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CITY (NewsDakota.com)–The first round of the Barnes County Boys Basketball Tournament is in the books after four games on Tuesday.

Maple Valley 67, Finley-Sharon/Hope-Page 40

The defending champion Raiders stretched out their lead in the second half after the Spartans made a stand in the first half.

Jordan Haseleu knocked down three from beyond in the third quarter, en route to a 20-point day. Ty Smith scored 22, and the the run sprung the lead to 23 by the start of the fourth after the Raiders led by 14 at the break.

Austen Archer led the Spartans with 12 in the loss.

Northern Cass 53, Litchville-Marion-Montpelier 37

Strong pressure defense by the Jaguars took the Rebels out of their element in the second half, turning a competitive game into a runaway for Northern Cass.

The Jaguars expanded a five-point halftime lead to 21 at 42-21 in the third quarter, fueled by LMM turnovers and balanced scoring. Brock Strommen scored seven of his 13 in the quarter, one of three Jaguars to lead the team. Taylor Kyllo and Colton Hill each had 13.

Dylan Thompson scored 15 of his 18 after halftime to lead the Rebels.

Valley City 67, Barnes County North 43

The size of Valley City was just too much for the Bison.

Posts Chase Carpenter and Josh Magnuson combined for 35 of the Hi-Liners 67 points, with Carpenter leading all scorers with 19, and Magnuson adding 16. Mason Denholm added 10.

Valley City built a 47-23 lead, but the Bison rallied, cutting the lead to 51-38 in the fourth on a three-point shot by Jacoby Kramlich. Cody Christ led the Bison with 11 points. Kramlich and Brad Clemens added nine each, and Trevor Anderson knocked in eight.

Griggs County Central 66, Enderlin 54 (OT)

A 14-point lead was not enough for the Cougars, and Enderlin’s Colton Huus drained a three from the right wing with 1.2 seconds left of regulation to tie the game at 51-51, sending the game to an extra session.

But in overtime, the Cougars reasserted the dominance. They did not allow a field goal from Enderlin until the final 32 seconds, and outscored the Eagles 15-3 in overtime to survive an upest scare and advance.

Griggs County Central put four in double figures, led by Billy Engel’s 17, including a huge three-point shot in overtime. Kris Wathne knocked in 16, Austin Stockland battled through injury with 15, and Brady Rahlf added 10.

Huus scored nine of his 15 after halftime, including the lone Eagle field goal of overtime. Thomas Lindgren also hit for 15, with 13 in the first half, and Justin Kittelson added 10.

The tournament continues Thursday, with Finley-Sharon/Hope-Page meeting Litchville-Marion-Montpelier in the first game, the first of two consolation semifinals, at 3:00 p.m. Barnes County North then takes on Enderlin. In the semis, Maple Valley faces District 2 foe Northern Cass, and Valley City will meet Griggs County Central. All games will be broadcast on Q101 KQDJ-FM.