By Scott Hansen
MaxPreps.com
Omaha Westside and Bellevue West set a state record on Feb. 12, combining for 189 points. Westside won the high-scoring shootout 98-91 in double overtime.
Sophomore Sarah Nelson scored 33 points and ripped down 21 rebounds for the victors, while Shelly Martin and Kelsey Anderson chipped in with 21 and 20 points, respectively.
Bellevue West also had three players eclipse the 20-point mark, led by Emily Hauder’s 27 points. Alexis Akin-Otiko and Myhiah Dotzler each added 20 points to pace Bellevue West in a losing effort.
The previous state record was in 2003, where Laurel-Concord and Randolph played to an 89-87 triple overtime thriller (176 combined points).
The Nebraska boys record is 226 points, which was set in 1994 as Wakefield defeated Hartington 119-107 in triple-overtime.
Also on Tuesday night, Omaha Central hit for 108 points in a victory over Omaha Benson. Central is the first in Class A to eclipse the century mark since Norfolk in 1995.
Creighton Prep Beats Bellevue West
At first it was suspected, but now it is confirmed; Creighton Prep is for real.
The Junior Jays, the No. 1 team in Nebraska since Jan. 21, went into hostile territory and defeated perennial power Bellevue West 72-65 in front of 2,800 fans at the Thunderdome.
Prep trailed by as many as 12 points in the first half before embarking on its comeback. True to form, a balanced scoring attack spurred the Jays. Junior Matt Harmon hit all seven of his field goal attempts and scored 18 points. Jelani Johnson chipped in with 15 points, while Caleb Steffensmeier added 13.
Creighton Prep (20-1) shot 60 percent from the floor and hit 5 of its 8 attempts from three-point range. The Junior Jays also hit 19-of-25 from the charity stripe in the victory.
Bellevue West (21-2) sharpshooter Jeff Allgood led the Thunderbirds with 23 points, including six makes from beyond the arc. Creighton-bound Antoine Young added 22 points for Bellevue West.
Prep, Bellevue West, and Omaha Central are expected to be considered the favorites entering the Nebraska State Tournament, scheduled for Mar. 6-8 at the Bob Devaney Sports Center in Lincoln. Prep and Bellevue West have continued to peak at the right time, while Omaha Central is on fire at the moment.
Millard West Downs Bellevue East Girls
In another showdown between highly ranked teams, Millard West got 44 combined points between Heather Pohl and Jasmin Corbin as the Wildcats defeated Bellevue East, 72-61.
Pohl and Corbin both led Millard West (20-1) with 22 points, while sophomore Alison Janacek added 18. Millard West led 55-52 heading into the fourth period before pulling away to its 11-point winning margin.
Bellevue East was led by Mercedes Morgan’s 16 points.
Samuels Shells Out 44
In St. Edward’s 78-56 victory over Cedar Rapids on Friday, junior guard Shavontae Samuels scored a career-high 44 points. St. Edward, the defending Class D-2 state champions, moved to 17-3 on the season with the victory.
Nebraska State Wrestling
The Nebraska School Activities Association should take a serious look at renaming the state tournament the Omaha Skutt Invitational.
The Class B powerhouse won its 11th consecutive state title by scoring 256 points, a Nebraska state record. Tyler Sackett became the 14th wrestler in Nebraska history to become a four-time state champion when he pinned Schuyler’s John Svoboda at 5:21 to claim the title at 130.
Including Sackett, Skutt had seven state champions. Zach Cottle (103), Matthew Katusin (125), Quintin Cottle (135), Timothy Chavez (140), Tyler Kottas (145), and Derek Vogel (160) all claimed gold for the Skyhawks.
Millard South took home Class A, Madison edged out Bennington to win Class C, and Howells rolled to the Class D title.
Boys Top 10
(Records as of February 18)
1. Omaha Creighton Prep, 20-1 (1)
- Defeated Millard West, 53-43. 6-8 junior John Karhoff scored 17 points for the Junior Jays. Matt Harmon added 12 for Prep.
- Defeated Bellevue West, 72-65. Junior Matt Harmon scored 18 points to lead Creighton Prep. Jelani Johnson added 15.
2. Bellevue West, 21-2 (2)
- Defeated Omaha Westside, 67-39. Antoine Young scored 16 points to power Bellevue West. Shomari Wellington chipped in with 14 points to pace the Thunderbirds.
