two preliminary games with results determining the seeds for a single-elimination bracketed tournament on Saturday.

“I was impressed by how deep last year’s tournament was with 12 teams, increasing from 10 teams from the 2018 and 2019 Medford Basketball Classic,” said Matt Wenzel, one of the tournament’s organizer along with Chris Clark. “Now this year with a different tournament format, we now have 16 teams, and if you thought last year’s tournament was deep, this year is even more unpredictable. If you were to create a March Madness type bracket for these teams, I don’t think 1,000 people would create a perfect bracket. Any one of these teams have a shot for the 2022 title, but in all honesty, 12 teams have the most legitimate shot to do so.”

The tournament raises funds for Medford Area Senior High’s boys and girls basketball programs. Concessions will be available.

Julie Kay’s Kitchen, based out of the Minocqua area, won last July’s tournament, beating Weather Shield 40-31 in the title game. BW Express is also a returning semifinalist from 2021.

The early schedule

Friday, 6 p.m.: Precision Dirtworks vs. Flagship Pontoons (big gym); Combined Carpentry vs. Backroad Basketball Club (small gym).

Friday, 6:50 p.m.: Weather Shield vs. Joe Frombach Construction (big gym); Dixon Greiner Realty vs. Johnny’s Vapes (small gym).

Friday, 7:40 p.m.: Streingth Sportswear vs. Northside Elevator/Grassland Dairy (big gym); Julie Kay’s Kitchen vs. TSF Construction (small gym).

Friday, 8:30 p.m.: Jake Schalow Northwestern Mutual vs. WE Hoops (big gym); BW Express vs. Loppnow’s Sports Bar (small gym).

Saturday, 8 a.m.: Dixon Greiner Realty vs. Backroad Basketball Club (big gym); Weather Shield vs. Precision Dirtworks (small gym).

Saturday, 8:50 a.m.: Johnny’s Vapes vs. Loppnow’s Sports Bar (big gym); Joe Frombach Construction vs. Northside Elevator/Grassland Dairy (small gym).

Saturday, 9:40 a.m.: BW Express vs. Julie Kay’s Kitchen (big gym); Streingth Sportswear vs. WE Hoops (small gym).

Saturday, 10:30 a.m.: Combined Carpentry vs. TSF Construction (big gym); Jake Schalow Northwestern Mutual vs. Flagship Pontoons (small gym).

Bracket play starts at 1 p.m.

The teams

Here are the power rankings and scouting reports on the 16 teams, courtesy of Matt Wenzel.

1. Julie Kay’s Kitchen Players to watch (with heights and high school they graduated from): Stephen Boersen (6-3, Tri-Unity Christian, Mich.), Nate Erickson (6-4 Prentice), Jamar Hurdle (6-7, Milwaukee Madison), Jeffrey Wergin (6-0, Lakeland), Jon Wergin (6-0, Lakeland).

Scouting report: The reigning champions, these guys get the nod until someone proves they can be beat. About half of that team returns. Both Wergin brothers are back. The sharpshooters were both second-team all-tournament picks in 2021. Boersen and Erickson also are back. Four new players should equal out the firepower they lost.

2. Streingth Sportswear Players to watch: Oliver Barnes (6-6, Mosinee), Michael Casper (6-1, Merrill), Osy Ekwueme (6-1, Medford), Peyton Kuhn (6-0, Medford), Zach Mootz (6-2, Merrill), Cam Wenzel (6-2, Medford), Owen White (6-5, Rhinelander).

Scouting report: This new team in the field might be the most skilled and complete squad. All of the players were either first- or second-team All-Great Northern Conference or Wisconsin Valley Conference from 2017-21. Plus they were all either teammates in high school, the AAU circuit or played against each other, so the argument can be made that they may have the most chemistry of all the teams not named Dixon Greiner Realty. White has excelled at Michigan Tech the last two years, while Mootz and Barnes have played roles at UW-Stevens Point and UW-Platteville, respectively. Casper has seen minutes at UW-Eau Claire and Ekwueme, Wenzel and Kuhn round out the Medford group. The team will have two tough preliminary matchups.

