Comets keep pace in TRAC race
Newman remains one game behind Kewanee in conference standings
Nic Miller scored a season-high 22 points, Kyle Moore added a double-double, and the Newman Comets rolled to an 80-60 victory over Riverdale on Saturday in a Three Rivers game in Sterling.
Moore finished with 18 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks for the Comets (21-4, 12-1), who still sit one game behind conference leader Kewanee with one game left in the regular season. Newman hosts Morrison on Tuesday, while Kewanee hosts Bureau Valley the same night.
Miller also had four rebounds and four steals, while A.J. Sharp scored 16 points, and Luke Terveer chipped in seven points, four rebounds and three assists. The Comets led 21-5 after one quarter, then held the Rams at bay despite a pair of 22-point quarters in the second and fourth.
Jared Richmond led Riverdale (13-13, 8-5) with 13 points, while Cole Solomon and Drew Beale added 10 points apiece; Beale also had six rebounds and three blocks.
Bureau Valley 57, Erie 53, OT: The Storm outscored the Cardinals 12-8 in the extra period in a nip-and-tuck Three Rivers affair in Manlius.
Parker Neuhalfen scored 22 points for BV (19-10, 7-6), which trailed by one at halftime and led by one after three quarters, Brian Lange added 13 points and Jordan Monier finished with 10.
Jacob Johnston had a game-high 24 points for Erie (14-12, 6-6).
Prophetstown 60, Fulton 49: The Prophets broke open a 27-24 halftime lead with a 33-25 scoring edge in the second half of a Three Rivers road game.
Carter Ames hit three 3-pointers and led all scorers with 24 points for Prophetstown (13-13, 6-7), while Devin Johnson added 17 points, and Zach Inskeep had 11. Ames and Inskeep hit seven of eight free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.
Matt Dail and Jake Willging scored 12 points apiece for the Steamers (6-22, 3-9), and John Widener chipped in 10.
Kewanee 66, Amboy 33: The Boilermakers (22-3, 13-0) remained in first place in the Three Rivers by doubling up the visiting Clippers (6-19, 2-11).
Tyson Powers scored 18 points for Amboy, which fell behind 21-8 after one quarter and 42-13 at halftime. Donovan Oliver paced Kewanee with 17 points.
AFC 75, Milledgeville 72, OT: Bret Gittleson’s 3-pointer with 3.2 seconds left in overtime won an NUIC East game for the Raiders, who rallied from a double-digit, third-quarter deficit to force overtime in Milledgeville.
Troy Mairs poured in 33 points for AFC (8-13, 2-8), which erased an 11-point deficit heading into the fourth quarter with 28 points over the final 8 minutes. Ermir Ramadani added 10 points, and Matt Gendusa and Gittleson had nine points apiece.
Jordan Harris had 21 points, four assists, three steals and three blocks for the Missiles (7-15, 3-8), which led 35-28 at halftime and 47-36 after three quarters. Caleb Skoog finished with 18 points, four rebounds and five blocks, and Doug Williams had 11 points and four assists. Kameron DawTyne and Kaleb Ebersole scored nine each, with DawTyne grabbing seven rebounds and dishing five assists.
Polo 65, Lena-Winslow 57: The Marcos led 21-6 after one quarter and led the rest of the way in an NUIC crossover win at home.
AJ Dollmeyer scored 25 points for Polo (16-7), and Brian Cavanaugh
added 14 points. Tevin Sellers paced Le-Win with 18 points.
Eastland 66, Maroa-Forsyth 45: Four Cougars scored in double figures as Eastland won easily at the Riverton Shootout.
Dalton Shaner scored 17 points, and Ty Hartman had 14 for the Cougars (22-3), who led 21-12 after one quarter and 39-19 at halftime. Skylar Paulson added 11 points, and Ausitn Hansen chipped in 10.
Stockton 71, West Carroll 53: Trent Schubert poured in 30 points to lead the Blackhawks past the Thunder in an NUIC West game in Stockton.
Jordan Bacero hit three 3-pointers and scored 22 points for West Carroll (9-19, 3-8), which was outscored 58-40 by the Blackhawks (14-6, 6-3) in the final three quarters. Bacero also had seven rebounds, and Trevor Jones added 14 points, six boards, three steals and two blocks for the Thunder.
Girls basketball
Faith wins ACSI state title: The Falcons won three games by an average of 21 points each to claim their second straight ACIS state championship, and eighth in the last 9 years.
Faith (25-2) beat Mountain Top (Wis.) 61-44 in the final, as Amanda Smith (19 points), Sarah Smith (17 points) and Tressa Schuler (17 points) all scored in double figures. The Falcons led 17-8 after one quarter, then put the game away with an 18-6 run in the third period. After picking up four first-quarter fouls, Amanda Smith played the rest of the game before fouling out with 20 seconds left – the first time she’s fouled out of a game in her high-school career.
Earlier Saturday, Faith beat NICC foe Cornerstone 45-34 in the semifinals. Schuler scored 13, Amanda Smith had 11, and Krista Beach added 10 as the Falcons built a 38-22 lead through three quarters.
On Friday, top-seeded Faith rolled past Westlake Christian 55-19 in their opening game, jumping out to a 23-9 lead after one quarter and cruising from there. Sarah Smith had 18 points, Amanda Smith and Schuler each scored 10, and Beach chipped in nine.
Saturday’s stars
Amanda Smith, Faith, 40 points in 3 ACIS state tournament games
Troy Mairs, AFC, 33 points
AJ Dollmeyer, Polo, 25 points
Jacob Johnston, Erie, 24 points
Carter Ames, Prophetstown, 24 points
Nic Miller, Newman, 22 points, 4 rebounds, 4 steals
Parker Neuhalfen, BV, 22 points
Jordan Bacero, West Carroll, 22 points
Jordan Harris, Milledgeville, 21 points, 4 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks
