Girls basketball teams from Carl Junction and Nevada will compete in the quarterfinal round of their respective state tournaments on Saturday. A trip to the Final Four will be up for grabs.
Below is a look at each quarterfinal of local interest.
CLASS 5 QUARTERFINAL
Carl Junction (28-1) meets Lincoln College Prep (17-9) at 1:45 p.m. on Saturday in a Class 5 quarterfinal contest at State Fair Community College in Sedalia.
The winner advances to the semifinals on March 17 in Springfield.
Currently on a 23-game winning streak, Carl Junction is ranked first in Class 5 by the MBCA, while Lincoln College Prep is unranked.
Carl Junction’s average margin of victory at the District 7 tourney was 35 points. The top-seeded Bulldogs beat Ruskin 71-22, Grandview 68-37 and Webb City 67-42.
The Bulldogs average 64 points per game and allow 44, while the Blue Tigers score 58 a game and give up 47 a night.
Carl Junction is 14-1 on a neutral court this season, while Lincoln Prep is 8-6. The Bulldogs and Blue Tigers have no common opponents this season.
Standout senior guard Destiny Buerge leads Carl Junction with 25 points per game, while junior forward Kylie Scott averages 14 points per game and senior guard Klohe Burk scores just over eight points per night. Scott averages nine rebounds a game, senior guard Hali Shorter hands out 4.4 assists per night and Buerge leads the team in steals with just over four per contest. Buerge was just named the 4-States Basketball Coaches Association’s Girls Player of the Year.
After capturing an eighth straight district championship, Carl Junction will look to advance to the Final Four for the fourth time under Brad Shorter.
The Bulldogs finished fourth in 2017 and second in ’18. Of course, the undefeated Bulldogs advanced to the semifinals in 2020 before the tourney was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
In last year’s quarterfinals, Carl Junction suffered a 55-46 loss to eventual state champion West Plains.
Lincoln College Prep won the District 8 tourney with wins over Smithville (43-34) and Platte County (42-37).
The Carl Junction-Lincoln College Prep winner will meet either second-ranked John Burroughs (26-3) or eighth-ranked Cape Girardeau Notre Dame (22-5) in the semifinals.
CLASS 4 QUARTERFINAL
In a Class 4 quarterfinal, Nevada (22-6) takes on Benton (25-3) at noon on Saturday at State Fair CC in Sedalia.
Last year’s state runner-up, Benton is ranked second by the MBCA and Nevada is unranked.
By beating St. Michael the Archangel 49-37 in the sectional round, Nevada advanced to the quarterfinals for the first time in 25 years.
Blake Howarth’s Tigers defeated Clinton 46-45 in the championship game of the District 13 tournament.
Nevada is led by junior guard Clara Swearingen, senior guard Maddy Majors and senior forward Abbey Heathman. Swearingen was recently named the player of the year in the Big 8 West.
Nevada is averaging 52 points per game and allowing 43. Benton scores 56 a game and gives up 36.
In the sectional round, Benton beat St. Pius X 64-50 for its 13th straight win.
Benton captured the District 16 title with a 50-39 win over Chillicothe.
Players to watch for Benton include Andrea Simmons, Peyton Anderson and Avery Morlock.
The Nevada-Benton winner will advance to the Class 4 semifinals and meet either Central-Park Hills (26-3) or Lift for Life (14-15) on March 16 at Great Southern Bank Arena in Springfield.
HOW TO WATCH: MSHSAA TV
