Spartans find answers to end Nodaway Valley’s season

ANITA — Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton executed well enough in stretches to create a lead and keep it, ending Nodaway Valley’s boys’ basketball season with a 69-56 win in a Class 1A District 16 quarterfinal played Monday at CAM High School.

Exira-EHK (14-8) advanced to play IKM-Manning (7-15), which beat CAM 46-44 in overtime in the nightcap of the doubleheader, Thursday in Avoca. The Cougars bowed out at 14-8. The Wolverines finish up 8-14.

“Credit them for knocking down free throws down the stretch. They had that lead with about four minutes left and we hardly had any fouls, so I knew we had to get the foul game figured out,” Nodaway Valley head coach Jeremy Blake said. “We took our chances with their guys who don’t shoot free throws so well and those guys knocked them in, so credit those guys.”

Nodaway Valley led 13-5 early on before Exira-EHK closed the quarter with seven straight to get the game to within one at the end of the first quarter.

Both teams traded big shots early in the second quarter. Avery Phillippi drained two 3-pointers in that frame and Dawson Nelson hit another for the Wolverines, but the Spartans hit five of their own treys in a decisive run in the second that gave them a 35-27 lead going into the locker room.

Down 14 points at one juncture in the third, the Wolverines were able to turn defensive stops into buckets trimmed the game to 56-51 with 4:45 remaining and later 59-54 on a 3-pointer by Nelson, however the Spartans went 10-for-10 in the closing stages of the game from the free throw line to ice the win.

“Our pedigree all year has been that we turn things up at the start of the third quarter. The other part of it is that we play hard no matter what’s going on,” Blake said. “I’ve always had faith in our guys no matter what’s going on in the game. I still did tonight the whole time. Avery carried us there in that first half, he hit some big time 3s for us. Dawson, we’ve been wanting him to show how well he can hit it. A lot of our 3s were timely ones, but they were countering with theirs at the other end. Those can be heartbreaking, but our kids kept playing hard.”

Junior guard Boston DeVault scored 18 to lead the Wolverines. Phillippi scored 14 and Nelson 12.

Exira-EHK, paced by 19 from Cash Emgarten, also had 16 from Aiden Flathers, 13 from Trey Petersen and 12 from Jackson Radcliff.

Nodaway Valley says goodbye to seven seniors, including Nathan Russell, Matthew Weber, Anthony Shaw, Adam Ayase, Brady Goetz, Gavin Shoemaker and Trey Flettre.

Each in his own way, the seniors helped the Wolverines back from a 1-8 start to the season so they could win seven of nine games at one point late in the campaign, Blake said.

“We’ve had a couple seniors out sick and that’s why they weren’t here today, but all of them have contributed in some way, whether it’s on the varsity side or the JV side,” Blake said. “Coming in as a first-year coach you’re never sure what you’re going to get and for me it was huge to have those guys. There’s nothing but love and respect for those guys.”