This story is sponsored by: The Marshfield Tiger Booster Club
By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com
WAUPACA – It was in the back of Marshfield boys basketball coach Chris Fischer’s mind that the Tigers would probably have to rely on 3-point shooting to take down the long and tall lineup of Kaukauna.
The Ghosts, playing a trapping half-court defense with two players at 6-foot-9 and 6-foot-10, didn’t leave much room for Marshfield to get inside a whole lot.
So, the Tigers started raining 3-pointers, one after another after another, and were able to make just enough as they escaped with a 71-68 victory over Kaukauna in a WIAA Division 1 sectional semifinal Thursday night at Waupaca High School.
Marshfield finished 16-for-34 from long range, which included six makes from Landon Lee, four by Brooks Hinson, and three each from Chris Pohl and Valin Ramberg. The Tigers only took 12 shots from inside the arc, making nine.
Marshfield only trailed once in the second half, at 44-43 after a dunk by Jon O’Neill, before Hinson came down and drilled a 3-pointer for the Tigers. Pohl added another and Marshfield was able to hold off everything Kaukauna threw at them the rest of the way and advance to its first sectional final in six years.
The No. 1 seed Marshfield (25-2) will play No. 6 Neenah (20-7) in a Division 1 sectional final at Stevens Point Area Senior High on Saturday at 3 p.m. The winner goes to the state tournament, something Marshfield has not accomplished since 1994. Neenah, on the other hand, has made it the past two seasons, winning it all in 2022. The Rockets took down No. 2 seed Stevens Point 68-50 on Thursday night.
“You never tell your guys, ‘Hey, we have to get 40 3s up this game,’ but you’re thinking in the back of your mind that when they are 6-9, 6-10 across the top of their 1-3-1, you’re not going to get a lot of paint touches,” Marshfield coach Chris Fischer. “Our kids aren’t afraid to shoot. They’ve put up thousands of shots, from those spots too, in the wings and the corners.”
The lead went back-and-forth for much of the first half as the Tigers were hot from outside and Kaukauna from inside the paint.
Four of the Tigers’ first five made shots were 3-pointers, including two from Lee. Lee then scored inside and hit another from long range to put Marshfield up 19-14 with 11:57 to go in the half.
Kaukauna fought back as Nathan Deprez and Keegan Van Kauwenberg nailed 3-pointers. After Valin Ramberg hit his second 3 for Marshfield, Van Kauwenberg scored inside to tie it up at 27-27.
The lead changed hands five more times in the final 6½ minutes of the half. Hinson hit a pair of 3-pointers in the final minute, wrapped around a 3 from Van Kauwenberg, and Marshfield took a slim 40-38 lead into halftime.
Pohl, Marshfield’s 6-foot-7 sophomore, played less than four minutes before picking up his third foul and sat on the bench the rest of the half, but Marshfield was able to do enough to keep the taller Kaukauna squad from pulling away.
“Valin Ramberg came in and made some big shots,” Fischer said. “In the second half, we made an adjustment. I asked how do they want to guard them, and Brooks Hinson said ‘Let me take 5 (6-foot-9 Andrew Jensen).’ When you have someone willing to take that responsibility, you let your kids play. In the second half we were much better defensively.”
After Kaukauna went up 44-43 after O’Neill’s steal and dunk, Marshfield continued its hot shooting as Hinson and Pohl hit 3-pointers to regain the lead. The Tigers would never trail again.
A steal and dunk from Pohl, and two 3-pointers from the sophomore extended Marshfield’s lead to 60-52 with eight minutes left.
Kaukauna was able to whittle it down to two on Van Kauwenberg’s sixth 3-pointer in seven attempts at the 2:49 mark, before Pohl scored inside. Pohl added two free throws with 8.1 seconds left, but O’Neill hit a 3-pointer with 3 seconds to go, giving Marshfield possession and a three-point lead.
Hinson was fouled and missed a free throw, but with no more timeouts, all Kaukauna could do was heave a 60-foot shot that missed as the buzzer sounded, sending the Tigers to within one win from the state tournament.
Lee finished with 26 points, Pohl had 17, all coming in the second half, and Ramberg and Hinson both added 12 in the win for Marshfield.
Van Kauwenberg topped the Ghosts (19-8) with 24 points, Andrew Jensen had 17 points and 11 rebounds, and O’Neill ended up with 11 points.
One of Marshfield’s two losses came at the hands of Neenah, a 58-31 rout at home way back on Dec. 16. Marshfield has only lost once since, while Neenah heads into the sectional final on a 12-game winning streak.
“We’ve earned ourselves one more practice and one more game,” Fischer said. “Hopefully we’ll have a good day of preparation and be ready to go.”
Tigers 71, Ghosts 68
Marshfield 40 31 – 71
Kaukauna 38 30 – 68
MARSHFIELD (71): Chris Pohl 5-7 4-4 17, Joey Ketterer 0-1 0-0 0, Brooks Hinson 4-11 0-1 12, Brant Freis 1-2 0-0 2, Landon Lee 10-18 0-0 26, Valin Ramberg 4-5 1-2 12, Ethan Knecht 1-2 0-0 2. FG: 25-46. FT: 5-7. 3-pointers: 16-34 (Lee 6-13, Hinson 4-10, Ramberg 3-4, Pohl 3-5, Ketterer 0-1, Freis 0-1). Rebounds: 19 (Knecht 4, Lee 4). Turnovers: 10. Fouls: 12. Fouled out: none. Record: 25-2.
KAUKAUNA (68): Brody McMullin 1-4 0-0 3, Carson Awe 0-0 0-0 0, Nathan Deprez 5-8 0-0 13, Andrew Jensen 6-12 5-6 17, Jonah Roehrig 0-1 0-0 0, Jon O’Neill 5-9 0-0 11, Keegan Van Kauwenberg 9-15 0-0 24, Isaac Mitchell 0-0 0-0 0. FG: 26-49. FT: 5-6. 3-pointers: 11-18 (Van Kauwenberg 6-7, Deprez 3-6, O’Neill 1-2, McMullin 1-3). Rebounds: 27 (Jensen 11). Turnovers: 14. Fouls: 12. Fouled out: none. Record: 19-8.