2011 Iowa Girls State Basketball Tournament

Class 2A First Round

OA-BCIG 54, IKM-Manning 50

In a game that featured big runs by each team, top-ranked OA-BCIG outlasted No. 11 IKM-Manning in a thrilling Class 2A tournament opener.

Northern Iowa recruit Jessie Pauley scored 24 points and Morgan VanDerSloot hit two crucial free throws to send the unbeaten Falcons to the semifinals with a 54-50 victory over an IKM-Manning team that refused to quit.

OA-BCIG ran off the first 14 points of the second quarter to erase an early deficit and seemed to be in control when it opened a 37-23 lead midway through the third quarter.

But IKM-Manning answered in a big way.

The Wolves scored 13 straight points to start a 19-2 run that gave them a 42-39 lead early in the fourth quarter.

Kenzie Cast, a 5-foot-3 sophomore, fueled the rally with two 3-pointers, then hit two more after OA-BCIG retook the lead on Pauley's 3 from the left corner. The first tied the score at 45 and Cast's last bucket from long distance drew the Hawks to 49-48 with 3:14 left.

But the Falcons made the plays they needed down the stretch to keep the lead.

Pauley drove into the lane for a jumper that made it 52-48 with 1:44 remaining. IKM-Manning's Kaylee Blake was fouled as she scored inside to make it a two-point game, but she missed the free throw and VanDerSloot was fouled on the rebound.

She had missed the front end of a 1-and-1 free throw opportunity moments earlier, but she converted both this time to nail down the victory.

VanDerSloot finished with 10 points and nine rebounds. Blake, a 6-foot sophomore, led IKM-Manning with 22 points, 12 rebounds and five assists. Cast finished with 12 on her 4-for-4 3-point shooting.

OA-BCIG advances to a noon game on Thursday with a 24-0 record. IKM-Manning finishes 19-5 after holding the Falcons to their lowest point total of the season.