Author: Slaten Swords

Mount Pleasant, IA- The Mt. Pleasant and Danville girls’ basketball teams are scheduled to face off in a non-conference showdown this upcoming Monday, January 20th, at Mt. Pleasant High School but it will be at a different time.

The Junior Varsity game will still begin at 5:30 pm, but they will only play two quarters. This will usher in the Varsity game tip-off time to be between 6:00-6:15 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show 15 minutes before game time.

The Panthers are currently 2-1 on the season against the Southeast Iowa Super Conference-South Division with wins against Burlington Notre Dame and New London, while the Bears have dropped both contests against the Southeast Conference by an average of 33 points.

Although, Danville did beat Mt. Pleasant last year 76-34 in the midst of their 19-game winning streak.

High School Basketball

New London will take on Moravia at home tonight with game one at 6 pm. 

Fairfield will compete against Pekin tonight with the doubleheader starting at 6 pm.

Mt. Pleasant will face off against Burlington on the road tomorrow, January 17th, with game one at 6 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 5:45 pm.

Winfield-Mt. Union will tango with Hillcrest Academy tomorrow with the boys playing at 7:30 pm, following the girls’ game. 

Burlington Notre Dame will host New London tomorrow with the doubleheader starting at 6 pm.

Columbus will take on Highland tomorrow with the girls’ teams tipping-off at 6 pm. 

Wapello will venture to Lone Tree tomorrow with a 6 pm start time. 

Danville will compete against Central Lee tomorrow at home with game time at 6 pm. 

WACO will stay on the road tomorrow for a showdown against Louisa-Muscatine with the girls’ tipping-off the night at 6 pm. 

West Burlington will face off against Holy Trinity Catholic on the road with the girls’ starting off the night at 6 pm tomorrow. 

Van Buren County will travel to Mediapolis tomorrow for a doubleheader scheduled to start at 6 pm. 

High School Wrestling

The Van Buren County boys’ team will take on Highland tonight for a dual. 

The Fairfield boys’ team will compete in a triangular tonight at home. 

Mt. Pleasant will duel Washington tonight on the road. 

The WACO boys’ team will host Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union and New London tonight for a double dual. 

The Wapello boys’ team will host a meet tonight at 6 pm with Mediapolis making the trip. 

The WACO girls’ team will host a meet with Mediapolis, Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union, and Van Buren County making the trip tonight. 

The Wapello girls’ team will participate in the Cascade Tournament tonight.

The Burlington Notre Dame boys’ team will travel to Lone Tree tonight for a triangular. 

High School Bowling

Fairfield will host Burlington today.

Mt. Pleasant will take on Fairfield on January 23rd at home. 

Southeastern Community College

The men’s basketball team will take on Indian Hills Community College on Saturday, January 18th, at 7 pm on the road. 

NAIA Basketball

In the latest NAIA men’s basketball rankings, William Woods University jumped up into the top 25 at the #23 slot with a 13-2 record on the season. Former Iowa Wesleyan head coach and current Owls head coach Jordan Ashton has his team firing on all cylinders, averaging 80.6 points per game while keeping their opponents to just 63 points. 

The team is aided by a couple former Tigers with Francis Okwuosah leading the team with 15 points per game to go along with seven rebounds, while Henry Shannon is cashing in for 12 points per game on over 50% shooting from the field. 

College Basketball

The #2 Iowa State men’s team claimed a top ten win last night against #9 Kansas in convincing fashion 74-57. Curtis Jones had a phenomenal game, cashing in for 25 points as Joshua Jefferson collected a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds. The Cyclones will play West Virginia on Saturday, January 18th, at 4 pm on the road. 

The Iowa men’s team will stay on the west coast to compete against UCLA tomorrow, January 17th, at 8 pm. 

The Iowa women’s team will take on Nebraska at home tonight at 6 pm. 

The Iowa State women’s team will face off against #20 West Virginia on Sunday, January 19th, at noon.

This Day in Sports History

1966 – Chicago Blackhawks’ right wing Bobby Hull scores 4 goals (his 17th career hat trick) in a 6-5 loss to the New York Rangers; becomes the first player in team history to score 300 goals.

1966 – Chicago was granted an NBA franchise to be called the Bulls, becoming the third NBA franchise in the city, after the Chicago Stags (1946–50) and Chicago Packers/Zephyrs (now Washington Wizards).

