By Dan Truttschel
Correspondent
The East Troy boys basketball team put the finishing touches on a solid regular season last week with three more victories.
And now the Trojans can turn their attention to what they hope is a deep postseason run.
East Troy clinched its fifth straight Rock Valley Conference North Division title in the week’s first game, followed by two more victories to close out the regular season at 19-3 overall.
The Trojans, ranked second in Division 3 behind Little Chute, began the week with a 68-54 win at McFarland, followed by victories of 74-64 over Jefferson and 76-53 over Whitewater.
Against Whitewater, the first quarter was tight, as East Troy led by just two points at 17-15.
From there, however, the Trojans took control.
East Troy outscored the Whippets 17-7 in the second and 22-11 in the third to put the game out of reach. Both teams scored 20 points in the fourth quarter.
Senior Brett Prahl, who will join his twin brother, Alex, at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee next year, poured in a game-high 35 points
to lead the Trojans. Nate Dodge added 23 points, followed by Alex Prahl with 10.
In the win over Jefferson, the Trojans took control early and never gave it up.
East Troy jumped out to a 22-11 first-quarter lead and held a 40-17 advantage by halftime.
Brett Prahl led the Trojans with 25 points, followed by Alex Prahl with 17 and Dodge with 15.
East Troy now awaits the winner of the St. John’s Northwestern Military Academy-Saint Francis matchup Tuesday night. The Trojans host the second round Friday, Feb. 22, at 7 p.m.
A win in that contest will send East Troy to a regional final Saturday, Feb. 23, against either Kettle Moraine Lutheran, Tenor or University School of Milwaukee.
The sectional tournament is slated for next Thursday, Feb. 28 and Saturday, March 2, with a berth in this year’s WIAA State Tournament on the line.
Clinching win a battle
The final score in the McFarland win that secured another RVC title for the Trojans shows a 14-point bulge in favor of East Troy.
But it certainly wasn’t easy, as East Troy led by just two at 12-10 after the first quarter and by four at 30-26 by halftime.
A big third quarter proved to be the difference, as the Trojans outscored the Spartans 19-7 to finally take control. McFarland enjoyed a two-point advantage in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough.
Leading the way again was Brett Prahl with 28 points, followed by Alex Prahl with 15 and Dodge with 12. Connor Mitchell chipped in with eight points.
