WISCONSIN DELLS -- Wes Rahn and Alex Reinke each spent significant portions of the first half saddled with two personal fouls.
The two Warriors stalwarts spent the second half putting their fingerprints all over the game, sending Lakeside to the state tournament in consecutive seasons.
Rahn and Reinke combined to score 25 second-half points as Lakeside Lutheran's boys basketball team staved off Platteville 75-71 in a Division 3 sectional final at Wisconsin Dells High School on Saturday afternoon.
"It is mind numbing and it is incredible, words don't describe it," Lakeside boys basketball coach Todd Jahns said of reaching state. "We will all, probably, in about three weeks, all of the sudden realize and say 'that just happened'.
"The feeling of togetherness is incredible. Unifying the school, the fans and the student body is special. This team has a team component that is unbelievable. It's a love, care, trust and want to do well. It's not a reliance on any one person. When you're playing for that and it's who you are, you can do anything. When you reach that pinnacle, it's surreal."
Lakeside (26-2) used a 13-0 run over 3 minutes, 13 seconds early in the second half to wipe away a nine-point deficit and regain a lead it would not relinquish.
Platteville (24-4) pulled within 64-61 on senior forward-center Zach McClain's putback, which came on the heels off a 3-pointer by junior guard Lucas Ludlum, with 4:19 to go, forcing a Lakeside timeout.
McClain scored twice inside sandwiched around a layup by junior guard Easton Wolfram as the Warriors clung to a 68-65 lead with 3:10 left.
Reinke, on a look from Rahn, scored at the rim to push the Warriors margin to five, where it would stay until under a minute remaining.
Platteville senior guard Davyn Edge intercepted a pass at midcourt, racing the other way for a score at the hole, cutting the Hillmen deficit to 70-67 with 31 seconds left.
Reinke was then fouled with 26.3 remaining and Lakeside in the single bonus. The 6-foot-2 senior came through with two clutch free throws.
"The game was on the line in a sense," Reinke said of his mindset during late-game free throws. "I wanted to stay true to the form, continue breathing while blocking out all the distractions around me. It was about focusing on the little things."
Four seconds later, Platteville senior guard Garrison Tashner sank a 3-pointer from the top that made it 72-70.
Reinke was fouled again with 16.6 remaining, hitting the first before the second missed long off back iron. Lakeside senior guard Kooper Mlsna was called for an over-the-back foul, sending Edge to the stripe for the 1-and-1. He hit the first and missed the second, with the rebound pinballing around in the corner before Lakeside junior point guard Kaycee Guzman snatched it.
Guzman, with 12.5 remaining and the Warriors still in the single bonus, stepped up and sank both attempts for the final margin. Two off-the-mark 3s by Platteville at the other end ran out the clock, sending the Lakeside bench pouring onto the court in a frenzied celebration.
"We're on top of the world," Mlsna said. "I think all of us feel that way and are just ecstatic. We played a great game. All glory to God.
"Everybody, even the guys who didn't get in the game, were so supportive. We've had a great atmosphere this year. It's been a joy and fun ride this postseason."
Guzman scored 12 of his game-high 21 points before halftime. Rahn scored 13 of his 15 points after the break and Reinke tallied his 12 points all in the second period.
For Platteville, which was left lamenting late misses from the free throw line and at the rim, Tashner scored 17, senior wing Simon Boebel had 15 while McClain and Edge contributed 14 apiece. Ludlum, the team's leading scorer at 15.7 points per game, scored nine, seven of which came before the break.
"Ludlum is heavily, as we assumed, a right-hand dominant player who loved going to the baseline," Reinke said of his assignment on the perimeter. "Staying true to what we know how to do helped us keep him in check."
In the first half, Rahn pinned a McClain shot against the backboard but made too much contact with the body, drawing his second foul at the 14:19 mark.
Boebel hit a corner 3 assisted by Tashner before busting through for a perimeter steal, racing the other way and drawing contact from Reinke. Boebel hit both free throws to give Platteville a 17-10 lead with 12:23 left, as Reinke exited with his second foul.
After a timeout, Lakeside senior guard Evan Neumann converted an old-fashioned 3-point play at the rim and junior guard Ben Krauklis scored in transition. Neumann then used a shovel pass to assist on a wing 3 by Mlsna, capping an 8-0 run, and forcing Platteville to use a timeout.
Wolfram keyed a 6-0 run to knot it up at 33-all. He scored inside, then had a steal and fed Guzman for a breakaway layup. Mlsna then blocked sophomore guard Myron Reuter's 3-point shot, leading to a fastbreak score by Krauklis.
Platteville scored eight of the final 10 points of the first half to build its 41-35 halftime lead.
"Fouls, not guarding the dribble and kind of rushing on offense and not executing all hurt us," Jahns said. "We didn't do much well in the first half. With Alex and Wes both out, there was an unspoken hole and you could feel it. Our message was to simply hang on. I wasn't going to put those two guys back in unless their lead got back up over 10.
