The Exira-EHK Spartans poured in 9 threes in the first half and blitzed their way back into the 1A State Tournament with a 63-47 win over Stanton on Wednesday night in Atlantic. Quinn Grubbs nailed 4 of those threes in the opening half and finished with a game-high 25 points to lead the win. Grubbs said it was their great passing that got everyone in rhythm.

The Spartans led by 8 at the end of the first quarter and blew the lead out to 31-16 by half. A great possession before the end of the half all but sealed up the momentum in the Spartans favor. After using a good chunk of clock Shay Burmeister drove the baseline and found Mollie Rasmussen in the opposite corner for a three that sent the Spartan faithful into a frenzy. Rasmussen finished with 12 points and she talked about the thrill of advancing.

The Spartans had their best stuff when they needed it and Head Coach Tom Petersen was elated for his team.

Shay Burmeister had another strong game with 13 points, including three long-balls in the first half. She was filled with joy getting to return to State.

The Spartans improved to 23-1 on the season and get to play in the 1A State Tournament for the second straight season. They made it to the semifinals last season and Coach Petersen said it’s a loaded field this year but his team will be hungry to compete.

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Stanton was led by 18 points from Jenna Stephens, 16 of those coming in the second half. The Viqueens suffer their first loss of the season and end the year at 24-1.

We’ll have coverage of Exira-EHK at the State Tournament on KJAN.

Ryan Hawkins had another big game with 25 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Creighton Bluejays to a road win over St. John’s 81-78 on Wednesday night.

The Bluejays were down 7 at halftime and rallied back to outscore the Red Storm 42-32 after the break.

Ryan Kalkbrenner added 19 points, Trey Alexander had 16, and Arthur Kaluma dropped in 12. Creighton improves to 19-8 overall and 11-5 in the Big East.

Next up for the Jays is a trip to #11 Providence on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

Izaiah Brockington’s steal and basket with 20 seconds remaining gave Iowa State the lead as the Cyclones rallied for an 84-81 win over West Virginia. Brockington finished with 35 points as ISU improved to 6-9 in the Big 12.

That’s Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger. It was the Cyclones third straight win.

Otzelberger says the Cyclones did a better job of rebounding in the second half.

The ninth ranked Iowa State women outscored Kansas 27-14 in the opening quarter and cruised to an 85-59 win on the road. Ashley Joens had 22 points and the Cyclones connected on 17 three pointers.

The Cyclones are now 12-4 and remain tied with Baylor at the top of the Big 12 heading into Saturday’s game at home against Texas Tech.

UNI took another step toward a Missouri Valley title. The Panthers scored 48 second half points in an 88-82 win at Indiana State. It sets up a title showdown Saturday in Cedar Falls against Loyola. AJ Green led UNI with 21 points.

Green had several baskets at crunch time as the Panthers were protecting the lead.

That’s Panther coach Ben Jacobson. UNI is 13-4 in the Valley

CLASS 1A

Region 1: MMCRU 49, Storm Lake St. Mary’s 31
Region 2: Newell-Fonda 72, Remsen St. Mary’s 43
Region 3: Bishop Garrigan 74, Ricevillle 33
Region 4: North Linn , East Buchanan
Region 5: Springville 87, Baxter 54
Region 6: Notre Dame, Burlington 83, English Valleys 22
Region 7: North Mahaska 46, Martensdale-St. Marys 39
Region 8: Exira-EHK 63, Stanton 47

CLASS 2A

Region 1: Central Lyon 67, Ridge View 41
Region 2: South Central Calhoun 54, Sibley-Ocheyedan 51
Region 3: Dike-New Hartford 75, West Fork 21
Region 4: Denver 51, Aplington-Parkersburg 43
Region 5: Cascade 42, Bellevue 32
Region 6: Regina Catholic 63, Mediapolis 51
Region 7: Panorama 58, Nodaway Valley 41
Region 8: Underwood 35, Treynor 21

CLASS 4A

Region 8: Glenwood 76, Winterset 43