Waseca's Malik Willingham went up for two despite defensive pressure from Holy Angels' Aaron Engel in the first half of the Class 3A quarterfinal game Wednesday at Williams Arena. Photo: ELIZABETH FLORES • liz.flores@startribune.com
Waseca senior guard Malik Willingham ran the floor, fired a pass inside to younger brother Kyreese for a layup, then turned to face the Bluejays’ faithful with a look of delight.
Holy Angels, trailing by 13 points after the second-half basket, called timeout and confirmed the important sequence.
No. 2 seed Waseca was too much for the Stars in a 82-62 Class 3A quarterfinal victory Wednesday at Williams Arena. Malik Willingham scored a game-high 22 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and tallied six assists.
Holy Angels, located in Richfield, focused on the Bluejays’ three-point shooting. But Waseca (29-1) had much more to offer.
Photo gallery: Class 3A quarterfinals
“My shots weren’t going in today, so my coaches told me to take it to the hole, try to get fouled or dish to a teammate,” Willingham said.
The plan worked. The sophomore trio of center Andrew Morgan (21 points), forward Kyreese Willingham (17) and guard Ryan Dufault (12) added good numbers despite the team shooting 3-of-20 from the three-point arc.
A 46-26 advantage in points in the paint made up for the long-distance disconnect.
“They can beat you in many ways,” said Holy Angels (24-5) senior guard Max Gerstner, who tied for the team lead with 15 points. “They did a good job getting inside today so props to them.”
First report
No. 2 seed Waseca started fast and finished strong in a 82-62 Class 3A quarterfinal victory against Holy Angels.
The Bluejays (29-1) led 39-32 at halftime then pulled away with a mix of strong drives to the rim and solid defense on Wednesday at Williams Arena.
They advance to Thursday’s semifinal at Target Center against the winner of Monticello and Austin.
Holy Angels (24-5), a private school in Richfield, is making its first state tournament appearance since 2004.
Check back later for more on the game.
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