Central Wisconsin North Preview 2026-27

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Final 2025-26 Standings</strong><br><br>1. Tigerton 10-0 (28-1); 2. Bowler 6-4 (11-13); 3. White Lake 5-5 (9-13); 4. Northland Lutheran 4-6 (9-15); 5. Gresham 3-7 (10-15); 6. Marion 2-8 (6-18)<br><br><strong>2026-27 Picks</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>1. <a href="https://prephoops.com/team/wi/tigerton/?season=2026-27" data-type="link" data-id="prephoops.com/team/wi/tigerton/?season=2026-27">Tigerton</a> -- One win away from its first-ever appearance in the WIAA State Tournament, the Tigers dropped a 56-45 decision to eventual Division 5 state champion Reedsville in a sectional final last March to wrap up the best season in school history with a 28-1 record. Coach Dan Hoffa's squad completely dominated the Central Wisconsin North and won its third straight league crown. However, four starters from that team graduated last spring, leaving just senior center [player_tooltip player_id='2382317' first='James' last='Brady'] as a returning starter. But Brady is dominating force at 6-foot-10 as he is a two-time Player of the Year in the league. The UW-Platteville recruit averaged 24.6 points and 12.2 rebounds as a junior and spearheads a team that also includes some top reserves from a year ago in seniors [player_tooltip player_id='3178828' first='Cameron' last='Carlson'] (6-3) and [player_tooltip player_id='3022562' first='Izaiah' last='Lederhaus'] (5-11) along with juniors [player_tooltip player_id='3658010' first='Asher' last='Williams'] (5-9) and [player_tooltip player_id='3178830' first='Brett' last='Tiller'] (5-8). Lederhaus is one of the better shooters in the conference and came off the bench to average 7.0 ppg and 2.5 rpg last winter. Newcomers from a 19-4 JV1 team also figure to be in the mix for Tigerton. <br><br>2. <a href="https://prephoops.com/team/wi/bowler/" data-type="link" data-id="prephoops.com/team/wi/bowler/">Bowler</a> -- The Panthers return an abundance of experience after winning 11 games last season so optimism is high coach Matt Brunner's squad again can achieve double figures in victories. Four starters, led by first-team all-league choice [player_tooltip player_id='3008826' first='Chase' last='Stevens'] (6-1) are back, giving Bowler one of the most experienced squads in the league. Stevens averaged 15.8 ppg and 4.3 rpg as a junior and was joined in the starting rotation by senior [player_tooltip player_id='3524862' first='Caleb' last='Putnam'] (5-11) and juniors [player_tooltip player_id='3019141' first='Blake' last='Brunner'] (6-5) and [player_tooltip player_id='3008828' first='Mason' last='Kolpack'] (5-9). Brunner picked up honorable mention all-league honors after averaging 5.9 ppg and 6.2 rpg while Putnam contributed 4.2 ppg and 5.2 rpg. Also back for the Panthers are senior [player_tooltip player_id='3008827' first='Jameson' last='Paiser'] (6-2) and juniors [player_tooltip player_id='3019145' first='Jerell' last='Haynes'] (6-1) and [player_tooltip player_id='3019140' first='Leif' last='Steffen'] (5-8). <br><br>3. <a href="https://prephoops.com/team/wi/marion/?season=2026-27" data-type="link" data-id="prephoops.com/team/wi/marion/?season=2026-27">Marion</a> -- Consecutive last-place finishes in the Central Wisconsin North Conference figures to motivate Marion in 2026-27. And with four starters back from a 6-18 team, coach Dave Roe is hoping to move up substantially in the league standings. Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='3020910' first='Sawyer' last='Kamba'] (5-11) and [player_tooltip player_id='3020918' first='Braylon' last='Mielke'] (6-0) along with juniors [player_tooltip player_id='3009345' first='Jolanzo' last='Perez'] (5-11) and [player_tooltip player_id='3009333' first='Breckyn' last='DeWhurst'] (5-9) all started last winter and form a strong nucleus for the Mustangs. Kamba was voted second-team all-league after averaging 6.5 ppg and 6.3 rpg. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='3020908' first='Collin' last='Grogan'] (5-10), juniors [player_tooltip player_id='3020904' first='Jaxon' last='Verg'] (6-4) and [player_tooltip player_id='3020898' first='Shane' last='Crum Jr.'] (5-10), and sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='3020914' first='Raymond' last='Crum'] (5-9) also return for Marion, which boasts strong ball handling and quickness on defense. <br><br>4. <a href="https://prephoops.com/team/wi/northland-lutheran/?season=2026-27" data-type="link" data-id="prephoops.com/team/wi/northland-lutheran/?season=2026-27">Northland Lutheran</a> -- The Wildcats will look to overcome a lack of height with their quickness and defense. Coach Adam Clemons has some returning experience from a club that went 9-15, including a pair of double-figure scorers in senior [player_tooltip player_id='3251130' first='Samuel' last='Kim-Bixby'] (5-11) and junior [player_tooltip player_id='3009784' first='Philip' last='Oblender'] (5-10). Kim-Bixby and Oblender each earned second-team all-league spots last winter after averaging 13.7 ppg and 11.6 ppg, respectively. Those two players and sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='3251133' first='Wyatt' last='Krueger'] (6-1) form the core of the Northland Lutheran squad. Krueger was the lone freshman in the league a year ago to receive all-league laurels as he landed a spot on the honorable mention list after averaging 7.7 ppg and 4.3 rpg. Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='3009775' first='Braydn' last='Screnock'] (5-9) and [player_tooltip player_id='3768245' first='Kayveon' last='Groleau'] (6-0) and junior [player_tooltip player_id='3009765' first='Sawyer' last='Wiechmann'] (5-9) also return. <br><br>5. <a href="https://prephoops.com/team/wi/gresham-community/" data-type="link" data-id="prephoops.com/team/wi/gresham-community/">Gresham</a> -- Replacing three starters will be a challenge for coach Brett Nelson, who guided Gresham to a 10-15 mark last winter. The biggest loss to graduation is Kobe Miller, a second-team all-league selection who averaged 13.6 ppg and 5.5 rpg. At the same time, the Wildcats have a pair of seniors who both could earn all-league honors. Forward [player_tooltip player_id='3008840' first='Thomas' last='Kaquatosh'] (5-10) may lack size, but his production on the glass a year ago is almost unheard of for a player his size as he averaged 13.8 rpg en route to earning first-team all-league laurels. Kaquatosh also contributed 9.1 ppg while classmate [player_tooltip player_id='3008844' first='Nolan' last='Pecore'] (5-10) averaged 8.8 ppg and 3.2 rpg. Depth is a concern for Gresham, but junior [player_tooltip player_id='3287731' first='Miles' last='Weber'] (5-8) also returns after netting 2.2 ppg and grabbing 2.3 rpg. <br><br>6. <a href="https://prephoops.com/team/wi/white-lake/?season=2026-27" data-type="link" data-id="prephoops.com/team/wi/white-lake/?season=2026-27">White Lake</a> -- Three seniors who started last season will try to pull together and keep White Lake competitive after the Lakers lost their top two scorers -- Aaron Wickersheim (25.9 ppg) and Traumarius Watkins (8.9 ppg) -- to graduation. Indeed, [player_tooltip player_id='3022914' first='Kemarion' last='Stewart'] (5-10), [player_tooltip player_id='3022910' first='Brice' last='Peters'] (6-0) and [player_tooltip player_id='3022917' first='Sebastian' last='Campbell-Torres'] (5-10) boast experience, but will need to take a step up in production after that trio averaged between 3.3 ppg and 6.1 ppg as juniors. Finding the right pieces to fit around those three will be a challenge for coach Eugene Peters. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='3022916' first='Madalynn' last='Wickersheim'] (5-4) played limited minutes as a junior while competing for the boys' team since White Lake did not have enough girls to field a girls' squad. Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='3433708' first='Darian' last='Mouton'] (5-9) also returns for the Lakers, who lack size and scoring punch. <br><br><strong>Top Returning Scorers</strong><br><br>[player_tooltip player_id='2382317' first='James' last='Brady'], Tigerton (24.6 pp)<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3008826' first='Chase' last='Stevens'], Bowler (15.8 ppg)<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3251130' first='Samuel' last='Kim-Bixby'], Northland Lutheran (13.7 ppg)<br>[player_tooltip player_id='2400591' first='Phillip' last=''] Oblender, Northland Lutheran (11.6 pp)<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3008840' first='Thomas' last='Kaquatosh'], Gresham (9.1 ppg)<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3008844' first='Nolan' last='Pecore'], Gresham (8.8 ppg)<br><br><strong>Projected All-Conference Teams<br>First Team</strong><br>[player_tooltip player_id='2382317' first='James' last='Brady'], 6-10, Sr., Tigerton<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3008840' first='Thomas' last='Kaquatosh'], 5-10, Sr., Gresham<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3019141' first='Blake' last='Brunner'], 6-5, Jr., Bowler<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3008826' first='Chase' last='Stevens'], 6-1, Sr., Bowler<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3251130' first='Samuel' last='Kim-Bixby'], 5-11, Sr., Northland Lutheran<br><br><strong>Second Team</strong><br>[player_tooltip player_id='3008844' first='Nolan' last='Pecore'], 5-10, Sr., Gresham<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3020910' first='Sawyer' last='Kamba'], 5-11, Sr. Marion<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3020918' first='Braylon' last='Mielke'], 6-0, Sr., Marion<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3009784' first='Philip' last='Oblender'], 5-10, Jr., Northland Lutheran<br>[player_tooltip player_id='3022562' first='Izaiah' last='Lederhaus'], 5-11, Sr., Tigerton<strong><br><br>The Big Five</strong><br><strong>Best Shooter:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='3022562' first='Izaiah' last='Lederhaus'], Tigerton<br><strong>Best Rebounder: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='3008840' first='Thomas' last='Kaquatosh'], Gresham<br><strong>Best Defender: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='3020910' first='Sawyer' last='Kamba'], Marion<strong><br>Best Collegiate Prospect:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='2382317' first='James' last='Brady'], Tigerton<br><strong>Most Improved Player:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='3009345' first='Jolanzo' last='Perez'], Marion</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->