Class 1A Preliminary Round:

Region 6:

Griswold beat Sidney (Forfeit)

Region 8:

Logan-Magnolia – 58 vs Exira-EHK – 45

Regular Season Matchups:

Hawkeye Ten Conference:

Glenwood – 69 vs Denison-Schleswig – 48

Clarinda – 64 vs Creston – 53

Non Conference:

Atlantic – 82 vs Lenox – 46

Sergeant Bluff-Luton – 61 vs Lewis Central – 43

Hawkeye Ten Conference

Glenwood – 57 vs Denison-Schleswig – 40

Non Conference

Sergeant Bluff-Luton – 65 vs Lewis Central – 57

The Exira-EHK Spartans fell to the Logan-Magnolia Panthers by a score of 58-45 on Friday night. Despite great efforts in the second half by the Spartans, the Panthers’ were able to stop any comeback attempts. Cale Cunard of Logan-Magnolia finished with a game high 23 points and hit multiple free throws at the end of the 4th quarter to seal the Panthers victory. It was a close matchup for most of the game but Logan-Magnolia pulled away at the end and will head to the 2nd Round.

In the first half, the Panthers controlled much of the time of possession and seemed in control of the offensive side. The Spartans were able to claw back near the end of the half but still trailed by 7. They ran the offense nicely through leading scorer Austin Rasmussen, but it seemed like the shots weren’t falling yet.

In the third quarter, the three point shots started to fall and it felt like Extra-EHK was one good run from making the game very interesting. The ball movement was working nicely as well. The Spartans did a good job of driving into the paint and finding a wide open shooter in the corner. Logan-Magnolia was just playing more physical and kept getting inside for easy buckets and led going into the 4th quarter.

In the 4th, it looked like the Panthers physicality under the basket became too much for the Spartans as the quarter went on. Cale Cunard finished with a game high for either side with 23 points. Every time the Spartans got a little life, Cunard would be wide open on the other end for a layup. Austin Rasmussen started hitting a few threes for the Spartans, but it was too little too late. Logan-Magnolia defeated Extra-EHK in the preliminary round of the Class 1A Region 8 tournament by a score of 58-45.

Iowa coach Ben McCollum says Bennett Stirtz needs help as the Hawkeyes get ready to host 13th ranked Purdue Saturday afternoon. Iowa’s senior point guard is averaging over 30 points per game in the last four games.

McCollum thought his team struggled defensively in Wednesday night’s loss at Maryland. They will need to be much better against Purdue.

The Hawkeyes played well but lost the first meeting against the Boilermakers 79-72 one month ago.

Saturday’s game will be the first sellout in Carver-Hawkeye Arena in nearly two years.

The Hawkeyes are 8-5 in the Big Ten and 18-6 overall.  Catch the game on KJAN beginning at 3-p.m., Saturday.

Drake got outscored 19-5 to close the game and lost another one at home 80 to 70 to Illinois-Chicago. The Bulldogs fell behind by 15 in the opening half and suffered its fifth straight loss.

That’s Drake coach Eric Henderson, who is considering some changes for Sunday’s game at Northern Iowa.

Henderson on what some of the changes might be.

The Bulldogs are 6-10 in the Valley and 12-15 overall.

Northern Iowa fell victim to a late 7-0 run and lost at Missouri Valley leader Belmont 91-86 as the Panthers had their three game win streak snapped. Belmont shot a sizzling 64 percent in the second half.

That’s UNI coach Ben Jacobson, who says the Bruins are a difficult team to guard.

The Panthers are 8-7 in the Valley and 16-10 overall heading into Sunday’s game at home against Drake.

Northern Iowa women’s coach Tanya Warren got the offense she was looking for. The Panthers scored 32 points in the opening quarter and beat Indiana State 91-79 in the McLeod Center.

Warren on what got the offense going.

Senior forward Ryley Goebel tied a career high with 32 points and also tied a career high with 16 rebounds.

UNI improves to 8-6 in the Missouri Valley Conference.

Region 1:

Underwood – 72 vs ACGC – 36

Boyer Valley – 62 vs Woodbine – 58

Region 3:

Sidney – 68 vs Heartland Christian – 21

Fremont-Mills – 66 vs Hamburg – 15

East Mills – 63 vs Essex – 26

Region 7:

Griswold – 41 vs Diagonal – 37

CAM – 53 vs Stanton – 20

Bedford – 46 vs Lenox – 39

Hawkeye Ten Conference:

Kuemper Catholic – 73 vs Creston – 49

Western Iowa Conference:

IKM-Manning – 61 vs Audubon – 52

Pride Of Iowa Conference:

Centerville – 72 vs Mount Ayr – 65

West Central Activities Conference:

Newton – 66 vs Van Meter – 65

Pleasantville – 72 vs Grinnell – 63

Non Conference:

Underwood – 72 vs ACGC – 36

Riverside – 61 vs Shenandoah – 55

Nodaway Valley – 63 vs Interstate 35 – 59

The Griswold Tigers Girls Basketball team is moving on to the 2nd round of the Regional Tournament! They pulled out a 41-37 victory over the Diagonal Maroons. It was an incredible back and forth game, with no team leading by more than 5 points all night. Amanda Houser was the team’s leading scorer with 17. The Tigers hit huge shots late in the fourth quarter to take the lead and pull out the 4 point win over Diagonal.

In the first half the game was incredibly even. It was tied after one quarter at 8 points a piece. Neither team was able to put together a great offensive attack until the second half. Atlantic was showing their full court press early and creating an aggressive form of defense early. They were forcing multiple turnovers, and after one half the Tigers led 20-18 at halftime.

In the third quarter, the game was as close as the first half, but each team went on a run of their own. Griswold scored a few points early on to take a 22-18 lead and looked like they had a lot of momentum, but Diagonal came storming back. The Maroons went on an 8-0 run to take a 26-22 lead. Griswold started to heat up again from beyond the arc and they took the lead late in the third quarter and went into the fourth up 31-29.

The 4th quarter was very much the same as the rest of the game. Diagonal did go on a quick run and led 37-33 with just a few minutes to go. Amanda Houser had 4 fouls but came in the game and immediately hit a three pointer to bring it within one. Then with 2 minutes to go, Carsyn Adams took the ball across half court and pull up for three and made it to take the lead. Zoey Amos made a layup to make it 41-37 and Griswold rode that score to the end. This victory was one that made Coach Aaron Houser very happy for his team.

Coach Houser thought the team sticking to their identity was the biggest factor in their victory:

It was the belief in each other that allowed the Tigers to be so successful:

Coach Houser was proud of how Amanda Houser shot the ball late in the game:

The Griswold Tigers will head to Extra-EHK for their second round regional matchup on Tuesday, February 17th at 7pm