Sports, December 30th

High School Basketball

New London will host Mt. Pleasant on Tuesday, January 2nd, with the girls leading off the night at 6 pm followed by the boys. 

Winfield-Mt. Union will take on Hillcrest Academy on Tuesday with the girls scheduled to play at 6 pm. 

WACO will travel to face off against Louisa-Muscatine on Tuesday with the girls game leading off the night at 6 pm.

The Holy Trinity Catholic boys’ team will host Fairfield on Tuesday at 7:30 pm, while the girls’ team will take on Central Lee on January 5th in a road matchup. 

Van Buren County will compete against Columbus on January 4th at home with the girls playing at 6 pm.

Mediapolis will travel to take on Van Buren County on January 5th with the girls’ game scheduled for 6 pm.

Danville will face off against West Burlington on January 5th with the girls leading off the night at 6 pm in a road matchup. 

High School Wrestling

The WACO boys’ team will compete in a meet at Washington on January 4th.

The Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union, Mt. Pleasant, and WACO girls’ teams will compete at a tournament after winter break on January 5th at Highland. 

The Mt. Pleasant boys’ teams will have to wait until after winter break with the Panthers competing on January 4th at Sigourney.

The Columbus/Winfield-Mt. Union boys’ team will wrestle on January 6th at Highland in a tournament. 

New London will wait until after winter break to compete in a quad at Cascade on January 4th. 

High School Bowling

Mt. Pleasant will take on Washington on January 4th. 

College Football

Iowa State could not catch up to Memphis’ fast start as the Cyclones lost the AutoZone Liberty Bowl 36-26 yesterday. Iowa State could only move the ball through the air as Rocco Becht tossed for 446 yards and three touchdowns. Jayden Higgins had one of those touchdowns and 214 receiving yards. The Cyclones finished the year with a 7-6 record with a 6-3 conference record. 

#20 Iowa will face off against #25 Tennessee in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl on January 1st at noon. 

College Basketball

The #4 Iowa women’s team will face off against Minnesota today at 1 pm at home. 

The Iowa State women’s team will begin conference play today at 2 pm against Oklahoma State on the road. 

The Iowa State men’s team will host New Hampshire tomorrow, December 31st, at noon. 

The Iowa men’s team limited Northern Illinois to just 26 second half points as the Hawkeyes won big 103-74. Ben Krikke led the way with 20 points and seven rebounds for the Hawkeyes as Payton Sandfort cashed in for 16 points. Iowa will take on Wisconsin on January 2nd at 6 pm on the road. 

This Day in Sports History

1907 – The Mills Committee declares baseball was invented in 1839 by future American Civil War general Abner Doubleday in Cooperstown, New York; widely disproven, now known as “the Doubleday myth.”

1981 – Wayne Gretzky scores 5 goals and an assist in Edmonton’s 7-5 win over Philadelphia; gives Gretzky 50 goals in 39 games, the fastest 50 in 50 in NHL history; also sets an NHL record with a 15-game assist streak. 

2020 – San Antonio assistant Becky Hammon becomes the first female to coach an NBA team after Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich is ejected in a 121-107 loss to the LA Lakers.