Dominican Will Defend State Title Saturday

The Dominican boys basketball team will return to Madison Saturday to defend their Division 4 state title in a WIAA championship game against Auburndale.

The Knights beat Cuba City 55-47 in a state semifinal game in Madison Thursday night. Dominican beat Cuba City in the state final game last year to win the Division 4 title, but Knights coach Derek Berger said they never underestimated the Cubans' ability.

"It was a close game," Berger said. "Our defensive pressure turned up a little bit, we were able to force a few turnovers and we were able to get some easy buckets that really opened up the game for us."

Marquette recruit Duane Wilson led the Knights' scoring with 19 points and nine rebounds. Chris Topp, a junior, scored 12 points, and sophomore Diamond Stone scored 10 points.

Even though they were in Madison, the Knights had strong support from their fellow Dominican students, who participated in a pep rally earlier in the day. 

Dominican (23-4) will now face Auburndale in the D4 state championship game Saturday. Berger said his team was able to watch most of Auburndale's game against Amherst on Thursday and got a flavor for the Apaches' style of play.

"I think Auburndale's a really good team," Berger said. "It's going to be a battle."

Patch will of course be following the action on Saturday. If you're going to the game, please send your photos and videos by uploading them to this article or emailing them to jeff.rumage@patch.com.