Louisville Rallies for 44-37 Win at West Branch in Wertz’s Debut – Boys Basketball
Louisville 44, West Branch 37
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The Louisville Leopards Boys Varsity Basketball Team rallied for a 44-37 road victory over the West Branch Warriors in their season opener Tuesday night at West Branch High School.
Varsity Recap | Varsity Box Score | JV Box Score
Sanders Leads Second-Half Surge with Game-High 13
Brandon Sanders scored all of his game-high 13 points in the second half to lead the Leopards. Louisville trailed 21-10 at halftime before Sanders scored 8 points in the third quarter to help the Leopards close the gap to 27-25 heading into the final stanza.
Sanders would also finish with a team-leading 7 rebounds and 8 deflections on defense, while also tallying 3 steals, 2 assists, and 1 block.
Louisville Erases 12-Point Second-Half Deficit
Louisville trailed by as much as 26-14 midway through the third quarter before stringing together a 14-1 run to retake the lead. The Leopards outscored the Warriors 15-6 in the third quarter and 19-10 in the fourth quarter to take home a season-opening victory for the third straight season.
Drake Wilson scored 5 of his 9 points in the fourth quarter, which included going 3-for-3 from the free throw line. Wilson would also register 3 assists and 3 steals for the game.
Cayden Balcomb and Luke Boldon both finished with 8 points apiece. On the opening possession of the fourth quarter, Boldon cashed in on Louisville’s only three-pointer of the contest from the left corner to give the Leopards their first lead of the second half at 28-27. Boldon would match Sanders and Wilson with 5 points in the final quarter. Balcomb added 2 key fourth-quarter baskets while amassing a team-high 5 steals and 3 deflections on defense.
Leopards Pull Away Late
West Branch would retake the lead with a three-pointer, but Louisville would answer with an 8-0 run to take a 36-30 advantage before eventually building their largest lead of the game at 44-36 in the final minute.
The Leopards would finish 9 of 12 from the line, including 4 of 5 in the fourth quarter. The Warriors were just 7 of 16 from the line in comparison.
Cohen Rogers also finished with 4 points to go along with a team-leading 4 steals and a block. Colton Dougherty rounded out the Louisville scoring with an early first-quarter basket, 4 rebounds, and 3 deflections on defense.
The Leopards led 8-7 at the end of the first before the Warriors outscored them 14-2 in the second quarter. Louisville erased that halftime deficit by outscoring West Branch 34-16 in the second half.
Gregory Scores Team-High 10 for Warriors
Gavin Gregory scored a team-high 10 points and pulled down 8 rebounds to lead the Warriors. Kasen Weaver also scored 7 points, recorded 5 rebounds, and had a pair of steals. Landon Coffee led West Branch in rebounds with 9, scored 6 points, and registered a pair of blocks.
Jeremiah Thomas guided the offense with a team-best 4 assists and 4 points. Grady Hirst matched Thomas with 4 points and also secured 4 rebounds. Zach Coffee and Chase Gee rounded out the West Branch scoring with 3 points each.
Louisville Wins 13th Straight Over West Branch
The Leopards have now defeated the Warriors in 13 consecutive matchups dating back to 2013, which includes seven straight wins at West Branch. Louisville now leads the all-time series 59-24 overall, which includes a 28-9 record when playing in Beloit.
The 81 points scored is the second-lowest combined output in the series only behind the 1996 Division II Sectional matchup. West Branch attempted to stall-out a heavily favored Bill Eddins led Leopard squad, but Louisville prevailed n the end 26-24 in what remains the lowest scoring Leopard basketball game in the last 67 years.
<<< Previous 2025 | West Branch All-Time Series
UP NEXT: The Leopards will next host the Perry Panthers on Friday, December 5. JV will begin at 5:30 PM and Varsity will follow at approximately 7:00 PM from Louisville High School.
Cover Photo By Rick Everhart Photography
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Louisville at West Branch Boys Varsity Basketball Statistics
LEOPARDS 44, WARRIORS 37
Team 1-2-3-4–TOTAL
Louisville 8-2-15-19–44
West Branch 7-14-6-10–37
Louisville Leopards Boys Varsity Box Score
| Player | 2PT | 3PT | FG | FTM | FTA | Points |
| Brandon Sanders | 6 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 13 |
| Drake Wilson | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 |
| Cayden Balcomb | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| Luke Boldon | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| Cohen Rogers | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Colton Dougherty | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| TOTAL | 16 | 1 | 17 | 9 | 12 | 44 |
West Branch Warriors Boys Varsity Box Score
| Player | 2PT | 3PT | FG | FTM | FTA | Points |
| Gavin Gregory | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| Kasen Weaver | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Landon Coffee | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 6 |
| Grady Hirst | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Jeremiah Thomas | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| Zach Coffee | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Chase Gee | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| TOTAL | 12 | 2 | 14 | 7 | 16 | 37 |
Fouls: 18-18
Records: Louisville 1-0, West Branch 0-2
JV: Louisville 52, West Branch 33
JV Statistics
LEOPARDS 52, WARRIORS 33
Team 1-2-3-4–TOTAL
Louisville 12-9-21-10–52
West Branch 6-10-6-11–33
Louisville Leopards Boys JV Box Score
| Player | 2PT | 3PT | FG | FTM | FTA | Points |
| Jake Baker | 4 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 10 |
| Noah Ickes | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Louie Ozaki | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Blake Carr | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Drake Wilson | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Ryan Rush | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Caison Grimm | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| Ashton Weisend | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| TOTAL | 19 | 4 | 23 | 2 | 7 | 52 |
West Branch Warriors Boys JV Box Score
| Player | 2PT | 3PT | FG | FTM | FTA | Points |
| Mason Cosna | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Joey Troyer | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| Grady Olinger | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Brock Woost | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Michael McCartney | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Luke Curry | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Austin Hawk | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Jace Pierce | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| TOTAL | 10 | 3 | 13 | 4 | 6 | 33 |
Fouls: 8-6 Louisville
Records: Louisville 1-0
