The 2026 WIAA Boys Basketball State Tournament is finally here. The year end showcase where four teams each in five divisions have earned their way to the Kohl Center for a chance at a gold ball.
The Division 4 playoffs will kick off with the evening session on Thursday where the two semifinal games will be played, and the championship game will be the second game on Saturday night, putting a cap on the 2025-26 basketball season.
Below we’ll preview each team, their journey here, and then give a prediction at the bottom.
To see the full tournament field with game times, click here.
Division 4 State Tournament Schedule
Semifinals - Thursday, March 19 - 6:35 p.m.
Game 1: #1 Bonduel (25-3) vs. #4 Cambridge (19-9)
Game 2: #2 Milwaukee Juneau (26-1) vs. #3 Regis (23-5)
Championship Final - Saturday, March 21 - (15 minutes following completion of Division 5 championship game)
The Teams
Record: 25-3
Bound Power Index Ranking: #3 in Division 4, #41 Overall
Strength of Schedule Ranking: 176
Head Coach: Duke Copp - 13th year with Bonduel, 208 career wins
Conference: 14-0, CWC-East Conference Champion
Points Per Game: 71.5
Opponents Points Per Game: 53.0
Previous State Appearances: 2nd trip this year: 2025
Previous State Championships: None
Playoff Path
Beat Oconto 82-40 in Regional Semifinal
Beat Iola-Scandinavia 70-65 in Regional Final
Beat Kewaunee 73-62 in Sectional Semifinal
Beat Marathon 78-68 in Sectional Final
Top Players
Quinn Wesenberg, 6-3, jr, 1st Team All-CWC East - 19.5 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 3.8 apg; shooting splits: 45/39/86
Ryan Westrich, 6-6, sr, CWC-East Player of the Year (Wyoming football recruit) - 17.3 ppg, 10.1 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.9 bpg; shooting splits: 62/46/64
Carter Moesch, 6-2, jr, 2nd Team All-CWC East - 12.2 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 3.1 apg; shooting splits: 48/43/77
Griffin Uelmen, 5-9, sr, HM All-CWC East - 8.3 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 3.8 apg
Notes
Bonduel went to their first state tournament a season ago and were the Division 4 state runner-ups. Coach Copp’s group is hungry to get gold. This group’s experience from last year’s state tournament will be huge in comparison to the other three teams in the field, as the lights won’t be as bright, and the week of distractions won’t be as big. Ryan Westrich’s motor does not stop as the 6-6 big man dominates games down low and can stretch the floor if needed. Quinn Wesenberg is a smooth shooting lefty that can score in bunches. Carter Moesch was a huge part of last year’s state runner-up squad and can light it up from deep as well. The Bears shoot the ball well from beyond the arc, something that isn’t always as easy on the bigger floor in the bigger arena. Bonduel challenged themselves for this moment with non-con games with Saint Mary Catholic, Roncalli, Manitowoc Lutheran, and The Prairie School.
Record: 26-1
Bound Power Index Ranking: #1 in Division 3, #13 Overall
Strength of Schedule Ranking: 180
Head Coach: Torre Johnson - 1st year at Juneau, 26 career wins
Conference: 12-0, Milwaukee-Gold Conference Champion
Points Per Game: 84.1
Opponents Points Per Game: 62.1
Previous State Appearances: None
Previous State Championships: None
Playoff Path
Beat Kenosha Christian Life 79-32 in Regional Semifinal
Beat Living Word Lutheran 91-61 in Regional Final
Beat Cedar Grove-Belgium 79-63 in Sectional Semifinal
Beat Howards Grove 75-69 in Sectional Final
Top Players
Dooney Johnson, 6-6, jr, MCC-Gold Player of the Year (Gonzaga recruit) - 27.3 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 4.5 apg, 3.4 spg, 1.7 bpg; shooting splits: 59/44/73
Takis Tyler, 6-0, sr, 1st Team All-MCC Gold - 17.7 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 5.7 apg, 3.0 spg
Jaden Hardiman, 6-5, sr, 1st Team All-MCC Gold - 17.2 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 2.9 apg, 1/6 spg
Corey Collins, 6-7, soph, HM All-MCC Gold - 8.5 ppg, 6.0 rpg
Jasan Dennis, 5-11, sr - 6.2 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 4.5 apg
Notes
Juneau is a juggernaut in terms of talent in Division 4 as Gonzaga commit Dooney Johnson is one of the best players in the state and the biggest of X-factors in a state tournament. Takis Tyler and Jaden Hardiman are two very talented wings that help push the Pioneers pace, something that other teams have struggled to keep up with for 36 minutes per game. Likely the most electric offense in this Division 4 field, the Pioneers excel in the open court where the speed and ball handling can be difficult to slow down. As an aside, Milwaukee Juneau is actually called MacDowell Montessori School, which would mean if Juneau won gold, it’d be under a school name that is no more.
