(Hanover won 60-41 over St. Paul - box score) 

The quest to defend the Class 1A-Division I started off with a bang for the Hanover Wildcats as they opened up the State tournament with a 60-47 win in the first round of St. Paul. 

The Wildcats who are making their 14th trip to the State tournament and are in search of their sixth State title jumped on St. Paul early leading 17-11 after the first quarter and carried a 29-19 lead into halftime. Hanover continued to pour in the buckets in the second half adding to their lead posting a 20-12 third quarter and a strong defensive showing with a 33-21 second half to secure the win. 

Trey Loshe led Hanover in the win with 16 points, while Will Bruna and Devin Jueneman each chipped in 11 points while the Wildcat defense held St. Paul to 29.8% shooting from the floor and shot 43% from the floor themselves. 

The win pushes Hanover 21-4 on the season and the Wildcats have won 12-straight with the latest win pushing them into the 1A-DI State tournament Semifinals where they will take on fellow Twin Valley League team in Centralia who they split with in two games this season. The Semifinal matchup is set for Friday at 4:45pm and will be broadcasted on 92.1 KMZA.