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La Crosse Central beat up Cedarburg in the paint Saturday during the WIAA Division 2 state-title game at the Kohl Center in Madison, outscoring the Bulldogs 26-4 in the lane.

La Crosse Central's reserves scored 12 points compared to 0 for the bench players from Cedarburg.

The Red Raiders had a 13-2 edge in points off turnovers and a 14-2 advantage in second-change points. 

And yet, somehow the state's No. 1-ranked team had to survive a last-second heave in order to notch a 55-53 victory over Cedarburg.

That's in large part a testament to the toughness of all the Cedarburg players and the remarkable performance put on by junior John Diener, a 6-foot-4 guard and DePaul recruit who scored 25 points a day after setting a WIAA State Tournament record with 46 points in a double overtime victory over Milwaukee Washington.

"Boy did Cedarburg play well," La Crosse Central coach Todd Fergot said. "Cedarburg did a phenomenal job hitting 11 of 18 three-point shots. It seemed every time we would pull away, they would battle back and make it a game. It was a game until the end, which we kind of expected.

"Cedarburg is the toughest team we've played. They just never quit.  The players reflect their coach and Tom Diener is one of the best coaches our state has ever seen."

After leading 21-18 at halftime by scoring the final six points of the first 18 minutes, La Crosse Central rode the incredibly hot hand of senior Kobe King (6-4), the University of Wisconsin recruit and 2017 Mr. Basketball award winner.

King had just seven points in the first half, but he came out and scored 15 points in the first 5 minutes, 27 seconds of the second half, giving the Red Raiders a 38-28 advantage.

"In the first half, I wasn't hitting much and forced a bit," King said. "I think I got caught up a bit in the moment. I knew I had to come out aggressive in the second half and fortunately, my shots were falling."

Cedarburg (25-3) responded with a three by Diener and two more triples, this time from senior Jordan Johnson (6-5) to close the gap to 42-39 with 8:41 left. 

La Crosse Central (26-2) built its lead back up to seven at 48-41 with 7:05 left on a three by King, but once again Cedarburg fought back and took a brief 50-49 lead at the 2:55 mark on a jumper by Johnson.

The game went back and forth from that point, though the Red Raiders took the lead for good at 51-50 with 2:37 left on a jumper by King.

La Crosse Central led 54-50 at the :17 mark before Diener drilled a deep three with King in his face with 12 seconds left.

Freshman Jordan Davis made a foul shot for the Red Raiders to make it 55-53 with 2 seconds left and Diener's three-quarters court heave hit the rim and backboard before falling off, giving the Red Raiders their first state title since 1925.

"I am proud of our guys for the resiliency our guys showed," John Diener said. "On the last shot, I thought it had a chance, but that's how it goes."

King finished his final high school game with 28 points and 9 rebounds. During four years of varsity competition at La Crosse Central, King scored 2,051 points.

"I have a lot of respect for Kobe King," John Diener said. "He's a great player and a great person."

Kale finished a brilliant four-year varsity career with 15 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists. The Minnesota-Duluth recruit had a pair of three-point baskets and a steal.

Diener had three rebounds and an assist to go along with his 25 points and five made triples.

"Diener is very fundamentally sound so it was a great test guarding him," King said. "He has great footwork and strength to go along with a great shot. He got me a few times with his shot fake because he can shoot it from deep.

"I have no doubt they'll be back (to the state tournament) next year with Diener coming back."

Johnson finished with 13 points for the Bulldogs while junior Matthew Barber (6-7) turned in a solid all-around game with 11 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 blocked shots.

"We played the type of game we had to to give our guys a shot at the end," Cedarburg coach Tom Diener said. "We tried to slow them down a bit and limit possessions a bit. We got down a couple of times, but fought back each time. It's been a heck of a run in the playoffs and a great season for our kids. It's just tough to lose the big game."