Success in the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) state tournament is beginning to feel inevitable for the Marshall boys basketball program. Entering this season the Cardinals had made it all the way to the Division 4 state semifinals in 2021-22 and upset the No. 1 seed in their bracket in 2022-23 for a second straight regional title.
Making it a three-peat of regional titles would again take some hurdles in the 2024 edition of the state tournament. Given the No. 5 seed in Sectional 3 of Division 4, the Cardinals would have to get through No. 4 seed Cambridge and No. 1 seed Pardeeville if they wanted to hoist that trophy once again.
Marshall handled Cambridge itself in the regional semifinal, but No. 8 seed Poynette lended a helping hand by knocking off Pardeeville that same day. Marshall proceeded to cruise past the Pumas in the regional title game with a 16-point win to continue their streak of regional championships.
The Cardinals started tournament play by smoking No. 12 seed Necedah 73-24 in the regional opener on Tuesday, Feb. 27. A far taller task awaited them as they had to travel to No. 4 seed Cambridge on Friday, March 1. The Blue Jays, which finished tied in the final Capitol — South conference standings with Marshall at 5-5, had beaten the Cardinals twice in the regular season, 69-60 at home before surviving a 60-58 challenge at Marshall in the rematch.
Exacting revenge on a conference opponent to advance in the state tournament would be nothing new for Marshall. The Cardinals pulled off the feat in the midst of their 2021-22 state run. Back then, Capitol — South rival New Glarus had beaten Marshall twice in the regular season, 64-55 and 61-56. The two met in a WIAA sectional semifinal rematch. Marshall muscled out a 42-40 victory before marching on to win the sectional title two days later.
Marshall had the secret sauce in the third edition of the rematch, winning 75-69. The key to victory relied on slowing down star Cambridge junior Matt Buckman. He pieced the Cardinals up for 39 points in their first meeting and added 29 more in the second. He still got his due in the third matchup, 26 points to lead the game in scoring. Still, this was the lowest margin Marshall had held Buckman to. Otherwise, Cambridge got 18 points from junior Drew Holzhueter and 10 more from sophomore Jett Horton. Only five Blue Jays scored in total.
As for Marshall, seven Cardinals recorded a bucket. Junior Teseo Ruelas led the charge with a team-high 20 points, followed closely by fellow junior Kenyon Miggins with 19 and sophomore Brady Kleinheinz with 14. With the burden off their backs of finally getting the best of their conference rival, the Cardinals turned their attention towards the regional championship game.
As Marshall finished up its win on Friday, an upset was brewing in Pardeeville. The No. 1 seed Bulldogs, co-champions of the Trailways — West conference with a 20-4 regular season record, was losing to No. 8 seed Poynette. The Pumas had finished the regular season just 7-17. Included in those 17 losses was an 84-65 thumping from this very same Pardeeville team on Feb. 19. Things were different on March 1 as Poynette pulled the 71-63 upset.
The following day, Saturday, March 2, the Cardinals and Pumas clashed with a regional title on the line. Poynette’s Cinderella run struck midnight as Marshall handled its business in a 64-48 home victory.
The game quickly turned into the “Miggins Brothers” show as Marshall leaned on its superior athleticism. Junior Kenyon and freshman Jaylen filled up the stat sheet, scoring 40 of Marshall’s points. Kenyon knocked down 10 free throws to lead the game in scoring with 25 points. Jaylen found success driving the paint as he finished second on the team with 15 points. Additionally, the Cardinals got eight points from Ruelas and nine more from junior Carson Connelly.
Now, for the third consecutive season, Marshall will try its luck at WIAA sectional semifinals. The Cardinals will be up against No. 2 seed Randolph in neutral site action, hosted at Pardeeville High School on Thursday, March 7. The Rockets took down No. 7 seed Waterloo and No. 3 seed Deerfield to get to this point in the tournament.
Randolph earned the No. 2 seed in the state tournament by finishing as co-champion of the Trailways — West conference alongside Pardeeville. The Rockets finished the regular season with an 18-6 record before adding two more wins in tournament play. They also played Poynette earlier in late January and came back with a 49-42 road win.
Thursday’s winner advances to face the winner of No. 1 seed Mineral Point and No. 2 seed Darlington in the Sectional 3 title game, hosted at Portage High School on Saturday, March 9. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 PM.
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