Boys varsity scores double victory at home against Haines

The Wolves' varsity boys basketball team won two games at home against the Haines Glacier Bears despite losing their star player to injury halfway through the first game.

Starting a day earlier than originally scheduled, Wrangell hosted Haines on Thursday and Friday, Feb. 1-2. In the first game, the Wolves defeated the Glacier Bears 68-50. Then on the second night, the Wolves scored another decisive win, 57-36.

The junior varsity team got a split, winning their first game 33-30 but losing the second 27-22.

Wolves' head coach Cody Angerman said his team knew going into both games that Haines was better than their record showed. "We weren't taking them lightly. They've got kids that can really shoot the ball."

Angerman described junior Wrangell's Daniel Harrison as "a monster in the first half," when he scored 22 points Thursday. However, he sustained an injury that kept him benched for the game's second half as well as the next night.

Angerman said the other team members took the opportunity to step up. "You're not just proud that you won, you're proud that you played hard."

The players can't expect to shoot the ball well every game, the coach said, which is why they drill on teamwork, layups and defense. "When you get your first win, and see how much harder you played, you see this is how we need to play in every game."

Junior Kyan Stead was the top scorer Thursday with 25 points, while junior Lucas Schneider, sophomore Boomchain Loucks and senior Keegan Hanson contributed valuable scoring as well as defense.

In Friday's game, junior Trevyn Gillen had 14 points and Stead had 12 points.

"Lucas Schneider and Keegan Hanson did well defensively both nights," Angerman said. "Lucas handles pressure pretty well; he's figured out what he's good at."

Angerman also praised Hanson's defense and rebounding. "Keegan gets the ball quite a few times, as well as Trevyn."

In the JV games, the top players included sophomores Ben Houser, Timothy Pearson and Brody Knecht; freshman Aadyn Gillen played well in the second game. Angerman appreciates any opportunity for his JVs to play and get much-needed experience. "The JV is pretty important to our program," he said.

The Wolves will next host the Metlakatla Chiefs on Feb. 9-10. Despite last month's losses to the team, Angerman believes his squad is ready for a rematch. "I think we've got to try to limit their possessions and rebounds, make sure we're getting easy buckets and not just relying on scoring. If we can put all those things together, I think we can beat them, for sure."