Milwaukee, WI

Matchups of top teams highlight Milwaukee-area boys hoops takeaways

Published

2 months ago

January 24, 2026

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Matchups of top teams highlight Milwaukee-area boys hoops takeaways

Wisconsin Lutheran defeated Greendale, ending the Panthers’ 12-0 start to the season.
West Allis Central’s Yusef Gray Jr. scored 42 points in a win over Brookfield East after committing to Iowa State.
Brookfield East is without freshman standout Max McMullen due to a lower arm injury.
Milwaukee Lutheran guard Xavier Allen surpassed 1,000 career points in a win over Shorewood.

School closures for the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday and subsequently Jan. 23 as temperatures dropped put a tighter bookend on the week in boys high school basketball, but there were still some premier matchups in the Milwaukee area.

Among those games that went on as scheduled were two meetings of top-four area teams entering the week, as well as a smattering of other conference and nonconference affairs as well.

Here are takeaways from the week in Milwaukee-area boys high school basketball.

Wisconsin Lutheran knocks down Greendale despite strong start

The No. 4 Greendale Panthers saw a strong 12-0 start to their season come to a screeching halt over the past week-and-a-half with losses to Franklin (72-64 on Jan. 17) and area No. 1 team Wisconsin Lutheran (73-45 on Jan. 20). Greendale coach Ryan Johnsen said the team is still optimistic and eager to improve over the latter half of the season while sitting now at 12-2.

“I think a lot of the teams in the state would take that,” Johnsen said of his team’s record after the loss to Wisco. “Our roster is really well connected. We’ve got great chemistry, kids understand their roles.”

Taking on a new role as top scoring option this year is 6-foot-6 senior guard Zavier Castillo, who has seen his scoring average climb by 15 points from his 11.9 points per game average as a junior. Rather than one area of improvement leading to that increase, Johnsen said he sees steady improvement across the board in ball-handling, shooting, strength and buy-in on defense.

“When your best player sort of sets the tone at [defense], everybody else kind of falls in line,” Johnsen said.

Rounding out a Panthers lineup also featuring 6-2 senior guard Brandon Harper (14.0 ppg) and 6-3 senior guard Tyler Roche (12.5 ppg) are a pair of juniors making the leap to varsity this year in 6-4 guard Korben Pfeifer (5.9 ppg) and 6-foot guard Grady Smith (9.5 ppg). Castillo said the difference for the team this year has been in its selflessness, which he has tried to help set the tone in as well.

“We’ve got to make sure everyone eats for sure, and in practice we’re just doing all the little things to make sure everyone gets better,” Castillo said.

Johnsen also had high praise for the Vikings, who moved into Max Preps’ national top 10 ranked teams this past week.

“They’re so talented, they’re so well-coached, they’re so long and play so well as a team,” Johnsen said. “No matter what five guys they have on the court, they’re all five difficult to guard. Obviously they have the high, high-level guys, but some of the guys that you don’t think about, they’re still really, really good basketball players. [Riley] Walz knocked down some big shots. I think [Tristan] Hahn hit some big shots. They’re a really strong team. I know Zens and the Knueppels get a lot of notoriety, but they got a special group there. They’re well-coached, it’s just really hard to defend.”

Highlights from West Allis Central’s 91-56 win over Brookfield East

Highlights from West Allis Central’s 91-56 win over Brookfield East on Jan. 22, 2026, led by Iowa State recruit Yusef Gray Jr.

Yusef Gray Jr. talks Iowa State commitment after 42 points in win

Two days after Wisconsin Lutheran and Greendale held their battle of top area teams, No. 2 West Allis Central (12-1) and No. 3 Brookfield East (13-1) met in a similarly high-stakes matchup.

An ultimately short-handed Spartans squad was routed at home, 91-56, as Iowa State recruit Yusef Gray Jr. scored 42 points to lead a runaway victory. Coach David Mlachnik lauded Gray’s improvement through his high school career leading up to what has been a stellar senior campaign.

“Ball-handling, playmaking, shooting, he always had that stuff, but he just continues his work every day. He puts a ton of time in, plus if you take a look at body strength, he put a lot of time in the weight room and that’s paying off,” Mlachnik said. “Just a great kid that just works his tail off.”

An attendee of the Jan. 22 game was already sporting a “Gray Jr.” Iowa State No. 3 jersey that Yusef signed after the game. Gray admitted it was not his first as a few relatives and teammates have been taken care of, but it was nevertheless an exciting sign of the things to come.

