Niagara junior Dante Stachowicz (15) drives towards the basket as Lena’s Tyler Shallow (4) tries to cut him off on Tuesday at Niagara High School. (Sean Chase/Daily News photo)

NIAGARA, Wis. — After a strong regular season, the Niagara boys varsity basketball team turned its attention to the opening round of the WIAA Division 5 tournament on Tuesday.

The No. 4 ranked Badgers (17-8, 11-5) handled business at home against No. 13 Lena (5-20, 2-14), securing a 59-39 victory and advancing to the second round.

“We didn’t play as well as we are capable of playing, but we played well enough to win,” Niagara head coach Terry Youren said. “That’s the most important thing. If you win, you move on.”

Niagara will face off with No. 5 ranked Florence at Niagara High School on Friday at 7 p.m. The Badgers and Bobcats have met twice this season, with Florence winning the first contest, 35-25 on Dec. 1 and Niagara picking up a 62-60 win on Jan. 30 in Florence, Wis.

“I’m looking forward to moving on,” Youren said. “We split (during the season) and basically, it’s anybody’s ballgame.”

The Badgers turned up the defensive intensity from the opening tip and Tommy Martin turned back-to-back steals into layups as they took a 4-0 lead. Blake Holmes added four points and Cameron Schiefelbein notched a layup and six minutes into the game, Niagara held a 10-0 lead.

“Mostly, it gives you a lot of energy and then they play a little bit harder,” Youren said of the early run. “That’s the important thing. We’ve got kids that have wide wingspans and that makes a world of difference. (Lena) thought they were easy passes, but they weren’t easy passes and we stole them.”

Lena’s struggles continued throughout the first half, as it tried to find a rhythm from 3-point land. This strategy forced the Badgers’ hand defensively and they switched their strategy.

“Well we ran our regular defense that we always run,” Youren said. “But, they were shooting some threes from outer space, so we decided to switch and we went to (a man defense) on them.

“Of course, we took that away and the game started to get away from them.”

Niagara didn’t have the same issues. In front of a raucous crowd, Holmes poured in 13 first-half points while Schiefelbein added eight and the Badgers took a 28-14 lead into the locker room at halftime.

Both teams struggled to find an opening at the start of the second half and no one recorded a point in the first three minutes.

Holmes broke Niagara out of the slump with a layup, then Lena rattled off five straight points as they cut the deficit to 11 points.

But, just as the Wildcats began to make a run, Martin connected on a 3-pointer and a layup.

Lena couldn’t respond as it continued to launch deep 3-pointers and a few minutes later, the Badgers lead was up to 20 points after Martin drained two free throws.

Even though the Wildcats weren’t giving up, Niagara easily breezed through the second half and picked up the 59-39 playoff win.

Holmes led all scorers in the game with 23 points.

The Badgers also received contributions from Martin (19 points), Schiefelbein (14 points) and Dante Stachowicz (3 points).

“Basically, we’re the type of team that shares the basketball,” Youren said. “So we don’t care who scores as long as we score more points than the other team.”

Niagara will look to outscore Florence on Friday with the event being livestreamed at https://www.nfhsnetwork.com/events/niagara-high-school-niagara-wi/gam6eaa3942ce.

BOBCATS 60, VIKINGS 48

FLORENCE, Wis. — William Kelley and Trent McLain each notched 17 points on Tuesday as the No. 5 ranked Florence boys varsity basketball team toppled No. 12 Gibraltar, 60-48, at Florence High School.

“When the WIAA postseason starts, it’s a fresh start for everyone,” Bobcats head coach Bryan Bomberg said. “We came out very focused and disciplined. I was very proud of how we played overall. There was a lot of adversity in this game and we hung tough. Survive and advance.”

Florence’s (15-9, 5-5) next game will be on Friday against Niagara at Niagara High School at 7 p.m. The Badgers and Bobcats have met twice this season, with Florence winning the first contest, 35-25 on Dec. 1 and Niagara picking up a 62-60 win on Jan. 30 in Florence, Wis.

Florence recorded four 3-pointers in the first half and it rolled to a 35-19 lead at halftime.

The Vikings turned the tide in the second, draining three 3-pointers, but McLain added nine points to his total while Kelley poured in six and the Bobcats breezed to victory.

Gibraltar’s Braden Sitte led all scorers in the contest with 24 points.

The Bobcats received contributions from Truth Setner (10 points) and Dustin Williams (16 points).