There will be a new champion in class 1A boys’ state basketball. Preston Davidson led a balanced Northwood-Kensett attack with 26 points as the Vikings stunned top ranked and defending champion North Mahaska 76-74. Davidson says they knew they had a chance and weren’t going to let North Mahaska’s 30-some game winning streak and prestige get to them.

The winning streak was actually 35 games but the Vikings advance just the same. North Mahaska scored 29 points in a furious comeback attempt in the fourth quarter but the Vikings stayed aggressive and did not try to milk the clock. The had their highest scoring quarter with 24 points. He says they’ve done that in past games where they lost their intensity, and this time they tried to keep the tempo up.

The loss was the first for the Warhawks who finish 25-1. North Mahaska coach Andy Pickering says the only thing for them was a state championship or it was going to look like a defeat. But he says they went 25-1 and won the conference and he says one game shouldn’t define their whole career.

Second rated Bellevue Marquette had a big size advantage over Alta and they used it to advance. Seven foot one inch center Jordan Egelseder poured in 31 points in a 62-48 win. Egelseder says they were double and triple teaming and he just kept looking for the cutter. Egelseder says the opponents were hanging on his jersey quite a bit, so he just turned around and shot over them.

Alta coach Bart Smith says his team fought hard despite being the size disadvantage. He says his team never backs down from a challenge and they didn’t do that in this game. The Cyclones finish the season 21-4.