Submitted photo: The Bishop Garrigan boys basketball team stands together after their Class 1A substate final victory in Mason City.

DES MOINES — The Bishop Garrigan boys have the chance to make it 2-for-2 in terms of major state championships here this coming week.

Back in the fall, the Golden Bears won their second eight-player state football title in three seasons. Now, several key members of that squad are set to hit the hardwood inside the Casey’s Center for the Class 1A state basketball tournament.

Bishop Garrigan (23-2 overall) takes on Bellevue Marquette (23-2) in the quarterfinals Tuesday night at 7:15 p.m.

Senior starters Carter Schwab and Tate Foertsch were leaders of the football team, along with junior starters Michael Joyce and Madden Miller. Several others are overlapping with key roles on both squads.

“It’s awesome to qualify for back-to-back state appearance in the matter of a few months,” said Foertsch, who earned player of the year on the gridiron. “I think we have the same mentality for basketball that we have for football. We are not just heading down to state for an experience…we’re heading down to be there for three games and a chance at state championship.”

Foertsch does a little bit of everything on the basketball court, recording 250 points, 161 rebounds, 89 assists and 38 steals this winter. Schwab, who became the school’s career assists leader earlier this year, has 365 points, 150 assists, 144 rebounds and 48 steals.

Joyce leads the team with 459 points scored. Senior Amaury Thomas has 378 points, 325 rebounds, 32 steals, 29 assists and 27 blocks this season.

Four of the five players were starters a year ago when the Golden Bears fell in a substate battle with St. Edmond. They avenged that loss this past regular season with a win over the Gaels in an instant classic at Algona.

Schwab, the son of Bishop Garrigan head girls coach Brandon Schwab, finally gets to experience state for himself after making several visits with his dad to watch the girls team.

“It means a lot to me, because when I was younger and the girls made it to state, my dad always let me sit on the bench just like my little brother did a few years ago,” he said. “It’s always been a dream of mine, so getting to fulfill that dream is awesome.

“We were close last year and just couldn’t get anything going (vs. St. Edmond). We had this in the back of our mind all offseason. I’m just so happy for all of my teammates that we get to experience state basketball together.”

The Defenders survived an overtime substate final with Montezuma, 66-63, as Louis Gonner banked in a game-winning 3-pointer at the buzzer. Koen Roeder leads a balanced attack at 12 points per game, as both Taegin Smith and Justin Severson score 11.

The winner between Bishop Garrigan and Bellevue Marquette gets either MMCRU or Boyden-Hull in the semifinals. A potential rematch with the Gaels could await in the finals if both advance.