We are now down to just 35 games and 40 teams left in the boys basketball playoffs, as the sectional semifinals have concluded and 20 sectional finals are coming on Saturday.
Below you’ll see a few of the top storylines and performances from Thursday night’s games, along with conference breakdowns and my picks for the sectional finals.
My Picks
Regional Quarters | Regional Semifinals | Regional Finals | Sectional Semifinals | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division 1 | 5/8 (62.5%) | 26/32 (81.3%) | 12/16 (75%) | 7/8 (87.5%) | 50/64 (78.1%) |
Division 2 | 21/25 (84%) | 28/32 (87.5%) | 12/16 (75%) | 5/8 (62.5%) | 65/81 (80.2%) |
Division 3 | 30/36 (83.3%) | 24/32 (75%) | 10/16 (62.5%) | 4/8 (50%) | 68/92 (73.9%) |
Division 4 | 25/34 (73.5%) | 25/32 (78.1%) | 11/16 (68.8%) | 5/8 (62.5%) | 65/90 (72.2%) |
Division 5 | 55/62 (88.7%) | 30/32 (93.8%) | 12/16 (75%) | 5/8 (62.5%) | 102/118 (86.4%) |
Total | 136/165 (82.4%) | 133/160 (83.1%) | 57/80 (71.3%) | 26/40 (65%) | 352/445 (79.1%) |
Big East and Marawood Continue to Win
The Big East sent six teams to sectional play, and four of them won on Thursday night. The mixed-sized school league out of the northeast went 3-2, with one of those losses coming in an intra-league matchup. Sheboygan Lutheran, Reedsville, and Howards Grove will all have a chance to punch their tickets to state on Saturday.
A few notes from those Big East games:
Zach Leonhard is back for Sheboygan Lutheran and he made his presence known in a big way in Thursday’s overtime win over Oakfield. Down three with under five seconds left, coach Nick Verhagen drew up a great play that got Leonhard open for a game-tying three. He hit it in thrilling fashion as the ball hit the rim, bounced 10 feet in the air, and came back down through the net.
Though Elkhart Lake-Glenbeulah fell to Reedsville, senior Ethan Fromm hit the 1,000 point mark for the Resorters.
The Marawood went 3-1 and similar to the Big East, the only loss came in a game between two conference teams. Assumption (4-seed) and Prentice (3-seed) are hot in these playoffs while Marathon (1-seed) has been rolling per usual. All three could get to Madison.
Big Eight Team Heading to the Kohl Center
Regardless of how the it shakes out, a Big Eight conference team will be playing in the state tournament for the first time since Jalen Johnson’s Sun Prairie team in 2019. Madison Memorial and Verona will meet in the sectional final at Sun Prairie West to determine which league team will represent their conference.
Rematch Rundown
Kaukauna went 3-0 against Neenah with their sectional semifinal victory
Madison Memorial won the grudge match against Big Eight co-champion Middleton to get to Saturday
Menomonie avenged two regular season losses to New Richmond and will play for a state tournament berth
West Salem outlasted La Crosse Central’s comeback to avenge an 18-point loss to the Riverhawks from the last night of the regular season
Notre Dame goes 2-1 against FRCC foe West De Pere with sectional semifinal victory
Slinger knocks off Port Washington after the Pirates won by one point back in early January
McFarland wins the grudge match with Badger-Large co-champ Mount Horeb and will play for a trip to the Kohl Center
Waterford completes a 3-0 sweep of Southern Lakes foe Burlington to end the run of the Demons in the playoffs
Saint Croix Central wins over Osceola in the third matchup between these two Middle Border squads
Lancaster outlasts fellow SWC co-champ Platteville to win the season series 2-1 and advance to the sectional finals
Lake Mills beats Watertown Luther Prep for a second time this year
Racine St. Catherine’s wins another single digit contest with Racine Lutheran in one of the best rivalries in our sport the past few seasons
Bonduel beats an undefeated Kewaunee team that had an 81-77 victory over the Beavers from the regular season
Cambridge avenges a 31-point loss to Darlington from late December and advances to Sectional Final Saturday
Prentice completes the season sweep of Rib Lake, going 3-0 against its Marawood-North rival to get to the sectional final game
Reedsville beats Elkhart Lake-Glenbeulah to go 3-0 against the Resorters and sit just one win shy of Madison
Southwestern stymies North Crawford beats a Trojan team that had won by 20 over them in mid-January
Conference with Multiple Sectional Final Teams
Big East - 3
Marawood - 3
Bay - 2 (teams play each other in sectional finals)
Big Eight - 2 (teams play each other in sectional finals)
Capitol - 2
Coulee - 2
CWC - 2
FRCC - 2
FVA - 2 (teams play each other in sectional finals)
North Shore - 2
Woodland - 2
Top Performances
James Brady, Tigerton
Brady was absolutely dominant as Tigerton knocked off Wabeno/Laona 54-41 to improve to 28-0 and a sectional final appearance. The junior big man finished with 26 points, 18 rebounds, and 3 assists offensively, but made his presence known defensively, adding 5 blocks.