“It’s a blessing. Just not looking too far ahead. I’ve got a long season ahead, but it’s most definitely a blessing,” Gray said. “Seeing all these people showing me love and stuff I prayed for, and I just want to give all glory to God.”

The 6-5 West Allis Central guard is far from the first local product to choose Iowa State in recent years, as coach T.J. Otzelberger and his staff have made a point of seeking out recruits in the same metro area Otzelberger once roamed as a student at St. Thomas More. Gray said it is an intentional and genuine approach that has attracted himself among other recent Wisconsin signees like Pewaukee’s Milan Momcilovic, Milwaukee Academy of Science’s Jamarion Batemon, Brookfield Central’s Anthony Rise as well as Oshkosh North’s Xzavion Mitchell.

“They’re doing a really good job at that, and it’s ultimately working,” Gray said.

The Bulldogs are collectively focused on the task ahead, however, and have a senior-heavy lineup acting with urgency as they have largely rolled through their competition all year long.

“We’re going into every game like it’s a state championship game, not looking at teams no different, just giving our all every game,” Gray said.

Brookfield East without top freshman entering critical conference stretch

One development that put the Spartans at a disadvantage headed into the loss to West Allis Central was an apparent right lower arm injury to breakout freshman Max McMullen. The 6-foot guard was seen with a cast on his right wrist on Jan. 22 for an undisclosed injury that coach Joe Rux said will keep him out for “a little bit,” though he anticipates McMullen will return this season.

In addition to missing McMullen’s scoring (18.3 ppg), Rux said the freshman’s ability as a facilitator was badly missed against West Allis Central.

“I don’t want to put him in Yusef’s category because Yusef is a senior and he’s really good. Max is going to be really good obviously, but very similar in terms of where Yusef is at right now. They’re very similar in finding solutions. They’re not, ‘I’m only going to score’ you know. ‘I’ll score if that’s the right solution,’ ” Rux said. “We’re trying to figure it out right now and trying to figure out who can take the reins.”

Seeing increased minutes in McMullen’s stead were sophomore 6-1 guard Davian White and senior 6-foot guard Owen Counsell, while starting senior 5-9 guard Ronje Horton Jr. saw increased duties facilitating from the perimeter. While admitting it had been a short turnaround for his team to find solutions without that second guard adept at putting pressure on opposing defenses, Rux was candid in his assessment of his team’s response Jan. 22.

“We didn’t respond. That’s how we responded,” Rux said. “Obviously WAC is really good, so not taking anything away from them by any stretch. Yusef Gray is – if not the best player in the state – I don’t know who is.”

With or without McMullen for the foreseeable future, Rux’s immediate takeaways from the loss were his team needed to compete, box out and defend at higher levels.

“There’s a lot to learn from this game about who we not only are when Max is here and where we had to get better then, but when Max is gone. Maybe some of those errors [were] masked a little bit, now they’re glaring,” Rux said. “Max will come back at some point, obviously our offense will look a little bit more like it has, but that’s not an excuse. Giving up 90 points is not acceptable whether it’s WAC or Brook Central or whoever it might be.”

The Spartans entered Jan. 24 with a half-game lead in a competitive Greater Metro Conference race (6-1), but know there is work to be done quickly to fend off the likes of Germantown (6-2), Brookfield Central (6-2), Wauwatosa West (4-3) and Menomonee Falls (4-4).

Xavier Allen hits career scoring milestone

Milwaukee Lutheran 6-foot guard Xavier Allen reached 1,000 career points while scoring 25 in an 80-75 win over Shorewood on Jan. 21. The senior is averaging 25.4 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game this year for the Red Knights (9-4), who ended the week sitting a game back of West Allis Central in second in the Woodland East Conference.

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Milwaukee, WI

Truck drives in to Grace Coffee in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward overnight

Published

3 hours ago

March 27, 2026

Press Room

Truck drives in to Grace Coffee in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward overnight

MILWAUKEE — A truck drove through the Grace Coffee Co. in Milwaukee’s Historic Third Ward on early Friday morning, the owners announced in a social media post.

Due to the extensive damage that was done, the coffee shop will be closed until further notice.

TMJ4

“We’re incredibly grateful no one was hurt, and we’ll keep you updated as we begin repairs,” the coffee shop said in the post.

TMJ4 reached out to the Milwaukee Police Department but have yet to hear back.

