EDITOR'S NOTE: The Swnews4u.com Athlete of the Week is a web-only feature that will publish each Thursday throughout the calendar year.

Isaac Anderson, sr., Iowa–Grant boys basketball

     Iowa–Grant's Isaac Anderson is a special talent drawing attention from a number college basketball recruiters in the midwest, primarily at the Division III level. The SWAL's leading scorer averaged 24.3 points and seven rebounds per game in three recent Iowa–Grant wins and is this week's Mast Water Technology Athlete of the Week.

     The 6-foot-4 do-it-all forward scored a career-high 34 points and grabbed six rebounds to a 66–45 non-conference victory at Lancaster. It was the Panthers' 10th straight victory since a season-opening loss to Dodgeville. Anderson scored 23 of his game-high 34 points in the second half as I–G rallied from a 28–25 halftime deficit behind the inspired play of its standout senior. Lancaster tried everything to slow Anderson and company, including a triangle-and-two on Anderson and Iowa–Grant senior point guard Brayden Johnson.

     "Isaac is a special player and he wants the ball at crunch time," said Iowa–Grant head coach Toby Tripalin. "We really wanted him to get the ball and be aggressive in the second half and he again rose to the occasion. I believe it was a career high."

     Anderson scored 15 of his game-high 21 points in the first half of I–G's dominating 74–52 SWAL victory at Fennimore last Friday night. He also scored 18 points in a 65–56 conference win over Boscobel on Tuesday, Jan. 7.

     Anderson is averaging 22.7 points and nearly nine rebounds a game for SWAL-leading Panthers (10–1, 5–0), who have climbed to the number 10 ranking in the latest wissports.net Division 4 poll with their current 10-game winning streak.

     Earlier this year, the four-year varsity starter and two-time All-SWAL selection surpassed the 1,000-point mark for his career in a 71–67 victory over Southwestern on Dec. 11.

     “Isaac is a very versatile scorer and extremely level headed when he plays,” added Tripalin. “He never gets rattled and that allows him to stay focused and in control and not dwell on a missed shot or turnover, he stays focused. His ability to beat you from outside and inside really gives us a valuable weapon and we do a nice job of finding him in his comfort areas. Isaac scored 1,000 points the right way, by being extremely unselfish and put his team first always.”

HONORABLE MENTION:

Wyatt Bastain, fr., Benton boys basketball

     The freshman guard sank four of his five 3-pointers in the first six minutes of the second half to rally the Zephyrs over winless Monticello, 80–68, in a non-conference boys' basketball game at Benton on Monday. Benton trailed by as many as 13 points in the first half before using a late run to tie the score at 38 all by the intermission. Bastian poured in 14 of his season-high 19 points in the second half as the Zephyrs outscored the Ponies, 42–30, in the period to snap a seven-game losing streak. Bastian led five Benton players in double figures. The Zephyr freshman also hit three 3s and scored a team-high nine points in Benton's 73–39 loss to eighth-ranked Shullsburg at BHS last Friday.

Chad Golackson, jr., Darlington boys basketball

     Golackson shot 9-for-9 from the field on his way to a career-high 21 points in the Redbirds' 63–47 SWAL win at Southwestern last Tuesday. He went 6-for-6 from two-point range and 3-for-3 from beyond the free throw arc. Golackson also hit two first-half 3-pointers and scored 11 points in Darlington's 70–52 win over Boscobel, and he helped the Redbirds win their fourth game in a row with a nine-point effort against Platteville on Tuesday night.

Aaron McCarthy, jr., Cuba City/Benton/Southwestern wrestling

     McCarthy added a gold medal to his growing collection of tournament awards this season after winning the 285-pound title at Saturday's Lancaster Invitational. McCarthy, who won the 285-pound title at the Black Hawk/Darlington Invitational on Dec. 5 and finished second at Sugar River on Dec. 12, improved to 18–3 on the year with his 3–0 showing at Lancaster last weekend.

Jon Bahr, sr., Belmont boys basketball

     Bahr scored a game-high 15 points and passed out eight assists to lead the Braves (7–3, 3–1 SRW) to a 79–44 victory over Cassville last Friday night. He also posted a near triple–double of nine points, nine rebounds, seven assists and two steals in a 56–41 victory over Black Hawk on Tuesday, Jan. 5.

Cheyanne Udelhoven, sr., Fennimore girls basketball

     Udelhoven eclipsed the 1,000-point mark for her career with a game-high 18 points in the Golden Eagles' 52–46 non-conference loss to Cassville on Monday. She is third all-time on the Fennimore scoring list behind only Breland Prochaska and Alexi Needham. Udelhoven scored seven points in a 43–30 SWAL win over Boscobel on Thursday, Jan. 7.

Dillon Shinee, jr., Platteville boys basketball

     Shinee posted a double–double with a game-high 15 points and 14 rebounds, and drew three charges to lead Platteville to a 59–51 SWC over River Valley last Thursday night.

Rachel Emendorfer, sr., Platteville girls basketball

     The senior point guard scored a career-high 15 points, went 8 for 8 from the free throw line and hit a key three-pointer in Platteville's late second-half run to lead the SWC-leading Hillmen (10–2, 4–0 SWC) to a 58–51 comeback victory at Prairie du Chien last Friday night.