2020 – Former Sacramento State softball player Alyssa Nakken becomes the first woman to hold a coaching position on a MLB staff when named an assistant by the San Francisco Giants.

High School Basketball

New London was swept by Van Buren County last night with the girls’ team losing 45-24 and the boys’ team falling 67-61. Mylee Miller collected 10 points and five blocks for the Tigers. 

New London will take on Moravia at home tomorrow, January 16th, with game one at 6 pm. 

Van Buren County will travel to Mediapolis on Friday, January 17th, for a doubleheader scheduled to start at 6 pm. 

The Mediapolis girls’ team clobbered West Burlington last night 73-22 to get back in the win column as Josie Hutcheson tabbed 20 points and eight steals for the Bulldogs. The boys’ team had no such luck, surrendering a 76-65 final to #6 Falcons. 

West Burlington will face off against Holy Trinity Catholic on the road with the girls’ starting off the night at 6 pm on Friday. 

The Holy Trinity Catholic boys’ team dominated Danville last night to the tune of 72-39 final as Luke Hellige cashed in for 34 points for the Crusaders, while the Danville girls’ team narrowly escaped with a 44-42 win over the Crusaders. 

Danville will compete against Central Lee on Friday at home with game time at 6 pm. 

WACO split their matchup against Pekin last night with the girls’ team winning 55-31 and the boys’ team losing 52-44 after being outscored 36 to 12 in the first half. Brenna Graber led the Warriors with 20 points in the girls’ contest.  

WACO will stay on the road this Friday for a showdown against Louisa-Muscatine with the girls’ tipping-off the night at 6 pm. 

Winfield-Mt. Union finished 1-1 last night as the girls’ team fell to Lone Tree 74-35 and the boys’ team nearly gave the game away before outscoring the Lions 9 to 5 in overtime to win 56-52. The Wolves will tango with Hillcrest Academy on Friday with the boys playing at 7:30 pm, following the girls’ game. 

The Burlington Notre Dame girls’ team was defeated 58-29 last night at the hands of Central Lee.

Burlington Notre Dame will host New London on Friday with the doubleheader starting at 6 pm.

The Wapello girls’ won a low-scoring affair against Louisa-Muscatine last night 38-23, while the boys’ team could not keep pace with the Falcons, losing 68-47. Wapello will venture to Lone Tree on Friday with a 6 pm start time. 

The Columbus boys’ team was handled by Hillcrest Academy last night 70-33, while the girls’ team collected a 46-33 win over the Ravens. The Wildcats will take on Highland on Friday with the girls’ teams tipping-off at 6 pm. 

Fairfield will compete against Pekin tomorrow with the doubleheader starting at 6 pm. 

Mt. Pleasant will face off against Burlington on the road on Friday with game one at 6 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 5:45 pm.

High School Wrestling

The Van Buren County boys’ team will take on Highland tomorrow, January 16th, for a dual. 

The Fairfield boys’ team will compete in a triangular tomorrow at home. 

Mt. Pleasant will duel Washington tomorrow on the road. 

The WACO boys’ team will host Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union and New London tomorrow for a double dual. 

The Wapello boys’ team will host a meet tomorrow at 6 pm with Mediapolis making the trip. 

The WACO girls’ team will host a meet with Mediapolis, Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union, and Van Buren County making the trip tomorrow. 

The Wapello girls’ team will participate in the Cascade Tournament tomorrow.

The Burlington Notre Dame boys’ team will travel to Lone Tree tomorrow for a triangular. 

High School Bowling

Fairfield will host Burlington tomorrow, January 16th.

Mt. Pleasant will take on Fairfield on January 23rd at home. 

Southeastern Community College

The men’s basketball team got back in the win column last night with an emphatic 82-43 victory over Harry S, Truman College. The Blackhawks will take on Indian Hills Community College on Saturday, January 18th, at 7 pm on the road. 

College Basketball

The #2 Iowa State men’s team will face another test tonight at home at 6 pm against #9 Kansas. KILJ AM 1130 and 98.5 FM will have the call. 

The Iowa men’s team could not corral USC’s offense last night in a 99-89 loss to the Trojans. Owen Freeman put up 23 points in the loss. The Hawkeyes will stay on the west coast to compete against UCLA on Friday, January 17th, at 8 pm. 

