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Lady Knights sweep McCook behind big night from Naria Hall

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McCook – The North Platte Community College Lady Knights defeated the McCook Community College Lady Indians on Tuesday night, 93-88, in a Nebraska Community College Athletic Conference game to complete the season sweep of the Lady Indians.

The Lady Knights had not swept the Lady Indians since the 2011-2012 season.

The Lady Indians jumped out to a 21-10 lead to start the game. The Lady Knights outscored the Lady Indians 12-4 the remainder of the quarter to trail the Lady Indians 25-22 at the end of the first quarter. Alyiah Foote scored 13 of the the Lady Indians 25 first quarter points.

The Lady Indians continued to hold the lead at the beginning of the second quarter, increasing their lead to 30-22 before the Lady Knights went on a 10-2 run to tie the score at 32 points each. The Lady Knights took the lead on a pair of free throws by Naria Hall at 34-32.

The teams traded leads and were tied at 40 when the Lady Indians outscored the Lady Knights 8-6 to take a 48-46 halftime lead.

In the third quarter, the Lady Knights went on a 15-6 run to take a seven point lead at 61-54. The Lady Indians rallied to lead at the end of the third quarter 72-70.

In the fourth quarter, the Lady Knights were able to tie the game at 79 each. They put the seal on the game by going on an 8-0 run to lead 87-79 and held on for the win.

In the game there were nine lead changes and 10 ties.

The Lady Knights are now 4-20 and 2-4 in the NCCAC. Hall led the Lady Knights in scoring with a career high 29 points. Three other Lady Knights scored in double figures with 16 points each by Allison Tichy, Natatabaa Nacona and Jamesia Holliman. Hall had a double-double by grabbing 10 rebounds.

Tichy continued to move up the all-time scoring list, passing Lesllie Stillmock and tying Courtney Widick for 20th place with 570 career points.

The Lady Indians are 6-22 overall and 2-4 in the NCCAC. Foote led the Lady Indians with 40 points. Brooke Jamison had 17 points and Sam Hinkle finished with 12 points. Foote had eight rebounds to lead the Lady Indians.

The Lady Knights are next in action on Friday, Feb 23 against Eastern Wyoming. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 pm.

The game will be broadcast on the radio at ESPN 1410 and on the Internet at www.northplattepost.com. It will also be live-streamed at www.npccknights.com.

Nebraska property tax bill likely stuck in committee

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Sen. Steve Erdman

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A measure designed to reduce Nebraska property tax bills appears to be stuck in a legislative committee as its supporters focus on a ballot petition drive.

The Revenue Committee considered the proposal during an executive session Tuesday but did not bring it up for a vote. Sen. Jim Smith of Papillion, the committee chairman, says he doesn’t think it has enough support to advance for debate in the full Legislature.

The measure by Sen. Steve Erdman of Bayard would have provided a refundable income tax credit to offset what property pay on their school district property taxes.

Erdman says he didn’t expect the bill to pass when he introduced it, but he wanted to try. He’s also part of a petition drive to place the issue on the November ballot.

Nebraska bill to prevent tax increase clears key hurdle

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LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A bill designed to prevent federal tax changes from triggering a tax increase in Nebraska has cleared a key hurdle in the Legislature.

Members of the Revenue Committee voted 7-0 on Tuesday to advance the measure for debate in the full Legislature.

Nebraska taxpayers could end up paying more to the state this year unless lawmakers halt the automatic changes in the Republican congressional plan, including the elimination of popular tax exemptions.

The Department of Revenue says the tax law signed by President Donald Trump would result in an additional $220 million for state government this year. Nebraska’s system is changing because it’s heavily tied to the federal tax code.

Sen. Jim Smith of Papillion introduced the bill on Gov. Pete Ricketts’ behalf.

Job-licensing requirements in Nebraska face scrutiny

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By TESS WILLIAMS ,  Associated Press
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A bill that would require regular reviews of Nebraska’s job-licensing rules hit a wave of resistance Tuesday from senators who voiced concerns about its impact on medical professions.

Supporters said the measure would reduce regulations and increase competition in a variety of professions that are regulated by the state. In past years, lawmakers have scaled back requirements on natural hair braiders and people who perform horse massages, but the legislation debated Tuesday would take a more sweeping approach.

