Fresh off a mild upset in the opening round of the Section 3AA-North tournament, Litchfield looked for a surprise of larger proportion in the subsection semifinals.
Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta refused to let that happen.
The No. 1 seed in the subsection, MACA took control from the outset and rolled to a 67-42 win over the fifth-seeded Dragons Thursday at Willmar High School.
Litchfield finished the season with a 12-16 record. Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta advanced to the Section 3AA-North finals, where it beat third-seeded West Central Area 82-49 Saturday at Marshall.
MACA, 25-2 overall and ranked No. 8 in the state in Class AA, will look to return to the state tournament when it faces 3AA-South winner Redwood Valley for the Section 3AA championship at 8 p.m. Thursday at Southwest Minnesota State University in Marshall.
Litchfield opened postseason play with a 61-60 win over fourth-seeded Paynesville March 5. It was a measure of revenge for the Dragons, who lost by 25 to the Bulldogs in the season-opener for both teams on Dec. 2.
The Dragons looked for a similar turnaround against Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta, who they lost to 43-32 in the season’s third game on Dec. 9.
But the things that went right in that first meeting didn’t materialize in the rematch. MACA used a stifling man-to-man defense and solid outside shooting to dominate almost from the opening tip.
MACA broke out to a 10-2 lead less than five minutes into the game, riding the hot hand of senior forward Jackson Loge, who had a pair of three-pointers during the opening run.
Loge was a challenge all game for the Dragons. The Mr. Basketball finalist finished the game with 30 points and six rebounds while shooting 10-for-19 from the floor. He also was a defensive presence, blocking five shots and forcing many other altered shots by Litchfield players who worked near the basket.
For their part, the Dragons did not shoot poorly, making 18 of 36 shots inside the arc, and 42 percent (19-for-45) overall. But they were outrebounded 23-14 and never really seemed to find a rhythm offensively.
Despite that, Litchfield stayed within striking distance through most of the first half. The Dragons trailed 27-13 with about 3:30 to play in the half, when MACA called a timeout.
Coming out of the timeout Thomas Tieman, who had 22 points, hit one of his six three-pointers. Tieman added another with 55 seconds to play in the half, and even though Loge missed a three-pointer to close out the half, Litchfield headed into the break trailing by 20 points.
Senior guard Logan King led Litchfield with 11 points, and senior forward Beau Weseloh added nine.
Litchfield loses six seniors from this years team, including starters King, Weseloh and center Dom Dietel. Top reserve Tanner Kohls, along with big men Elijah Schacherer and Caleb Hoffman also graduate.
Four of the team’s top eight players — juniors Alex Draeger and Tyler Pennertz, and sophomores Blake Aller and Jack McCann — will return next year. Draeger, the team’s leading scorer this season, and Aller were starters.