The Iowa women’s team will take on Nebraska at home tomorrow, January 16th, at 6 pm. 

The Iowa State women’s team had their NCAA record for consecutive games with a three-pointer end last night at 945 games, but it did not deter the Cyclones from defeating Texas Tech 71-58. Audi Crooks (28 points) and Addy Brown (21 points) led the way with 49 combined points. The Cyclones will take on #20 West Virginia on Sunday, January 19th, at noon.

This Day in Sports History

1967 – Super Bowl I, LA Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, CA: the Green Bay Packers beat the Kansas City Chiefs, 35-10; MVP: Bart Starr, Green Bay, QB.

1987 – Boston Celtics forward Larry Bird was named Man of the Year by The Sporting News and Athlete of the Year by The Associated Press, marking the first time one athlete had gained both distinctions.

1990 – In a bizarre NHL coaching move, the Washington Capitals fired coach Brian Murray, who had been head coach since 1981, and replaced him with his brother Terry, who had been coaching in the minors.

High School Basketball

The Van Buren County girls’ team collected a 50-41 victory over Fairfield last night as Callie Kracht cashed in for 18 points on 10 of 13 shooting from the free throw line. 

Fairfield will compete against Pekin on Thursday, January 16th, with the doubleheader starting at 6 pm. 

New London will host Van Buren County tonight with the girls tipping off at 6 pm.

WACO will hit the road to take on Pekin tonight with game one at 6 pm. 

Mediapolis will play at home tonight against West Burlington with game time at 6 pm for the doubleheader. 

Holy Trinity Catholic will face off against Danville tonight at home for Teacher Appreciation Night with the boys starting off the night at 6 pm followed by the girls game. 

Winfield-Mt. Union will stay at home tonight to compete against Lone Tree with the night starting at 6 pm. 

Burlington Notre Dame will travel to Central Lee tonight with the doubleheader starting at 6 pm.

Wapello will host Louisa-Muscatine tonight with the night starting at 6 pm. 

Columbus will face off against Hillcrest Academy tonight with game one at 6 pm. 

Mt. Pleasant will face off against Burlington on the road on Friday, January 17th, with game one at 6 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 5:45 pm.

High School Boys’ Basketball Rankings

The Iowa High school Athletic Association (IHSAA) released their second edition of the boys’ basketball rankings and one of our local teams kept their spot in the top ten.

In Class 2A, Western Christian and Kuemper Catholic remained in the top two spots, respectively, and despite West Lyon not losing a game since the last rankings, Grand View Christian jumped them to be the #3 team this week. 

West Burlington kept their position at #6 in the rankings, rocking an 11-0 record. The Falcons are averaging an other-worldly 80.4 points per game, while keeping their opponents under 50 points per game for the season. Add in a defense that can cancel out their 10 turnovers per game with 10 steals.

Over in Class 1A, Holy Trinity Catholic was ranked #6 last week before a narrow loss to Central Lee last Friday knocked the Crusaders out of the top ten. 

High School Wrestling

The Van Buren County boys’ team will take on Highland on Thursday, January 16th, for a dual. 

The Fairfield boys’ team will compete in a triangular on Thursday at home. 

Mt. Pleasant will duel Washington on Thursday on the road. 

The WACO boys’ team will host Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union and New London on Thursday for a double dual. 

The Wapello boys’ team will host a meet on Thursday at 6 pm with Mediapolis making the trip. 

The WACO girls’ team will host a meet with Mediapolis, Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union, and Van Buren County making the trip on Thursday. 

The Wapello girls’ team will participate in the Cascade Tournament on Thursday.

The Burlington Notre Dame boys’ team will travel to Lone Tree on Thursday for a triangular. 

High School Bowling

The Fairfield boys’ team defeated Davis County last night 2,739-2,508. Ian Aplara led the Trojans with 400 total pins. The Trojans will host Burlington on Thursday, January 16th.

Mt. Pleasant will take on Fairfield on January 23rd at home. 

Southeastern Community College

The men’s basketball team will stay at home to take on Harry S. Truman College tonight at 7 pm. 

College Basketball

The #2 Iowa State men’s team will face another test tomorrow, January 15th, at home at 6 pm against #9 Kansas. KILJ AM 1130 and 98.5 FM will have the call. The Cyclones will be led by Big 12 Player of the Week in Curtis Jones and Newcomer of the Week Joshua Jefferson.

