OSHKOSH (NBC 26) — After upsetting De Pere in the Division 1 sectional final, the Oshkosh North boys' basketball team is headed to Madison for the WIAA state tournament. The fourth-seeded Spartans are embracing the underdog mentality as they prepare to face top-seeded Wisconsin Lutheran.
"De Pere has been, you know, the standard for a decade," Oshkosh North head coach Brad Weber said. "Wisconsin Lutheran has been right next to them. I don't know who's 1A and who's 1B, so that refocuses us quickly."
In past years, Oshkosh North was the top-seeded team to beat, but this season, the Spartans battled adversity early.
"We really didn’t have anything going for us in the beginning," junior forward Bryce Ott said. "I mean, at one point, I think we were 9-8. Teams look at the film from the beginning of the season, and they look at us now—we're two completely different teams."
Weber said the team’s belief in each other has made them resilient.
"They’ve been through the wars this year. They’ve been at the bottom, stuck together, and came back tougher. And when you do that, you build a bond and build a trust with each other," Weber said.
Despite their momentum, the Spartans are sticking with the same mindset that got them to this point.
"I believe we're still the underdogs here," senior guard and Iowa State commit Xzavion Mitchell said. "I think we're going to stick to that role and continue to claim that because it's helped us throughout this whole tournament."
A major turning point for the Spartans was the return of Bryce Ott, who missed 17 games due to injury.
"When we were missing him, we were incomplete," Weber said. And now we're whole again. You can tell just by our vibe—everything feels normal again. It didn't feel normal not having him on the court."
Mitchell agreed that Ott’s return has been crucial to their postseason run.
"We knew that with him coming back, he was the key to all of this and the key to this whole run," Mitchell said. "He's so important to us. I mean, I think he gives us a lot of confidence on both ends of the floor, and he’s a game-changer. He's a winner."
With their roster complete, the Spartans are looking to repeat history. In 2018, another Iowa State commit, now Pacers All-Star Tyrese Haliburton, led Oshkosh North to a state championship.
"I remember watching him when I was in fifth grade, sitting in the stands during his state tournament run. Even when he won his sectional final, I was there," Mitchell said. "I remember watching him cut down the net and being that young kid, wanting to do what he did."
Ott agreed that Haliburton's 2018 run has stuck with him since he was a kid.
"Obviously, the 2018 team was a big motivator," Ott said. "Watching them when I was in middle school to now, like, living what they were doing—it's unreal. And then to see him supporting us, it's great."
Oshkosh North plays Wisconsin Lutheran in the Division 1 state semifinals on Friday at 6:35 p.m. at the Kohl Center.
