By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
The Dixie Heights boys basketball team that entered the final month of the regular season with a 5-17 record clinched a berth in the 9th Region tournament Wednesday with a 71-49 win over Lloyd in the semifinals of the 34th District playoffs.
This marks the 20th consecutive season that Dixie Heights has qualified for the regional tournament. The Colonels, who did not receive a single vote in the final Northern Kentucky boys basketball coaches poll, have now won five of their last seven games to raise their record to 10-19.
Dixie Heights junior guard Ian Snelling and senior forward Jacob Iames scored a combined total of 44 points in Wednesday’s victory on their home court. Iames finished with a game-high 24 points, going 10 of 11 at the free throw line, and Snelling netted 20 points.
Lloyd played the game without senior forward Treshawn Cody. He finished the regular season with a team-high 20.3 scoring average, but his name was not entered in the scorebook on Wednesday. In a district seeding game on Jan. 28, Cody scored 22 points to lead his team to a 64-59 win over the Colonels.
Dixie Heights will face St. Henry (23-4) in the district final at 7:45 p.m. Friday with both teams advancing to the 9th Region Tournament that begins next week at Northern Kentucky University’s BB&T Arena. The other six teams in the boys regional bracket will be Conner, Cooper, Covington Catholic, Beechwood, Highlands and Newport.
Newport upset Newport Central Catholic, 53-44, in the 36th District boys semifinals on Wednesday. In a regular season game on Feb. 15, NewCath edged Newport, 50-37. A few days later, NewCath was voted No. 8 in the local coaches poll and Newport did not make the top 10.
There was also an upset in the girls 37th District final on Wednesday when Campbell County defeated Brossart, 48-42, to claim the championship trophy for the fifth time in six years. In the final Northern Kentucky girls coaches poll, Brossart was No. 6 and Campbell County was No. 9. Both teams advance to next week’s 10th Region tournament.
The eight teams that will play in the 9th Region girls tournament are Ryle, Conner, Dixie Heights, Ludlow, Notre Dame, Holy Cross, Highlands and Newport Central Catholic. The 8th Region qualifiers include Simon Kenton and Walton-Verona.
Here is a schedule of the remaining district championship games that involve teams in Boone, Campbell and Kenton counties:
Boys district basketball schedules
32nd DISTRICT AT GRANT COUNTY
Friday
Championship: Grant County (21-9) vs. Simon Kenton (21-9), 7 p.m.
33rd DISTRICT AT CONNER
Friday
Championship: Conner (21-5) vs. Cooper (11-15), 7 p.m.
34th DISTRICT AT DIXIE HEIGHTS
Friday
Championship: St. Henry (23-4) vs. Dixie Heights (10-19), 7:45 p.m.
35th DISTRICT AT BEECHWOOD
Friday
Championship: Covington Catholic (25-5) vs. Beechwood (21-10), 7 p.m.
36th DISTRICT AT NEWPORT
Friday
Championship: Highlands (25-3) vs. Newport (15-13), 7 p.m.
37th DISTRICT AT CAMPBELL COUNTY MIDDLE SCHOOL
Thursday
Championship: Brossart (24-5) vs. Campbell County (16-14), 7 p.m.
Girls district basketball tournaments
32nd DISTRICT AT GRANT COUNTY
Thursday
Championship: Simon Kenton (27-3) vs. Walton-Verona (22-9), 7 p.m.
33rd DISTRICT AT CONNER
Thursday
Championship: Conner (20-10) vs. Ryle (18-11), 7 p.m.
34th DISTRICT AT DIXIE HEIGHTS
Friday
Championship: Dixie Heights (19-12) vs. Ludlow (25-6), 6 p.m.
35th DISTRICT AT HOLY CROSS
Thursday
Championship: Notre Dame (22-6) vs. Holy Cross (17-11), 7 p.m.
36th DISTRICT AT NEWPORT
Thursday
Championship: Newport Central Catholic (20-11) vs. Highlands (20-10), 7 p.m.