While having the home-court advantage, the Badgers (20-5) managed just a two-point lead, 18-16, over the Vikings (4-21) in a toughly contested first half. It didn’t help that Niagara shot just 22% from the field at 44% from the free-throw line.

But, the Badgers found their collective shooting stroke after intermission, hitting 40% from the field and 80% from the charity stripe as they outgunned Gibraltar 30-16 in the second half.

“The girls worked hard for this win,” said Niagara coach Karl Lamoreaux. “It’s hard to play a team you are not familiar with. (But) we got things figured out and shot a much better percentage in the second half.”

A pair of senior hoopsters led the way for Niagara, with Josie Rock hitting for game-high 17 points and Morgan Borchardt chipping in 15 points.

Badger Mallory Sanicki (right) and visiting Viking Betsy Lecy battle over a loose ball in Tuesday’s WIAA regional hoops clash. With the win over Gibraltar, Niagara will advance to face the Three Lakes Bluejays on Friday at home. (Dennis Mansfield/Daily News photo)

Also contributing to the winning point margin were Abby Wells, with six points, Mallory Sanicki with five points, Erin Lukowicz with three points and Rachael Walker with two points.

The Badgers again get a home game for their second-round regional matchup, when they host the Three Lakes Bluejays (15-8) on Friday night.

“(It’s) survive and advance mode now,” Lamoreaux said.

LADYCATS 61, HORNETS 19

FLORENCE, Wis. — The Florence Ladycats made quick work of their regional opening round opponent, dominating the visiting Elcho Hornets for a 61-19 victory.

Niagara varsity cager Abby Wells (12) gets by Gibraltar defender Mikala Gorham (15) on a drive into the lane during Tuesday night’s first-round tournament matchup at NHS. (Dennis Mansfield/Daily News photo)

The Ladycats (14-10) made it a no-doubter, racing out to a 35-10 lead at halftime and continuing run away in the second half by outscoring the Hornets (4-17) by 17 points, 26-9.

“The girls continue to play hard and learn from every opportunity that comes their way,” Brad Perry. “We played our younger girls a lot of minutes tonight and made sure everyone had an opportunity to contribute to a playoff win.

“We will look to continue to build on our successes as we head to Lena on Friday night for a WIAA second-round playoff game.”

Isabella Millan led the Ladycats with 20 points to go with her five rebounds, three assists and four steals, while Florence also got a double-digit performance from Bryn Sullivan, who finished with 12 points, six boards, two assists and four steals.

Other contributors in the playoff win included Kamdan Johnson (7 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocked shots), Hannah Holdaway and Leah Young both with six points, Morgan Tomczak and Abigail Novak with four points each, and Karissa Smith with two points. Novak also pulled down a team-best 11 rebounds.