State Tournament Preview: Division 1

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>MADISON, Wis. -- </strong>The WIAA Division 1 State Tournament kicks off on Friday at the Kohl Center. Here's a closer look at the four finalists that will clash in Madison...</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>No. 1</strong> <strong>DE PERE (28-0) vs. No. 4 KETTLE MORAINE (18-10) - Friday 6:35 p.m.</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Everyone expected De Pere to be here. Kettle Moraine? Not so much.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Lasers, led by first-year head coach <strong>Trevon Hughes</strong>, went 18-10 overall, improving from a 14-12 mark a year ago. Although KM finished fourth in the Classic Eight, the Lasers were just one of two teams to beat fellow state qualifier Arrowhead this season, and cooled off a red-hot Franklin squad in the sectional finals.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1115917' first='Drew' last='Wagner'], also a standout football prospect, leads the way at 18.4 points per game. When he scores 20 or more points, KM is 9-2 this season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For the Redbirds, just pick your poison. They've got a deep roster that's played a ton of basketball together and somewhat mimics last season's Division 2 state title team, Pewaukee. Illinois State commit [player_tooltip player_id='953943' first='John' last='Kinziger'] (18.8 ppg), junior forward [player_tooltip player_id='1193234' first='Will' last='Hornseth'] (16.8 ppg), and sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id='1351717' first='Zach' last='Kinziger'] (15.5 ppg) are all Division 1 prospects. Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1176560' first='Hogan' last='Demovsky'] (5.6 ppg) and junior forward [player_tooltip player_id='1238625' first='Ben' last='Willihnganz'] (5.7 ppg) are also talented role players that could be stars on other teams.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Very few teams have even come close to beating De Pere this season. Of their 28 games, the Redbirds have played just two that came down to single digits. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>No. 2 ARROWHEAD (26-2) vs. No. 3 NEENAH (18-10) - Friday 8:15 p.m.</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The reigning Division 1 state champions are back in Madison. While they have the experience, it's a huge hill to climb against an Arrowhead squad that most feel is the only team in D1 capable of taking down De Pere. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>They got a lot of help in what was a wild sectional filled with upsets, but the Rockets head to Madison with an 18-10 overall record and have won seven of their last nine games. UW-Green Bay commit [player_tooltip player_id='963148' first='Cal' last='Klesmit'], who missed all of his junior season due to a torn ACL, put up 19 points, six rebounds, and five assists during his senior season. His running mate, junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1203253' first='Brady' last='Corso'], has starred as well, averaging 16 points per game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Classic Eight Conference champs, the Warhawks haven't lost since early February. Arrowhead had a relatively tricky road to Madison, having to go through sleepers such as Madison La Follette, Brookfield East, and Milwaukee Hamilton who were all under-seeded for various reasons. Regardless, Arrowhead still won all three by at least 19 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When you think of the Warhawks, you think of UW-Green Bay commit [player_tooltip player_id='953945' first='Mac' last='Wrecke'] (18.0 ppg), and rightfully so. However, there are so many parts to this squad, including senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1141628' first='Austin' last='Villareal'] (17.9 ppg), junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1142119' first='Bennett' last='Basich'] (16.0 ppg), and Iowa State football commit [player_tooltip player_id='1364523' first='Jace' last='Gilbert'] (11.1 ppg). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>PREDICTIONS</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Semifinals</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>(1) De Pere over (4) Kettle Moraine</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>(2) Arrowhead over (3) Neenah</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>State Championship</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>(1) De Pere over (2) Arrowhead</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->