The Iowa men’s team will travel to USC tonight for a 9:30 pm showdown against the Trojans. KILJ 105.5 FM will have the broadcast. Co-Big Ten Player of the Week Payton Sandfort will look to have another big game for the Hawkeyes. 

The Iowa women’s team will take on Nebraska at home on Thursday, January 16th, at 6 pm. 

The Iowa State women’s team will host Texas Tech tonight with tip-off at 6:30 pm.

This Day in Sports History

1943 – Montreal Canadiens’ left wing Alex Smart becomes the first NHL rookie to score a hat trick in his first NHL game, a 5-1 win at home over the Chicago Blackhawks.

1951 – First NFL Pro Bowl, Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum: the American Conference beats the National Conference, 28-27; MVP: Otto Graham, Cleveland Browns, QB.

1993 – Utah Jazz center Mark Eaton blocks two shots in a 96-89 win over the Seattle SuperSonics; becomes only the second player in NBA history (along with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) to record 3,000 career blocks.

College Basketball- The men’s basketball teams for Iowa and Iowa State have certainly enjoyed the spoils of last week’s matchups with both squads earning wins in overtime and now the Cyclones being ranked 2^nd in the top 25. For their trouble, a couple players earned Conference Player of the Week Honors.

Big Ten

Payton Sandfort, who also eared the Dick Vitale National Player of the Week, will have to share the spotlight with Michigan’s Vladislav Goldin as Co-Big Ten Player of the Week, but the Waukee native will certainly enjoy his second weekly honor of his career.

The Hawkeyes played Nebraska last Tuesday under the theme of Superhero Night and Iowa clearly needed a hero as the squad trailed by 15 points in the second half. That’s when Sandfort took over the game, scoring 30 points between the second half and overtime to score the 97-87 win.

He followed that performance with 23 points in a dominant 85-60 win over Indiana. It was his sixth 20-point game of the season.

The Hawkeyes will face off against USC on the road tomorrow, January 14^th, with the game scheduled to start at 9:30 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM will have the call.

Big 12

The #2 Cyclones had two players earn Big 12 weekly awards as Curtis Jones was named Player of the Week and Joshua Jefferson took home Newcomer of the Week.

The duo helped Iowa State produce two wins as Jones averaged 24.5 points per game for their two contests without turning over the ball, while Jefferson netted 17 points in each game, including the layup to send their contest against Texas Tech into overtime and the eventual game-winning free throws.

The Cyclones will need the duo to show up against #9 Kansas on Wednesday, January 15^th, in front of the home crowd with tip-off scheduled for 6 pm. KILJ 98.5 FM and AM 1130 will have the broadcast.

Prep Basketball- A week has passed, and the Iowa High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) has released their second edition of the basketball rankings for the 2024-25 season and a shakeup in the top 10 shows that no team can take a game off.

Class 4A

Cedar Falls still sits above the rest with one of three undefeated records left in the class: in fact, the top four remained unchanged with Valley and Waukee Northwest rounding out the top three.

The only change that occurred was Johnston falling from #5 in the rankings to #8 after a loss to then-ranked #8 Waukee, now up a spot to #7, 58-56. Beyond that all ten teams stayed within the rankings.

Class 3A

Aptly, the top three teams in Ballard, Clear Lake, and Decorah are undefeated and ranked in that respective order. Wahlert Catholic kept their spot at #4 despite a fourth undefeated team climbing the rankings to #5 in Knoxville.

Last week, #7 ADM was in that #5 slot but a one-point loss to unranked Gilbert knocked the Tigers down two spots. Three teams were knocked out of the top 10 in Des Moines Christian, Nevada, and Central DeWitt with Xavier, Storm Lake, and Mt. Vernon taking over the final three spots of the top 10.

Class 2A

Western Christian and Kuemper Catholic remained in the top two spots, respectively, and despite West Lyon not losing a game since the last rankings, Grand View Christian jumped them to be the #3 team this week. The Thunder defeated #9 Treynor, 61-56, and previously ranked #9 in Class 3A Nevada, 73-56.

