The Mexico Bulldogs’ perfect season will be on the line this weekend when they square off against the defending Class 4 state champion Vashon Wolverines.

The Bulldogs (28-0) punched their ticket to the state quarterfinals with a 61-48 win over St. Charles West Tuesday at Troy Buchanan High School.

Daeye Miller paced the Bulldog scoring attack with 18 points. Isaiah Reams added 16 points. DJ Long also reached double figures with 11 points. 

The Bulldogs started off the game with a 9-0 run to take an early lead. Miller, Reams and Michael White each made two-point field goals to give the Bulldogs a 6-0 lead. Peyton Willer added a three-pointer to give the Bulldogs the early 9-0 lead. After St. Charles West trimmed the Bulldog lead to 11-10 late in the first quarter, Mexico extended the lead to 15-10 after one quarter.

The Bulldogs extended their lead in the second quarter and led 29-16 at halftime. They led by as many as 21 points in the third quarter.

“Defensively, we got after it,” Mexico Basketball Coach Darren Pappas said. “We created some turnovers. We kept them off the boards so we gave them one shot and out. We didn’t give them second and third opportunities. And then we were able to get out in transition and score some buckets.”

Mexico’s focus after Tuesday’s win shifted to preparing for Saturday’s state quarterfinal clash. Vashon (24-4) defeated MICDS 64-49 Tuesday to advance to the state quarterfinals.

“For us, watch a lot of film,” Pappas said. “Not only this film from tonight’s game to try to see where we can clean up some parts of the game but also what we have to do to prepare for Vashon and their style of play.”

The state quarterfinal game will be played at Francis Howell Central High School, 5199 Highway N, St. Charles. Tip-off is slated for 2:45 p.m.

The St. Charles West Warriors attempted to come back late in the third and fourth quarter. After Mexico built a 44-23 third quarter lead, St. Charles West closed the third quarter on a 7-0 run to cut the Bulldog lead to 14 points. St. Charles West guard Barry Thomas Jr. scored five consecutive points to cut the Bulldog lead to 16 points. Thomas paced the Warrior offensive attack with 24 points. Braden Goellner added a two-point basket to cut the lead to 44-30 at the end of the third quarter. The Warriors were able to cut the Bulldog lead to nine in the fourth quarter before Mexico extended its lead back to double digits. The Bulldogs converted seven out of 10 free throw attempts down the stretch to clinch the victory.

“St. Charles West did a good job,” Pappas said. “They started to hit some shots against our zone. I thought they got us. We gambled a couple times defensively and they made us pay. And then they turned on the pressure there in the fourth quarter and we turned it over a few times. We can’t be careless with the basketball as we go into this quarterfinal game.”

Even though the Bulldogs are currently undefeated, Pappas stressed their focus is on the next game on the schedule, which on Saturday will be the defending Class 4 state champions.

“One game at a time. That’s been the motto the entire season,” Pappas said. “Just take it one game at a time and so this is the next one. We’re fortunate enough that we have some senior guys and some guys on our bench that have played in the quarterfinals last year. So hopefully that experience and that depth will pay dividends for us as we get into this quarterfinal game on Saturday.”