UPDATES:
In the Class 3 boys basketball quarterfinal, Strafford beats Blair Oaks 61-53.
In the Class 2 girls basketball quarterfinal, Tipton falls to Cairo, 61-51. Lady Cards conclude season with 28-2 record.
In the Class 1 girls basketball quarterfinal, Tuscumbia slipped past Mercer 61-60.
Game Previews:
The Blair Oaks Falcons, Tipton Lady Cardinals and Tuscumbia Lady Lions will bid for basketball Final Four spots in their respective classes in quarterfinal games today.
Blair Oaks (21-8) will play fourth-ranked Strafford (27-3) in a Class 3 quarterfinal at 6 p.m. today at Drury University.
It is the second meeting of the season between the two teams. Strafford defeated Blair Oaks 60-51 in the Central Bank Shootout on Feb. 7 at Rackers Fieldhouse, using a 16-2 edge in the third quarter to get the victory.
Cody Alexander had 19 points for the Falcons in the game, while C.J. Closser added 10. Blair Oaks has won eight straight since the loss.
Blair Oaks advanced to the quarterfinals with an 81-71 sectional win Thursday night against Licking. Strafford, which finished third in Class 3 last season, defeated Mount Vernon 67-56 in its sectional game Thursday night.
St. James (27-2) and Buffalo (23-6) will play in the girls game at 7:45 p.m.
Listen to Blair Oaks vs. Strafford live on KWOS AM 950/FM 100.9 or online at www.kwos.com.
III
It would be the first trip to the Final Four for Tipton (28-1), who will take on Northeast: Cairo (24-5) at 1:45 p.m. today at Moberly Area Community College in a Class 2 quarterfinal.
Tipton, which averages 64.5 points per game is led by the 1-2 scoring punch of Ashton Pace and Destiny Dowell.
Pace is averaging 18.1 points per game, while Dowell is next at 16.3. Dowell also leads the team with four assists per game.
Paige Baker is nearly averaging a double-double at 9.6 points and 12 rebounds per contest for the Lady Cardinals.
Tipton's lone loss came in the regular- season finale, a 60-41 decision to North Callaway.
Northeast: Cairo advanced with a 58-26 victory against Scotland County in its sectional. It was just the second loss of the season for Scotland County.
Northeast: Cairo, the No. 1 seed, defeated Van-Far (62-15), Sturgeon (48-38) and Paris (40-23) to win the District 5 Tournament title. It has lost twice to Glasgow and once to Harrisburg, Hallsville and Sturgeon.
Tipton was ranked No. 5 in the final regular season poll, while Northeast: Cairo was unranked.
The boys game between Canton (25-4) and Salisbury (28-0) will start at noon.
Listen to Tipton vs. Northeast Cairo in C2 quarterfinal GBB at 1:45 p.m. today on KMMO at http://player.liquidcompass.net/KMMOFM or KRLL at http://pintosonline.com/ or KRES at http://v5.player.abacast.com/v5.1/player/index.php?uid=6107
III
It will be a battle of state-ranked teams as Tuscumbia takes on Mercer in a Class 1 quarterfinal tonight at Salisbury High School.
Tuscumbia (25-3) was ranked No. 4 in the final regular season poll, while Mercer (29-0) came in at No. 2.
Tuscumbia brings a high-powered offense into the 7:45 p.m. contest, averaging 75 points per game.
The Lady Lions have three players averaging in double figures, led by Kendra Vaughan at 19.7 points per game. TaKayla Gunter is next at 19.4, while Tempary Gunter is at 14.8.
Tuscumbia advanced with a 47-30 win against Glasgow. In district play, Tuscumbia defeated Missouri School for the Deaf (96-16), Chamois (67-45) and Jamestown (79-42).
Mercer defeated Community 60-45 in its sectional. The Lady Cardinals captured the District 12 title with wins against Newtown-Harris (61-21), Green City (53-21) and Linn County (56-39).
Mercer lost to North Andrew in the quarterfinals last season.
The quarterfinal boys game between Glasgow (24-5) and Meadville (29-0) will start at 6 p.m.
Listen to Tuscumbia Lady Lions vs. Mercer in Class 1 basketball quarterfinal action at 7:45 p.m. today on http://radio.securenetsystems.net/v5/KAANFM