West Burlington kept their position at #6 in the rankings, rocking an 11-0 record. The Falcons are averaging an other-worldly 80.4 points per game, while keeping their opponents under 50 points per game for the season. Add in a defense that can cancel out their 10 turnovers per game with 10 steals and an All-State talent in Mason Watkins has this squad cooking.

Tri-Center was knocked out of the top 10 by #9 Treynor after the Cardinals conquered the Trojans 82-50.

Class 1A

Maquette Catholic and Madrid held strong in their top two spots, then chaos ensued throughout the rest of the top 10. St. Edmond went from being ranked 3^rd in Class 1A to hanging on to the top 10 at the #9 slot after losing their last two games by an average of 28.5 points.

Gladbrook-Reinbeck climbed four spots up the rankings to #5, while Northwood-Kensett moved up from #10 to #7 in the rankings. #8 Bishop Garrigan’s 59-57 loss to Cedar Falls knocked the Golden Bears out of the top 10 and #6 Holy Trinity Catholic followed suit with an unexpected 55-52 loss to Central Lee last Friday.

The Crusaders will have an uphill climb to get back in the rankings despite touting a 15.4-point differential. Luke Hellige is leading the charge for the team, averaging 25.1 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. Look for Koby Jones and Layne Rung to take on a bigger role as postseason time approaches.

Taking their spots was #8 MMCRU with an 8-2 record and #10 North Mahaska, rocking a 10-1 record.

High School Basketball

The WACO girls’ team extended their win streak to seven games over the weekend with a comfortable 43-26 win over New London. Brenna Graber finished with a game high 17 points for the Warriors, while Mylee Miller’s 15 points led the Tigers. The WACO boys’ team ventured back into the win column with a 70-39 thrashing of New London as Christian Stacy netted 22 points. London Franklin put up 20 points for the Tigers.

WACO will hit the road to take on Pekin tomorrow, January 14th, with game one at 6 pm. 

New London will host Van Buren County tomorrow with the girls tipping off at 6 pm.

The Mediapolis girls’ team was handed their first loss of the season over the weekend against Abingdon-Avon 53-38. Amelia Grier scored 11 points in the losing effort. The Bulldogs will play at home tomorrow against West Burlington with game time at 6 pm for the doubleheader. 

Both Holy Trinity Catholic squads got back in the win column against Winfield-Mt. Union over the weekend as the girls’ team won a slugfest 37-22 and the boys’ team picked up a 63-48 victory behind the duo of Luke Hellige (24 points) and Layne Rung (23 points) as they combined for 47 points. Jake Edwards had 14 points and eight assists for the Wolves. 

Holy Trinity Catholic will face off against Danville tomorrow at home for Teacher Appreciation Night with the boys starting off the night at 6 pm followed by the girls game. 

Winfield-Mt. Union will stay at home tomorrow to compete against Lone Tree with the night starting at 6 pm. 

Central Lee was outsprinted by Fort Madison over the weekend with the girls’ team losing 54-27, as Kenna Sandoval tabbed 10 points for the Hawks, and the boys’ team falling 81-53, as Will Hayes dropped 18 points in the losing effort. 

Burlington Notre Dame will travel to Central Lee tomorrow with the doubleheader starting at 6 pm.

The Fairfield girls’ team will take on Van Buren County tonight with tip-off at 7:30 pm, while the boys’ team will compete against Pekin on Thursday, January 16th, at 7:30 pm. 

Wapello will host Louisa-Muscatine tomorrow with the night starting at 6 pm. 

Columbus will face off against Hillcrest Academy tomorrow with game one at 6 pm. 

Mt. Pleasant will face off against Burlington on the road on Friday, January 17th, with game one at 6 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 5:45 pm.

High School Wrestling

The Mediapolis, Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union, Van Buren County, and Fairfield boys’ teams made the trip to Ottumwa over the weekend for an invitational and here are the top results. Starting with Mediapolis, Mason Johnson finished 5-2 over the weekend with an 8-4 decision win over Brody Johnson of Tipton for 5th place.

For Van Buren County, Leo Jirak took 4th place in the 106-pound weight class and Elijah Westercamp collected the bronze in the 190-pound weight class with a win by fall. 

Fairfield’s Cael McCabe and Cason Miller paced the Trojans with each wrestler grabbing the silver in their respective weight classes. Dain Burkhart and Dre Smithburg each won 3rd place, while Zandrik Allison finished in 4th place. 

