Montevideo used a 13-0 run at the end of the first half to propel the Thunderhawks to an 87-56 victory over the Minnewaska Area boys basketball team in the sub-section semifinals last Tuesday night at Willmar.

The Lakers ended the season with a 12-15 overall record, while Montevideo moved on to face Morris Area-CA for the sub-section title, Saturday at SMSU in Marshall.

Minnewaska trailed early, but forged into a 20-13 lead with just over seven minutes remaining in the first half after a putback off an offensive rebound by Connor Frey.

Ten minutes later, Montevideo led 52-25 as the Thunderhawks went on a 39-5 run to build a 27-point lead with 14:51 left in the game.  The Lakers went on a mini run of 19-8 themselves to pull to within 60-44 with 9:40 left after a 3-pointer by Frey, but that would be as close as they would get as Montevideo steadily pulled away from then on, eventually settling for the 31-point victory

It was the third victory by the Thunderhawks over Minnewaska this season.  Montevideo also knocked off the Lakers in the opening round last year after Minnewaska Area led by three with 4:35 left in the game.

“We had a tough stretch the final two minutes of the half and the first couple minutes of the second half where the game really got away from us,” coach Zach Traphagen said.  “Credit to Monte, they are a fantastic team and played extremely well after we had led for most of the first half.”

The Lakers, who were seeded fourth in the north half of Section 3AA, routed Litchfield in the playoff opener, 61-37, while Montevideo is the top seed of the north sub-section.  

Minnewaska Area finished 3-10 in the WCC to tie for sixth place.  Montevideo won the league title with an 11-2 record, followed by Morris Area-CA (10-3), Sauk Centre (9-4), West Central Area (7-6), BOLD (6-7), Minnewaska and Melrose (both 3-10) and Benson (0-7).

Seniors lost to graduation from this year’s team are Carter Meyer, Zach Palmer, Levi Johnson, Connor Frey, Jacob Mrnak, Caden Larson, Tenzin Dahl, Ian Mills, Kaiden Harvey, Owen Meulebroeck and Chase Wacker.

“We have a lot to be proud of this season,” Traphagen said.  “We’re going to miss the heck out of our seniors next year, but we love and appreciate every single one of those young men. They helped get this program turned back around and heading in the right direction.

“Overall, it was a great season and I was proud to be part of this team.”

Montevideo 87, Waska 56

The Lakers were eliminated by Montevideo in the sub-section semifinals last Tuesday at Willmar, 87-56.  The game was close through most of the first half before the Thunderhawks went on a late run in the first half that carried over into the second half to take control of the game.

Marc Gruber had eight early points, Levi Johnson had a big 3-pointer, Tenzin Dahl had an old-fashioned three-point play, and Luke Danielson and Zach Palmer also had early baskets as the Lakers led 20-13 when Connor Frey ripped an offensive rebound away from Montevideo and put it in for a basket with just over seven minutes left int he game.

Could this be a night for an upset?

A free-throw by Kaiden Harvey kept the Lakers up 21-20 and a 15-footer by Palmer gave Minnewaska a 23-20 lead with about four minutes left in the first half.

Seven minutes later, the Lakers found themselves trailing 52-25 as Montevideo went on a 32-2 run to shock the fans and put the Thunderhawks in control of the game.

First, Montevideo scored eight-straight points to take a 28-23 lead before Owen Meulebroeck scored off an inbounds play to cut the deficit to 28-25.

Then, Montevideo went on a 24-0 run over a span of 4 1/2 minutes while the Lakers could not buy a basket.

The 24-0 run extended over the last minute-plus of the first half, helping Montevideo go up 41-25 by halftime, and extended into the first 3:09 of the second half, giving Montevideo a 52-25 lead with 14:51 left in the game.

A basket inside by Dahl, followed by a three-point play by Gruber and a 3-pointer by Dahl, pulled the Lakers to within 52-33.

And, two 3-pointers by Frey, along with a 3-pointer by Dahl and two free-throws by Palmer, got the Lakers to within 60-44 a few minutes later, which was the closest they would get the rest of the way.

Montevideo went on a run of 11-0 to get its lead back up to 71-44 before Minnewaska Area went on one last run of 12-10 to close the gap to 81-56 before both teams emptied the bench with 1:33 remaining.

The Lakers shot 34 percent from the field (20-for-58), including 8-of-20 from 3-point range.  Tenzin Dahl led the offense with 16 points, eight rebounds and three steals, while Marc Gruber had 14 points, going 3-of-5 from long range, along with two assists and five boards.

Connor Frey added eight points and three rebounds, while Zach Palmer had six points, two assists and three rebounds and Luke Danielson had four points and five boards.

For Montevideo, Griffin Epema had 22 points, five rebounds and seven steals, Jackson Koenen and Adam VanBinsbergen both had 17 points, and Gannon Reidinger had seven points and nine rebounds.

The Thunderhawks shot just under 60 percent from the field, including 45 percent on 3-pointers (9-of-20).

Also scoring for the Lakers were Levi Johnson with three points and four assists, Owen Meulebroeck with two points and two boards, Tristan O’Neil with two points and five rebounds, and Kaiden Harvey with one point.

Monte 87, at Waska 56

Minnewaska (12-15) 25 31 — 56

Montevideo 41 46 — 87

WASKA stats:  20-58 FG (8-20 3pt; 8-16 FT; 10 assists; 34 rebounds; 6 steals; 9 fouls; 21 turnovers . . . Scoring:   Tenzin Dahl 16, Marc Gruber 14, Connor Frey 8, Zach Palmer 6, Luke Danielson 4, Levi Johnson 3, Owen Meulebroeck 2, Tristan O’Neil 2, Kaiden Harvey 1. . . Rebounding:  Dahl 8, O’Neil 5, Gruber 5, Danielson 5, Palmer 3, Frey 3, Meulebroeck 2 . . . Assists:  Johnson 4, Palmer 2, Gruber 2 . . . Steals:  Dahl 3

MONTE stats:   35-60 FG (9-20 3pt); 8-11 FT; 31 rebounds; 13 steals; 13 fouls; 14 turnovers. . . Scoring:  Griffin Epema 22, Jackson Koenen 17, Adam VanBinsbergen 17, Brody Dack 9, Gannon Reidinger 7 . . . Rebounding:  Reidinger 9, Epema 5 . . . Steals:  Epema 7 . . . Other stats not available

Check out more photos in our photo gallery!