Lynx return to 2A semifinals

DES MOINES - Brian Wheatley took the diplomatic approach.

'It doesn't matter who we play,” he said.

Diplomacy didn't filter to his players. They want another shot at Western Christian. Dearly and sincerely.

'Yeah, we do,” Nicole Miller said after a 31-point gem that carried third-ranked North Linn past No. 9 Des Moines Christian, 57-46, in a Class 2A quarterfinal at the girls' state basketball tournament Monday night at Wells Fargo Arena. 'They're the champs. The pressure's on them.”

The Lynx (24-1) withstood a third-quarter run and marched to the 2A semifinals for the second consecutive year. Western ended the Lynx's run last year. It will be a rematch - 1:30 p.m. Thursday - if the Wolfpack can get past No. 12 Iowa City Regina on Tuesday morning.

'We've been wanting this shot so bad. We've had a lot of motivation to get back and get another shot,” said Morgan Boer, who combined with Miller to score North Linn's final 27 points. 'We've been waiting a whole year.”

Only three North Linn players scored. Miller had her 31 (plus 11 rebounds), Boer 15 and Maddie Boer 11. But that was enough.

The first half was a series of steals and set-ups for Miller and the elder Boer. A layup drill, if you will.

'That's our favorite kind of game,” Maddie Boer said.

North Linn led from wire to wire, scoring the first nine points and motoring to a 27-14 halftime advantage.

Then it got a little dicey. Des Moines Christian (20-5) cut a 14-point deficit to 36-31 by the end of the third quarter.

'They came out and made a run,” Maddie Boer said. 'They're a good team. And all good teams are capable of going on a run.

'I'm proud of how we responded.”

Morgan Boer converted an offensive rebound for a basket to open the fourth quarter, then Miller - playing in front of future coach Jennie Baranczyk of Drake - hit a 3-pointer to re-open the margin to 10. The Lions didn't get closer than eight points again.

'We started to come back, but it was too late,” said Des Moines Christian's Elsa Anderson, who led the Lions with 16 points and 13 rebounds.

The icing came with about 3 1/2 minutes left, when Miller scored on a drive to the basket and Morgan Boer added a three-point play to make it 53-39. Miller hit four straight free throws to wrap it up.

'They made a run, but we never lost confidence,” Wheatley said. 'We have a lot of leaders on this team.”

Miller upped her career scoring total to 2,155 points, 11th most in state history.

Mia Rosener added 12 points for the Lions, Ebby Prewitt 10.

NORTH LINN 57, DES MOINES CHRISTIAN 46 (Class 2A State Quarterfinal)

At Des Moines

DES MOINES CHRISTIAN (46): Beth Zimmer 1-10 0-0 2, Ebby Prewitt 2-10 5-6 10, Brittany Zimmer 1-2 1-1 3, Mia Rosener 6-12 0-0 12, Elsa Anderson 6-11 3-3 16, Maria Crook 0-0 0-0 0, Dakota Evans 0-0 0-0 0, Lydia Stephens 1-1 0-0 3, Maddie Cappel 0-0 0-0 0, Christa Feldt 0-1 0-0 0, Brynn Reichardt 0-0 0-0 0, Olivia Penland 0-0 0-0 0, Ava Van Soelen 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 17-47 9-10 46.

NORTH LINN (57): Maddie Boer 5-11 0-0 11, Kayla Carrothers 0-3 0-0 0, Nicole Miller 10-18 9-13 31, Brooke Dobney 0-3 0-0 0, Morgan Boer 5-12 5-5 15, Katie Kurt 0-3 0-0 0, Ashley Tull 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 20-52 14-18 57.

Halftime: North Linn 27, DMC 14. 3-point goals: DMC 3-18 (Beth Zimmerman 0-8, Prewitt 1-6, Britt.Zimmer 0-1, Anderson 1-2, Stephens 1-1), North Linn 3-13 (Mad.Boer 1-3, Miller 2-6, Dobney 0-2, Kurt 0-2). Team fouls: DMC 17, 13. Fouled out: Rosener. Rebounds: DMC 31 (Anderson 13), North Linn 34 (Miller 11). Assists: DMC 5 (Britt.Zimmer 3), North Linn 11 (Mad.Boer 6). Steals: DMC 3 (Stephens 2), North Linn 10 (Mad.Boer, Miller 4). Turnovers: DMC 15, North Linn 9.

l Comments: (319) 368-8857; jeff.linder@thegazette.com