The Minneapolis boys put up 29 points in the first quarter on Tuesday, as the No. 2 seed Lions blew by the No. 7 seed Russell for a 74-50 sub-state win.

After losing in the first round in devastating fashion the last three years, Minneapolis made sure that Tuesday night’s game at MHS would not be another letdown.

Nolan White and Trent Moeckel came out red hot from beyond the arc, as the two combined for four 3-pointers in the period. Meanwhile, the Minneapolis defense was suffocating on Russell in the first quarter, as the Broncos could not get the ball inside the paint and ended up turning it over numerous times.

When the dust all settled in the opening quarter, Minneapolis led 29-8.

Russell began to crack down on Minneapolis a bit defensively, however, Spencer Davidson would pace the Lions in the second stanza with some big buckets, helping Minneapolis lead 39-17 at halftime.

Mister Smith then picked up the scoring load in the third quarter. The Minneapolis frosh scored several big offensive put backs in the period that helped squash whatever hopes Russell had of making a comeback.

After an 18 point quarter in the third, the Lions led Russell 57-31, before cruising in the fourth quarter for the easy win.

Russell (6-15) ends its season with nine-straight losses. While Russell struggled all game, they did have eight different players score. They were led by Jace Peerman’s 13 points.

Minneapolis (14-5) wins its first sub-state game since 2015. Davidson finished with 18 points Monday and the H&R “Block of the Game,” while White tallied in 14 points. Smith just missed out on double-figures with nine points and nine different Lions scored on Tuesday.

The Nex-Tech Wireless “Player of the Game” is Moeckel–who also scored 14 points and had numerous assists in the win.

Minneapolis will make the long road trip up to Norton on Friday for the sub-state semi-finals. They’ll take on the No. 3 seed and host team, Norton (14-6)–who beat Colby 70-59 on Tuesday. Live coverage will be on 92.7 The New Zoo at 5:15 p.m.

Image Credit: Kandy Constable