AUGUSTA — Each of the four surviving teams in the Class C West boys’ basketball tournament is considered a threat to win it.

Ignoring matchups, injuries and any other intangible factors that might have intervened Monday, there’s little question that No. 4 Winthrop celebrated the most impressive quarterfinal win of the bunch.

The Ramblers scored the first 15 points, shot 61 percent from the field through three quarters and thoroughly thumped the No. 5 Madison Bulldogs, 74-34, at Augusta Civic Center.

In addition to their efficiency, the MVC champions exhibited their full array of weapons. Sophomore Jacob Hickey led Winthrop with 16 points off the bench. Anthony Owens, a junior, added 12, and senior Dakota Carter chipped in 11.

“We’re so balanced,” Winthrop coach Todd MacArthur said. “We don’t revolve around one guy. Tonight we all got our touches, and we all scored well. That’s when we’re most dangerous, and that’s how we’re going to make a run in this tournament.”

Ben Allen (nine points), Matt Sekerak (eight) and point guard Taylor Morang (five, with eight assists) provided senior presence and gave Winthrop its first quarterfinal win since the 2008 state championship season.

No. 4 Winthrop (16-3) takes on No. 8 Maranacook (9-11) in the semifinals at 8:30 p.m. Thursday. The Black Bears knocked off top-seeded Boothbay, 57-54, springing the first upset of a No. 1 team by a No. 8 in Class C West since Telstar toppled Hyde in 2002.

After falling to Maranacook in the 2014 quarterfinals, Winthrop played Christmas tournament games against Dirigo and Cony here on the new, 94-foot, college-length surface.

“Experience was definitely huge. Having the feeling of the court, having it be a bigger court,” Owens said. “It’s been a long season, and to get here and win a game, it’s a good feeling.”

Owens scored twice in the first 86 seconds, Allen, Sekerak and Carter also connected as the Ramblers knocked down their first five shots. Sekerak’s strike was the first of seven Winthrop 3-pointers.

Hickey took care of the Ramblers’ initial miss for a second-chance bucket, and Allen’s drive landed a 15-0 lead with 3:28 remaining in the quarter.

“The way we started was huge. The biggest thing was last year we came here, and we may have lost, but we gained valuable experience playing on that floor,” MacArthur said. “This is the third time for us playing on this floor this year, and there were no nerves or anything. Our guys were loose, and I think it showed the way we started the game.”

Two more Owens baskets, a Morang 3-pointer, and a traditional 3-point play from Nick Schlosser upped the lead to 25-8 at the end of the quarter.

Winthrop sank 11 of its first 13, was 17-of-29 at the half and 29-for-44 through three periods.

“Momentum and teamwork. We shared the ball. It was a good team effort,” Owens said. “Everyone is a threat. Everyone has one day. We could have one person have 20 points one day and someone else has 20 points the next.

Seven different Ramblers scored in the first eight minutes.

Hickey dropped two 3-pointers and Allen another in the second period. Madison cut the deficit to 14 on transition hoops by Derek LeBlanc and Mark Linkletter, but Winthrop ended on an 11-3 run for a 41-19 cushion.

Allen and Carter then combined to score the first six points out of the locker room.

“We executed what we wanted to and just made our shots,” Morang said. “We’ve played here a couple times since our last playoff game, and that’s definitely a big boost for us.”

LeBlanc scored eight points and Nick Morales seven to lead Madison (16-4), which defeated Mountain Valley in the preliminary round.

Winthrop beat Madison, 71-58, in the lone regular-season battle.

“We were very prepared. Going into this game, we watched the Madison film probably 25 times,” MacArthur said. “It got to the point where we knew what happened next.”

koakes@sunjournal.com