Photo courtesy of Iowa High School Athletic Association social media
Winfield-Mt. Union boys basketball faces arguably its toughest test of the season tonight. The Wolves contest with top-ranked North Linn in the State Semifinals at Wells Fargo Arena and you can hear it live on KCII.
In its first State Tournament appearance in nearly 30 years, WMU eliminated Lynnville-Sully Monday afternoon 54-37. Up by six entering the fourth quarter, the Wolves opened the frame on a 17-0 run to put the Hawks away. Cam Buffington went for 21 points and nine boards, while Carter Loyd added 12. Abram Edwards led the way in the assist department with five. The 17-point win for Winfield-Mt. Union was the largest margin of victory among the four remaining teams in 1A. This season, the Wolves are scoring over 61 points per game and allowing only 35 to go with 31 rebounds, 18 assists, 10 steals, and four blocks. A win tonight would not only give WMU basketball its 22nd win, the most for the program in the last two decades, but it would send the Wolves back to the State Championship for the first time since 1996.
It’ll be a tall order against the 24-1 North Linn Lynx, who are making their seventh-consecutive tournament appearance. Winners of 10 in a row, the Lynx knocked off Woodbine in their quarterfinal matchup 75-59. Mason Bechen finished with 25 points, nine rebound, and five assists in the win, leading the Lynx in all three marks, while Ty Pflughaupt had 15 points. North Lynn holds the advantage over WMU in most team statistics outside of rebounds and blocks. Entering Wednesday night, North Linn is the top 1A team in scoring with nearly 79 points per night. They are also top-10 in assists, steals, field goal percentage, three point percentage, and free throw percentage. Bechen and Pflughaupt have been the individual leaders, combining for more than 40 points a game. While they have not played each other in recent history, these two teams did have a pair of similar opponents this season, both beating WACO and Highland.
Listen to Winfield-Mt. Union as they fight to earn a place in the 2024 State Championship Game. Pregame coverage begins tonight at 5 on all KCII signals and streams with opening tip between the Wolves and Lynx at 5:30 live from Des Moines.