The metro area fared well this past weekend out in Columbia at the Norm Stewart Classic while the Visitation Holiday Classic got off to a fast start as all but one higher seed advanced to the quarterfinals after Christmas.

Let’s get caught up with all of the past weekend’s action in today’s edition of the Monday Morning Wrap-Up!

The Norm Stewart Classic saw many of our local teams return home with victories as well as many great memories.

Friday afternoon at Mizzou Arena spotlighted some of the state’s best girls’ basketball teams, with three St. Louis squads earning victories. Lutheran South started things off with a big first half en route to a 53-45 win over Southern Boone. The Lancers took a 26-13 lead into the halftime locker room and held off the Eagles in the second half to improve to 5-2 on the young season. Ellie Buscher was named the Player of the Game as she poured in 25 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the way for Lutheran South. Three other players added eight points apiece to help the Lancers in the victory.

In the next game Friday afternoon, Vashon turned to their full-court defense in the fourth quarter to defeat defending Arkansas 6A champion North Little Rock 51-46. After the Wolverines took a 32-23 lead at the end of the first half, North Little Rock cut the deficit to 45-41 as the teams rolled to the fourth quarter. Vashon turned up their defensive pressure and limited NLR to only five points in the final eight minutes to secure the win and improve to 5-1 on the season. JaNyla Bush was named the Player of the Game with 13 points and six rebounds while adding five assists in the win.

Lutheran South Girls Basketball – Norm Stewart 2022

 

Lutheran St. Charles finished the sweep for the local girls’ teams as the Cougars led from start to finish to improve to 4-2 on the year with a 50-42 win over Columbia Hickman. Megan Aulbert earned Player of the Games honors as she scored 17 points and grabbed nine rebounds to aid the Cougars in the win.

The boys’ took center stage on Saturday at Mizzou Arena as Chaminade improved to 2-1 on the season with a 66-51 victory over Hickman. After Hickman took an 18-16 lead at the end of the first quarter, the Red Devils outscored the Kewpies 25-14 in the second stanza to grab a 43-30 lead at the break. Chaminade never looked back in the second half as they limited Hickman to four points in the final eight minutes to earn the win. Nilavan Daniels earned Player of the Game honors with an outstanding performance as he led the Red Devils with 25 points while Ben Winker chipped in with 14 markers and 12 rebounds in the win.

East St. Louis raced out to an early lead and never looked back as the Flyers defeated Jefferson City 74-61. The Flyers’ offense exploded in the first quarter as they took a 21-13 advantage and remained in the lead after two-quarters of play. The Jays cut into the deficit in the third period, but East St. Louis outscored Jeff City 21-10 in the final stanza to earn the win. Macaleab Rich garnered the Player of the Game honor by scoring 21 points and grabbing six boards to help the Flyers improve to 8-1 on the year.

The Viz Tournament started Saturday with all of the top seeds except for one moving on to the quarterfinals on Dec. 26. We will have a complete wrap-up of the first round games tomorrow.

 

 

Jim Powers

Jim Powers

Jim Powers has been covering prep sports in the St. Louis area for 15+ years and a part of the Missouri State High School Activities Association Championship Broadcasts for the past 11 years. Powers is also a part of the Fox 2 Verlo Mattress Prep Zone Friday nights at 10:10 during the football and basketball seasons. If you have a prep sports story, please contact Jim at japowers2421@yahoo.com. Follow Jim at @hssportscaravan