Jamestown, ND (NewsDakota.com) – After the higher seeds swept the quarterfinals we are left with 3 teams in the top 10 in the media polls and a team that in all rights is a top 15 team.

Lets take a look at the remaining teams and how they match up.

Semifinal 1 – D1#1 (#5) Sargent County Bulldogs vs D2#2 LaMoure-LM Loboes – 6:00 PM

The Bulldogs had a bit of a scare against the Imperials early in the first quarter as they trailed 11-10 and only led the Imperials by a 19-15 score going into the half. The 3rd quarter is where they won the game as they would lead 35-20 and they would maintain that lead for the rest of the game winning 47-33. This is something the Bulldogs are good at though. They win games even if they aren’t playing the best and that’s what makes them scary. However having to play against a team like the Loboes they have to be at the top of their game.

The Loboes are once again back to a semifinal appearance. They got here after a convincing victory against the Tornadoes in which they were at the top of their game. Defeating them handedly over 4 quarters of play. They did struggle in shooting early but they quickly solved that issue and won 48-30. They have the momentum they need to take another crack at the Region title. This is a position the Loboes are used to and over the last 5 years whenever they made a semifinal appearance they’ve gone on to play in the Region Championship. Will history keep repeating itself?

Last Matchup: Dec 14th Sargent County 68 – 48 LaMoure-LM

Last District Title: Sargent County (2024), LaMoure-LM (2022 D5)

Last Region Title: Sargent County (None since 04), LaMoure-LM (2020 R3)

Best State Finish: Sargent Count (as Milnor 3rd 1990, 93),  LaMoure-LM (3rd 2015)

Semifinal 2 – #6 EKM Rebels vs #7 Maple River Raiders – 20 Mins after Semifinal 1

The Rebels continued their march through the quarterfinals as they controlled every aspect of play against the Warbirds of Wyndmere-Lidgerwood. This sets up a top ten bout with the one of the few teams to beat them this year, Maple River. EKM scores on average 58.4 points per game. When they played the Raiders last they only scored 52. It is hard to beat the same team twice and it’s even harder to beat the Rebels twice in one season. They are the reigning Region 3 champions even though this is a new region in a sense they are still defending a title.

The Raiders struggled in both the District 1 semis, championship, and was a little slow in the quarterfinals. This is completely out of character and I doubt they’ll be struggling long. They want that District 1 championship rematch against Sargent County and they know the opponent this time. They’ve played the Rebels and beat them before. Limit the turnovers and they’re looking at a Region 1 Championship game. They haven’t been to State since 1991 and that was as Maple Valley.

Last Matchup: Jan 8th Maple River 56 – 52 EKM

Last District Title: EKM (2024), Maple River (None since 2004)

Last Region Title: EKM (2023), Maple River (None since 2004)

Best State Finish: EKM (5th 2023), Maple River (3rd as Maple Valley 1991)

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Who ever wins goes to the Championship but losing will not end anyone’s season as the third place game Thursday will decide who goes onto Mayville and who’s season is done. Who ever wins today is at least guaranteed a trip to the State Qualifying games in Mayville.

You can catch all of todays action on KDDR the Tornado and 98.3 Thunder Country.