New London-Spicer's Shane Zylstra can dunk. And the junior forward did after stealing the ball from Annandale with about 10 minutes left.
But when the referees called him for a foul right after, it stopped the momentum that the dunk had created. It was a constant theme for New London-Spicer.
Annandale outlasted the Wildcats 76-70, coming back from a 36-33 halftime deficit Wednesday in the Class 2A quarterfinals at Target Center.
In the Wright County Conference, the No. 1-seeded Cardinals (24-6) defeated New London-Spicer (19-11) twice. That familiarity fueled a game with 10 ties and seven lead changes.
"We played them in football. They sent us home," Annandale junior forward Chase Knickerbocker said. "So there was a little bit of rivalry there."
Annandale coach Don "Skip" Dolan called Knickerbocker, who led his team with 23 points, one of the best scorers in the state. Zylstra scored 17 points for New London-Spicer, including two dunks. His coach, Chad Schmiesing, called him "dynamic," saying he possesses abilities many high school players don't.
Dolan prepared his team for a game that would be decided in the final seconds.
"Night in and night out, I have to coach the last two, three, four minutes," he said. "The kids have to play those last two, three, four minutes."