3. Jake Schalow Northwestern Mutual Players to watch: Mike Farrington (6-0, Brown Deer), David Lee (6-3, Aurora West, Ill.), Zach Noreen (6-6, Albany, Minn.), Nate Piel (6-5, Wausau West), Jake Schalow (6-4, Kaukauna), Alex Welhouse (6-7, Kaukauna).

Scouting report: A new team in the field that has some college experience. Schalow, Noreen and Lee played at Bemidji State. Schalow was Merrill’s boys head basketball coach from 2016-20 and is the son of legendary Kaukauna head coach Mike Schalow.

4. Weather Shield Players to watch: Brandon Danowski (6-0, Loyala Academy, Ill.), Julian DeGuzeman (6-4, Loyala Academy, Ill.), Brad Sendell (6-1, Pacific Grove, Calif.).

Scouting report: Weather Shield is back after its secondplace finish last summer. The best player and 2021 tournament MVP Connor Miller is questionable to play and there is no Dustin Oesau or Jake Schneider, last year’s 3-point contest champion. Kevin and Mitchell Schield (Sturgeon Bay High School) return as manager/players. They will bring in a few guys who played their college ball at Lawrence University and, with a combination of size and guard play, they once again should compete for the top spot.

5. WE Hoops Players to watch: Nic Been (6-4, Sauk Prairie), Joe Early (6-5, New Richmond), Ben Fischer (6-1, Wausau East), Dylan Hamlin (6-10, Wausau East), Will Jefferson (6-5, Wausau East), Ryan LaCerte (5-11, Wausau East), Chris Nash (6-0, Wausau East).

Scouting report: A new team mostly consisting of Wausau East graduates will boast the tournament’s tallest roster. Three of the nine players on the roster are at least 6-5, including the 6-10 Hamlin. Combine that size with youth and seasoned guard play, they are Wenzel’s tournament sleeper. They do have a tough two-game stretch to start against Streingth Sportswear and Jake Schalow Northwestern Mutual.

6. Loppnow’s Sports Bar Players to watch: Cade Hall (6-4, Mauston), Carter Hanke (6-3, Marathon), Cody Hanke (6-5, Marathon), Seth Kuhn (5-11, Mosinee), Brock Voigt (6-5, Sun Prairie).

Scouting report: Some members of Success Realty, the third-place team last year, have built a new squad that may have the highest IQ of any team in the field. Led by the Hanke brothers, Cody and Carter, this team has both guards and bigs. Add a little bit of college experience and these guys have what it takes to repeat last year’s performance. Besides the Hankes, the entire team is new. Hall and Voigt bring versatility and athleticism, while Cameron Schilling and Kuhn provide guard depth. Kuhn is the cousin of Medford’s Peyton Kuhn.

7. Northside Elevator/Grassland Dairy Players to watch: Preston Briggs (6-5, Traverse City, Mich.), Cam Brussow (6-3, Loyal), Carson Moe (6-2, Oconto), Cain Trunkel (6-4, Neillsville).

Scouting report: Another new team, this group, along with TSF Construction, might be the youngest in the tournament. The guys on this squad were either impactful at the high school level or have made an impact at UW-Stout. It’s a fairly height- balanced team and with a combination of talent and shooting ability, this team feels underrated at number seven.

8. BW Express Players to watch: Eric Hostetter (6-5, Stillwater, Minn.), Braeden Keeney (6-5, Coulee Christian), Branson Witucki (6-3, Wisconsin Valley Lutheran).

Scouting report: Another semifinalist from 2021, this team has a different look this time around. The Witucki brothers, Branson and Justin, are back as are Jordan Vredeveld and Robert Heldt, but the rest of the team is different, but in a good way. Keeney and Hostetter add size down low to add to already elite guard play. The team has two tough first games against Loppnow’s Sports Bar and Julie Kay’s Kitchen.

9. Combined Carpentry Players to watch: Ty Baker (6-1, Medford), Cody Bowe (5-10, Fond du Lac), John Lange (6-3, Medford), Mason Rudolph (6-0, Medford), Michael Ouimette (6-4, Lakeland), Justin Sullivan (5-8, Medford), Dalton Strebig (6-0, Rib Lake).

Scouting report: Sullivan and Zach Haynes (6-0, Medford) are the lone returning players from the 2021 team that went 2-1 in the tournament. The team has added depth and has a balance of everything with speed, size, shooting, athleticism and defense. With players added from last year’s Nicolet Bank team along with Ouimette, Baker and Strebig, this could be an improved team.

