Metro Sports Report

No. 9 Eagles rally by Southwestern

The Kirkwood Eagles struggled for much of their game Saturday and trailed Southwestern 39-33 with 14 minutes left at Johnson Hall.

At that point, few Kirkwood fans would have bet the ninth-ranked Eagles would win by 17 points.

"I wouldn't either," said Coach Bryan Petersen.

They found a way, however.

Ajay Lawton popped in all 15 of his points in the second half and Ron Singleton set the tone on defense as Kirkwood rallied for a 70-53 victory in an ICCAC conference game.

Kirkwood used a 12-0 run to grab a 45-39 lead on a 3-pointer by Lawson and the Eagles kept motoring from there, belting the visitors from Creston by a 37-14 margin in the final 14 minutes.

No.13 Mustangs roll to 24th win

The 13th-ranked Mount Mercy Mustangs raced to a 23-point lead in the first half Saturday and dunked Grand View, 77-62, to finish the regular season with a 24-4 record.

Mount Mercy captured the Midwest Collegiate Conference title by three games with an 11-1 record and will host a semifinal game in the conference tournament Friday at 7 p.m.

James Boonstoppel popped in four 3-pointers and led the Mustangs with 22 points at the Hennessey Recreation Center. Dondre Osborne collected 15 points, six rebounds, five assists and two steals. Kyle Lamaah posted a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Mount Mercy cashed 33 of 48 free throws.

Daoust hits winner as Coe upsets BV

Coe rallied from a 15-point deficit and upset Buena Vista, 69-67, on a jump shot by Matt Daoust with 3.3 seconds left Saturday in an Iowa Conference basketball game at Eby Fieldhouse.

The Kohawks (16-9, 10-4) received a first-round bye in the Iowa Conference tournament this week and will host Dubuque or Luther in the semifinals Thursday at 7 p.m

Buena Vista won the regular-season title with an 11-3 record, topping Coe and Dubuque by one game in the final standings, but the Kohawks earned a ton of momentum with Saturday's clutch victory.

Buena Vista raced to a 40-25 lead late in the first half, but the Kohawks scored the last six points of the stanza to pull within 40-31 at intermission and give themselves a chance.

Hot Saints knock off 2014 state champs

Mitchell Burger plays with a scowl on his face for the Xavier Saints, a 5-foot-10 dynamo with a refuse-to-lose mentality who doesn't let bigger guys get in his way.

It's become contagious.

The streaking Saints collected another big victory Thursday night when they knocked off seventh-ranked Dubuque Wahlert, 78-74, ending the regular season with a satisfying verdict over the 2014 Class 3A state champions.

Burger poured in 25 points, Adam McDermott netted 24 and Michael Mims chipped in with 15 as Xavier won its fifth straight game heading into the Class 3A district tournament next week.

The Saints were shuffling along with an 8-8 record two weeks ago, but now they're 13-8 and riding high. They upset the Linn-Mar Lions last week when the Lions were ranked No. 4 in Class 4A and now they've got a win over a Class 3A giant.