The Big 12 Conference announced their annual awards over the weekend.  Iowa State Junior Forward Deonte Burton was named Newcomer of the Year, while Senior Forward Georges Niang was named a first team selection.  Junior Point Guard Monte Morris was named to the Second team.  Fellow Cyclones Jameel McKay, Abdel Nader, and Matt Thomas were named Honorable Mention selections.  The full list of honorees from big12sports.com can be found below.

The official All-Big 12 awards are selected by the league’s head coaches, who are not allowed to vote for their own players.

** – Unanimous Selection

** – Unanimous Selection
Ties in the voting created additional spots on the All-Defensive and All-Newcomer Teams

Last week, the girls found out who the best teams in the state were, during the State Basketball Tournament, in Des Moines. This week, it’s the boy’s turn to shine at Wells Faro Area. The action begins today with the Quarterfinals, or, 1st round of play, in Class 1A and 2A. Here’s the schedule:

Class 1A

10:30-a.m. Britt/West Hancock (23-2) vs. IKM-Manning (22-2)

12:15-p.m Danville (24-1) vs. Council Bluffs/St. Albert, (15-9)

2:00-p.m. Grand View Christian (25-1) vs. Paulina/South O’Brien (22-3)

3:45-p.m. Gladbrook/Reinbeck (23-2) vs. Jesup (22-3)

Class 2A

6:35-p.m. Cascade/Western Dubuque (20-3) vs. Osage (20-4)

8:15-p.m. Dike-New Hartford (25-0) vs. Pella Christian (16-9)

Class 2A action resumes Tuesday morning at “The Well,” followed by Quarterfinal play in Class 3A Tuesday afternoon.

ST. LOUIS (AP) – Wes Washpun’s jumper from the top of the key bounced high off the back of the rim and fell in at the buzzer and Northern Iowa survived after squandering a 17-point lead, beating Evansville 56-54 in the Missouri Valley Conference title game on Sunday. Washpun had 18 points, five rebounds and three assists for Northern Iowa (22-12). Klint Carlson added 17 points for the fourth seed, which repeated as champion. The Panthers beat top seed Wichita State in overtime in the semifinals before dispatching second seed Evansville (25-9) for the third time this season – all of them close.

D.J. Balentine had 20 points and Jaylon Brown added 18 for Evansville, which hasn’t made it to the NCAA Tournament since 1999. The conference tourney winner gets an automatic bid and Wichita State could get an at-large bid.

JUPITER, Fla. (AP) – Kolten Wong got a chance to bat leadoff for the St. Louis Cardinals and was hitless in two at-bats Sunday during a 5-2 loss to the Washington Nationals. Wong vocalized his desire to hit in the top spot during the offseason. He got his first opportunity of the spring and lined out and grounded out.

With Wong occupying the leadoff spot and outfielder Matt Holliday sitting out another day after a stiff lower back, manager Mike Matheny moved Matt Carpenter from first to third in the lineup. Cardinals closer Trevor Rosenthal gave the team a bit of a scare when he was hit in the calf by a comebacker during the third inning. He remained in the game.

The Nationals loaded the bases with no outs in the inning, ultimately scoring two runs before Rosenthal struck out the final two batters. Washington scored twice in the second off Cardinals starter Deck McGuire on an RBI single by Michael A. Taylor and groundout from Trea Turner.

Class 3A State Tournament
State Championship
PAC-LM 59, Nevada 49

Class 4A State Tournament
State Championship
Mason City 51, Pella 44

Class 5A State Tournament
State Championship
Ankeny Centennial 46, Johnston 42

ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Jarrod Uthoff scored 16 of his 29 points in the first half, and No. 16 Iowa snapped a four-game losing streak with a 71-61 win over Michigan on Saturday night. Anthony Clemmons added 12 points for the Hawkeyes (21-9, 12-6 Big Ten), who used a 14-5 run to take a 15-point lead with 10:13 to play. Michigan (20-11, 10-8) scored the next 10 points, but the Wolverines couldn’t pull any closer down the stretch and now may need a strong showing in the Big Ten tournament to make it to the NCAAs.

Derrick Walton scored 14 points for Michigan, which honored seniors Caris LeVert and Spike Albrecht before the regular-season finale. They’re both out for the season with injuries, which is a big reason the Wolverines are in this predicament.

JUPITER, Fla. (AP) – Wei-Yin Chen threw two shutout innings in his spring debut for the Miami Marlins, who lost 3-2 to the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday. Chen allowed three hits and got some help when right fielder Giancarlo Stanton easily threw out Brayan Pena at the plate to end the second.

The Cardinals’ Matt Holliday was scheduled to make his spring training debut but was scratched because of tightness in his back. Holliday was in the lineup at first base. He has been a left fielder his entire career but has been working at first some in camp. St. Louis starter Marco Gonzales allowed four hits and two runs, one earned, in 2 2-3 innings. Anthony Garcia’s two-out, two-run double in the eighth put the Cardinals ahead.

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) – Perry Ellis scored 22 points, including a hook shot over Iowa State’s Georges Niang to ice the game, and No. 1 Kansas stretched its nation-leading home winning streak to 42 games with an 85-78 victory over the 21st-ranked Cyclones on Saturday. Devonte Graham and Wayne Selden, Jr. finished with 16 points apiece for Kansas (27-4, 15-3 Big 12), which has won 33 straight home finales.

Ellis, playing in his final game at Allen Fieldhouse, spearheaded an 11-0 run over the final 4:45 with a hustle play. He ended it with an emphatic dunk. Kansas looked poise to break the game open with 13:21 left in the game, when Mason slipped his way through two defenders and finished at the rim. Iowa State responded with a 13-2 run to grab its largest – and last – lead at 63-59. Niang led the Cyclones (21-10, 10-8) with 22 points and Jameel McKay added 19 points and nine rebounds.

ST. LOUIS (AP) – Wes Washpun scored 20 points and Jeremy Morgan sank the go-ahead 3-pointer in overtime Saturday to lift fourth-seeded Northern Iowa past top-seeded Wichita State 57-52 and into the championship game of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament.

Trailing by a point with two minutes left in overtime, Northern Iowa (21-12) got a free throw from Morgan to tie it at 52 before he hit the go-ahead 3-pointer on an assist from Wyatt Lohaus. The Panthers then forced a turnover and Washpun hit a jumper to extend the advantage to five with 18 seconds left.

Markis McDuffie missed a 3-pointer at the other end and Klint Carlson hauled in the defensive rebound to clinch it. Northern Iowa trailed most of the game but stayed close and forced overtime with Wyatt Lohaus’ layup to tie it at 47 at the end of regulation. Anton Grady led Wichita State (24-8) with 14 points and Ron Baker had 12. The Panthers play the winner of second-seeded Evansville and sixth-seeded Indiana State.