MONROE — After a 75-53 loss on Saturday, Feb. 18, Portage changed its game plan to nearly pull of the upset in the WIAA regional quarterfinals on Tuesday, Feb. 28. Monroe held on, though, for the 66-61 victory.
The Warriors played a 1-2-2 zone the entire game, which threw the Cheesemakers for a loop.
“I think we were just uncomfortable,” Monroe head coach Brian Bassett said of his team’s offense. “We didn’t practice against it [the zone] a whole lot because we didn’t expect them to run it the whole game. We’ve shot people out of zones the whole year. Tonight, we just weren’t able to do it. That just means we’re locked and loaded for the next game.”
After winning the tip, it took Monroe a full minute to get its first shot off, which was a missed 3-pointer from Keatin Sweeney. Portage then went down the court, responding with a made three from Anton Kilde.
James Seagreaves tied the game up with a three-point play finished at the free-throw line, but the Warriors regained the lead 8-3 with shots from Keagan Hooker and Kilde. With back-to-back threes from Sweeney and Brandon Bassett, the game was knotted once again at 10.
The two teams exchanged the next eight points before Monroe took its first lead with a 3-pointer from Tucker Markham on a skip pass from George Brukwicki. Although a kiss off the glass from Kilde gave Portage an 18-17 edge, Charlie Wiegel reclaimed the lead with a three in the corner.
His shot sparked an 8-1 run in which the Cheesemaker’s took a five-point lead — their largest of the first half. Monroe reached the bonus with 5:26 left in the half, where Markham made one shot at the charity stripe. A minute later, Seagreaves went to the line where his shot missed. The possession wasn’t fruitless, though, as Markham grabbed the rebound and scored on the put-back. Seagreaves then battled through three defenders in the post to score.
Momentum shifted in favor of Portage in the final five minutes, though, as Monroe committed four turnovers — three of which occurred in the final two minutes.
Elias kissed a jumper off the glass for two, followed by a basket from the elbow by Reichhoff. After a Wiegel 3-pointer, Kilde received a screen from Gavin Thompson to get an open look in the post.
During Monroe’s subsequent offensive possession, Brady Seiler intercepted a pass intended for Brukwicki and took it down the court. To prevent an easy bucket, Brukwicki fouled Seiler while shooting. At the line, Seiler knocked down both shots to tie the game at 28.
With 12.8 seconds left in the half, the Cheesemakers looked to hold for the final shot. Keagan Hooker broke up a post pass, though, leaving the game tied at half.
Monroe has been outscored by its opponents 725-629 in the first half, while outscoring their opponents 829-736 in the second half.
“I feel like it’s just coming out and making our shots,” Brukwicki said of the team’s slow starts. “The games that we do really well in, our first couple threes and layups go in. In these sorts of games, we struggle to get on the board right away. Eventually, they always go in.”
The shots fell early in the second half, just as Brukwicki said, with a 3-pointer from Markham 30 seconds in. Weigel then scored, as Kilde deflected the skip pass intended for Sweeney into the basket. Seagreaves followed with an offensive put-back to take a seven-point lead.
Portage cut the deficit to just two at 37-35 with back-to-back baskets from Reichhoff, but Monroe responded. A miscommunication in the Warrior zone left Weigel wide open for two, and Sweeney hit a three in the corner to regain a seven-point lead.
Despite a timeout from Portage head coach Darrin Berger, Monroe kept its foot on the gas. Brukwicki came out of the break and hit back-to-back threes.
“In the first half, I’ve often started out slow like I did today with a couple missed threes. The second half though, I like this hoop more,” Brukwicki said. “It always seems to go in. We practice more on this hoop, so I like this hoop a lot.”
After three Warrior fouls in a span of 16 seconds, Markham went to the free-throw line. He made both shots to give Monroe a 50-37 lead with 11:29 left in the game.
“Once we went up 13, I thought they were going to pull out of it [the zone], and they did not,” Bassett said. “They just extended it. We went at them and were making plays, but then we just went neutral and stopped looking to score. We made enough plays to win and that’s all that matters.”
Portage slowly chipped away at the Cheesemakers’ lead, aided by Monroe’s seventh team foul with just under six minutes left to play. At the line for bonus, Johnathan Stout made one shot, putting the Warriors within five.
Twenty seconds later, though, Monroe, too, reached bonus with Vera’s fourth foul. In his trip to the line, Brukwicki made both shots.
Twice in a matter of four and a half minutes, Portage cut Monroe’s lead to just two points. The latest came with 42.3 seconds left in the half with a basket from Kilde. Directly after, Seiler committed his first foul, putting Monroe in the double bonus with 37.4 seconds left in the game.
At the charity stripe, Seagreaves made one shot for a three-point lead. With less than 30 seconds on the clock, Portage chucked up 3-pointer after 3-pointer in an attempt to tie the game. After the second shot, Brukwicki grabbed a defensive rebound with 10.6 seconds left in the game. He was promptly fouled by Johnathan Stout. At the line, Brukwicki swished his first free throw, making it a two-possession game.
“We are always trying to box out and get the rebound, but in those scenarios you really need to get them [rebounds],” Brukwicki said. “If you go physical for the rebound and foul them, it’s okay. We were up three at that point, so the two free throws wouldn’t have tied it. We needed to be really aggressive with those rebounds. If they foul you, you have to make those free throws.”
Kilde grabbed the rebound on the second shot and passed it up the court to Hooker. With 4.4 seconds left, Hooker attempted a three, which missed. Seagreaves then grabbed the rebound, essentially securing the win.
Four Cheesemakers finished in double figures, led by Markham with 16 points. He shot 6-for-8 at the free-throw line with a pair of threes. Seagreaves added another double-double to his total, recording 15 points with 10 rebounds. Wiegel shot 100% from the field, tallying 13 points with three 3-pointers. Brukwicki was the fourth player in double figures with 11 points and five rebounds.
Portage’s big guys — Kilde, Hooker and Reichhoff — combined for 50 points with 28 of them coming in the paint.
“The Portage post guys, with the way they pivot and do everything, are two of the best post players we’ve gone against all year, especially for their size,” Bassett said.
With the win, Monroe advanced to play McFarland in the regional semifinal on Friday, March 3. The Spartans also rely heavily on their 6’1” post player Dadon Gillen.
“He’s so quick and gets off the floor quicker than any kid we’ve seen this year,” Basset said. “He’s their leading scorer and is what makes them [McFarland] go. This game was good prep for him.”
