Germantown Wins Sixth Consecutive Regional Title

In an intense game with plenty of individual and team familiarity on both benches, Germantown took their sixth straight Regional Title plaque, but that only tells a tiny part of the 2023-24 Warhawks story.   We've seen teams with elite talents all over the state take a significant step back when they lose kids who go on to play at the next level for mid-major programs. In Germantown's case, they lost KK Arnold, one of the best kids in the country and one of the best players to ever come out of Wisconsin in any sport.   Coaches around the Greater Metro Conference knew the Warhawks would be an "annoying" team to play against, but they've exceeded all expectations.   Without being at practice and around the program every day, there are things you see when they play. One, they play for each other. Two, they trust each other. Finally, they don't stop battling.   At halftime last night, the Warhawks trailed Homestead 46-34.   Defensively, they gave up nine three-pointers, were losing the rebounding battle 17-12, and could not keep Homestead from finding and knocking down open threes.   After the start of the 2nd half, things didn't get better.   Each time the Warhawks cut into the Highlander lead, Homestead would hit a couple of threes and extend the lead back up to anywhere from 13 to 16.   After the lead bloated to 16 at 60-44 in the Highlanders favor. Something changed. After a Germantown timeout, we saw the team multiple coaches in the GMC dreaded playing. The Warhawks were the first to every loose ball. [player_tooltip player_id='444780' first='Lucy' last='Leininger'] earned about five steals from the point of attack or in the backcourt that led directly to layups, and the momentum slowly shifted toward the Warhawks.   At the start of the Warhawks' run, they did something I didn't expect. Coach Matt Stuve went away from their patented full-court press and went to an aggressive half-court man-to-man defense, and it generated everything they wanted in their 1-3-1 zone. They turned Homestead over and gave them assignments to box out to gain control of their defensive glass, which allowed their athletes to key in on one person defensively and give them absolute hell for the final 15 minutes.   The defensive tweaks seemed to allow Leininger to put more pressure on ball handlers, and when she got out and ran, she finished in ways that the Sophomore version of Leininger may laugh at. I can't stress enough [player_tooltip player_id='444780' first='Lucy' last='Leininger'] will likely win GMC Player of the Year, or would at least have my vote, and the idea of her leading a team to a Regional Title two years ago in her senior year would've been unthinkable to most, but here we are. After a 30-point, seven-rebound, three-assist, and countless blocks and steals, [player_tooltip player_id='444780' first='Lucy' last='Leininger'] answered the bell when her team needed her most and put on the most memorable performance I may ever see from a high schooler.   There are teams out there, all over the country, who have a set way of doing things and never change. Most people will bash coaching whether it's fair criticism or not, and I'm not above that, but the way Coach Stuve even slightly tweaked how they play to shift away from KK Arnold to playing in a way that maximizes [player_tooltip player_id='444780' first='Lucy' last='Leininger'] has been fun to watch.   Although I could talk about Leininger, her development, and how incredible it's been to follow her high school career, she did not bring the Warhawks back from a 16-point deficit alone.   6-0 post, Madeline Jakusz has quietly been one of the most challenging kids to defend all year. Yes, she's one of the better rebounders and finishers around the basket in her area, but she knocked down multiple threes and wasn't shy about taking them. She finished with a 20-point, 12-rebound double-double, and the Highlanders couldn't keep her from dominating the painted area.   One other kid who's seen a massive uptick in usage and productivity I haven't talked about much is [player_tooltip player_id='448252' first='Danica' last='Gosz']. Over her first two seasons, the junior was a streaky shooter, and that was about it. Nowadays, she's turned into one of the more creative and consistent finishers around the basket. She didn't make a single three-pointer last night but finished with around 16 points. She's added so much to her offensive arsenal and has played with plenty of confidence.   Everyone else who saw the floor, from Rachel Murphy, [player_tooltip player_id='558941' first='Jaycee' last='Mani'], and Madeline Stocks, had roles to play in the comeback, but the identity of this team fits all those kids. All of those guards are smart, want to defend, will take charge, battle for every inch, run around for days, and can make shots.   There's something about a team that comes into the year, maybe not expected to be a team heading into Sectionals with a chance to get back to state after losing KK Arnold and being down 16 in the 2nd half against Homestead last night, that you root for.   Even though the personnel, the results seem to stay the same at Germantown, as they look for back-to-back trips to the state tournament and hang their sixth straight Regional Title Plaque in their hallway.

In an intense game with plenty of individual and team familiarity on both benches, Germantown took their sixth straight Regional Title plaque, but that only tells a tiny part of the 2023-24 Warhawks story.