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Milwaukee, WI

MPS layoffs plan draws pushback as district works to close $46M gap

Published

15 hours ago

March 26, 2026

Press Room

MPS layoffs plan draws pushback as district works to close M gap

MPS cuts face backlash

Milwaukee Public Schools plans about 200 layoffs to close a $46 million budget gap, but union leaders say cuts could impact student safety while district leaders say no classroom teachers will be eliminated.

MILWAUKEE – Milwaukee Public Schools is planning to cut roughly 200 positions next school year as the district works to close a multi-million-dollar budget gap — but there’s disagreement over which roles will be impacted.

What we know:

District leaders say the goal is to close a roughly $46 million shortfall, prompting changes that Superintendent Brenda Cassellius says are necessary.

Milwaukee Public Schools said about 201 staff members will be impacted. District leaders say no classroom teachers, counselors or social workers will be cut — something the teachers’ union disputes.

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The reductions stem from a previously approved plan to eliminate about 260 non-classroom roles. The final number dropped after retirements and existing vacancies. The Milwaukee Board of School Directors approved that plan on March 9.

What they’re saying:

“We have a $50 million deficit, we are for sure not going to be able to do business the same way that we’ve been able to do business,” Cassellius said. “Change is just hard. It’s just hard. And every single one of our employees is so important.”

But some educators say the cuts go too far.

“MTEA is setting up a distress signal. We are talking about our teachers, art teachers, music teachers, physical education teachers, counselors — things that the voters of referendum of Milwaukee actually voted for,” said Ingrid Walker-Henry, president of the Milwaukee Teachers’ Education Association. “Staffing is being cut to the extent that they are concerned about student safety.”

Cassellius acknowledged the uncertainty and asked school leaders for patience.

“We just have to for sure know our budget situation, where we’re at with that after these cuts are made in order to make those decisions,” she said. “So I’m asking my principals, be patient with us.”

By the numbers:

The district outlined the 201 affected positions as:

70 central office roles
62 educators with a teaching license but not assigned to one classroom
59 assistant principals

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MPS says the savings will support new class size guidelines, including:

18 students per teacher in K3
20 students per teacher in K4
22 students per teacher in K5

Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS)

District leaders say no students will be asked to leave a school to meet class size guidelines. Officials say they are working with schools that may not have space or that require larger classes based on specific programs.

What’s next:

Milwaukee Public Schools plans to present its proposed 2026–27 budget to the Milwaukee Board of School Directors in May.

The Source: Information in this post was provided by Milwaukee Public Schools and prior FOX6 coverage.

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Milwaukee, WI

Brewers finally announce cable, satellite TV channels for broadcasts

Published

1 day ago

March 26, 2026

Press Room

Brewers finally announce cable, satellite TV channels for broadcasts

Just before the pitch clock hits zero, the Milwaukee Brewers released a rundown of channels on cable and satellite for game broadcasts, mere hours before the 1:10 p.m. CT first pitch on Opening Day, Thursday, March 26.

The club said channels include 1263 on XFinity, 670 on DirecTV, 1743 on U-Verse, and 319 or 469 on Spectrum. The broadcasts are also listed as available on streaming service Fubo.

The Brewers are pointing fans to a channel-finding tool on their web site at Brewers.com/watch, though in the moments after the announcement, the channel finder was not yet locating details for Spectrum customers for Milwaukee-area zip codes. A club spokesperson said Major League Baseball was aware of the error and the games would indeed air on Spectrum in Milwaukee.

The built-in Spectrum guide still showed Channel 308 as the “BREW” offering in Milwaukee, with Brewers Live Pregame scheduled to begin at noon CT and baseball at 1 p.m. March 26.

With the February announcement of a switchover from FanDuel Sports Wisconsin to Major League Baseball productions in 2026, MLB negotiations have gone down to the wire with the various providers around Wisconsin. Several teams covered by Main Street Sports, which operated the FanDuel brand, have been in a similar boat this offseason.

Brewers fans aren’t alone in experiencing the late-arriving channel information. Maury Brown of Forbes has been keeping track of all the late-arriving channel announcements for teams around baseball, specifically those that were covered by the Main Street Sports. As of 7 a.m. March 26, the Royals, Rays, Tigers and Braves also still hadn’t released channel listings.

Streaming customers who used the FanDuel Sports Wisconsin app in previous years can use the new Brewers.TV option to once again watch games. The opener is also one of 10 games simulcast on over-the-air channels this season, including WITI-TV (Channel 6) in Milwaukee.

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