State Tournament Preview: Division Three

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Today, we're previewing the first division that will take the floor at the Resch Center. Division 3 will be intriguing this year, no No. 1 seed in their subsection made it to state, and all of these teams have the talent to advance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Waupun</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The defending state champions in division three are back, but they took a winding road to get here. They lost four more games than a season ago, and in the middle of the season, things didn't look ideal, taking some losses nobody expected. However, they've played some good basketball down the stretch and found themselves as the No. 1 seed in the state tournament. Future Marquette Golden Eagle [player_tooltip player_id='209617' first='Kayl' last='Petersen'] stood out in the state semifinals last season. After some graduations in the spring, most of the defensive attention will go her way on Thursday. Junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='209618' first='Gracie' last='Gopalan'] is one of the more sure-handed guards around and controls the Warrior offense masterfully. She's a joy to watch when she gets in transition. Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='374233' first='Lydia' last='Aalsma'] came off the bench for the Warriors state title-winning team last year but earned an increased role this year. She's one of the best at getting to her spots to shoot the ball and is fully confident in her ability to make any shot she takes. Aalsma's fellow sophomore Rowan Harder even stood out in the Sectional Final against Prairie du Chien. The sophomore ended that game with 18 of the Warriors' 50 points, which was a career-high and only the third time she's scored in double digits this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>West Salem</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Two kids from West Salem lead the way in almost every category, [player_tooltip player_id='448247' first='Megan' last='Johnson'] and Anna McConkey. Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='448247' first='Megan' last='Johnson'] leads the Panthers in scoring, assists, and rebounds, and McConkey is second in all those statistics. Johnson is a multidimensional wing that can play inside out and can pass the ball at a high level. She projects as a wing, but she'll run the offense for the Panthers on Thursday. Watch for her to exploit whatever mismatches the sophomore can find. McConkey is a lot like Johnson in many ways. She's an undersized forward that plays physically on both ends of the floor. She's recorded a few double-doubles this season and is more athletic than she's probably given credit for being.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Kewaskum</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last season, Kewaskum lost a heart-breaker to Waupun in the sectional semifinal. This season, they were moved to another sectional and broke through to the state tournament with a win over reigning state-runner up Freedom. Kewaskum's led by a senior and future NJIT Highlander, Madi Dogs. Dogs is one of, if not the, most versatile defenders in the state, and guards one through five at the high school level. She's athletic and lengthy and uses those tools on both ends of the floor. [player_tooltip player_id='206726' first='Morgan' last='Adams'] is another rangy 6-footer that can move her feet on the perimeter. Kewaskum is a defensive unit that can create turnovers or force difficult shots. Look for them to cause their opponent/s to have low shooting percentages against them.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Milwaukee Academy of Science</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Novas are a breath of fresh air. Most teams in Wisconsin like to play in the halfcourt and get shots off different screening actions, which is ok. However, this team isn't afraid to fly up and down the floor, and it's fun to watch. The Novas arguably have the most talented backcourt in Wisconsin, with seniors [player_tooltip player_id='206719' first='Lalani' last='Ellis'], [player_tooltip player_id='206728' first='Beautiful' last='Waheed'], and sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='448262' first='Jaeda' last='Turner']. Those kids can get to the rim, push the tempo and break down their defender on the perimeter. Another kid to watch is a junior wing, [player_tooltip player_id='417959' first='Parker' last='Johnson']. She came off the bench when I saw the Novas host Brookfield East, but she was the difference in the second half after the Novas went down big early. She attacks the boards and pulls down rebounds on both ends in bunches and doesn't shy away from contact. In my opinion, the Novas are the second-best team in D3 right now, and their semifinal against Waupun could be a defacto-state title game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->