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SCC grad Birks cashes in at ISU game

—Submitted Photo Jared Birks stands with Steve Prohm, Iowa State men’s basketball coach, after Birks received a check for making several shots during a halftime contest in Ames. Birks is a graduate of South Central Calhoun and current Iowa State student.

AMES — Jared Birks was able to showcase the skills he honed growing up in Lytton in front of a packed Hilton Coliseum recently.

Birks, a South Central Calhoun graduate and current freshman at Iowa State University, was selected a special halftime shooting performance. He ended up winning $1,600 for his efforts.

“I had never been on Hilton’s floor before so it was super cool to look around and see it from a different perspective,” Birks said. “I was actually a little nervous because there are thousands of people watching.”

The game was the season opener for the Cyclones, as they downed Mississippi Valley State, 110-74. The attendance that night was announced at 13,711.

Birks, who is majoring in Ag Systems Technology, met Iowa State head coach Steve Prohm.

“He was super cool,” Birks said. “The money (for the event) comes right out of his pocket. I had to start from the NBA 3-point line and if I made it, I would have won $2,500. As soon as the ball hit the rim, the money slowly started going down over time so I had to chase down my rebound and shoot it from that spot until I made it.”

As a senior, Birks averaged 12 points per game for the Titans, shooting 51 percent from the field. He was multi-sport standout at SCC.

He did miss all four of his high school-range 3-point attempts, but grabbed 182 rebounds — including 64 on the offensive glass.

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