DES MOINES - The Linn-Mar Lions made Iowa City West a little nervous for three quarters Friday afternoon in the semifinals of the Class 4A state basketball tournament.

Then Dondre Alexander stole the show and Linn-Mar's bid for consecutive state titles fell by the wayside.

Alexander collected 14 of his game-high 27 points in the fourth period and No. 2 Iowa City West denied the fifth-ranked Lions, 71-51, at the Wells Fargo Arena.

The Lions trailed by only two points, 40-38, entering the final stanza and Linn-Mar fans had a question for the undefeated Trojans: "Feeling Any Pressure?" they chanted in unison.

Apparently not.

Iowa City West drubbed the Lions in the fourth quarter, 31-13, to win comfortably at the end.

"We made them think a little bit and hung around," Linn-Mar Coach Chris Robertson remarked. "It's a two-point game going into the fourth quarter and we liked our chances.

"But that's a great team and they showed it in the fourth quarter for sure. They guard well, they defend well and they make things tough. You have to give them credit."

Linn-Mar (20-5) will face top-ranked Ankeny (24-1) in the consolation game for third place Saturday at 1:45 p.m. Iowa City West will battle Sioux City East (21-3) in the finals at 8:05 p.m.

Remarkably, Iowa City West made 80 percent of its shots in the second half Friday by sinking 20 of 25 from the floor. Alexander, a powerfully built 6-foot-3 junior, led the way by hitting 9 of 10 shots after the intermission with an array of 3-pointers and strong moves to the bucket.

Alexander poured in 24 of his 27 points in the second half. "Dondre had one of his little patented Dondre runs," Iowa City West Coach Steve Bergman remarked.

Alexander also excelled on defense against Linn-Mar All-American Marcus Paige, holding Paige to 1 for 9 on 3-pointers and blocking several of his shots. Paige finished with 24 points, but they didn't come easily.

"He played a great game. He's really good," Paige said. "He's physical and athletic. He uses his tools well. He had a great game and we had a tough time containing him."

Alexander enjoyed his defensive assignment against Paige, who will play for the North Carolina Tar Heels next season.

"I mean, obviously he's a great player. He's obviously the best player in Iowa, so I felt pretty good sticking with him all game and playing him tough," Alexander said.

Alexander is a defensive stopper for the Trojans.

"He's the best. There isn't anybody better than him," Bergman said. "I mean, he's guarding the Harringtons (James Harrington of Cedar Falls) and the Paiges. Those guys don't like him. He's tough. He's a good athlete, and he takes that as a challenge."

Alexander was tough enough on defense, and he was double-tough on offense in the second half after shooting 1 for 5 in the first half.

"He's athletic and strong, and when he makes shots he becomes really good," Robertson said. "The second half he just took over the game. He didn't miss many shots the second half. He did a great job.

"He's a Division I athlete. I don't know if he's going to play football or basketball, but he's really good. He's strong, he's quick, he's got length. He has a nice arm-bar (on defense).

"He did a good job. It's hard to get around him, there's no doubt about that."

Linn-Mar controlled the tempo in the first half with a zone defense that took Iowa City West somewhat by surprise. "It screwed us up a little bit," Bergman said.

The Lions trailed by only one point at halftime, 22-21, so the game plan was working against the favored Trojans. Alexander got hot in the third quarter and scored 10 points, but Paige answered with nine markers and it was 40-38 entering the fourth quarter.

Linn-Mar defeated Iowa City West in the semifinals of the state tournament last year en route to the title and Bergman didn't like having a slim two-point lead with eight minutes to play.

"We were concerned, because of him," said Bergman, nodding toward Paige in the post-game interview room. "I said to somebody, 'We cannot let this be a two or three-point game going down the stretch.'"

Paige and the Lions rallied for victories over Kennedy in the substate finals and over Dubuque Senior in the opening round of the state tournament, and Bergman was afraid the same fate could be in store for his club.

Alexander put all of Bergman's fears to rest with a sensational performance in the last period.

"We had them right where we wanted them, a two-point game going into the last period," Paige said. "They came out and hit a couple of shots, and we had a couple of  defensive lapses early in the fourth quarter and that really got them going. And once they got on a run, it was real tough to catch them."

As it turned out, it was impossible.

"Like Coach said, they saw blood and they went after it. They're tough," said Linn-Mar center Derik Gogg, who finished with 10 points. "They made good shots and we kind of collapsed at the end."

The Cinderella Lions ran out of miracles. "The slipper fell off," Robertson said.

Wyatt Lohaus played a strong second half for Iowa City West and hurt the Lions with 13 points. Jake Gylten collected 11 points and nine rebounds for the Trojans and Myzeah Batie-Gaddy contributed 10 points.

Iowa City West shot 61.7 percent for the game on the strength of its 20 for 25 marksmanship in the second half. Linn-Mar shot 42.9 percent for the contest.

The Lions had trouble dialing long distance and finished 2 for 17 on 3-pointers, with Paige going 1 for 9. By contrast, the Trojans were 7 of 15 on 3-pointers with Alexander 3 for 4.

Iowa City West pounded Linn-Mar on the backboards, 30-19.

Linn-Mar's consolation prize in the state tournament this year is a date with No. 1 Ankeny in a battle for third place. Ankeny lost to Sioux City East in the first semifinal game Friday, 60-56, in double overtime.

"We're obviously disappointed," Paige said. "We were so close to getting our ultimate goal and didn't make it. But we had a lot of balls bounce our way in the last couple of weeks."

Nobody likes consolation games, but Paige said the Lions will give it their best shot.

"I want to end my career on a high note and end our season on a high note and try to get a win," he said. "It will be the last time this group ever plays together.

"We had a good time, we've been through a lot, a lot of tough games and a lot of great experiences."

LINN-MAR (51): Lassen 1 0-0 2, Paige 10 3-4 24, Roth 3 1-2 7, Henry 1 1-2 3, Gogg 5 0-0 10, Martins 0 0-0 0, Meier 1 2-2 5, Schlotterback 0 0-0 0. Totals 21 7-10 51.

IOWA CITY WEST (71): Alexander 10 4-4 27, Morgan 2 0-0 5, Lohaus 5 2-2 13, Gylten 5 0-2 11, Batie-Gaddy 5 0-0 10, Smith 0 0-0 0, Swank 2 0-0 5. Totals 29-47 6-8 71.

Halftime - Iowa City West 22, Linn-Mar 21. 3-point goals - Linn-Mar 2 (Paige 1, Meier 1), Iowa City West 7 (Alexander 3, Morgan 1, Lohaus 1, Gylten 1, Swank 1). Fouled out - Morgan.

Full boxscore

SIOUX CITY EAST 60, ANKENY 56 (2OT) -- The Black Raiders held Ankeny to two points in the fourth quarter to forge a tie and finally took control from the free throw line in the second overtime to claim a spot in saturday night's Class 4A championship.

Adam Woodbury scored 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for East (21-3) before fouling out in the second overtime. Alex Imming added 15 points and JC Fuller scored 14.

Bryan Sumner came off the bench to score 18 points for Ankeny (24-1). Cory Myers had 13 points and Connor Schabel added 11 points and nine rebounds.

Ankeny led 43-38 after three quarters, but did not score over the final 6:49 of regulation. Fuller's layup with 2:46 left tied the game at 45-45 and neither team scored the remainder of regulation.

Woodbury's basket with seven seconds left in the first overtime forged a 51-51 tie and forced a second overtime.

East made only 7 of 13 free throws in the second overtime, but it was enough to hold on for the win.

Boxscore