There was no room to sit and no reason to, either, as Central and Onalaska high schools’ boys basketball teams battled Thursday in the WIAA Division 2 section semifinal.
Central played the big brother, getting the lead early and never really relinquishing it, despite the Hilltoppers fighting to come back over and over again.
When it was all said and done, in front of around 2,000 at the Logan Fieldhouse, the top-seeded and second-ranked Red Raiders moved on 74-60 (rewatch the game below).
At 1 p.m. Saturday, Central (23-2), the defending Division 2 state champions, take on fifth-seeded Marshfield (14-11) in Stevens Point, to get back to state. The game will be on WKTY 96.7 FM / 580 AM.
Central’s Terrance Thompson was a menace the fourth-ranked Hilltoppers (20-4). The 6-foot-7 sophomore had 17 points, seven blocks and five rebounds. Sophomore teammate Johnny Davis scored 24 points, going 8 of 11 from the field, and eight rebounds. Teammate Noah Parcher added 21 points, going 8-for-12, to go along with five assists.
Onalaska was down 34-16 late in the first half before a 13-3 run cut it to 37-29 at halftime. To start the second, Noah Skifton pulled the Hilltoppers within 38-35 with a pair of 3-pointers. That, however, was as close as they would ever get.
Skifton led Onalaska with 27 points – 16 of those in the second half. He nailed six from beyond the arc. Freshman teammate Sam Kick scored 12 – all on 3s – for Onalaska, which was 12-for-29 from deep.
This was the third meeting between the two teams. Onalaska won the first at home 81-69 back on Jan. 19. Central came back on Feb. 16 with a 66-51 win at home.