Varsity Boys Basketball narrowly falls to Mosinee in overtime home opener

On Friday, Dec. 12, 2025, the Merrill Boys Varsity Basketball Team played their home opener against Mosinee and fell in overtime, 65-68.
“Our home opener was an exciting one; unfortunately, it didn’t go our way,” said Merrill Boys Varsity Basketball Head Coach Troy Pieper.
Despite the loss, the Bluejays showed remarkable resilience. After a difficult end to the first half left them trailing by 16 points, Merrill battled back throughout the second half to force overtime.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the effort the guys showed tonight. We had a tough stretch to end the first half and put ourselves in a 16-point deficit, but the guys didn’t flinch. We battled the entire second half and were able to erase the 16-point deficit and force overtime,” Pieper said.
The atmosphere at Merrill was electric throughout the game.

“The energy from the crowd, the student section, and our bench was awesome all night,” he said. “It would have been nice to find a way in overtime to get the win, but we will learn from this and be better because of tonight’s game.”
Tyson Ott led the Bluejays with a strong performance, scoring 22 points on efficient 6/10 shooting from the field, 2/3 from three-point range, and a perfect 8/8 from the free throw line. He also contributed 6 defensive rebounds, 3 steals, and 3 blocks.
“Tyson (Ott) had a really nice game. He was very efficient and had a great game. I liked how he attacked the rim tonight,” Pieper said.
Charles Kalinowski added 12 points, and Cooper Wendorf contributed 10 points for Merrill.
“I liked the minutes Curtis Kimble gave off the bench,” Pieper added. “He is a very good shooter, and when he sees one go in, he can get hot, and he came in and hit two big threes for us in the first half, and his energy on defense is always a lift for us.”
The Bluejays’ aggressive offensive approach in the second half proved crucial to their comeback.
“As a team, we were more aggressive on the offensive end tonight. We didn’t just settle for threes like we have in previous games. We were on the attack all night, especially in the second half, and because of it we went to the free throw line 24 times, and we converted 20 of those attempts,” Pieper said.
However, rebounding remains an area of concern.
“One major area we need to improve on is rebounding. We didn’t rebound well tonight. They were plus 10 in second-chance points,” he said.
Merrill scored 19 points in the first half, 38 in the second half, and 8 in overtime.
Box Score
Mosinee 68 @ Merrill 65 (OT)

Season opens with away games

The first four games of the season were away games, and the Bluejays opened their season with a pair of wins and a pair of losses, including two games at the Wausau West Turkey Shootout and their first game in the new Great Northern Conference.
In Game 1 against Newman Catholic at the Turkey Shootout on Nov. 22, Merrill edged out a 47-44 victory, despite offensive struggles.

“I loved the energy we played with on defense for most of the night,” Pieper said. “The shots didn’t fall on the offensive side of things, but we didn’t let it bother our defense. Our defense won us this game, and I’m proud of the effort.”
“Offensively, I thought we got into the actions we wanted, and got open shots, but man, nothing was falling all night,” he said.
The bench provided a significant boost in the win, with Payton Zimmerman leading all players with a +9 rating, while Cam Wallin (+7) and Jensen Olson (+7) also contributed strong minutes.
“I liked the minutes from the bench tonight — a lot of guys getting their first Varsity experience and didn’t look like the stage was too big for them. Our top 3 +/- guys were all guys off the bench,” Pieper said. “That shows how deep we can be this year.”
Box Score
Merrill 47 @ Newman Catholic 44

The following night at the Turkey Shootout, Merrill fell to host Wausau West, 60-39.
“Congrats to West,” Pieper said. “They have a really nice squad, good balance of shooters, athletes, and guys who will run through a brick wall in order to do their job at a high level. Coach Lemmens is going to make some noise in the Valley this year I think.”
Despite the loss, Merrill’s defense continued to perform well, forcing 22 turnovers. However, the offensive struggles persisted for the second consecutive night.
“Second night in a row with the offensive end being a frustration,” he said. “I wouldn’t call it a concern yet, because what we are doing on that end is resulting in open shots. We are getting the guys open who can hit shots, but right now we are just in a collective slump shooting as a team. I think our defense did enough tonight to get the win; the offense will come — we’ll figure that part out.”

“Payton Zimmerman had a nice night. He had 9 points and didn’t miss a shot all night; he’s been solid both games for us,” Pieper said.
Box Score
Merrill 39 @ Wausau West 60

Merrill bounced back with a road win at Crandon, 56-34, with the defense forcing an impressive 40 turnovers.
“I am proud of the way our defense played again tonight,” Pieper said. “Forcing 40 turnovers is simply amazing no matter who you play, but again — like the first two games — we need to convert those turnovers into more points. While we did score 32 points off of turnovers tonight, I think we left a lot on the table.”

“I liked the minutes Cam Wallin gave off the bench tonight,” he said. “He always comes in with energy on both ends, and he’s a good shooter. Tonight he came in and played great defense and hit three 3’s in the second half — that was a nice boost for us.”
In conference play, “that grind is going to hit and our defense will need to keep holding the fort down until our offense can catch up to our defense,” Pieper said. “We will keep grinding and finding a way. It’s just how this group is built; they will work for sure.”
Box Score
Merrill 56 @ Crandon 34

In their Great Northern Conference opener at Northland Pines, Merrill fell 79-56 despite a strong performance from Eli Burtman.

“Tonight was a frustrating night,” Pieper said. “It was our first game in our new conference, the Great Northern Conference, and we played pretty solid all night, but the difference in the game was FTs. They shot 28 and we shot 9; they made 21 to our 6; so being -15 at the line is a lot to overcome.”
“I thought Eli Burtman had his best game of the year with 16 points on 7-12 shooting, especially in the second half,” he said. “He looked much more assertive and decisive when he got his touches in the post. It was a nice showing for him tonight.”
“I also think we got some good minutes off the bench from Jensen Olson and Morgan Sykes,” Pieper said. “Both gave us a big lift. In the first half, they were a big part of why we closed the game to just 4 points at halftime. Jensen hit a couple of 3’s on the night and was aggressive at the top of our zone all night. Morgan held his own in the paint, as well, and is continuing to look more confident and aggressive each game.”
Box Score
Merrill 56 @ Northland Pines 79