By Bob Bakken
MaxPreps.com
Three No. 1 ranked boys basketball teams are in Sioux City this weekend for the annual CNOS Foundation Basketball Classic at the Tyson Events Center.
The No. 1-ranked teams competing in the event include Linn-Mar (Class 4A), Bishop Heelan Catholic (Class 3A), and Rock Valley (Class 1A).
Linn-Mar hooks up with Heelan on Saturday night at 6:45 p.m. Linn-Mar plays Sioux City North on Friday after Heelan faces Sioux City East. Rock Valley plays one game in the Classic, meeting Class 1A fifth-ranked MOC-Floyd Valley Thursday night.
Boys Basketball: Des Moines North Hits Triple Digits
The points were flowing in the Des Moines North gymnasium Monday night as the Polar Bears outscored the Mason City Mohawks 101-91 in double overtime. The 101 points were believed to be the most points scored by a North High team since 1991.
Lance McGregory led the Polar Bears with 33 points, including a 3-pointer that helped send the game into overtime. North also won the game despite losing its leading scorer, Creon Reed, to a broken nose in the first minute of the game.
Noah Huisman paced the Mohawks with 22 points.
Girls Basketball: Top-Ranked Linn-Mar Handles Waterloo West
Marion Linn-Mar showed Waterloo West why its the top-ranked girls basketball team in Class 4A Tuesday night. The Lions disposed of the Wahawks 64-33 to improve to 9-0 for the season and 3-0 in the Mississippi Valley Conference.
"We got beat by the best team in the state here tonight, and they played a terrific first half against us," Waterloo West head coach Tony Pappas told the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier. "They really hit some big shots and widened us out."
The margin of victory for Linn-Mar was the second closest result against a MVC opponent for the Lions this season.
Girls Basketball: Ames Tops Valley in Top Five Battle
In a battle of Class 4A top five girls basketball teams Tuesday night, third-ranked Ames held off No. 5 West Des Moines Valley 55-53 at Ames. With the win, the Little Cyclones stayed unbeaten and on top of the Central Iowa Metropolitan League's Iowa Conference standings.
Trisha Nesbitt led the way with 23 points for Ames, which defeated Valley for the first time in Nesbitt's four-year basketball career. Ames is 8-0 for the season and is 3-0 in the conference.
Valley fell to 7-2 overall, 3-1 in the CIML Iowa Conference. Elizabeth Burnett led the Tigers with 13 points.
The Little Cyclones were aided by Valley foul trouble and hit 20-of-25 free throws in the game.
Wrestling: Ballard Win Streak Ends in Minnesota
A 15-meet winning streak by Ballard of Huxley was ended last Saturday at The Clash dual meet tournament in Rochester, Minn., where several top high school wrestling programs came together to test their wrestling abilities against each other.
Ranked seventh nationally and No. 1 in Iowa Class 2A, Ballard finished third in its division of the tournament, losing in pool competition 49-24 to Apple Valley, Minn., and 37-26 to Simley, Minn. In its only victory, Ballard beat Christiansburg, Va., 45-19, a team coached by Daryl Weber, who won two state championships for Gilbertville-Don Bosco and an NCAA title at Iowa.
Ballard is now 16-2 for the season.
Other Iowa powers also took part in The Clash. Don Bosco finished second in its division, going 2-2. The Dons, ranked ninth nationally by Amateur Wrestling News and No. 1 in Iowa Class 2A, defeated Perham, Minn., 42-19 and Glenbard North, Ill., 28-22, before losing 42-24 to Roseburg, Ore., on Saturday.
