Brookfield East regroups nicely
In a span of 15 seconds, Brookfield East’s top two scorers were whistled for their fourth foul.
At the time, the Spartans were on their heels, as Racine Park had cut a 14-point deficit to single digits and was in the bonus with over 10 minutes to play.
But instead of folding, East rallied together to put the game away.
With Patrick Cartier and Thomas Francken on the bench, Sam McGath and Riley Le Tourneau sparked a 14-1 run that sealed an eventual 81-63 victory over Park in a WIAA Division 1 sectional final March 10 at West Allis Central.
“It would have been easy to flinch at that point,” East coach Joe Rux said. “We could have gotten nervous with Patrick not in there.
“But I was just proud of how all of them came through in their roles and played together.”
Just two years after going 4-20 and winless in the Greater Metro Conference, East is off to its fourth state tournament in program history and for the first time since 1979.
The Division 1 semifinals are set for 6:35 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. Friday, March 16 at the Kohl Center in Madison. East will learn its opponent after teams are seeded Sunday.
“We were a struggling program just a couple of years ago,” Cartier said. “Coach Rux has come in and has pushed us every single day, and now we are sectional champions. It is a great feeling.”
Matched up against Division 1 prospect Nobal Days, Cartier scored 13 of his game-high 24 points in the first half but left after picking up his second foul with 3:40 until halftime.
Michael Poker and McGath picked up the slack, combining for 10 points to help East extend its lead from 32-26 to 44-34 with Cartier on the bench.
McGath scored the first four points of the second half to put the Spartans in front 48-34, but Park answered with an 8-2 run to get back into the game.
Francken and Cartier were then called for their fourth fouls on the same possession, as Cartier was whistled for hitting Days on a rebound with 10:49 left, and Francken picked up East’s seventh team foul at the 10:34 mark.
After Zyiere Carey split a pair of freethrow attempts to pull Park to within 5043, McGath helped the Spartans get back on track with a steal and a layup.
East then forced another Park turnover, and Le Tourneau drilled a threepointer on the other end.
It was the beginning of a 14-1 run that concluded with a three-point play by McGath that gave the Spartans a 64-44 advantage with 5:46 remaining.
Kettle Moraine Lutheran 53, Waupun 48: Lutheran overcame a 34-21 halftime deficit by outscoring Waupun, 3214, the rest of the way in a Division 3 matchup.
Manitowoc Roncalli 60, Prairie School 50: J.C. Butler scored 19 points for Prairie, which made only 3 of 22 threepoint attempts in the Division 4 sectional final.
Kaukauna 69, Nicolet 59: The thirdseeded Knights fell to the top-seeded Galloping Ghosts in a Division 2 sectional final.
Westosha Central 76, Monona Grove 55: The Falcons advanced to state easily against the Silver Eagles in a Division 2 sectional final.