Spirit Lake jumped on top of tenth-ranked LeMars early, leading for most of the first half before the Lakes Conference champions rallied to assume a four-point halftime lead and eventually a 52-46 Class 3A District playoff win. Paul Brown was hot early, scoring nine of his team-high 15 points before the break. Sawyer Harms dropped in a dozen points and Adam Dau finished with ten points. Spirit Lake ends their season at 14 wins and eight losses, which marks the second highest win total in the last 30 years. LeMars, which struggled at the line going 12-of-25 to keep the Indians close down the stretch, was led by Austin Homan with 15 points. Jake Irwin caught fire in the second and third quarters, hitting four shots from beyond the arc to account for all twelve of his points. The Bulldogs improve to 18-4 and advance to Thursday’s district final in Sioux Center against top-ranked MOC-Floyd Valley.
Click here for the postgame interview with Spirit Lake coach Nate Loenser.
The Dutch stayed unbeaten on the season with a resounding 70-33 win over the Spencer Tigers in Orange City. The Siouxland Conference champs dominated early, claiming a 14-point advantage after the first eight minutes. Three Dutch players reached double figures, led by Daniel Jansen with 23 points. Matthew Klemme was the lone Tiger in double digits with thirteen points. Spencer’s season concludes with a 9-13 record.
In other Class 3A boys hoops, Storm Lake defeated Algona by eight, 73-65 to advance to the finals on Thursday in Ft. Dodge. The Tornadoes will take on Webster City, who beat Humboldt, 44-34.
