Greendale, Martin Luther Get State Tournament Assignments

Neither the Greendale Panthers nor the  Martin Luther Spartans have had the regular season they envisioned at the start of tryouts in early November. Luckily for both teans, with the Sunday announcement of the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) Boys State Basketball brackets a second season begins.

All problems that have come about during the regular season can be solved with a lengthy run in the State tournament.

Greendale Panthers

Greendale, a Division 2 team, was selected as the three seed in their regional in Sectional 4. The rest of the regional is as follows.

Division 2 Sectional 4
No. 1 New Berlin West (18-4, 17-1 Woodland Conference Blue Division)
No. 2 Pius XI (15-6, 9-4 Classic Eight Conference)
No. 3 Greendale (4-17, 3-13 Woodland Conference Black Division)
No. 4 Greenfield (4-17, 3-13 Woodland Conference Black Division)
No. 5 Cudahy (4-17, 3-14 Woodland Conference Blue Division)
No. 6 Saint Francis (1-20, 0-17 Woodland Conference Blue Division)

As the three seed, the Panthers will open up play in the tournament by hosting the Saint Francis on Tuesday, March 1. The two teams met once during the regular season with Greendale winning 45-22 early in the season.

The Panthers are led by senior guard Andrew Brees who is averaging 11 points per game on the season. Brees is returning after missing his entire junior season with an injury suffered during football.

Alex Noggle, a junior forward, has come on strong late in the season for Greendale. He has had his highest scoring outputs in the last five games of the year and will hope to carry that over into the tournament.

If Greendale wins they advance to play Pius XI in the regional quarterfinals.

Martin Luther
Martin Luther, a Division 3 team, was picked as the 11 seed in their regional in Sectional 4. The rest of the regional is as follows.

Division 3 Sectional 4
No. 1 Dominican (18-3, 15-0 Midwest Classic Conference South Division)
No. 2 East Troy (19-1, 14-0 Rock Valley Conference North Division)
No. 3 Racine St. Catherine’s (16-3, 10-3 Midwest Classic Conference South Division)
No. 4 Hope School (17-3, 13-1 Midwest Classic Conference North Division)
No. 5 St. John NW Military Academy (17-3, 13-1 Midwest Classic Conference North Division)
No. 6 Milwaukee Northwest (9-9, 4-6 Milwaukee City Conference)
No. 7 University School of Milwaukee (12-7, 7-6 Midwest Classic Conference North Division)
No. 8 Saint Thomas More (11-10, 9-8 Woodland Conference Blue Division)
No. 9 Milwaukee School of Languages (4-11 Independent)
No. 10 Palmyra-Eagle (5-15, 2-12 Rock Valley Conference South Division)
No. 11 Martin Luther (0-20, 0-14 Midwest Classic Conference South Division)

The Spartans will have to battle from the 11 seed if they wish to make a run in the state tournament. Their journey will begin as they travel to Milwaukee Northwest on Tuesday, March 1 for a battle with the City Conference school.

Martin Luther is led by a freshmen duo who will look to gain valuable experience in this tournament. Davelle Williams and Jamell Posey each average just over 10 points per game and bring a lot of energy to the defensive side of the floor.

If the Spartans advance to round two, they will play Racine St. Catherine’s in the Regional semi-final.