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Iowa high school boys’ state basketball 2023: Monday’s scores, stats and more
Class 1A and 2A quarterfinals get the tournament started
The 2023 Iowa high school boys’ state basketball tournament begins Monday at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines with all four Class 1A quarterfinals and two quarterfinal games in Class 2A. Stay up to date with scores, stats and more here throughout the day.
Boys’ state basketball coverage
» Pella Christian beats MFL MarMac, Little Hawkeye Conference shows its might again
» “Bechenbury” leads North Linn past Madrid in boys’ state basketball quarterfinals
» Updated boys’ state basketball brackets, schedule, scores
» Iowa boys’ state basketball tournament features Cedar Rapids Metro Mania, Linn County Lunacy
» Iowa high school boys’ state basketball 2023: Brackets, predictions, top players and more
» Iowa boys’ state basketball 2023: A closer look at Monday’s games
Monday’s Class 2A boys’ state basketball scores
Pella Christian 61, MFL MarMac 54
The ultimate dream of three state titlists for the Little Hawkeye Conference remained alive Monday night when Pella Christian knocked off gutty MFL Mar-Mac, 61-54, in a 2A quarterfinal at Wells Fargo Arena.
“Every night is like this for us,” said Pella Christian’s Avery Stoltz, who scored 15 points. “It’s great preparation for us.”
This MFL MarMac team, meanwhile, played in the mostly 1A Upper Iowa Conference and had a very small starting lineup that consisted of one guy 5-foot-11, three who are 6-1 and a “big” at 6-2. Yet the Bulldogs have a bunch of good athletes and a really good sophomore player in Zach Driscoll and proved they belonged on this stage.
Their top four scorers return next season, so perhaps this was just a dress rehearsal, so to speak. MFL MarMac finished 24-2.
“I know we’re going to put work in in the offseason and come back bigger, faster and stronger,” said MFL Mar-Mac’s Carver Blietz-Bentien.
Zach Driscoll had a team-high 22 points for the Bulldogs and Blietz-Bentien 15.
» Read more from The Gazette’s Jeff Johnson
» Photo gallery from The Gazette’s Savannah Blake
No. 1 Central Lyon 74, Des Moines Christian 41
Last year’s 2A runner-up, Central Lyon (22-1) cruised back to the state semifinals.
The top-ranked Lions were up 25-11 after the first quarter, 45-23 at halftime and increased the lead to as much as 43 in the fourth quarter.
Central Lyon shot 52.8 percent from the field, including 10-for-23 from 3-point range. Andrew Austin totaled 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting and 14 rebounds. Josh Elbert hit 4 of 5 3s and had 18 points, seven boards and six assists. Iowa football recruit Zach Lutmer added 17 points and seven boards.
Seaton Ingram led Des Moines Christian (18-7) with 11 points.
Monday’s Class 1A boys’ state basketball scores
No. 7 Remsen St. Mary’s 57, No. 3 Gladbrook-Reinbeck 47
Collin Homan scored 17 points and pulled down 16 rebounds as St. Mary’s (23-2) knocked off Gladbrook-Reinbeck (23-3) in Class 1A’s lone lower-seeded upset of the first round.
Jaxon Bunkers added 12 points and Cael Ortmann had 11 for the Hawks, who started the second half on an 8-2 run and led the rest of the way after the score was tied at 26 at the break. Bunkers hit a 3-pointer on the team’s first third-quarter possession to spark the run.
The state’s fifth-leading scorer (all classes), William Kiburis (26.5 ppg) had 16 points, eight rebounds, four assists, two blocks and three steals for the Rebels. Caleb Egesdal scored 14 points, making 4 of 9 3-point shots.
No. 2 North Linn 72, No. 9 Madrid 63
Bechenbury. You can’t beat it.
At least you couldn’t beat it Monday afternoon at the boys’ state basketball tournament.
Mason Bechen and Tate Haughenbury combined for 54 points in North Linn’s 72-63 win over Madrid in a Class 1A state quarterfinal at Wells Fargo Arena.
The Lynx are back in the semifinals for a seventh consecutive year, one heck of an achievement. Thank an old veteran (Haughenbury) and a sophomore newbie (Bechen) for that.
“Obviously (Madrid) is a really good team, especially for a ‘7’ seed down here at the state tournament,” Haughenbury said. “Everyone is very, very talented. Coach had us prepared for this game. Coming in with a younger group of guys, after having all those seniors around me last year, it’s been really fun. They’ve really stepped up. Mason had an outstanding game.”
Yeah, he did. After a dunk brought Madrid (22-3) within five, 63-58, Bechen immediately countered with a driving hoop.
After two Madrid free throws, he hit a dagger 3-point at the end of the shot clock to put North Linn ahead, 68-60, with 1:50 left.
» Read more from The Gazette’s Jeff Johnson
» Photo gallery from The Gazette’s Savannah Blake
No. 4 West Harrison 85, No. 6 Dunkerton 63
A year after making its boys’ state basketball tournament debut, West Harrison (24-1) earned its first win at the state tournament.
All five starters scored in double figures as the Hawkeyes shot 55 percent from the field. Leading the way was Koleson Evans with 27 points on 12-for-17 shooting, including a highlight-reel, one-handed dunk in the fourth quarter. He grabbed 14 rebounds, too. Sage Evans pulled down 20 boards and scored 11 points. Walker Rife had 16 points, Mason McIntosh 15 and Mason King 13.
West Harrison took an early 21-6 lead and never trailed.
Casey Gardner scored 25 points for Dunkerton (24-2). Preston Gillespie had 19.
No. 1 Grand View Christian 61, New London 51
Top-ranked Grand View Christian (25-0) started the second half on an 8-0 run to extend a 25-22 halftime lead to 13, part of a 25-point third quarter that helped it hold off New London (19-7).
The Tigers led 12-10 after the first quarter and stayed within striking distance, closing the gap to five in the final minute of the game before the Thunder put it away.
Four GVC players scored in double figures. Frankie Chiodo and Josh Sanderson each had 14, Emiliano Barrantes 13 and Daniel Tobiloba 10. The 7-foot Tobiloba also had 13 rebounds and six blocks.
Blaise Porter scored a game-high 15 points for New London. Kade Benjamin added 14.
» Photo gallery from The Gazette’s Savannah Blake
Monday’s boys’ state basketball schedule
CLASS 1A QUARTERFINALS
No. 1 Grand View Christian (24-0) vs. New London (19-6), 10:30 a.m.
No. 4 West Harrison (23-1) vs. No. 6 Dunkerton (24-1), 12:15 p.m.
No. 2 North Linn (24-0) vs. No. 9 Madrid (22-2), 2 p.m.
No. 3 Gladbrook-Reinbeck (23-2) vs. No. 7 Remsen St. Mary’s (22-2), 3:45 p.m.
CLASS 2A QUARTERFINALS
No. 1 Central Lyon (21-1) vs. Des Moines Christian (18-6), 5:30 p.m.
Pella Christian (15-9) vs. MFL MarMac (24-1), 7:15 p.m.
Grand View Christian Thunder center Daniel Tobiloba (34) reaches up and smacks the ball away from New London Tigers guard Leo Gebauer (5) as he goes for a layup in the second quarter during the boys’ state basketball class 1A quarterfinals in Des Moines, Iowa on Monday, March 6, 2023. (Savannah Blake/The Gazette)
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