BLANKETING DEFENSE — Blue Earth Area’s Ashton Lloyd (23) squeezes off a jumpshot over Maple River defender Wyatt Birr during Section 2AA, South Sub-Section semifinal basketball action Thursday night at Mankato East High School in Mankato. (Photo courtesy of Kevin Mertens/Faribault County Register)

MANKATO — The Maple River Eagles showed everyone why they are the No. 5 team in the Class AA boys basketball rankings and the No. 1 seed in the Section 2AA, South Sub-Section playoffs.

The Eagles’ inside-outside game overwhelmed the No. 4-seeded Blue Earth Area Bucs 60-36 in a sub-section semifinal on Thursday night at Mankato East High School.

Maple River (27-2) advances to face Class AA No. 4-ranked and No. 3-seeded Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial (27-1) in the South final at 6 p.m. Monday night at the Taylor Center on the Minnesota State University campus in Mankato.

Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial beat No. 3-seeded Waseca 75-64 in its sub-section semifinal on Thursda at Mankato East High School.

Blue Earth Area finished the season 15-9 overall.

“They’re very good defensively,” Blue Earth Area head coach Colby Swanson said in reference to Maple River. “We knew they had that good of a defense and you have to shoot the ball well to beat them.

“We had some good looks at the basket, but didn’t shoot well.”

The Bucs made only 14 of 41 shots for 34 percent, while the Eagles made 21 of 45 for 46 percent.

The Bucs also committed nine turnovers compared to eight for the Eagles

Those numbers turned into a 24-point defeat to Maple River.

“They played composed tonight and you have to play a near-perfect game to beat them, and we did not play like that tonight,” Swanson said. “They’re played their inside-outside game very well. They’re a good team.”

The Eagles, which made the state tournament in 2015 and 2016, are two wins away from making a return trip to the Class AA state tournament.

Senior Hayden Niebuhr had a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds to pace the Eagles, while senior Abe Kokos had a team-high 13 points to lead the Bucs.

Senior Ashton Lloyd chipped in with nine points and a team-high six rebounds, plus had four assists and one blocked shot for Blue Earth Area.

Sophomore Gage Barker was near the double-digit point mark, netting eight in the second half, while the Bucs’ scorers were seniors Jack Norman and Austin Skaden, along with sophomore Jacob Grandgenett, with two points apiece.

The Eagles’ senior Mason Schirmer contributed nine points, eight rebounds, five assists and three steals, while junior teammate Aaron Pawlitschek had 15 points for the Eagles.

The Bucs were tied at 13-all with 7:52 left in the first half, but fell behind 27-14 at the half. The Bucs went cold from the field and turned the ball over, which allowed the Eagles to take the 13-piont halftime lead.

Barker’s eight points kept the Bucs within striking distance in the second half, but each time the Eagles’ Niebuhr and Pawlitschek would string together several points to increase the advantage to more than 20 points.

“Each time we were able to get a little closer, they would get the lead back to 20 or more points,” Swanson said

The Eagles helped its cause by making 12 of 16 free throws, compared to the Bucs, which made 1 of 4.

BEA    14-22–36

MR     27-33–60

B.E. AREA (36)

Kokos 5-11 0-0 13, Lloyd 3-14 1-2 9, Barker 3-3 0-0 8, Grandgenett 1-1 0-0 2, Norman 1-4 0-0 2, Skaden 1-5 0-2 2, Loge 0-2 0-0 0, Bromeland 0-1 0-0 0.

Maple River (60)

Niebuhr 9-172-5 20, Pawlitschek 5-9 1-1 15, Schimer 3-6 3-4 9, Birr 2-2 3-3 7, Trio 1-3 0-0 3, Fox 1-1 0-0 3, Sellers 0-72-2 2, Swalve 0-0 1-1 1, Davis 0-0 0-0 0.

3-pointers: Blue Earth Area 7-27 (Kokos 3, Lloyd 2, Barker 2); Maple River 6-18 (Pawlitschek 4, Trio 1, Fox 1). Fouled out: None. Rebounds: BEA 18 (Lloyd 6, Loge 4, Kokos 2); Maple River 35 (Niebuhr 11, Schirmer 8, Sellers 6, Birr 5). Assists: BEA 8 (Lloyd 4, Grandgenett 2); Maple River 7 (Schimer 5, Pawlitschek 1, Sellers 1). Steals: BEA 1 (Grandgenett); Maple River 6 (Schimer 3, Pawlitschek 1, Fox 1, Sellers 1).