Broncos finish year 15-9, reach district finals for third year in a row

The 2017-18 basketball season was one of highs and lows for the Wauneta-Palisade Broncos.
    The Broncos’ loss to Mullen in the district finals summed up the season well, according to WP Head Coach Dave Kuhlen.
    “This team was certainly unique in the sense where they were often a very confident team on the court and at other times it seemed like they didn’t feel like they could compete at all,” Kuhlen said. “That is how we can look so good in out scoring Mullen 17-7 in the first quarter and then get dominated 20-3 in the second.”
    Two of the Broncos’ biggest wins also highlight the up-and-down season.
    After beating Wallace soundly to open the season, the Broncos lost to the Wildcats in the RPAC tournament. WP got revenge with a big win in the subdistrict finals.
    WP also lost big to Dundy County-Stratton in the RPAC tournament, but a big win over DCS in WP’s final regular season game gave the Broncos momentum heading into post season play.
    Another big win was WP’s 10-point victory over Chase County.
    Overall, Kuhlen said the month of February was the highlight of the season. WP won six-straight games between Feb. 1 and Feb. 22, including a 25-point win over a Medicine Valley team which had beat the Broncos by 15 points in December.
    “The high point of the season was the month of February,” Kuhlen said. “Coming off of a horrible loss to Wallace, these kids regrouped and had their best stretch of the season.”
    Senior Cash Yearous led the way for WP throughout the season.
    “Cash moved in as an eighth grader and just improved every season,” said Kuhlen. “He is a great example to all of our players coming up in many areas including work ethic, shooting, being coachable, hustle and simply being a great teammate.”
    Yearous averaged 13.1 points this season, but had many huge games for the Broncos.
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