Aberdeen Christian, De Smet among area squads to reach boys' SoDak 16
Top-rated Class B Aberdeen Christian and No. 2 Class B De Smet spearheaded a group of area teams who advanced to SoDak 16 state-qualifying games with semifinal wins in their respective region boys basketball tournaments on Friday.
SoDak 16 games are scheduled for Tuesday. Winners advance to state tournaments March 16-18 at Aberdeen (Class B) and Sioux Falls (Class A).
State AA, Class A-B SoDak 16 Pairings:Here are the state AA girls & boys, A-B SoDak 16 boys basketball pairings
Region 1B
No. 1 Aberdeen Christian 85, No. 5 Hitchcock-Tulare 49: The Knights improved to 20-2 with the win. The Patriots ended their season at 11-11.
Malek Wieker's 28 points and 12 rebounds led the way for the Knights. Ethan Russell contributed 17 points, Joey Johnson 10 and Konnar Furman eight.
Jackson Maynard notched 11 points and Carter Binger and Erik Salem eight each for Hitchcock-Tulare.
No. 2 Northwestern 63, No. 3 Warner 38: Northwestern advanced and upped its record to 17-5. Warner finished 14-8.
The Wildcats were led by Lincoln Woodring with 17 points, Jude Ortmeier 14 and Chase Neiber 10. Reilly Schmitt pulled down eight rebounds.
Hunter Cramer finished with 14 points and seven rebounds, Drew Bakeberg 10 points and Levi Scepaniak six rebounds for Warner.
Region 2B
No. 1 De Smet 55, No. 4 Wolsey-Wessington 45: The Bulldogs (19-3) continued their quest for a third-straight state Class B title with the win. Damon Wilkinson produced 21 points and 15 rebounds, Kasen Janssen 11 and six, Kadyn Fast 10 and five and George Jensen eight and five.
Blaze Herdman notched 12 points, Tate French 11, Ricky Maurovic nine and Moshe Richmond eight for Wolsey-Wessington (16-6). Maurovic added seven rebounds and Richmond four steals.
No. 2 Castlewood 64, No. 3 James Valley Christian 59: The Warriors (17-5) survived a tight battle by getting 21 points from Lane Tvedt and 17 points and 15 rebounds from Bryon Laue. Jackson Schofield and Quincy Thu each contributed nine points.
Landon Wager recorded 25 points, six rebounds and six assists for JVC (17-5). Landon Wallman had 14 points and Ethan Bartholow six rebounds.
Region 6B
No. 1 Lower Brule 74, No. 5 Herreid-Selby Area 41: Third-rated Lower Brule (19-3) rolled to the win. HSA ended its season with a 13-9 record.
No. 3 Ipswich 59, No. 2 Highmore-Harrold 50: Ipswich pulled the upset to push its record to 15-6. Highmore-Harrold ended the season at 14-8.
Ian Beyers tallied 14 points, Trevor Heinz 12 Tyler Hettich and Chet Peterson 11 each and Jace Hanson nine for Ipswich. Peterson also grabbed 10 rebounds.
Carson Stephenson and Trey Knox each had 12 points and Dawson Hale nine for Highmore-Harrold.
Region 1A
No. 1 Waubay-Summit 44, Tiospa Zina 36: Damon Opdahl's 22 points, seven rebounds and five steals lifted the Mustangs (19-3) past the Wambdi (11-10). Jackson Wohlleber pitched in nine points, Jonathan Johnston eight points and five rebounds and Brady Lindholm six rebounds.
Storm Sierra tallied 14 points, Tate Never Misses A Shot eight and Reondre Greeley seven for Tiospa Zina.
No. 2 Groton Area 48, No. 3 Milbank 39: Groton Area (16-5) closed with a 17-10 surge in the fourth quarter to pull out the win. Cole Simon and Tate Larson each scored 13 points, Jacob Zak nine and Lane Tietz eight for the Tigers. Larson also had six rebounds and Tietz five rebounds and four asssits.
Milbank (14-8) received 12 points apiece from Jaxson Wildung and Joe Schulte. Garrett Mertens added eight points and seven rebounds.
Region 2A
No. 1 Sioux Valley 77, No. 4 Deuel 56: Oliver Vincent notched 18 points, six rebounds and nine assists and Alec Squires 16 points and 12 rebounds for the third-rated Cossacks (20-2). Maverick Nelson contributed 13 points, Boden Schiller 10, Hudsyn Ruesink nine and Patrick Carey eight.
Deuel (13-9) was paced by Gavin Benck's 17 points, seven rebounds and three assists and Trey Maaland's 15 points, seven rebounds and four assists. Braydon Simon added 11 points and Ronnie Begalka seven points and eight rebounds.
No. 2 Hamlin 55, No. 3 Clark-Willow Lake 35: Tyson Stevenson recorded 19 points, Easton Neuendorf 15, Brennan Keszler 10 and Zac VanMeeteren nine for the Chargers (18-3).
Trey Huber and Kaplan Felberg each scored eight points, Tyson Huber seven and Brady Jordan six for the Cyclones (15-6).
Region 6A
No. 1 McLaughlin 43, No. 4 Mobridge-Pollock 35: McLaughlin improved to 12-8 and Mobridge-Pollock ended 11-11.
No. 2 Miller 68, No. 3 Crow Creek 66: The Rustlers (13-9) pulled out the victory. Crow Creek ended its season with a 10-12 record.
Minnesota Section 3A Girls
No. 2 Minneota 48, No. 1 Lac qui Parle Valley 35: Minneota (20-8) avenged two regular-season losses with a win in the Section 3A North championship game over the Eagles (25-4).
Grace Hennan tallied 15 points, Faith Myhre 13 and Kenadi Ahrndt 10 for Minneota. Taylor Shelstad produced 12 points and six rebounds, Isabel Gerdes six points and Camryn Lee 12 rebounds for LqPV.
Minnesota Section 3A Boys
Quarterfinal scores on Saturday included Dawson-Boyd 76, Yellow Medicine East 37; MACCRAY 70, Canby 66; and Lakeview 44, Lac qui Parle Valley 31.
Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on Twitter @PO_Sports.
This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: State-qualifying games for Class A and B teams slated for Tuesday.
