Spartans move past Audubon, two wins from state

 ELK HORN (Feb. 19) -- If Exira-Elk Horn-Kimballton replicates its most recent third-quarter performance - or something close - for a full game, it will be tough for any team to keep the Spartans out of this year’s Boys State Basketball Tournament.
 Building off the momentum of a 9-0 first-half finish, Exira-EHK played eight near-perfect minutes against Audubon in Tuesday’s Class 1A, District 15 semifinal, outscoring the Wheelers 21-6 in the third en route to a 61-45 victory.
 The 7th-ranked Spartans (21-2) switched to an effective 2-3 zone defense out of the break, attacked the post consistently on offense and also knocked down three 3-pointers in the deciding period to turn a close game into a borderline rout.
 Audubon (16-7) heated up from long range in the fourth and cut a 24-point deficit to 14, but Cole Burmeister and Dakota Rold converted eight straight free throws late to prevent a serious threat.
 “It’s definitely a (great) team we beat,” that’s for sure,” said E-EHK coach Doug Newton, who was pleased to see his squad step up their game compared to last Thursday’s first round win vs. Boyer Valley.
 “With the balanced attack that we had tonight, you’ve got to feel pretty good... Everybody seemed to contribute and it kind of seemed like they just took turns stepping up."

 Rold, the Spartans’ 6’7” post, scored 14 of his team-high 19 points after halftime and also had 10 rebounds and four blocked shots. Burmeister didn’t have his best shooting night from the field but opened the pivotal third quarter with a trey and hit 6-of-6 free throws. He finished with 14 points, nine boards and four assists while handling the ball well against Wheeler pressure with just one turnover. Trever Schulz also hit double digits with 12 points - six in the first quarter when the Spartans were struggling to score. Trey Nelson tallied eight points and Josh Pettepier added six points, seven assists and eight rebounds.
 Now two wins removed from state, the Spartans faced the only team to beat them this year - 8th-ranked Ar-We-Va (22-1) - in a district final Thursday at Manning.