Apollo Falls In State Quarters; Abukar Surprisingly Plays
The St. Cloud Apollo boys basketball team lost 67-62 to Orono in overtime in the Class 3A State tournament quarterfinals Wednesday afternoon at Williams Arena. Apollo led by 18 points with 14:11 left but couldn't hold the lead. The Eagles got 2 free throws with :05 left from senior guard Ibrahim Abukar. Jordan Smith led Orono with 29 points including 2 key throws in overtime to clinch the win. Simon Krych led the Eagles with 17 points and 14 rebounds, Abukar added 16 points and 5 assists and Blake Maslonkowski added 14 points. Abukar suprisingly played 1 day after he had bone marrow extracted from his back to give to his 13-year old sister, Zamzam, who needed a bone marrow transplant because of a rare blood disease. Ibrahim was the only match for Zamzam among her 8 brothers and sisters. Apollo's season ends with a 25-5 record.