Boys Basketball Class AA Semifinal Waseca 72, Fergus Falls 58

Waseca continued its quest for what it hopes will be the school’s first championship in more than a century with a 72-58 victory over Fergus Falls in the Class AA semifinals of the Minnesota State High School League’s Boys Basketball State Tournament on Wednesday, April 7 at Target Center in downtown Minneapolis.

Senior forwards Andrew Morgan and Kyreese Willingham scored 24 and 21 points, respectively, to power the Bluejays (22-1) into the Class AA championship game against Caledonia on Saturday. Waseca last captured a basketball state championship in 1918 when one victor was crowned.

Waseca’s lone loss this season was to Minnehaha Academy on March 2. Minnehaha Academy is in the Class AAA bracket and is considered the favorite in that class.  Waseca was the state runner-up in Class AA to DeLaSalle in 2019.

Waseca, which led by as many as 19 points in the second half, earlier extended its advantage to 62-48 when Willingham fired a three-pointer with 5:08 left in regulation time.

Morgan punctuated a first half of dominance with an alley-oop dunk off a feed from senior forward Kyreese Willingham. Morgan finished the first 18 minutes of play with 16 points and a team-best six rebounds. Senior guard Ryan Dufault added 13 points and Willilnghman had 12 for the Bluejays, who built a 44-30 lead at the break.

Senior 7-foot center Chance Fazio paced the Otters (16-8) with 20 points and 15 rebounds. Senior guard Dominic Aguilar had 13 of his 14 points in the first half.