Two sophomore lead Waseca over Austin in Class 3A boys' basketball semifinals

Waseca senior guard Malik Willingham became the program's all-time leading scorer this season, but Thursday was all about two capable sophomore teammates, Ryan Dufault and Andrew Morgan.

The duo came through on an off day for Willingham (0-for-7 from the field), scoring a combined 53 points in the No. 2-seeded Bluejays' 79-69 victory over No. 3 seed Austin.

"Whenever one of our teammates is going off like that, we just try to find a way to get them the ball," said Willingham, who scored all eight of his points on free throws. "And Ryan and Andrew both did their parts today. They felt on fire."

No one burned brighter than Dufault. During a stretch late in the second half, he scored 10 consecutive points for the Bluejays (30-1). He finished with 30 points.

"He's a great shooter," Austin coach Kris Fadness said. "We just lost him."

Meanwhile, Dufault found himself living a fantasy: "Oh yeah, that's the dream. Always."

Fadness endured a reoccurring nightmare as his players committed 21 turnovers.

Morgan, a 6-8 center, presented other problems for the Packers (24-6), who had one player taller than 6-4. Morgan scored 23 points and grabbed 15 rebounds as the Bluejays outscored Austin 46-20 inside and 16-10 on second-chance points.

"We knew we had a height advantage," Morgan said. "I knew I could dominate down low."