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Iowa girls' state basketball 2021: Thursday's scores, stats, game replays and more
It's time for the semifinals in the 2021 Iowa high school girls' state basketball tournament. Championship matchups are set in the larger three classes after Thursday's action at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.
Find scores, stats, broadcast replays and complete area coverage here.
Girls' state basketball coverage
» Maquoketa Valley players wear butterflies, all in memory of Anna
» Drama and friction behind, Taya Young and West Branch set for 2A semifinals
» Defending 5A champion Johnston sidelines Iowa City West
» Wednesday: Scores, stats, live game replays and more
» Brackets: Updated pairings, schedule and scores
Thursday's girls' state basketball scores
CLASS 5A SEMIFINALS
No. 1 Waukee 50, No. 5 Ankeny Centennial 29
Top-ranked Waukee (12-1) cruised to the Class 5A title game despite shooting 30 percent from the field, as the Warriors made 17-of-23 free throws and 9-of-29 3-pointers.
Katie Dinnebier scored 20 points to lead the way, with half of her points coming at the line (10-of-12). Waukee led 30-24 after three, then dominated the fourth quarter. Its first nine points came on 3s, two from Dinnebier.
Fellow Drake commit Maggie Phipps led Centennial (16-3) with 10 points.
No. 2 Johnston 52, No. 6 Iowa City West 47
West rallied from 16 down midway through the second quarter to get within 45-43 with 2:04 left, but Aili Tanke scored on a breakaway layup after a Trojans miss and the Dragons held on.
That sets up a rematch of last year's title game, when Johnston beat Waukee 69-65 for its first state championship.
Iowa commit Jada Gyamfi was just 4-of-15 from the floor but totaled 11 points and 18 rebounds to lead the Dragons (18-1). Providence commit Audrey Koch scored a game-high 16 for West (14-4), making 4 of 5 from the field and 8 of 9 at the line.
» Full story | Photos | Watch replay | Box score
West gets within 2 after trailing by 16, but March 4, 2021
West gets within 2 after trailing by 16, but @JCSD_Girlsbball advanceshttps://t.co/Mpdhwd2iiL #iahsbkb pic.twitter.com/ibSg7wD0Zg
— Iowa Prep Sports (@iowaprepsports)
CLASS 3A SEMIFINALS
No. 4 West Lyon 52, No. 1 Cherokee 39
West Lyon (24-1) broke open a 35-35 game with a 13-0 run at the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth to knock off top-ranked Cherokee (23-1).
Brooklyn Meyer scored nine of those 13 points, including the first seven. The 6-foot-2 South Dakota State commit totaled 20 points on 8-for-10 shooting, 13 rebounds and five blocks.
Kenna Mongan led Cherokee with 13 points.
No. 3 Unity Christian 58, No. 2 Clear Lake 42
Unity Christian (24-2) scored the first 15 points of the game and rolled past Clear Lake (19-2). The Lions cut the lead to nine in the second quarter, but never got closer.
Gracie (20) and Janie (14) Schoonhoven combined for 34 points for the Knights. Gracie was 7-of-12 from the field and also had seven rebounds, seven assists, four steals and two blocks. Janie had a double-double with 10 boards.
Kaitlyn Vanderploeg led Clear Lake with 12 points.
CLASS 4A SEMIFINALS
No. 1 Glenwood 61, No. 6 North Scott 48
Glenwood shot 44.2 percent from the field and limited North Scott to a 6-for-22 mark (27.2%) on shots from 2-point range.
The Rams (21-3) jumped out to a 13-5 lead, then broke it open with a 17-5 second quarter to go up 32-13 at halftime. Jenna Hopp led the way with 14 points on 6-for-11 shooting, 10 rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks. Abby Hughes made three 3s and finished with 11 points and five assists. Madison Camden (11) and Emma Hughes (10) also scored in double figures.
Kate Schermerhorn scored 15 points on 5-for-8 3-point shooting off the bench for North Scott.
No. 2 Ballard 32, No. 3 Dallas Center-Grimes 26
Ballard (23-1) scored the first eight points of the fourth quarter after trailing 24-20 and hung on to win a low-scoring semifinal against Dallas Center-Grimes (21-3) in which both teams shot worse than 28 percent.
The Mustangs got their first point of the final quarter on a free throw with 38 seconds remaining, then another a second later to cut the Ballard lead to 28-26 after the rebound was tipped out of bounds. Brooke Loewe hit 2-of-2 from the line at the other end and DCG didn't score again.
Loewe scored a game-high 13 points and Josie Fleischmann added 10 for Ballard. Emma Miner led DCG with nine.
Live updates
Johnston's Aili Tanke (30) fouls Iowa City West's Audrey Koch (23) as she puts up a shot in the first half in their class 5A semifinal game with Johnston at the IGHSAU State Basketball Tournament at the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines on Thursday, March 4, 2021. (Rebecca F. Miller/The Gazette)