- Defeated Omaha Northwest, 72-36. Jeff Allgood scored 16 points to lead Bellevue West.
- Lost to Creighton Prep, 72-65. Allgood scored 23 points in the loss, while Young added 22.
3. Omaha Central, 20-3 (3)
- Defeated Omaha Benson, 108-76. The Eagles were the first Class A team to eclipse the century mark since Norfolk in 1995. Josh Jones hit five three-point buckets and scored a game-high 33 points. Lorenzo Wilson added 24 points to pace the Eagles.
- Defeated Papillion-LaVista, 81-54. Jones scored 32 points for the Eagles in the rout. Wilson added 12 points for Central in the victory.
- Defeated Millard North, 76-53. Jones scored 16 of his game-high 30 points in the second quarter to continue his torrid shooting week. Jones averaged 31.7 pointsper game in three victories this past week.
4. Ralston, 19-1 (4)
- Defeated Crete, 61-47. Brett Jorgenson scored 16 points to lead Ralston. Dwight and Greg Smith combined for 18 points to pace the Rams.
- Defeated Norris, 87-50. Dwight Smith scored 16 points to lead Ralston.
5. Fremont Bergan, 21-0 (5) *Class D-1
- Defeated Oakland-Craig, 79-57. Wes Eikmeier scored 35 points and added nine rebounds for the Knights.
6. Lincoln High, 17-4 (9)
- Defeated Kearney, 54-47. Josh Riser scored 18 points to lead the charge. Dylan Flinn added 11 points to pace the Links.
- Defeated Millard South, 67-62. Pete Uhing and Andre Granger scored
7. Grand Island, 16-4 (6)
- Defeated Columbus, 59-42. Sam Carstens scored 23 points for the Islanders.
8. Papillion-LaVista South, 16-6 (8)
- Defeated Millard South, 56-46. Kendall Wehrle led a balanced attack with 10 points.
- Defeated Omaha South, 70-48. Josias Hueser hit eight three-point bombs and scored 24 points for the Titans in the victory.
14 points apiece for the sizzling Links, winners of 10 out of their last 11 games.
9. Kearney, 16-6 (7)
- Defeated Hastings, 47-31. The Bearcats pulled away in the second half after leading by two heading into intermission. Brett Maher scored 16 points to lead Kearney.
- Lost to Lincoln High, 54-47. RJ Rhodes and Dane Bacon combined for 28 points in the loss for the Bearcats.
10. Omaha Benson, 14-7 (10)
- Lost to Omaha Central, 108-76. Kelvin Crandell scored 21 points for Benson. The Bunnies struggled from outside, hitting just 2-of-13 from three-point land.
- Defeated Omaha South, 72-57. Aaron Russell scored 19 points to lead the Bunnies. Three Benson players tallied in double figures in the victory.
Class A No. 10 Omaha Bryan, 15-7 (10 in Class A)
- Defeated Millard North, 56-45. Kyle Browne scored 17 points to lead the Bears.
Dropped Out: None
Small-School Top 10 (Classes C-1 through D-2)
1. Fremont Bergan, 21-0, D-1 (1)
2. Pierce, 20-0, C-1 (2)
3. Bennington, 20-0, C-1 (3)
4. Boys Town, 18-5, C-1 (5)
5. Boone Central, 16-3, C-1 (6)
6. Wisner-Pilger, 21-0, C-1 (7)
7. Minden, 16-3, C-1 (8)
8. Ravenna, 20-1, C-2 (9)
9. Chadron, 16-2, C-1 (10)
10. Ponca, 18-2, C-2 (NR)
Dropped Out: Heartland, 18-2, C-2 (4)
Top D-2 Team: Ewing, 21-0
Class B
1. Omaha Skutt, 16-5 (1)
2. Beatrice, 15-3 (2)
3. Waverly, 15-4 (3)
4. Gretna, 16-4 (4)
5. Elkhorn, 12-6 (5)
6. Lincoln Pius X, 13-5 (6)
7. Crete, 13-7 (7)
8. Omaha Gross, 10-10 (8)
9. Norris, 10-8 (9)
10. Sidney, 11-8 (NR)
Dropped Out: Schuyler, 9-11 (10)
Girls Top 10
(Records as of February 18)
1. South Sioux City, 19-1 (1) *Class B
- Defeated Elk Point-Jefferson (SD), 76-65. Autumn Boyer scored 24 points to lead the Cardinals. South Sioux City outscored the South Dakota power 32-12 in the fourth quarter to pull out the victory.
