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BOYNE CITY — Breslin Center, here we come!

The Westwood High School boys basketball team booked its ticket to the MHSAA Division 3 state semifinals at Michigan State University in East Lansing by taking control in the fourth quarter and earning a 48-40 victory over McBain in an intense quarterfinal showdown in Boyne City on Tuesday evening.

“It feels amazing,” said Westwood junior guard Ethan Marta, who netted a game-high 24 points. “It was a goal when the season started. We said we wanted to win a regional final and go from there, and here we are.”

From left, Westwood’s Caden Balzarini, Tristan Miller and AJ Pizziola celebrate during the fourth quarter of an MHSAA Division 3 boys basketball tournament state quarterfinal game played against McBain at Boyne City on Tuesday. (Photo courtesy Jared Greenleaf)

Marta’s shooting was key in the early going for the Patriots (22-5), who opened the contest with a 10-2 run. But for a long stretch, Westwood struggled offensively, which allowed the Ramblers (23-3) to chip away, use their size and eventually take a 35-32 lead after three quarters.

But even a fourth-quarter deficit didn’t faze the Patriots, who went back in front when senior Tristan Miller made a tough inside bucket for a 38-37 advantage with 5:15 remaining.

Leading by two, Miller missed the second of two free throw attempts, but Marta came up with a huge play by stealing a McBain pass and scoring for a 41-37 Westwood edge. While the Ramblers cut the deficit following a three-point play by Clayton Hueker, WHS answered with a basket from senior Reid Frustaglio to re-establish a three-point advantage.

From there, it was stingy defense and clutch free throw shooting that allowed the Patriots to reach the semifinal round, where they’ll face Arts & Technology Academy of Pontiac, which captured a 74-44 quarterfinal win over Flint New Standard Academy also Tuesday.

“It’s fun just to see where our basketball program is at,” Westwood coach Luke Gray said. “Building the culture, it’s just been special, the community support, all of this right here, and our boys play hard. They play hard for each other and it’s just special to be around.”

Westwood senior Tristan Miller shoots a 3-pointer during the first quarter of an MHSAA Division 3 boys basketball tournament state quarterfinal game played against McBain at Boyne City on Tuesday. (Photo courtesy Jared Greenleaf)

For the Ramblers, they were in a winning position going into the fourth. However, their offense went completely cold. In the end, they were outscored 16-5 in the final period and saw their bid to make the semifinals for a second consecutive year fall short.

“Kudos to (Westwood), they had some foul trouble as well — they hit a couple buckets,” McBain coach Bruce Koopman said. “(Miller) had four fouls and he comes in and gets a couple putbacks, hits a couple free throws and kind of puts the game away for them.”

Miller finished with 11 points for the Patriots, who stayed composed and delivered a dominant final period to keep their dream season going.

“Those kids don’t flinch. They truly don’t,” Gray said of his team. “They have the next-man-up mentality, they treat each other with the utmost respect, they support each other, and when you’ve got that — when you have any five guys on the floor like that — they’re capable of doing great things because they play so well together.”

Heuker finished with 15 points to lead McBain while Joshua Rodenbaugh scored 10 and Ben Rodenbaugh added eight.

Westwood’s semifinal clash with Art & Technology Academy of Pontiac (20-1) will be at noon today, the first of eight semifinal games scheduled for today and Friday across four divisions on the MSU campus.

The Patriots will make their first semifinal appearance since 2003. The winner of that matchup meets the winner of the other D-3 semifinal between Riverview Gabriel Richard and Pewamo-Westphalia for the state title at 4:30 p.m. Saturday.

Jared Greenleaf is the sports editor of the Cheboygan Daily Tribune, where he has worked since 2010.