The AHSTW boys basketball team will play for a trip to the state tournament tonight against Van Meter in Atlantic.  The Vikings have had a great season with a 21-2 record, a major improvement on their 10-11 record a year ago.  They’ll take on a very tough Van Meter team that is 22-1 on the year.

The Vikings have been led by Junior RJ Harris, the younger brother of Head Coach GG Harris, with 18 points per game this season. Senior Rhett Welsh is also averaging in double figures with 14 points per game.  The Vikings are averaging a blistering 74 points per game.

The Van Meter Bulldogs have been led by three players averaging double figures: Blake Fryer and Ryan Schmitt with 11, and Mitchell Pomeroy averaging 10 per outing. The Bulldogs have put up 65 points per game and suffered their only loss of the year against Pella Christian.

Chris Parks and Mike Smith will have the call of the game on KJAN from Atlantic High School. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00pm and we’ll pick up coverage immediately following the Iowa at Maryland men’s basketball game.

Class 1A and 2A will play some Substate Finals around the state tonight to determine state qualifiers. A few other games were pushed back to today from Thursday and Friday due to the weather so one Class 1A qualifier won’t be determined until Monday.

CLASS 1A

Substate 7 @ East Union: Grandview Christian vs. Southwest Valley 7:00pm
Substate 8 @ Harlan: Ar-We-Va vs. Maple Valley-Anthon-Oto 7:00pm

CLASS 2A

Substate 7 @ Atlantic: Van Meter vs. AHSTW 7:00pm –ON KJAN
Substate 8 @ Denison-Schleswig: Kuemper Catholic vs. Alta/Aurelia 7:00pm

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Lizzy Wendell scored 21 points and No. 21 Drake defeated Northern Iowa 70-57 on Friday night and clinched outright the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season championship. The Bulldogs (23-4, 16-0) won their 17th straight game to break the school record they shared with the 1996-97 team. The outright conference title, coming with two games remaining for the Bulldogs, is the first for Drake since the 1999-2000 season.

Drake took an 88-79 double-overtime victory at UNI on Jan. 27 but had an easier time Friday against the second-place Panthers (20-7, 13-3), using a 13-2 run, with nine points from Wendell, to lead by 13, 47-34, after three quarters. The lead stayed in double figures in the final quarter.

Becca Hittner added 12 points for Drake, which shot 52 percent. Sammie Bachrodt and Becca Jonas scored 10 points each. Caitlin Ingle had eight assists with nine points. Madison Weekly scored 19 points to lead UNI, which shot 28 percent.

4A Substate 1
Semifinal
Council Bluffs, Abraham Lincoln 68, Lewis Central 61

4A Substate 2
Semifinal
Ankeny 75, Waukee 64

Des Moines, North 99, Des Moines, East 69

4A Substate 3
Semifinal
Cedar Falls 76, Prairie, Cedar Rapids 73

4A Substate 4
Semifinal
Dubuque, Hempstead 87, Cedar Rapids, Jefferson 59

Dubuque, Senior 72, Waterloo, West 66

4A Substate 5
Semifinal
Iowa City West 71, Pleasant Valley 44

Muscatine 61, Linn-Mar, Marion 55

4A Substate 6
Semifinal
Bettendorf 73, Davenport, West 50

North Scott, Eldridge 60, Davenport, Central 59

4A Substate 7
Semifinal
Johnston 45, Ames 43

Newton 58, Dowling Catholic, West Des Moines 54

4A Substate 8
Semifinal
Des Moines, Hoover 44, Des Moines, Roosevelt 30

Valley, West Des Moines 68, Ankeny Centennial 37

POSTPONEMENTS AND CANCELLATIONS
4A Substate 1
Semifinal
Sioux City, West vs. Sioux City, East, ppd. to Feb 25.

4A Substate 3
Semifinal
Mason City vs. Cedar Rapids Xavier, ppd. to Feb 25.

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Seanna Johnson scored 22 points, including 10 straight for Iowa State in the third quarter, and the Cyclones upset No. 6 Texas 70-66 Friday night for their fourth straight victory.

Down two with seven minutes remaining, Iowa State (17-11, 8-9 Big 12) took control with a 9-0 run. Bridget Carleton scored points 18 for Iowa State, but she committed two turnovers in the final minute to give Texas an opportunity. The Longhorns (21-7, 14-3) had a chance to tie it after the second turnover, but Carlton blocked Ariel Atkins’ driving shot with nine seconds left and then made two free throws.

Jadda Buckley added 14 points for Iowa State. Texas has lost three straight games for the first time this season. Brooke McCarty led the Longhorns with 12 points, Brianna Taylor added 11, and Joyner Holmes and Alecia Sutton had 10 apiece.

Class 4A Substate Semifinals

Sioux City West @ Sioux City East (ppd to Saturday at 7:00pm)
Lewis Central @ Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln 7:00pm

Iowa coach Fran McCaffery says the Hawkeyes hope to use the final games of the regular season to boost their post season hopes. The Hawkeyes are 15-13 overall and 7-8 in the Big Ten heading into Saturday’s game at 24th ranked Maryland.

McCaffery says with the conference tournament still ahead plenty of chances remain to improve their position. Tip-off from the Xfinity Center in College Park, Maryland, is at 5-p.m. Saturday.

(Learfield Sports)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – The Chiefs have signed veteran running back C.J. Spiller, providing depth behind Spencer Ware in a move that could mean Jamaal Charles will be cut in a cost-saving move. The Chiefs would owe Charles more than $6 million this season, a big price tag for a running back who missed most of last year to knee surgery. They would not incur a salary cap hit by letting him go and it is possible Charles could re-sign for less money.

Kansas City is trying to free cap space to help bring back defensive tackle Dontari Poe and safety Eric Berry, whose agent, Chad Speck, also represents Spiller. Spiller only carried six times in stints with the Jets and Seahawks last season. The former first-round pick signed a four-year, $16 million deal with the Saints in 2015 but only played in 13 games before he was released.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast w/Jim Field.

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