VERDIGRE — The Wolfpack boys basketball team scored 55 points in their season opener Friday night. They needed every one of those points as they edged Niobrara/Verdigre 55 to 54.
Playing their first road game of the season, the Wolfpack took control of the game in the first half as they outscored the Cougars 34 to 28. The second half was much more competitive as the Cougars outscored EPPJ 26 to 21. On the game’s final play, Chad Bode tipped away a full-court pass to secure the victory.
A 6’1” junior, Bode scored 18 points to lead EPPJ. He was one of three Wolfpack players to score in double figures. Senior Seth Schumacher had 12 (two three-pointers) and teammate Scott Moser added 11. “It was a good first game to build off of for the year,” Coach Scott Becker said. “The guys did a great job of looking for their shots and knocking them down when Niobrara made their runs. They stepped up every time and worked through it. We’ll have to continue to work on crashing the boards as that kept Niobrara in the game.”
Wolfpack 55, Cougars 54
EPPJ…………19 15 10 11 — 55
N/V……………14 14 13 13 —54
Wolfpack — Dylan Behnk 0-4 0, Chad Bode 7-8 1-4 18, Kyle Kallhoff 4-7 0-1 9, Austin Meis 2-5 1-3 5, Scott Moser 4-8 0-0 11, Seth Schumacher 4-4 2-4 12. Team totals: 21-36 4-12 55.
Team statistics — Rebounds — Wolfpack 13 (Austin Meis 5). Assists — Wolfpack 6 (Seth Schumacher 4). Steals — Wolfpack 5 (Seth Schumacher 3). Turnovers — Wolfpack 5.
