BOYS BASKETBALL West excited about playing Red Raiders in postseason

The Wauwatosa West boys are probably looking forward to the end of the regular season this week, following their game at New Berlin Eisenhower on Wednesday.

They are also probably looking forward to their first playoff game, because they won't have any problem getting motivated.

The Trojans got the 12th seed in the WIAA Waukesha North Regional and will play the fifth seed - crosstown rival Wauwatosa East.

The Trojans, who dropped a 61-39 at Tosa East on Jan. 7, will play the Red Raiders at 7 p.m. on Tuesday. The winner of that game will travel to Milwaukee Northwest (14-6) for a second-round game March 2.

"Our guys and I are excited about our matchup," Trojans coach Chad Stelse said. "Our guys are always motivated to get better, and this matchup will only make us stronger. This will be the first tournament game for everyone on our team; why not do it close to home."

The Trojans have lost 15 straight going into the postseason, but Stelse has been impressed with his young team's attitude.

"Our guys have shown great character all year," the first-year coach said. "There hasn't been any time to complain about this or that - they knew this was going to be a process this season.

"Yes, they are frustrated that we haven't put together some wins, but they never dwell on the previous game. They just come to practice the next day and continue to work."

The Trojans played better in a 53-41 loss to Greendale (8-8, 8-13) at Tosa West last Friday. It was 7-7 after one quarter, but the Panthers went on a 18-11 second-quarter binge to take a 25-18 lead at intermission.

Unfortunately, the Panthers increased their advantage to 39-27 after a 14-9 third period.

"Our man-to-man defense has been improving and it showed against Greendale," Stelse said. "But poor shooting hurt us. That being said, I have to give Greendale credit for their defensive effort against us.

"They did a great job of stopping dribble penetration and closing out on all shooters. They held us to 31 percent from the floor (16-for-51) and 5-for-19 from three-point land (26 percent)."

Sophomore Blake Harvey poured in 20 points, which included four 3-pointers, and freshman Andre Carroll added 12.

Freshman starting point guard Steffan Brown has been out of the lineup with an injury the last four games.