“Most of us don’t realize and have never realized how many licenses there are,” said Sen. Laura Ebke of Crete the proposal’s sponsor. “In the last 50 years, we’ve gone from roughly 5 percent of our occupations being licensed to roughly 25 percent of our occupations being licensed.”

About 200 professions require licenses in Nebraska, ranging from massage therapists and potato shippers to dentists and teachers. Under Ebke’s bill, lawmakers would review regulations once every five years.

The bill also aims to remove barriers to employment for job applicants with a criminal record. Ebke said expanding employment opportunities for such people could prevent them from reoffending.

Opponents took issue with the bill’s wording and questioned whether it should apply to health-related professions, which are currently regulated through another process that generally includes industry professionals.

Sen. Sue Crawford, of Bellevue, took issue with a portion of the bill that would require state officials to err on the side of lighter regulation, particularly in health-related fields. The bill requires the state to use the least restrictive regulation needed to protect against “present, significant and substantiated harms.”

“Someone has to get hurt before we can decide to change occupational licensing standards,” Crawford said.

Crawford also questioned how legislators would determine what constitutes significant level of harm.

Sen. Sarah Howard, of Omaha, said the bill’s focus on economic opportunity and market competition stray from the important standards of health, wellness and safety.

She and Crawford said health-related licenses are better regulated through the current process, which examines licensing at an in-depth level that requires extensive medical knowledge. Lawmakers would need extra help to conduct such reviews, they said.

Ebke noted that the bill would not affect any current license statutes, but instead would set up a process of regular review and create standards for legislators to consider while reviewing occupational licensing.

Health care professionals “ought to be happy to come to the board and the committees and express their surety of how valuable their licenses are,” Ebke said.

It’s unclear whether the measure has enough support to survive, but Ebke said she’s willing to change language as long as it doesn’t undermine the bill’s basic purpose.

Police issue statement on recent vandalism to vehicles in NP, arrests made

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The following is a statement from the North Platte Police Department pertaining to a rash of vandalism to vehicles in the city:

During the morning hours of 2/14/18, NPPD officers investigated approximately 25 incidents of vehicle vandalism in several parts of town.

The majority of the vehicles that were damaged were in the 1500-2200 block of Alpha, 2700-2900 Anna, 0-100 block of Garfield and 500-900 West 1st.  Some vehicles had windows knocked out, taillights damaged and body damage.  It appeared the damage was done with a blunt object that had red paint on it.  Officers were able to narrow the time frame of the damage to be around 2:00 AM and 6:00 AM.

During the morning of the 14th officers were able to view home surveillance systems and found that there were 3 male subjects involved that were driving a blue 2011 Dodge Dakota.  Officers also began receiving tips from citizens and were notified of videos of the suspects circulating on social media.  One of the videos reportedly showed Marko Torres holding a metal baseball bat that was painted red.  Some of the victims of had a prior falling out with some of the suspects involved and it was also determined that the suspects damaged random vehicles as well.

The Dodge Dakota was located on UPRR property on 2/14 and found to contain evidence of these crimes specifically lots of broken glass inside of the pickup and in the pickup’s bed.  After speaking to numerous people in the investigation officers had probable cause to arrest Bryce Wood, Marko Torres and 16-year-old Adam Kelsey (8/24/01).  It is believed that Wood was driving the pickup and would stop at the victim vehicles while Torres and Kelsey would damage them.

Wood was located on the afternoon of 2/14 and arrested for felony criminal mischief.  Torres was located on 2/16 and arrested for the same offense.  Kelsey was not incarcerated but also cited for felony criminal mischief.  At this time we have received estimates from most of the victims which total around $15,000.  We have a few more estimates expected to come in but the total damage is likely to be around $20-25,000.

Nebraska group collecting signatures for property tax relief

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LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Nebraska group has begun collecting the nearly 85,000 petition signatures needed to get a $1.1 billion property tax relief measure on the November ballot.

The Yes to Property Tax Relief group has until July 5 to collect the signatures. The proposal would give Nebraska property owners equal to 50 percent of the school property taxes they pay, which would be about 30 percent of the total property tax bill.

