DES MOINES - Linn-Mar High School junior Matt Lassen was lying in his hospital bed in Iowa City on Saturday, Dec. 10 when a visitor came to his room.

Lassen had suffered a severe concussion the night before during a basketball game against Iowa City West and had been placed in intensive care at the UI Hospitals and Clinics.

The visitor was Jeremy Morgan, one of the star players for Iowa City West who had been on the court when Lassen hit his head on the floor, passed out and had a seizure.

Morgan was at the hospital as a concerned opponent but also as a good friend. He and Lassen played AAU basketball together on the Iowa Barnstormers and became close, but they are more than simply good friends.

"Jeremy Morgan is my BEST friend," Lassen said Wednesday at the state tournament in Des Moines.

Lassen missed two months of the regular season while recovering from bleeding and swelling on his brain. He's healthy now and playing for the fifth-ranked Lions in the Class 4A state tournament at the Wells Fargo Arena.

Lassen and Morgan will get a chance to visit again Friday in Des Moines, but they'll put their friendship aside for a few hours when Linn-Mar (20-4) and second-ranked Iowa City West (24-0) tangle in the state semifinals at 3:15 p.m.

Lassen is looking forward to playing against Morgan and the Trojans in the biggest game of the year. He and Morgan are both juniors and could guard each other at times.

"I know those guys really well," Lassen said. "It will be fun to play against them."

Morgan was shaken when Lassen got hurt in their game three months ago. The contest was halted for about 20 minutes while Lassen was treated on the court.

"It was pretty scary at first. He wasn't moving," Morgan recalled Wednesday. "Then they got him on the stretcher. We went to visit him the next day."

Linn-Mar's players and fans were shaken by the sight of Lassen lying motionless on the court. So were the players, fans and coaches for Iowa City West.

"It wasn't good," Iowa City West Coach Steve Bergman said. "I've known Matt's dad (Ron) forever. I played basketball with him way back when. We've been friends for a long time.

"That was a big damper on what was a nice win for us. That was tough."

Iowa City West won that game 75-63, but everyone was worried about Lassen, not the final score. Now it's three months later and they'll meet again with a berth in the state finals on the line.

Linn-Mar defeated Iowa City West, 63-48, in the semifinals of the state tournament last year. Now here they are again, with Linn-Mar the defending 4A champions.

"Last year when we played them, I'm not sure we believed we could beat them," Bergman said. "And this year, we at least know we can play with them.

"They're good," he said. "And they believe they're going to win when they come into the tournament."

The Lions have lived dangerously in their last two games. They trailed Kennedy by eight points with 30 seconds left in the substate finals before winning in double overtime, and they trailed Dubuque Senior nearly the entire game in the first round of the state tournament Wednesday before winning with six seconds left, 51-50.

Marcus Paige scored nine points in the final 26 seconds of the fourth quarter to rescue Linn-Mar against Kennedy, and he made the big play against Dubuque Senior when he passed the ball to Andy Henry for the winning points.

"Our new motto," Linn-Mar Coach Chris Robertson said Wednesday, "you only have to be leading at the end."

Iowa City West has a talented team that features Morgan, Dondre Alexander and Wyatt Lohaus. Five Trojans scored in double figures Wednesday when they whipped Waukee, 74-52, in the quarterfinals.

"We're going to have our hands full Friday, but we'll show up," Robertson proclaimed.

Ankeny (24-0) will meet Sioux City East (20-3) in the first semifinal at 1:30 p.m. Friday.

The Class 4A championship game is scheduled for Saturday at 8:05 p.m. The consolation game for third place is set for Saturday at 1:45 p.m.