Ty Reynolds - Shaw Local News Network correspondent

Lucy Oetting's buzzer-beating 3-pointer to end the first quarter provided the spark Newman needed to pull away from Erie-Prophetstown for a 52-21 Three Rivers East win Thursday in Sterling.

A big third-quarter run turned the tables for Dixon on Wednesday against Alleman, and the Dukes pulled away for a 59-48 nonconference win at Lancaster Gym.

Dixon used smothering defense and a couple of offensive surges to pull away from Genoa-Kingston for a 51-23 victory in their Big Northern Conference game Tuesday night at Lancaster Gym.

Dixon erased a five-point deficit in the final minute of regulation, but Byron pulled out a 46-43 victory in overtime to knock Dixon from the ranks of undefeated in the Big Northern Conference on Saturday afternoon.

Newman used a strong start to gain momentum for a comfortable win over Rock Falls on Tuesday.

United Township kept trying to pull away, but Sterling just wouldn’t go away. It took a couple of late layups off steals at half court for the Panthers to finally finish off a 51-38 victory over the Golden Warriors on Friday at Musgrove Fieldhouse.

Junior Ahmyrie McGowan recorded a quadruple-double, and Dixon shot 61.5% from the field before emptying the bench late in the third quarter of a 64-19 victory over Oregon in a Big Northern Conference game Thursday.

Trailing by six points in the final half-minute of the third quarter, Newman went on a huge run to take the lead and then held on to defeat Mendota 67-66 on Tuesday in a battle of the only unbeaten teams in the Three Rivers East.

Morgan Hargrave hit a 3-pointer just before halftime to give Dixon the lead and momentum in a 48-31 win over St. Francis on Saturday.

Confidence and aggressiveness were the name of the game Friday night for Dixon, as it used a huge third-quarter run to break open a tie game and pull away for a 53-37 victory over Stillman Valley at Lancaster Gym.

Sterling used stifling defense and a 3-point barrage to cover up some deficiencies Tuesday night in a 62-24 win over Rochelle at Musgrove Fieldhouse.

The Duchesses bounced back with a 52-43 win over Stillman Valley to take third at the Dixon Christmas Classic on Monday night.

Newman nailed its first three 3-pointers to take an early lead, but Lincoln used a huge run to take control in a 61-27 victory in their Silver Bracket semifinal Saturday at the Dixon Christmas Classic.

Dixon started off hot from the perimeter and never looked back Friday to advance to the semifinals of the Dixon Christmas Classic, building a double-digit lead by the end of the first quarter in a 67-27 win over Aurora Central Catholic in their final pool-play game on Day 1.

A shootout between Dixon and Sycamore essentially came down to one quarter Saturday night, and it was the Duchesses’ big run in the second period that sunk the Spartans in a 55-47 victory at Lancaster Gym.