IKM-Manning season ends with a heartbreaker

Missed free throws prove costly as Wolves’ lead slips away down the stretch in regional final loss to West Sioux

 MAPLETON (Feb. 21) -- After building an eight-point lead in the second quarter Wednesday night, the IKM-Manning girls basketball team began the long process of holding off one West Sioux challenge after another.
 When the Falcons made it a one-possession game, the Wolves would extend the margin back to five or seven; and so the trend continued for a good portion of the second half.
 Five days removed from an exhilarating double-overtime win vs. Logan-Magnolia, IKM-M appeared to have enough grit and guile left in the tank to pull off another thriller, but its opponent just kept on coming.
 With 3:09 remaining, West Sioux sophomore Payton Schwiesow knocked down a 3-pointer from the right corner - just her 12th of the season - and the 11th-ranked Falcons never trailed again, hitting 6-of-10 free throws and getting crucial stops the rest of the way to beat the No. 14 Wolves 58-54 in a Class 2A, Region 8 final held in Mapleton.
 West Sioux (21-3) will make its second state tournament appearance (both since 2012) on Tuesday when it faces top-seeded Treynor (22-1) in a 2A quarterfinal at Wells Fargo Arena. The Cardinals beat the Falcons 74-52 in a regional final last year en route to a state runner-up finish.
 IKM-Manning, seeking its first state berth since 2015, finished 18-5 overall.
 “We didn’t do a good job defensively in the second half,” said IKM-M coach Gene Rasmussen. “We were trying to take away their dribble drive and they were able to get into that and drive baseline. That hurt us a little bit... They just started doing the things that they like to do and we couldn’t take them out of it.”
 In addition to forcing fewer turnovers and getting less stops in the second half - when West Sioux scored 34 points - the Wolves hurt their own cause by shooting 9-of-22 from the free throw line - this after starting 4-for-4 in the first quarter. IKM-Manning missed five of its seven attempts in the final stanza.
 The Falcons, meanwhile, finished 18-of-27.

IKM-Manning Leading Scorers: Payton Sporrer 17, Shauna Reitan 10, Peyton Gross 10, Kia Rasmussen 8.

West Sioux Leading Scorers: Abbie Ericson 18, Josie McKee 12, Emma Mace 12, Payton Schwiesow 10.

 
 

 

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