10. Joe Frombach Construction Players to watch: Kamari Baskin (6-2, Milwaukee School of Languages), Peter Fuchs (6-3, Wausau West), Drew Rohde (6-0, Prentice), Joe Scheithauer (6-4, Rib Lake).

Scouting report: For the most part, this is a combined team from last year’s Rib Lake and Johnson Creek Cattle squads. Baskin, Fuchs, Rohde and Scheithauer will look to lead the charge amongst several guys that could make an impact for this squad. Their first two games with Weather Shield and Northside Elevator/Grassland Dairy are tough ones. This might be one of the more physical teams in the tournament.

11. Precision Dirtworks Players to watch: Colton Langiewicz (5-11, Medford), Sean Lewandowski (6-6, Medford), Tyler Messman (5-10, Medford), Taylor Reinhardt (6-2, Medford), Austin Salzgeber (6-3, Medford), Garrett Strebig (5-11, Medford).

Scouting report: One of the original tournament teams is back in the fold. It’s a team filled entirely with Medford graduates and they’ll try to represent their city and keep the title here. This team doesn’t really have a “best” player but is extremely balanced from top to bottom. Messman and Reinhardt are the only players with Medford Basketball Classic experience, so it will be interesting to see how this squad does against some of the best competition around.

12. Dixon Greiner Realty Players to watch: Ray Daniels (6-0, Medford), Brady Hupf (6-3, Medford), Tony Schultz (6-6, Newman Catholic), Rob Seidel (5-10, Medford), Mason Stangl (6-5, Ripon).

Scouting report: One of the older teams in the tournament, this is the one squad that has truly played in all of the Medford Classics. They are coming off a 9-4 finish in Medford’s City League and has been playing well of late and have used their balance of experience, IQ, shooting, size, physicality and hustle to outwork opponents. Hupf, Schultz and Stangl are three of the best post players in the tournament. When you add the shooting ability of Daniels and Seidel this team can push anyone.

13. Flagship Pontoons Players to watch: Darryn Bottlemy (6-4, Owen-Withee), Albert Goerlitz (6-0, Owen-Withee), Josiah Goerlitz (6-3, Owen- Withee), Isaac Sumis (6-7, Thorp), Brad Weiler (6-4, Owen- Withee).

Scouting report: One of the newest and youngest teams in the field, the players all hail from Clark County and are all familiar with each other’s play. Their size, chemistry, IQ and youth could spell disaster for any team they play. This team is one of the harder ones to project in terms of a tournament result.

14. Johnny’s Vapes Players to watch: Jack Bezlyk (6-3, Spencer), Michael Birkley (6-0, Milwaukee South), Hunter Busse (5-9, Colby), Kyle Davis (6-1, Marshfield), Joey Northrup (6-4, Marshfield), Jake Skroch (6-3, Stratford).

Scouting report: Johnny’s Vapes is in its third Medford Classic and is the only Marshfield-based team in this year’s field. There is a little bit of variety on this squad, but it will need consistent scoring from Birkley, Bezlyk, Davis and Northrup to win games. The team does have depth on its 11-- man roster.

15. TSF Construction Players to watch: Cole Bergatoni (6-3, Janesville Craig), Kole Bogdonovich (5-10, Loyal), Cade Faber (6-3, Abbotsford), Teddy Redman (6-1, Stratford).

Scouting report: There are just six players on the roster, but youth will allow them to stay fresh. Faber and Redman are two of the most athletic players in the entire tournament. Faber had five dunks in last year’s MBC while playing for Combined Carpentry. Redman will be one of the tourney’s top defensive players, while Mathew Karl (5-11, Colby) and Bogdonovic are two guys that can light it up from behind the 3-point arc.

16. Backroad Basketball Club Players to watch: Austin Edwards (6-0, Phillips), Levi Ewan (6-0, Rib Lake), Devyn Vlach (6-4, Rib Lake); Nick Gerstberger (6-2, Rib Lake).

Scouting report: For the most part, this team all hails from Rib Lake, Prentice and Phillips. It’s another team with size and skill and its combination of youth and age can be a real threat. The guys have great chemistry and play well together, so it wouldn’t be a shock to see them find success.