WASECA &045; The Waterville-Elysian-Morristown Buccaneers had the tradition and the top seed in the Sub-Section 2AA East Boys’ Basketball Tournament.

Now they have next year.

The fifth-seeded United South Central Rebels surprised perennial power WEM 46-39 in a semifinal game at Waseca Thursday night.

It was the second straight playoff upset for United South Central, which was 9-14 in the regular season, following an opening-round 66-65 win at fourth-seeded Belle Plaine.

The Rebels, though, didn’t necessarily see Thursday as an upset.

&uot;We knew we could play with them,&uot; said senior Chris Vondracek. &uot;We had a sub-par record going into the playoffs, and we want to redeem ourselves a little bit and end on a high note.&uot;

&uot;The seedings don’t mean anything, really, once you get into the playoffs,&uot; said senior Ben Wetzell.

Coach Travis Olson said the Rebels did not change their approach while facing the Bucs for the third time this season.

&uot;We lost to them by two three weeks ago at the buzzer,&uot; said Olson. &uot;We just looked at taking away some of the things we gave them the first time around. And our players, when they the opportunity, really rose to the occasion when the occasion presented itself.&uot;

That was apparent early, when the Rebels set the tone for the night with hustle and tough defense. They led 12-9, 23-18 and 32-30 at the quarter breaks but couldn’t pull away until the final minute, behind free throws by Brandon Haugh, Nate Pederson, Scott Halvorson and Vondracek.

For the night, the Rebels were 10-for-21 at the line while WEM made four of 10 free throw attempts. The Bucs were 1-for-6 in the fourth quarter.

Wetzell led USC with 15 points. Vondracek scored 10, Haugh seven, Justin Youngblom six, Pederson five.

The Rebels advanced to the sub-section championship game Monday at 6 p.m. at Minnesota State, Mankato against second-seeded Hayfield, which beat No. 3 seed NRHEG 60-47 Thursday to improve to 13-13.