Marshfield, Auburndale, Stratford earn first-round byes in WIAA boys basketball playoffs

This story is sponsored by: Valley Communities Credit Union

MarshfieldAreaSports.com

The WIAA released its brackets for the 2012 boys basketball playoffs.

Regional quarterfinals are set for Tuesday, Feb. 28 with regional semifinals on Friday, March 2 and regional finals on Saturday, March 3.

Sectionals are set for Thursday, March 8 and Saturday, March 10, with the survivors advancing the WIAA State Boys Basketball Tournament at the Kohl Center in Madison on March 15-17.

Locally, Marshfield, Auburndale and Stratford earned first-round byes and will play in regional semifinals on March 2.

Marshfield (13-7) earned a No. 4 seed and will host No. 5 Wausau East (12-8) in a Division 1 regional semifinal at 7 p.m. March 2. The two teams split a pair of Wisconsin Valley Conference games this season. The winner moves on to a regional final against either No. 1 D.C. Everest, No. 8 Eau Claire Memorial or No. 9 Wausau West on March 3.

In Division 4, Auburndale (21-0) and Stratford (16-4) earned the top two seeds in the top half of the Sectional No. 2 bracket and would face each other in a sectional semifinal should they both win their first two playoff games.

Auburndale, the No. 1 seed, will host the Rosholt (10-11)-Crandon (14-5) winner, and Stratford, the No. 2 seed, hosts either Marathon (14-6) or Tri-County (10-11), in regional semifinals on March 2 at 7 p.m.

Spencer (11-9) is the No. 6 seed in Sectional No. 1 and will host No. 11 Athens (8-12) in a Division 4 regional quarterfinal at 7 p.m. Feb. 28. The winner will play at No. 3 Colby (16-4) in a regional semifinal on March 2.

Marshfield Columbus Catholic (16-4) is the No. 3 seed in the bottom half of Sectional No. 1 in Division 5. The Dons will host No. 14 Rib Lake (1-17) in a regional quarterfinal on Feb. 28. The winner moves on to a regional semifinal on March 2 against the No. 11 Lake Holcombe-No. 6 Greenwood winner.

Click this link to view the WIAA boys basketball regional schedule.