Markus Spiske via Unsplash
(KWMN)- Senior’s Jackson Harvey and Isaiah Bell refused to play their last game of their Winhawk careers last night as they combined for 39 points, role players like Aden Pozanc, and Deion Prolo outpaced their season averages, and Winona never trailed for a single second, as the #6 seeded Winhawks pull off the upset over #3 seeded Northfield, 69-48 to advance to the Section 1AAA semifinal.
In a defensive first half, the Winhawk boys’ team, after having a frustrating season, chose to rise to the occasion. Often times ignoring bad breaks and errant shots on the offensive half, Winona used a steadfast defensive effort to allow a mere 17 points through the first 18.
“Love the effort on defense…Told the guys [before the game] matchup–beat the guy across from you…You know every one of these guys put together something they’re really good at, and it came together, and the fruition was huge.” head coach, Kyle Martin, said after the game.
Leading 31-17 at the break, it was time to play ahead, something–speaking frankly–the Winhawks weren’t all that used to throughout the season. But a surge from Jackson Harvey in the second half, scoring 17 of his 23 points in the that frame, and the effort never wavering allowed the Winhawks to finish strong, and move on in the section tournament.
Harvey’s 23, or Bell’s 16 is what we typically expect from the captains of this team, but one of the more surprising efforts of the night came from Junior forward, Aden Pozanc, who, entering the matchup last night, averaged under seven points a game. Pozanc erupted during a first half that included many offensive struggles for Winona–Nailing four triples on five attempts that catapulted Winona in front, and started the momentum needed to eventually get the win. Pozanc didn’t find the bucket in the second half, but his work had already been done. He finished with more than 12 points for just the fourth time this season–funny enough one of the other times he eclipsed that mark came against Northfield back in January.
“We talked all week about AP (Aden Pozanc) getting the ball off and just shooting with confidence. I told him big lights, big opportunities, and he took that to heart…He was ripping ’em tonight, that was incredible,” Martin said, when asked about Pozanc’s performance.
Throughout the season Martin had never shied away from giving praise to Pozanc, often times telling me how good he has been in practice. The next step was bringing that success to live action. There were moments among the first 26 games, 17 points against Red Wing, 16 vs. Owatonna, but none bigger than last night for the young Junior. If Pozanc can trust himself, and keep his confidence, he’ll play a huge piece in the Winhawk’s effort to pull off another upset.
Winona will move on to the section 1AAA semifinal for a third straight season where they’ll be underdogs once again as the #6 seed, taking on #2 seeded Byron, in Byron. Byron finished their regular season at 19-7 and beat Kasson-Mantorville handedly in the first round, 81-53.
Martin seems to relish in an underdog role, reaching the section championship the last two seasons as just a #3 seed. His team seems to share that sentiment,
“The message to the boys before the game is that no one expects anything out of a 6-seed…We’ll just be road warriors, the dark horse. That’s going to be our identity, and we’re going to be proud to wear the six [seed],” Martin said.
Byron has already beaten Winona once this year to the tune of 64-46 back on January 8th–Northfield had beaten Winona twice on the year before last night. Martin gave praise to Byron, crediting their talent across the board and their size. He also thinks Winona matches up well against the Bears and added a caveat of the need to ‘show up’ on Saturday night in Byron.
Regardless of their regular season record, and their loss already to Byron, it’s March, and all that matters is the next 36 minutes. As Martin told me last night,
“If we can get hot, anything can happen.”
Section Matchups Continue Tonight (Boys Basketball)
#3 Rushford-Peterson vs. #6 Goodhue: 7:30 p.m. from the Mayo Civic Auditorium; Our coverage begins at 7:15 p.m. tip scheduled for 7:30 only on REAL COUNTRY 101.5 FM 1380 AM
-This quarterfinal matchup will be a rematch of the same game just one season ago, when #1 seeded Goodhue at the time, topped #8 Rushford-Peterson to end their season.
#7 Cotter vs. #2 Caledonia: 6:00 p.m. from the Mayo Civic Arena
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