Winona players are used to coming to the bench during timeouts and hearing a similar statement from coach Tim Gleason.

With four minutes left in a close Class 3A semifinal game Thursday against Becker, they got that message, but this time with more intensity.

“Coach always says, ‘Play the next four minutes,’” guard Eden Nibbelink said. “So Coach said, ‘We only have four left, this is when we go win it.’ ”

That’s what Winona did, holding Becker (20-10) scoreless in the final three minutes to earn a hard-fought 37-33 victory at Williams Arena and advance to the championship.

“Winona really clamped down there at the end, and we just didn’t get a good look,” Becker coach Paul Lindsay said. “When we did, we missed it. … We fell one possession short.”

Winona switched between a 2-3 zone and a man-defense, locking down shooters on the perimeter to hold Becker to a 27.1 shooting percentage and forcing 17 turnovers.

Winona (25-6) didn’t fare too much better offensively, succumbing to Becker’s slow pace. The Winhawks, playing much of the game without injured point guard Jayne Emerson, shot 34.2 percent. Nibbelink was the game’s only player to reach double figures, scoring 11 points.

“It’s hard,” Gleason said. “(Playing slow) isn’t easy for us to do. We like to get up and go. But they’ve played enough, they’ve been in enough close games and things like that to know each possession mattered.”

This game wasn’t Winona’s prettiest victory of the season, but it might have been its biggest.

“It’s the state semifinals,” Gleason said. “There are no ugly wins.”

First report

In a game where points did not come unearned, Winona defeated Becker 37-33 Thursday to advance to the Class 3A championship.

Winona(25-6)  won the hard-fought game thanks to its tough defense all game, particularly in the final minutes. Becker (20-10) missed its final five shots and did not score in the last three minutes. For the game, Becker had 17 turnovers and made only 13 of its 48 field goal attempts, shooting 27.1 percent.

Eden Nibbelink scored 11 points for Winona and was the only player to reach double digits for either team.

Winona will play Holy Angels in the Class 3A championship game Saturday at 6 p.m. in Williams Arena.

Check back later for more on the game.