Klay Thompson’s Late 3 Rallies Heat Past Clippers as Barnesville and Spain Park Make Playoff Statements

Wednesday delivered drama across the sports calendar, from an NBA overtime thriller in Los Angeles to high school postseason runs in Minnesota and Alabama. Klay Thompson stole the night in the pros with a clutch shot, while Barnesville avenged an early-season loss and Spain Park climbed the Alabama football rankings. Here is how each story unfolded.

Thompson Delivers a 20-Point Comeback in Los Angeles

Klay Thompson hit a game-winning 3-pointer with one second left to complete a 20-point comeback. The shot gave the Miami Heat a much-needed 117-116 overtime victory over the LA Clippers on Wednesday.

The Clippers clung to a two-point lead in the closing seconds of the extra period. Thompson then found himself wide open in the left corner after a baseline play broke down the defense. He made the most of the look and sealed the rally.

The shot capped a big night from deep for the veteran guard. Thompson hit eight 3s in the game, but none carried the weight of the final one. Miami erased a deficit that once reached 20 points to steal the win on the road.

Elsewhere around the league, the Los Angeles Lakers kept rolling as coach Redick praised Luka during his latest hot streak. In San Antonio, Wemby drew MVP chants with a career performance and predicted more to come.

Barnesville Avenges Early Loss in Section 8-2A Semifinal

In Hawley, Minnesota, Barnesville turned the tables on Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton. Just over a month earlier, the Rebels had walked off the court at Barnesville High School with a 3-0 win. On Wednesday, the Trojans beat them in straight sets during the Minnesota Section 8, Class 2A semifinals, winning 25-8, 25-20, 25-21.

Senior Piper Thompson powered the Trojans with seven kills. Laney Shirek recorded the final kill for top-seeded Barnesville, which improved to 22-8. The win sends the Trojans to the Section 8-2A championship match for the first time in four seasons.

Barnesville set the tone immediately with a 9-0 scoring run to open the first set. Head coach Megan Askegaard said the fast start gave her team a boost it did not expect in a semifinal.

“It really is (a dream start),” Barnesville head coach Megan Askegaard said. “You win that serve and that captain’s coin flip and you don’t expect that in a semifinal game. It gave us a good little momentum boost to start the night.”

Askegaard said her players showed up ready from the opening point and never let up.

“My kids showed up to play (tonight),” Askegaard said. “I honestly have no words. It’s such a game of momentum and right from the start, it was unbelievable the way that they took those first couple of points right away and just kept rolling with it.”

Senior Leadership Carries the Trojans

Piper Thompson is one of nine seniors on the Barnesville roster, and that experience showed. Seniors Mya Stuvland and Allison Axness followed Thompson with six and five kills. Senior Jayla Amundson led the team with three aces and added 15 digs on defense.

“When you have that many seniors, you never know how it’s going to go,” Askegaard said. “It could go one way or the other, and (tonight), it definitely went in our favor where the seniors carried us through and they want it.”

Thompson said the regular-season loss to the Rebels helped fuel the redemption. She also described the team’s mindset heading into the final.

“I think that kind of lit a fire under us,” Thompson said. “We wanted it even more. Just because they swept us, it doesn’t mean anything. We came back and worked super hard.

Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton, the section’s No. 5 seed, ended its season with a 15-14 record. Thompson also looked ahead to the title match.

“We’re going to put our head down and keep working hard every day,” Thompson said. “There’s no shortcuts.”

Barnesville now faces No. 3 seed East Grand Forks (20-9) on Saturday at 7 p.m. at Moorhead High School. The Green Wave earned their spot by beating No. 2 seed Thief River Falls 3-2 in Wednesday’s second semifinal.

Spain Park Climbs Alabama Class 6A Rankings

In Alabama, the Alabama Sportswriters Association released its final football media rankings of 2026 on Wednesday, Nov. 4. The Spain Park Jaguars rose two spots to No. 8 in Class 6A with 63 points. That ends a yo-yo stretch in the rankings and marks the second time in three weeks they have held the No. 8 spot.

The Jaguars sit 19 points ahead of No. 9 Sparkman and 12 points behind No. 7 Fairhope. They finished the regular season 6-4 after a 47-21 win over then-No. 6 James Clemens, which dropped to Spain Park’s former No. 10 spot.

Spain Park finished as the No. 5 seed in Class 6A, Region 3, which has five teams in the top 10, including four of the top five. Because of the expanded Class 6A playoffs, the Jaguars travel to face the Buckhorn Bucks on Nov. 6 at Buckhorn High School. Spain Park is one of three Shelby County teams in the final rankings.

Thompson and Briarwood Hold Strong Positions

The Thompson Warriors held the No. 2 spot in Class 6A for the fourth straight week. They earned 170 points and 18 of the 19 first-place votes. Thompson finished the regular season 8-1 after a 42-0 win over Oak Mountain on Oct. 23.

The Warriors did not play in Week 11 because Choctawhatchee’s recovery from Hurricane Isaias forced the cancellation of that game. They also have a first-round bye, so they will go 20 days without a game. They host the winner of Bob Jones and Hoover on Nov. 12 at Warrior Stadium.

The Briarwood Christian Lions kept the No. 1 spot in Class Double AA, taking all 228 points and all 19 first-place votes. The Lions finished the regular season undefeated, had Week 11 off, and improved to 11-0 when St. John Paul II Catholic forfeited their first-round game because of injuries. Briarwood hosts the winner of John Carroll Catholic and Randolph School on Nov. 12 at Lions Pride Stadium.

Elsewhere in the rankings, Reeltown moved up to No. 1 in Class 2A with an undefeated record after Fyffe suffered its first loss of the season to Single A No. 1 Westbrook Christian. Pelham also dropped off the receiving votes list after it earned a single vote following Week 10.

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