The 98th State Boys Basketball Tournament resumed Friday with the semifinals in Divisions 3, 2 and 1 at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis. Friday's afternoon session set an all-time session attendance record at 16,300. The Friday morning session ranks third largest at 15,601 and the evening session of 15,408 is the fourth largest session in history. The previous attendance record was the session featuring the Divisions 1 and 2 championship finals in 2002, which drew 15,865 fans.
DIVISION 1
Mukwonago 64, Milwaukee King 47
Mukwonago (23-4) put an end to any plans of a championship game rematch of the 2012 title game with a 64-47 win over 2012 runner-up Milwaukee King (22-5) in the semifinals.
The game featured physical play with 28 fouls whistled on the Generals, which led to the Indians converting 22-of-35 free throws. In contrast, Milwaukee King was 10-of-14 from the line.
The Indians jumped out to a 5-0 lead and led throughout the first period. The Generals erased a 14-11 deficit to start the second quarter with the first four points of the period to lead 15-14 at the 6:07 mark. That would be the last time the Generals led in the game.
The game was tied at 33-33 in the third quarter when Mukwonago scored on three successive layups to open a six-point lead at 39-33 late in the period. However, Austin Malone-Mitchell converted a 3-pointer for the Generals to tie the game again at 40-40 to start the fourth quarter. The Indians responded with a 9-0 run that would prove insurmountable. A pair of free throws by Jamell Posey drew the Generals to within six points at 53-47, but 11 unanswered points in the final two minutes of the game produced the margin of victory.
Mukwonago was led in scoring by Nate Tanguay with 16 points. Dominic Cizauskas added 14 points and a game-high 12 rebounds with Nick Blohm chipping in with 13 points. Milwaukee King was paced by Malone-Mitchell with 18 points and Posey tossed in 12.
Germantown 80, Oshkosh North 60
Defending champion Germantown (27-0) remained unbeaten in pursuit of its second consecutive title with a convincing 80-60 victory over Oshkosh North (23-4).
An entertaining first quarter that featured seven lead changes ended with a 3-pointer by Lamonte Bearden that beat the buzzer and gave the Warhawks a 22-20 advantage and momentum that carried over into the second period. Germantown outscored the Spartans 30-12 in the second quarter thanks in part to six 3-pointers to lead 52-32 at halftime.
The second half opened in much of the same fashion for Germantown, scoring the first six points of the half with a traditional three-pointer and a conventional one from beyond the arc. The Warhawks would lead by as many as 28 points later in the third quarter and cruised through the fourth quarter to earn a return engagement to the title game.
Luke Fischer imposed his will with 32 points, 16 rebounds and six blocked shots to lead Germantown. Jake Showalter tied a Division 1 State Tournament record by hitting seven 3-pointers to account for his 21 points. The Spartans were led by Blake Marquardt with 17 points, and Nathan Neveau added 15.
Germantown will face Mukwonago in pursuit of its second consecutive championship Saturday at 8:15 p.m.
DIVISION 2
Wisconsin Lutheran 54, Stoughton 38
Wisconsin Lutheran (24-3) took control of the game at the onset with a 7-0 run to start the game and never trailed in a 54-38 triumph over Stoughton (17-9) in the battle of two teams nicknamed the Vikings.
Wisconsin Lutheran extended the lead to its largest of the first half at 17-4 early in the second quarter. Stoughton appeared poised to make a comeback with an 8-2 score spurt to narrow its deficit to seven points, but could get no closer. Anthony Carver hit a three-pointer just before halftime to widen the margin to 10 points at 27-17 heading into the break. A 15-5 run by Wisconsin Lutheran to start the third quarter opened a 20-point lead and erased any thoughts at a possible comeback.
Anthony Carver led all scorers with 12 points for Wisconsin Lutheran, and Deiondre Cunningham and Larry Moore tossed in 11 and 10 points respectively. Stoughton was led by Nick McGlynn with eight points and nine rebounds.
Pulaski 46, Onalaska 42
Pulaski's (23-4) deliberate offense and a tough defense was the combination to defeat defending champion Onalaska (24-3) 46-42 in overtime in their semifinal match-up.
Shots were at a premium in the game and particularly in the first quarter as only 10 points were scored with Pulaski holding a 6-4 lead enter the second period. The Hilltoppers went on a mini 9-3 run to start the second quarter to take their largest lead of the game at 13-9, but a pair of 3-pointers by the Red Raiders' Cody Wichmann midway through the quarter erased the advantage. Onalaska attempted only 16 shots in the first half and trailed 19-18.
Pulaski led by as many as nine points in the third quarter at 30-21. However, the Hilltoppers held the Red Raiders scoreless in the final minute of the period and through 6:15 into the fourth quarter to reduce their deficit to one on a Matt Thomas jumper with three minutes to play in the game. They would tie the game at 33-33 with 1:21 to go in regulation.
In overtime, Jordan Stiede opened the extra period with a 3-pointer and the Red Raiders never relinquished the lead. Thomas scored eight points in overtime, but Pulaski converted 8-of-11 free throws to fend off the defending champion.
Wichmann scored 17 points to lead Pulaski, and Stiede chipped in with 13. Both teams only attempted 32 shots in the game. Thomas accounted for 60 percent of the Hilltoppers' scoring with a game-high 25 points.
Pulaski will meet Wisconsin Lutheran for the Divsion 2 crown Saturday at 6:35 p.m.
DIVISION 3
Lodi 54, East Troy 46
Despite some anxious moments in the fourth quarter, Lodi (24-3) only trailed during the first minute of the game and defeated East Troy (23-4) 54-46 to advance to the championship game Saturday.
A 10-0 first-quarter run fueled by Brady Moses and Jordan Shea staked the Blue Devils to an 18-6 lead heading into the second quarter. Lodi built the lead to 15 with 6:38 in the half before the Trojans were able to cut the halftime deficit to 27-20.
East Troy continued to chip away at the Lodi lead throughout the third period, and trailed by three to start the fourth quarter. The Trojans finally got back to even with 35 seconds remaining in the game, but a pair of free throws by Shea and a costly East Troy turnover with 27 second left led to the need to foul and stop the clock. Lodi responded by hitting 6-of-6 from the charity stripe to secure the victory.
Shea led all scorers in the game with 21 points. Moses added 14 for the Blue Devils. East Troy was led by Nate Dodge with 16 points. The brother combo of Brett and Alex Prahl chipped in with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Aquinas 61, Little Chute 51
A jumper by Parker Weber with one second remaining in the first half ignited an 11-0 Aquinas run that extended well into the third quarter to propel the Blugolds to a 61-51 win over Little Chute in the first of two Division 3 semifinals.
The Blugolds were extremely efficient with their third quarter possessions to score 18 points and extend a three-point halftime lead to double digits and a 42-31 advantage heading into the fourth quarter. The Mustangs would narrow the gap to five points with 2:08 to play, but a lay-up and a pair of free throws by Bronson Koenig in the final two minutes help clinch the victory.
Weber led the Blugolds, which shot 59.5 percent for the game, with 18 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots. Koenig added 14 points and four assists. The Mustangs were led by Turner Botz with 19 points and Kenneth Lowe with 13 points.
Lodi and Aquinas advance to play in the Division 3 State championship game scheduled for Saturday at 2:30 p.m. at the Kohl Center.