Williamsburg misses Weisskopf at Mount Vernon

MOUNT VERNON — The Williamsburg boys’ basketball team knew this would be a difficult Friday night trip to Mount Vernon.

After all, top scorer and Iowa football recruit Derek Weisskopf was in San Antonio at the 2024 All-American Bowl.

But things went sideways without their star in a 47-32 loss.

“It hurts having Derek gone,” Williamsburg’s Clayten Steckly said. “We just got smoked.”

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It was a five-point deficit at halftime, but the Mustangs won the third quarter 18-4.

“We turned the ball over too much,” Williamsburg Coach Brad Knoop said. “And those live-ball turnovers led to easy buckets the other way. That’s something you can’t have in basketball.”

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No. 10 Williamsburg could not take advantage of Mount Vernon missing its top scorer, Joey Rhomberg, out with a sternum injury. The Mustangs also lost Jackson Kutcher for a quarter after an on-court injury.

“We didn’t have Derek, and his 20 points game,” Knoop said. “But they lost Rhomberg and Kutcher for a good stretch.

“I think it came down to intensity on both ends of the floor. I thought Mount Vernon just had more. We couldn’t hold onto the ball, but that’s a lot of them just coming after it, really wanting the ball.”

The Raiders fell to 5-2 overall, with a loss to Grinnell before the break, and now one to Mount Vernon right after. There is no time to rest, with a four-game week (Monday at Mid-Prairie, Tuesday vs. West Delaware, Friday at South Tama and Saturday at No. 5 Waverly-Shell Rock).

“We got to do our best to get prepared for that,” Steckly said.

Stats

Mustangs 47, Raiders 32

WILLIAMSBURG (32) — Not submitted. MOUNT VERNON (47) — Cooper Parks 4-8 0-1 10, Kellen Haverback 4-15 1-2 10, Oliver Hinrichs 4-6 0-0 8, Jackson Kutcher 2-9 3-4 8, Joe Briesemeister 3-8 1-2 9, Cole Thurn 0-5 0-0 0, Stratton Ellyson 0-1 2-2 2, AJ McDermott 0-0 0-2 0. Totals 17-52 7-13 47.

Williamsburg 7 12 4 9 — 32 Mount Vernon 9 15 18 5 — 473-point goals — W’burg x-x, MV 6-25 (Parks 2-4, Haverback 1-9, Kutcher 1-8, Briesemeister 2-3, Ellyson 0-1). Rebounds — W’burg xx, MV 36 (Haverback 9, Briesemeister 9). Assists — W’burg xx, MV 12 (Kutcher 4). Turnovers — W’burg xx, MV 15. Total fouls — W’burg xx, MV 11.