By NATE BEIER | For the County Line
The Royall boys basketball season came to an end Thursday, March 8, in West Salem.
The Panthers fell 75–50 to conference champion Bangor in a Division 5 sectional semifinal in front of a generous crowd at West Salem High School.
The Cardinals were a little slow to start as Royall built an early lead,but they flipped the script before halftime and led 36–21 at the half. The Cardinals outscored Royall by 10 more in the second half, setting up their third win over the Panthers this season.
Dane Hyer led the way for the Panthers, as he scored a team-high 14 points. Seth Brown added 12, and Tristan Welchlin added 8.
Bangor had four players in double figures, led by conference player of the year, Luke Reader, with 20. Drew Johnson added 17, Caleb Miedema had 12 and Grant Manke put in 10.
Royall finishes the season 21–5 overall. The record was the best for the team since the 2012–13 season. Current head coach Scott Uppena took over as head coach in the 2013–14 season.
Bangor went on to defeat Southwestern in a sectional final, and then became the first Scenic Bluffs Conference team to win a state championship. The Cardinals defeated Green Bay N.E.W. Lutheran 73–31 in a semifinal, and then knocked off McDonell (Chippewa Falls) 91–67 in the Division 5 state final. Reader, Johnson and Miedema all finished with more than 1,000 career points.