All the Lakeville South boys’ basketball team needed was one more chance at its South Suburban foe, Eastview.

After a Lightning regular-season sweep — the second time by just two points — the Cougars got revenge on the sweetest of stages, advancing to the Class 4A, Section 3 championship with a 56-50 victory in the semifinals Saturday night at St. Olaf College in Northfield.

A lethargic start for both teams appeared to squander any chance the Cougars had at surprising the section’s No. 1 seed with a fast start. But Lakeville South (20-8) broke a 10-10 tie through the game’s first eight minutes, embarking on a 16-4 run over the next five, keyed by three-pointers from Alec Jensen, Matt Heller and Spencer Pankonin. With a halftime lead of 28-20, the upset watch was on, and the Cougars were believers.

“It’s hard to beat a team three times,” Lakeville South coach John Sheehan said. “We were so evenly matched. We knew we could beat them, we just needed to get our transition offense going and knock down some shots.”

Eastview (22-5) dug itself a bigger hole to begin the second half, thanks to a number of unforced turnovers, as the lead grew to 11 points with nine minutes to play. The Lightning rallied behind junior forward Joey King, who scored 18 of his 23 points in the second half — none bigger than a three-pointer in the closing minute to pull the Lightning to within 53-50.

“We didn’t get a hand up on King’s shot, but we figured out what they were doing on the next possession, got a hand up, got the rebound and made them foul,” Sheehan said.

A free throw by the Cougars’ Jon Christensen pushed the lead to four, and a final steal and slam dunk by Lakeville South’s Alex Richter as the final horn sounded completed the upset, adding an exclamation point to the win. Richter led the Cougars with 14 points.

Apple Valley 67, Rosemount 59: Apple Valley freshman guard Tyus Jones scored 13 of his team-high 21 points in the second half, including a steal and layup in the final seconds to fend off the Irish in the other semifinal game.

Rosemount (7-21), which defeated No. 2 seed Eagan earlier in the week, was able to chip away at its deficit but was never able to draw to within two points of Apple Valley (19-9), as juniors Evan Mitchell and Matt Nelson missed three-pointers in the final minute to tie the score.

“Nervous would be an understatement,” Apple Valley coach Zach Goring said about the tense ending to a game that was in the Eagles’ grasp since the early minutes of the first half. “We can count on Tom [Schalk] and Tyus all season, and they did it again tonight.”

Schalk, a senior forward, completed the inside-out combo with Jones, finishing with 18 points.

The Irish were led by Nelson with 13 points, while Mitchell and fellow junior Brandon Forcier each added 11.