Jake Broeske & Blake Steger, Lomira
Broeske manned the middle while Steger attacked off the dribble relentlessly, leading Lomira to a 67-54 win over Pardeeville. The senior big man in the middle went 9 of 14 from the field and finished with 20 points and 13 rebounds, turning back two shots via the block. Steger was the engine for the Lions as he was 11 of 12 from the field and finished with a game high 29 points. He added 5 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and a block as well.
Mason Brone, G-E-T
It’s takeover time for Brone, something he has done the past two games for the Red Hawks in their playoff victories. After pouring in 35 in the regional championship game, the senior guard had 33 points in a 90-80 win over Stanley-Boyd. Brone added four rebounds and six assists.
Tanner Grinnell Game Winner for Saint Croix Central
Grinnell, a 6-9 senior forward had a moment he’ll likely not forget as the Panthers beat Osceola 65-63 Thursday night. As time was expiring, Grinnell secured an offensive rebound and went right back up as the clock wound to zero. His put back went through the net and sent his team to the sectional finals.
Caden Gustafson, Waterford
Gustafson has been one of the top seniors in the state this year and has now put his Wolverines one game away from the state tournament. The Northern Michigan commit finished with a cool 26 points, knocking down six of ten shots from deep. He added six rebounds and five assists.
Amare Hereford, Beloit Memorial
Unfortunately Hereford’s season has come to an end as Beloit Memorial fell to Verona on Thursday night. The lefty senior guard did everything he could to get to Saturday as he finished with a game high 49 points. Hereford leaves a legacy at Beloit Memorial, having scored over 2,000 points, including averaging nearly 40 a game this season.
Terrin Jackson, Verona
The sophomore guard had a breakout game in one of the biggest moments as Verona topped former Big Eight foe Beloit Memorial 85-76. Jackson finished with a team high 32 points for the Wildcats.
Ryan Westrich, Bonduel
The all-time leading scorer in Bonduel history is determined to get back to the Kohl Center, and his performance in the sectional semifinal win over Kewaunee showed tht. Westrich finished with 27 points and 12 rebounds for the Bears, who are looking to get back to Madison for a second straight season.
Xavier
Xavier is one of two Bay conference teams to win on Thursday night, which sets up a third game with Seymour on Saturday in the sectional final. Matt Klarner’s Hawks had five different players score in double figures in their semifinal win over Brillion, led by Logan Racmzyk’s 19 point and 10 rebound performance.
My Sectional Final Picks
Division 1
Appleton North over Kaukauna
De Pere over Brookfield East
Madison Memorial over Verona
Wisconsin Lutheran over Racine Case
Division 2
West Salem over Menomonie
Slinger over Notre Dame
New Berlin West over McFarland
Waterford over Whitefish Bay
Division 3
G-E-T over Saint Croix Central
Seymour over Xavier
Lake Mills over Lancaster
Racine St. Catherine’s over Oostburg
Division 4
Regis over Clear Lake
Bonduel over Marathon
Lomira over Cambridge
Milwaukee Juneau over Howards Grove
Division 5
Prentice over Turtle Lake
Reedsville over Tigerton
Assumption over Southwestern
Sheboygan Lutheran over Barneveld
Colton Wilson serves a contributor and member of Bound Wisconsin. Wilson has worked in high school sports for 10 years, covering the state of Wisconsin in various sports. He has had roles in content creation, boys basketball coverage, director of events, and data management. Wilson is a graduate of Richland Center High School where he will currently serves as the Varsity Reserve boys basketball coach, entering his eleventh year coaching at the high school level. Wilson also has officiated basketball and organized youth tournaments for multiple years. You can follow him on Twitter at @ColtonWilson23 or reach him at [email protected].
