It was a Saturday matinee style doubleheader for the Lone Tree and Hillcrest Academy girls and boys basketball teams in the Lion den, with the Lady Lions and Raven boys walking away victorious once action was complete.

First up was the girls game, and it was Hillcrest that jumped out to an early 22-14 lead after eight minutes. However, Lone Tree would go on a 10-0 run before the Ravens could hit another basket in the second to cut into the Hillcrest lead going into half 31-28. From there, it was all Lady Lions. Lone Tree would use a 24-2 run that spanned all of the third frame to pull ahead for good, and would end up taking the win by a final of 67-36.

Unofficially, Lone Tree ended plus-17 in rebounds, while committing 11 fewer turnovers than the Ravens. Finley Jacque piled up 24 points to lead Lone Tree, including four three-point shots. Hillcrest had only four players score total in the game, and were led by 19 from Niva Helmuth. Claire Withrow also had 13 for the Ravens, all coming in the first quarter.

After the game, Lone Tree Head Coach Ryan Shelman talked with KCII Sports about his team’s first victory of 2025. “It’s always tough that first game [back from break]. Finding legs, finding our rhythm. We did much better in the second half, but just super proud of our girls’ resiliency and kind of battling back from some hardships there in the first half,” Shelman said.

In the boys game, it was the Ravens that led from start to finish, capturing a 69-47 victory. Hillcrest would put up 19 points in the first frame followed by 18 in the second to take a 13-point advantage into halftime. Lone Tree would attempt a run in the third of 6-0, but the Ravens put that run to bed with buckets by Seth Ours, Mason Bender and Kale Bailey to make it 49-34 going into the fourth. Lone Tree could only muster to net three points on the Ravens in the final eight minutes, sealing their fate.

Unofficially, Hillcrest was plus-eight on rebounds and won the turnover battle by five. Nine total Ravens would score in the contest, led by the Bailey brothers of Bryce and Kale with 13 each. The Lions were led by Gray Spilman’s career night of 14 points.

Hillcrest senior Bryce Bailey spoke with KCII Sports following his team’s win over Lone Tree to discuss his bond with younger brother, Kale. “It’s so much fun to play with him because we’ve grown up practicing with each other, playing against each other in our backyard and stuff. Now it’s just great to see each other on the floor together and it just feels like we have a connection together and we know when each other are open,” Bailey said. “It’s pretty easy to play together.”

Victorious Hillcrest Head Coach Dwight Gingerich also talked with KCII Sports live on the Area Game of the Week postgame show following the win. “Played really well in stretches tonight. There were times when we didn’t get back. Some breakdowns clearly. It feels like it’s going to be an important time for us to get back and actually practice now,” Gingerich said.

The Lone Tree girls raise their record to 7-2 overall and 5-2 in the SEISC North ahead of a rematch with Highland Tuesday. The Hillcrest boys improve to 9-1 overall and 7-1 in the Superconference North ahead of a game at home Friday against the aforementioned Huskies of Highland. The Hillcrest girls drop to 6-3, while the Lion boys drop to 2-6. The Area Game of the Week has another Southeast Iowa Superconference rivalry in store Tuesday back at the Tree House for a pivotal doubleheader between Highland and Lone Tree.