Basketball Recap: Colson Nelsen Leads a Balanced Attack to Beat Crofton

Wayne's found some homefield redemption this week after a overtime loss to Boys Town on Tuesday. The Wayne Blue Devils came out on top against the Crofton Warriors by a score of 58-46. Given the Blue Devils' advantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska basketball rankings (they are ranked 18th, while the Warriors are ranked 230th), the result wasn't entirely unexpected.

Wayne's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Colson Nelsen led the charge by going 9 for 20 on his way to 21 points and four steals. That's the most steals Nelsen has posted since back in December of 2023. Brodey Munter was another key player, going 5 of 7 en route to 13 points.

Wayne was working as a unit and finished the game with 17 assists. That's the most assists they've managed all season.

Crofton's loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Trevor Allen, who posted 19 points, and Jace Panning, who earned 19 points. That was a full 41.3% of Crofton's points, marking the third time in a row he's had more than a third of the team's points.

Wayne's victory was their fourth straight at home, which pushed their record up to 14-2. Those victories came thanks to their offensive performance across that stretch, as they averaged 60.0 points per game. As for Crofton, they have traveled a rocky road recently having lost eight of their last nine matchups, which put a noticeable dent in their 3-12 record this season.

Wayne will look to defend their home court on Friday against Cedar Catholic. Wayne is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 56.4 points per game this season. Crofton has already played their next contest (against Hartington-Newcastle), but no score has been uploaded at the time of writing.