"Jackson Stein, who has played all of three games as a varsity guy, gave us quality minutes. Brady Wolfram gave us quality minutes too. To go in down six, they had to spend a lot of energy just to be there. We played with our left arm cut off and lost our right thumb. Despite that, we stayed composed."
Boebel buried a wide open 3 with 15:25 left in the game, pushing the Hillmen lead to 48-39.
The Warriors' aforementioned game-changing 13-0 push immediately followed. Rahn started the surge with a layup then hit a 3 from the top. Guzman, on the Warriors' next trip, also hit from long range. Easton Wolfram rejected a jumper by Ludlum, leading to a run out and 3-point play by Reinke after finishing through contact at the rim. Two free throws from Rahn gave Lakeside, which has won 11 straight, a 52-48 lead with 12:10 left.
Reinke was instrumental in Lakeside pushing its lead out further. He tapped a loose ball up in the air twice, grabbing it for an offensive rebound, before Guzman capped the possession with a layup. Reinke then came up with back-to-back steals by being active in passing lanes, with one of the takeaways leading to his own transition score to make it 58-51.
Rahn was key in the Warriors retaining wind in their sails. He blew by a defender, scoring at the cup, before sending an emphatic block out of bounds at the other end.
The Hillmen, who had a 17-game win streak snapped, stopped the bleeding on a 3 from Edge to get within 60-54. At the other end, Platteville got a steal in the corner going out of bounds, burning their final timeout to retain possession with 7:34 left.
After a layup by Krauklis with 5:50 left, Platteville's aforementioned buckets by McClain inside and Edge outside made it 64-61.
"Having Alex on defense was the biggest thing in the second half," Jahns said. "Another subtle thing was putting in Easton, as we rotated, on Tashner who was hurting us getting into the paint. Alex took away Ludlum. At half, we made it a goal to keep them under 30 in the second half and they scored that number.
"We wanted to keep playing downhill offensively since they could not defend the screen and roll. You go to it until they figure out how to stop it. We wanted to keep attacking and not settle."
Guzman's a big fan of his screen-and-roll partner.
"Me and Wes just started playing with each other last year, but I just love that guy," said Guzman, who had five assists. "We have built that chemistry since day one. Coach Jahns knew we were going to be able to do that from last year on JV. Coach sets us up for success and we are willing to work within that and play together."
Rahn pointed to Guzman's vision as a vital component of the team's offense.
"Kaycee is able to read the whole floor," Rahn said. "The main thing he's able to do is attack and bring the big guy over so we can have the dump off or he can get the open shot."
Rahn, who added nine rebounds and three blocks, is not accustomed to prolonged periods on the bench, but he did not let early foul trouble damper his spirits.
"I made sure to keep focused on the game and help in any way possible," Rahn said. "I wanted to build up my teammates as much as I could. Jackson Stein's play was helpful for us and I encouraged him to keep doing good. He's one of the reasons we stayed in this game."
Guzman helped hold down the fort admirably in the first half, scoring consistently on drives to his right, while also being the tone setter.
"We were all a little frazzled and a little doubtful with Alex and Wes out," Guzman said. "I remember Coach Jahns telling me it's all about being calm and collected. I told my teammates we needed to slow down and that we were good to be good without them. We were able to get everyone to be calm and play together."
During the team's timeouts in crunch time, Jahns wanted to instill confidence in his guys while re-emphasizing several key points as the game hung in the balance.
"We told them to meet your pass and make sure you set your screen," Jahns said. "If you attack, go with courage. Defensively, stay in front of the dribble, defend and rebound. Ratchet it back up and finish what you've been doing."
Lakeside is the No. 2 seed for this week's state tournament to be played at the Kohl Center in Madison and faces No. 3 seed Kiel (28-0) in Thursday's state semifinals. The game tips off approximately 15 minutes after the first semi, which pits No. 1 seed St. Thomas More (27-1) versus No. 4 Prescott (21-6) and starts at 1:35 p.m.
The Warriors are set to make their third-ever appearance at state. They lost in the semifinals last season and in 2011.
LAKESIDE LUTHERAN 75, PLATTEVILLE 71
Platteville 41 30 -- 71
Lakeside 35 40 -- 75
Platteville (fg ftm-fta pts) -- Reuter 1 0-0 2, Tashner 5 4-4 17, Edge 4 4-6 14, Ludlum 3 3-6 9, Boebel 5 2-2 15, McClain 7 0-0 14. Totals 25 13-18 71.
Lakeside Lutheran (fg ftm-fta pts) -- B. Krauklis 3 0-0 6, Neumann 2 1-1 6, Guzman 9 2-2 21, E. Wolfram 2 0-0 4, Mlsna 2 2-2 7, Reinke 4 4-5 12, Rahn 6 2-2 15, B. Wolfram 1 0-0 2, Stein 1 0-0 2. Totals 30 11-12 75.
3-point goals -- P (Tashner 3, Boebel 3, Edge 2) 8; LL (Mlsna 1, Neumann 1, Guzman 1, Rahn 1) 4.
Total fouls -- P 14, LL 5.
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