The petition doesn’t specify where the funds for the income tax credits would come from. Other legislative measures suggest closing some sales and income tax exemptions, as well as raising sales, cigarette and other taxes.

Gov. Pete Ricketts and business groups have criticized the measure for raising taxes to cut taxes, and warn it could cause cuts to government services.

Authorities say 4 people killed in Nebraska I-80 collision

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UTICA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities blame speed and a slippery pavement for a collision between a pickup truck and a semitrailer that killed four people on Interstate 80 in eastern Nebraska.

The crash was reported around 7:15 a.m. Tuesday between the Waco and Utica exits, hampering westbound traffic.

Lt. Paul Vrbka with the York County Sheriff’s Department says the three males and one female killed were from Colorado. Their names aren’t being released until relatives have been notified of the deaths.

Vrbka says the eastbound pickup went out of control and crossed the median into the westbound lanes, striking the semitrailer and killing its four occupants. The big rig driver wasn’t injured.

Icy pavement played havoc with Tuesday’s morning commute in many parts of eastern Nebraska.

Officer injured in struggle with boy outside house party

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LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Lincoln police say an officer was injured during a struggle with a teenager outside a house party.

Police spokeswoman Angela Sands says officers sent to the party Saturday night found an estimated 150-200 people there. The teenager was found outside with bottles of alcohol in his pockets.

Sands says the officer tried to take the boy into custody, but he resisted, punching and elbowing the officer in the face several times.

The boy got away but was arrested later at his home. Police also cited the 17-year-old girl who was hosting the party at her home. Her parents were out of town.

Rivalry renewed as Knights visit McCook CC on Tuesday night

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North Platte – The North Platte Community College Knights and Lady Knights basketball teams will be travelling to play the McCook Community College Indians and Lady Indians on Tuesday, Feb 20 at the Peter and Dolores Graff Events Center.

The Lady Indians are 6-21 on the season and 2-3 in the Nebraska Community College Athletic Conference.

The Lady Indians are led in scoring by Aliyah Foote at 14.3 points per game. Colby Cox is next in scoring at 10.4 ppg, followed by Sam Hinkle at 10.2 ppg. Gabrielle Enloe leads the Lady Indians at 7.1 rebounds per game.

The Lady Knights are 3-20 on the season and 1-4 in the NCCAC. Allison Tichy leads the Lady Knights in scoring at 13.4 ppg. The only other Lady Knight to average in double figures is Naria Hall at 12.8 ppg. Peighton Porter leads the Lady Knights in rebounding at 8.5 rebounds per game.

Tichy is 22nd on the Lady Knights all-time career scoring list at 554 points. She is 11 points away from Leslie Stillmock at number 21 and 16 points away from number 20 Courtney Widick.

The Lady Knights defeated the Lady Indians in North Platte on Jan 31, 76-74.

The men’s game, not only is a NCCAC game, but also a Region IX South Sub-Region contest.

The Indians are 17-10 overall, 4-1 in the NCCAC, and 5-8 in the South Sub-Region.

D’Von Moore leads the Indians in scoring at 15.6 ppg, followed by Chinedu Okonkwo at 13.1 ppg. Junathean Cunningham is the third Indian to average in double figures at 10.7 ppg. Okonkwo leads the Indians in rebounding at 8.7 rebounds per game.

The Knights are 13-10 overall, 4-1 in the NCCAC, and 6-7 in the South Sub-Region.

Godfrey Rolle, who is 29th on the Knights all-time career scoring list at 856 career points, leads the Knights in scoring at 19.2 ppg. Trajan Harris is averaging 11.3 ppg for second on the Knights. Jakub Karwowski leads the Knights in rebounding with 6.1 rebounds per game.

The Indians defeated the Knights on Jan 31 in North Platte, 76-67.

Tip-off for the women’s game is at 5:30 pm, with the men’s game to follow at 7:30 pm.

ESPN 1410 will broadcast the games and on the Internet at www.northplattepost.com.

The games will also be live-streamed at www.mccindians.com. A link to the games live-streaming can be found at www.npccknights.com.

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