Record: 23-5
Bound Power Index Ranking: #10 in Division 4, #93 Overall
Strength of Schedule Ranking: 231
Head Coach: Connor Miller - 4th year at Regis, 59 career wins
Conference: 12-2, Cloverbelt-West co-Champion
Points Per Game: 76.3
Opponents Points Per Game: 57.0
Previous State Appearances: 5th trip this year: 2007, 2008, 2010, 2015
Previous State Championships: None
Playoff Path
Beat Bangor 91-80 in Regional Semifinal
Beat Luther 99-72 in Regional Final
Beat Durand-Arkansaw 63-43 in Sectional Semifinal
Beat Clear Lake 77-58 in Sectional Final
Top Players
Blake Risler, 6-4, sr, Cloverbelt-West Player of the Year (St. John’s MN recruit) - 28.6 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.4 apg, 2.4 spg; shooting splits: 54/45/79
DJ Cooper, 6-0, soph, 1st Team All-Cloverbelt West - 18.8 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 5.0 apg, 2.4 spg; shooting splits: 50/46/78
Bennett Risler, 6-3, frosh, 2nd Team All-Cloverbelt West - 11.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 1.6 apg
Joseph Brahmer, 6-3, jr, HM All-Cloverbelt West - 8.2 ppg, 7.0 rpg
Notes
Regis can score the ball at a scorching rate and has been doing so in these playoffs, having scored 90+ in two of their four postseason wins. The Ramblers as a whole, shoot it well from deep, where according to their stats on Bound, they shoot 41.2% from three as a team. Blake Risler is a candidate to score 40 on any given night while sophomore lead guard DJ Cooper is a great facilitator but also has a pure stroke from deep and is a three-level scorer. The Ramblers were tested in the Cloverbelt-West, but also had non-conference games with Marathon, Cameron, G-E-T, and Aquinas that served as tough challenges to prepare for games like they’ll see in Madiason.
Record: 19-9
Bound Power Index Ranking: #20 in Division 4, #161 Overall
Strength of Schedule Ranking: 239
Head Coach: Alex Ranney - 2nd year at Cambridge, 42 career wins
Conference: 8-2, Capitol-South co-Champion
Points Per Game: 64.9
Opponents Points Per Game: 55.7
Previous State Appearances: None
Previous State Championships: None
Playoff Path
Beat Fennimore 61-51 in Regional Semifinal
Beat Parkview 78-55 in Regional Final
Beat Darlington 64-56 in Sectional Semifinal
Beat Lomira 58-56 in Sectional Final
Top Players
Cal Nottestad, sr - 11.4 ppg, 3.4 rpg
Evan Harbort, soph - 8.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg
J’Kari Crawford, jr - 8.6 ppg, 3.6 rpg
Cash Cunningham, soph - 7.3 ppg
Jett Horton, sr - 7.3 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 3.3 apg
Oscar Brown, soph - 6.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg
Notes
Cambridge has been hot in the playoffs and closed games out down the stretch against some of the better teams in its sectional. The Blue Jays knocked off favorites Darlington and Lomira in back-to-back games and controlled the tempo in those matchups almost from the jump. Alex Ranney is in his second season as head coach and has been to two sectionals with now a state tournament under his belt. This specific Cambridge squad doesn’t have an elite scorer on its roster, but instead a group of six players that contribute. Cal Nottestad can get hot from behind the arc. Jett Horton is the steady senior leader. It’s the first ever state tournament appearance for Cambridge, so I’d imagine the entire town will be shut down and in the Kohl Center come Thursday evening.
Prediction
State Semifinals
Bonduel over Cambridge
Milwaukee Juneau over Regis
State Championship
Milwaukee Juneau over Bonduel
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].
