Basketball Recap: Russell Triumphs

There's no place like home for Russell, who bounced back after a loss on the road on Tuesday. They escaped with a win on Friday against the Hill City Ringnecks by the margin of a single free throw, 60-59. The win continues a trend for the Broncos in their matchups with the Ringnecks: they've now won three in a row.

Sam Theilen

Points

02/20/26 vs Hill City	19
02/17/26 @ Ellinwood	9
02/13/26 vs Trego	13
02/10/26 @ Thomas More Prep-Marian	13
02/06/26 @ Oakley	19
+ 17 more games

Russell had a senior duo take command as Jake Mooney went 7-for-15 en route to 23 points and Sam Theilen posted 19 points. With that strong performance, Theilen is now averaging an impressive 15 points per game. Pierce Schoenberger was another key player, putting up eight points and six assists.

Hill City lost despite a true team effort on offense. The best among them was Vincent Zohner, who dropped a double-double with 22 points and 11 rebounds. His big performance that evening made it 13 games in a row in which he has scored at least 16 points. The team also got some help courtesy of Kason Mauck, who shot 62% from the field to rack up 18 points and eight boards.

Russell's victory bumped their record up to 10-12. As for Hill City, with the loss, they broke their five-game winning streak and moved their record to 11-11.

Russell does not have any more games scheduled as of now. As for Hill City, they will face off against Ellis at 6:00 p.m. on Monday. The Ringnecks' defense better be ready for this one: the Railroaders have averaged an impressive 53 points per game this season.