Lastly, Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union had Kason Dopler collect seven wins before falling in the first place match to take 2nd place. Jacob Nelson finished in 5th place and Itai Zapensz took 4th place. 

The Van Buren County boys’ team will take on Highland on Thursday, January 16th, for a dual. 

The Fairfield boys’ team will compete in a triangular on Thursday at home. 

The New London, Mt. Pleasant, and WACO boys’ teams all participated in the Gary Curtis Invitational at Highland over the weekend and the Warriors had a duo claim the gold.

For WACO, Ian Maize defeated Mt. Pleasant’s Levi Evans by an 8-2 decision in the championship match to claim 1st place in the 106-pound weight class. Louden Huisenga remained undefeated after a sudden victory for the gold in the 190-pound weight class. Gage Samo claimed the bronze. 

New London was led by Gage Burden as he finished in 3rd place for the 138-pound weight class, while Kane Forseen took 4th place for the Tigers. Mt. Pleasant had Cruz Aguilar and Ramzy Davis claim 5th place for their respective weight classes. 

Mt. Pleasant will duel Washington on Thursday on the road. 

The WACO boys’ team will host Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union and New London on Thursday for a double dual. 

The Wapello boys’ team competed in the “Corky Stuart” Invite at BGM over the weekend and had a wrestler finish with the gold. Cohen Wolford went undefeated in the 138-pound weight class with a win by fall to claim first place. Carter Ball took third place and Grayson Nagle claimed 4th place in their respective weight classes. Wapello will host a meet on Thursday at 6 pm with Mediapolis making the trip. 

The WACO girls’ team will host a meet with Mediapolis, Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union, and Van Buren County making the trip on Thursday. 

The Wapello girls’ team will participate in the Cascade Tournament on Thursday.

The Burlington Notre Dame boys’ team will travel to Lone Tree on Thursday for a triangular. 

High School Bowling

Fairfield will host Davis County today. 

Mt. Pleasant will take on Fairfield on January 23rd at home. 

Southeastern Community College

The #20 men’s basketball team lost their second game of the season against #22 Triton College over the weekend 72-57. The Blackhawks will stay at home to take on Harry S. Truman College tomorrow, January 14th, at 7 pm. 

College Basketball

The #3 Iowa State men’s team survived their test on the road over the weekend against Texas Tech, winning their first game in Lubbock since 2019 in a 85-84 overtime finish. Curtis Jones collected 26 points in the victory. The Cyclones will face another test on Wednesday, January 15th, at home at 6 pm against #11 Kansas. KILJ AM 1130 and 98.5 FM will have the call. 

The Iowa men’s team dominated Indiana over the weekend 85-60 in front of the home crowd. Owen Freeman collected a double-double in the win with 16 points and 12 rebounds. The Hawkeyes will travel to USC tomorrow, January 14th, for a 9:30 pm showdown against the Trojans. KILJ 105.5 FM will have the broadcast.

The #23 Iowa women’s team has now lost back-to-back conference showdowns after yesterday’s defeat at the hands of Indiana, 74-67. Taylor McCabe’s 15 points from off the bench led the Hawkeyes. Iowa will take on Nebraska at home on Thursday, January 16th, at 6 pm. 

The Iowa State women’s team picked up a solid 79-58 win over Arizona over the weekend with Sydney Harris draining five threes from off the bench to lead the team with 24 points. The Cyclones will host Texas Tech tomorrow with tip-off at 6:30 pm.

This Day in Sports History

1972 – Bernice Gera wins an anti-discrimination case against the National Baseball Congress to be allowed to umpire. 

2004 – Toronto’s Tom Fitzgerald and Gary Roberts become the first teammates in NHL history to play their 1,000th NHL game on the same night as the Maple Leafs beat the visiting Calgary Flames, 4-1.

2019 – Houston guard James Harden scores 38 points in a Rockets’ 116-108 loss to the Orlando Magic; marks the 16th straight game with 30-plus points, matching Kobe Bryant’s NBA record streak. Additionally, Harden goes 1 for 17 from the 3-point arc, tying the record for most misses.

High School Basketball

The WACO girls’ team has now won their past six games after handling Iowa Valley last night 51-35. Brenna Graber led the scoring effort with 17 points. The WACO boys’ team traveled to play the defending champions, North Linn, last night and fell 60-40. 

