The Hillcrest Academy Raven boys basketball team travels to Solon High School tonight to battle defending Class 1A state champion North Linn for a district championship in a game you can hear on KCII.

Hillcrest is 21-3 on the season after a district semifinal victory last Thursday against Keota 61-50. Seniors Bryce Bailey and Mason Bender led the charge for the Ravens with 14 each. This season, Hillcrest scores 65 per game and gives up 43, shooting a third-best in Class 1A 51% from the field, 34% from three and 61% at the line, with 27 rebounds, 18 assists, 11 steals, two blocks and 10 turnovers per game. Seth Ours is the Raven leader with 14 points per game, while Bender pulls down more than seven boards a contest.

North Linn is 21-2 and co-champions of the Tri-Rivers West. The Lynx were ranked 8th in the final Iowa High School Athletic Association poll of the season for Class 1A. The defending champs took down Springville on their home floor last Thursday in their district semifinal 67-57. Standout Mason Bechen led the scoring effort for the Lynx with 25 points. This year, North Linn scores a third-most in 1A 76 points per game and gives up 44, shooting 49% from the floor, 33% from three and 67% from the charity stripe, with 35 boards, 19 dimes, 13 steals, one block and seven turnovers per game. Bechen is the individual leader, scoring the second-most points per game this season in the state of Iowa with 31 a night, while Drew Ries piles up over seven rebounds per game.

Hillcrest Head Coach Dwight Gingerich joined the KCII Radio Coaches Corner to talk about his team’s playoff path and how those games have prepared his team for tonight’s district championship game in Solon. “Central City was kind of a misleading deal with them being a seven seed. They actually were a very good team and helped prepare us [for tonight’s game]. Keota is a great team. They played really hard. It’s a great game going into the next game,” Gingerich said. “We’re fortunate to survive. We live to play again, and we’re looking forward to the opportunity!” 

In the Varsity Bound era, North Linn took the only contest in the series four years ago by a 63-30 final tally.

You can hear tonight’s Class 1A District 7 championship game between Hillcrest Academy and North Linn on FM 106.1, the KCII1 App and KCIIradio.com beginning with pregame coverage at 6:30, and tipoff between the Ravens and Lynx at 7 from Solon High School.