- Defeated Omaha Skutt, 74-62. McKayla Knudson scored 18 points to lead South Sioux City. Bower, Tristen Sharp, and Emily Schroeder all scored 13 points to pace the Cardinals.
2. Lincoln Southeast, 21-1 (2)
- Defeated Lincoln Northeast, 67-47. Katie Birkel scored 23 points to lead Southeast to the victory in a Star City clash. Birkel scored 11 of Southeast’s 14 points in the third quarter.
- Defeated Norfolk, 67-33. Marissa Kastenek scored 18 points for the Knights. Birkel added 16 to pace Southeast to the victory.
3. Millard West, 20-1 (4)
- Defeated Omaha Marian, 55-28. Heather Pohl scored 18 points for Millard West in the victory.
- Defeated Millard West, 72-61. Pohl and Jasmine Corbin scored 22 points for the Wildcats.
4. Bellevue East, 19-5 (3)
- Defeated Omaha Westside, 61-51. Terra Andreasen scored 13 points to lead Bellevue East. Mercedes Morgan added 11.
- Lost to Millard West, 72-61. Morgan scored 16 points for the Chieftains in the loss.
5. Alliance, 21-0 (5) *Class B
- Defeated Sidney, 52-43. Jordan Hooper scored 24 points as the Lady Bulldogs enter the postseason riding a 43-game winning streak.
6. Millard North, 18-3 (6)
- Defeated Omaha Bryan, 63-22. Melissa MacFarlane scored 13 points and grabbed nine rebounds to lead the Mustangs.
- Defeated Omaha Central, 70-28. Kiley Herold scored 15 points for the Mustangs. Kristen Conahan paced Millard North with four three-pointers.
7. Kearney, 19-3 (7)
- Defeated Lincoln High, 58-38. The Bearcats set a school-record, notching their 19th victory of the season. Brandi Winchester scored 15 points for Kearney, while Nicole Arp chipped in with 13.
8. Holdrege, 19-2 (8) *Class B
- Defeated Aurora, 86-39. Tessa Kreutzer scored 23 points, while Ashley Daily added 19 as the Dusters rolled.
- Defeated York, 69-24. Tabitha Kreutzer scored 14 points to lead the Dusters.
9. Seward, 18-1 (10) *Class B
- Defeated Crete, 35-31. Natasha Mueller and freshman Emily Cady both scored 10 points to lead the Bluejays.
10. Elkhorn, 19-1 (NR) *Class B
- Defeated Springfield Platteview, 69-30. Brittney Lynch scored 14 points to lead the Antlers. Tara Roach chipped in with 12 points for Elkhorn.
Dropped Out: Crete, 17-3 (9) *Class B
- Defeated Norris, 56-40.
- Lost to Seward, 35-31. Kate Edwards scored 10 points in the loss for Crete.
Small-School Top 10 (Classes C-1 through D-2)
1. Norfolk Catholic, 20-1, C-1 (1)
2. Crofton, 21-1, C-1 (2)
3. Perkins County, 20-0, C-2 (3)
4. Cambridge, 21-0, C-2 (4)
5. Wahoo Neumann, 19-2, C-1 (5)
6. Bancroft-Rosalie, 23-0, D-1 (6)
7. West Point Central Catholic, 19-3, C-2 (7)
8. Sutton, 20-1, C-2 (8)
9. Minden, 19-2, C-1 (9)
10. Falls City Sacred Heart, 22-1, D-2 (10)
Class A Top 10: 6 through 10
6. Lincoln East, 16-6 (6)
7. Omaha Marian, 14-8 (7)
8. Millard South, 13-6 (8)
9. Omaha Westside, 15-9 (9)
10. Bellevue West, 13-9 (10)
Dropped Out: None
Class B
1. South Sioux City, 19-1 (1)
2. Alliance, 21-0 (2)
3. Holdrege, 19-2 (3)
4. Seward, 18-1 (5)
5. Elkhorn, 19-1 (6)
6. Crete, 17-3 (4)
7. Lincoln Pius X, 15-3 (7)
8. Omaha Gross, 14-6 (8)
9. Gretna, 14-6 (10)
10. Omaha Roncalli, 14-6 (9)
Dropped Out: None
