A stingy first quarter of defense sparked the Norwalk boys basketball team to their 14th win a row Friday night at Dowling Catholic.

The Class 4A sixth-ranked Warriors led 12-2 after one period and held serve the rest of the way to defeat the Maroons 46-34 in the regular season finale for both squads. Norwalk improved to 18-3 overall while Dowling is now 9-12.

Junior guard Redek Born led the Warriors with 20 points and senior forward Braeden Carlson also hit double figures with 14. The team’s last defeat was on January 3, when Dallas Center-Grimes won 57-46 in Norwalk.

The Warriors will now have a week off to prepare for a Class 4A, Substate 1 semifinal game on Friday, February 24. They will host Sioux City West (11-11) or Sioux City North (4-17), with tip-off set for 7:00 p.m.