WIAA State Girls Basketball Preview: Division 5
Wednesday, March 7th, 2018 -- 10:33 AM
The 43rd Annual Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association Girls Basketball State Tournament will take place this Thursday-Saturday, March 8-10, at the Resch Center in Green Bay. Here's a preview of the Division 5 field.....Friday, March 9
Division 5
#1 Black Hawk (27-0) vs. #4 Newman Catholic (21-6) - 9:05 a.m.
#2 Bangor (24-3) vs. #3 Clayton (24-3) will begin approximately 15 minutes following the previous game.
STATE TOURNAMENT ON THE AIR: The State Tournament will be televised live in our area on WAOW-TV in Wausau, WXOW-TV in La Crosse, and WQOW-TV in Eau Claire. Also, download the Magic of March app for live streaming video, scores, highlights and more about the WIAA State basketball tournaments. Live coverage of the tournaments on iOS or Android phones and tablets are also available on the app.
ABOUT THE DIVISION 5 FIELD: Top-seeded Black Hawk is making its fourth appearance in the State tournament and its first since a string of three straight appearances from 2009-11. That run of success produced a runner-up finish in Division 4 in 2010. The Warriors return berth in the final field of four comes with an 81-41 win over Hustisford in the Oconomowoc Sectional final. That margin of victory also represents their average victory margin throughout the tournament. They are undefeated and the champions of the Eastern Division of the Six Rivers Conference this season. Second-seeded Bangor returns to the State Tournament for the second straight season and for the third time overall. The Cardinals’ first appearance produced a Division 4 championship in 1997, and they lost in the semifinals last year. This season, the Cardinals are the champions of the Scenic Bluffs Conference. They earned their way to the State semifinals through the La Crosse Central Sectional with a 55-41 win over Shullsburg in the final. Third-seeded Clayton will make its third straight State tournament appearance and its fourth overall. The Bears’ quest for a State title ended in the semifinals in each of their previous three encounters, the first coming in Division 4 in 1995. They qualify this season after a 55-40 victory over Shell Lake in the Spooner Sectional final. The Bears were runners-up to Cameron in the Central Division of the Lakeland Conference this season. Fourth-seeded Newman Catholic is making its 11th State appearance and its first since 2013. The Cardinals won the Division 4 title in 2010 and the Division 5 crown in 2011. In addition, they won the Division 3 State championship in 2002. Furthermore, their appearances in 2005 and 2006 produced runner-up finishes. The Cardinals placed third in the South Division of the Marawood Conference this season behind Marathon and Stratford. The Cardinals defeated Gillett 52-40 in the Appleton East Sectional final to earn their way back to the Resch Center this season. Prior to joining the WIAA, Newman Catholic won a Class A championship in the defunct WISAA tournament.
THREE-POINT CHALLENGE: The WIAA will conduct the third annual 3-Point Challenge prior to Saturday’s championship games. The event will begin at 9:30 a.m. at the Resch Center. The top two players per division were selected for the contest based on the best 3-point field goal percentage with a minimum of 75 attempts during the regular season. The contestants representing Division 5 are senior Brooke Hopkins of Tri-County and junior Cara Miller of Prairie Farm.
Feel free to contact us with questions and/or comments.