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Cougars complete first winless season

BURLINGTON — First-year Janesville Craig boys basketball coach Mike Miller just chuckled a little when asked if he thought his team might sneak up on someone in the postseason, based on the small scare the Cougars put into a strong Verona team in the regular-season finale.

Miller simply doesn’t believe you can surprise anyone in the postseason, and he turned out to be correct on Tuesday night as Craig High was soundly defeated, 68-45, by Burlington in a WIAA Division 1 regional semifinal game.

“I heard that before, too, someone saying, ‘Maybe they’ll overlook you,’ ’’ Miller said. “One thing I do understand about the tournament is that teams don’t overlook you. They scout; they’re ready to go.

“(Burlington) is a team, I think, (that) believes (it) can get to the state tournament, so you definitely don’t want to get knocked off in the first round against a team that hasn’t had much success.”

Craig certainly didn’t have much success this season, and there’s really no way around it. The loss dropped the Cougars to 0-23, completing the first winless season in the program’s proud 43-year history.

“I knew I was coming into a (rebuilding ) situation, and you can’t do it in a year,” Miller said. “I knew it was going to be a rough season. We played some close games, but it wasn’t good enough.”

But he isn’t about to let it end there.

“I’m ready to get back at it,” the former Craig standout said.

The tournament opener was basically over halfway through the first quarter.

Craig, seeded 14th, couldn’t handle third-seeded Burlington’s up-tempo pace as the Demons (16-7) roared out to a 15-1 lead. The Demons made their first seven shots against Craig’s zone defense, including four three-pointers, and led 32-9 after connecting on 14-of-18 shots from the field overall in the first quarter.

Travis Crayton’s 17 points led a balanced attack for Burlington, which hosts 11th-seeded Kenosha Tremper (7-16) in a regional final at 7 p.m. on Saturday, with the winner getting a spot in the Beloit Sectional.

Craig did much of its scoring from the free-throw line, going 19-of-28 for the game. Tom Kitching led the Cougars with eight points, while Nate Brault and Brett Pickarts each scored seven. Myles Johnson grabbed 12 rebounds.

“I think they battled hard, for the most part, all year,” Miller said of his Cougars. “Today was a little disappointing. They played hard, and I appreciate that.

“We’ll be better.”

BURLINGTON 68, CRAIG 45

Craig (45)—Johnson, 1-3-5; Dare, 0-3-3; Brault, 2-3-7; Holznecht, 1-4-6; Kitching, 3-2-8; Pickarts, 3-0-7; Bates, 1-1-4; Wright, 0-1-1; Bordwell, 0-2-2; Sarow, 1-0-2. Totals: 12-19-45.

Burlington (68)—Robers, 5-0-12; Crayton,

5-4-17; Vogt, 2-0-4; Brandt, 5-0-11; Bonczkowski, 3-0-6; Gerber, 2-0-4; Chavarria, 3-1-7; Miller, 2-0-4; Taylor, 0-1-2; Weidert, 0-2-2. Totals: 27-8-68.

Janesville Craig 9 10 5 21—45

Burlington 32 17 5 14—68

Three-point goals—Craig 2 (Pickarts, Bates), Burlington 6 (Crayton 3, Robers 2, Brandt). Free throws missed—Craig 9, Burlington 5. Total fouls—Craig 11, Burlington 22.