WACO will host New London tomorrow, January 11th, with the girls’ tipping-off at 5 pm. 

Burlington Notre Dame split their night against West Branch with the girls losing 55-23 and the boys winning 72-57.

Van Buren County will face off against Burlington Notre Dame tonight with game time at 6 pm.

New London will face off against West Burlington at home tonight with the girls’ team playing at 6 pm.

Danville will compete against Mediapolis on the road tonight with tip-off scheduled for 6 pm. 

Holy Trinity Catholic will travel to Central Lee tonight with the girls tipping off the night at 6 pm. 

Wapello will square off against Pekin tonight with game one at 6 pm at home. 

Winfield-Mt. Union will host Louisa-Muscatine tonight with the night scheduled to start at 6 pm. 

Columbus will take on Lone Tree at home tonight with the boys’ team scheduled to play at 7:30 pm following the girls game. 

Fairfield will host Mt. Pleasant tonight with game one at 6 pm. KILJ 105.5 FM, kilj.com, will be on the call with the pregame show at 5:45 pm. 

High School Wrestling

The New London boys’ team traveled to Durant for a quad last night and defeated Cascade 27-24 but fell to Tipton 46-12 and the hosts 33-22. Kane Forseen, Gage Burden, and Corbin Jacobs-Jewell finished the night undefeated. 

The New London, Mt. Pleasant, and WACO boys’ teams will travel to Highland for the Gary Curtis Invitational tomorrow, January 11th.

The Mediapolis boys’ team competed in a triangular in Fort Madison last night and lost to the Bloodhounds 72-12 and to Washington 60-17. Taylan Miller won both of his matches, while Lane Rigdon won his match against Johnathan Macias of Washington by technical fall. 

Fairfield handled business last night, defeating Warsaw 60-20 and Keokuk 63-17. Aiden Westercamp, Calvin McClain, and Dain Burkhart competed in two matches last night and won both of them. 

The Mediapolis, Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union, and Fairfield boys’ teams will compete at the Ottumwa Invitational tonight.

The Mt. Pleasant girls’ team participated in a triangular at North Mahaska last night and fell to both opponents: Iowa Valley 33-18 and the hosts 36-22. Zenlynn Lee won both of her matches, while Quintrie Lee and Paris Phosy picked up wins in their contest against North Mahaska. 

The Mt. Pleasant, Mediapolis, Van Buren County, Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union and WACO girls’ teams will compete at the Highland tournament tonight.

The Wapello girls’ team will participate in the Lancer Invitational at North Scott today while the boys’ team will compete tomorrow at BGM for an invitational. 

The Burlington Notre Dame boys’ team will travel to Maquoketa for a tournament tomorrow.

High School Bowling

Mt. Pleasant will travel to the Rose Bowl to compete in the Louisa-Muscatine Invite tomorrow, January 11th.

Southeastern Community College

The #20 men’s basketball team will stay at home for a matchup against Triton College tomorrow, January 11th, with tip-off at 7 pm. 

College Basketball

The #3 Iowa State men’s team will compete against Texas Tech tomorrow, January 11th, on the road at 1 pm. 

The Iowa men’s team will host Indiana tomorrow at 7 pm. 

The #23 Iowa women’s team was unable to outlast Illinois last night, losing 62-57. Hannah Stuelke had a fine night, capturing a double-double with a team high 18 points and 13 rebounds. The Hawkeyes will take on Indiana on Sunday, January 12th, at home at 2 pm.

The Iowa State women’s team will travel to Arizona tomorrow with game time at 3 pm. 

This Day in Sports History

1982 – NFC Championship, Candlestick Park, SF: the San Francisco 49ers beat the Dallas Cowboys, 28-27; “The Catch” an iconic moment in NFL history, Dwight Clark makes a fingertip catch for a touchdown from Joe Montana with 58 seconds remaining. San Francisco goes on to win the Super Bowl. 

1985 – Lenny Wilkens becomes the first to coach in 1,000 NBA games when his Seattle SuperSonics defeat the Golden State Warriors, 89-86. 

1986 – Kareem Abdul-Jabbar of the Los Angeles Lakers scores his 34,000th career point during a 124-102 win over the Indiana Pacers; the only NBA player to reach the milestone at that time as he held the career record until 2023.