Preseason All-Conference: Little Hawkeye

<p><strong>Preseason Players of the Year:</strong> 2020 [player_tooltip player_id="801831" first="Bowen" last="Born"], Norwalk &amp; 2020 [player_tooltip player_id="530026" first="Xavier" last="Foster"], Oskaloosa</p> <p>Is it a cop out to not pick one of the two? Perhaps. But there is no player in the state who makes a bigger impact on the offensive end of the floor than Born, and no player who makes a bigger defensive impact than Foster. These are the two best players in the state right now, and Little Hawkeye fans are lucky (or unlucky if you’re a fan of the other teams in the league) to have them around. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>First Team</strong></span></span></p> <p><em><strong>2020 [player_tooltip player_id="801831" first="Bowen" last="Born"], Norwalk (27.8 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.9 steals, 79 3PM)</strong></em></p> <p>The future Northern Iowa scoring guard is the best offensive player in the state, and the biggest reason we have Norwalk ranked #1 to open the year in 3A. He’s the league’s leading returnee in scoring, assists, steals and made 3-pointers, and the skilled lefty is a threat to average north of 30 a game this year for the Warriors. </p> <p><em><strong>2020 [player_tooltip player_id="530026" first="Xavier" last="Foster"], Oskaloosa (14.4 points, 11.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 1.3 steals, 6.2 blocks, 53.6 FG%)</strong></em></p> <p>The most versatile and dynamic defensive player in the state, Foster’s rim protection changes games, and was a major reason that Oskaloosa won their first state title last year. His 148 blocks last year were more than all but four TEAMS had (all 1A schools), and in a December 21 game against Pella, he blocked 14 shots, which is more blocks than 20 TEAMS recorded all year. That type of defensive production is invaluable. The seven-footer is a highly coveted prospect who has trimmed his list to Iowa, Iowa State, Baylor, Providence and Virginia Tech.</p> <p><em><strong>2020 [player_tooltip player_id="955225" first="Tyler" last="Johnson"], Norwalk (13.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 62 3PM, 45.6 3P%)</strong></em></p> <p>A skilled, versatile 6-4 wing, Johnson was second behind Born in scoring and assists last year for the Warriors. He’s a lights-out shooter from deep, knocking down 62 3s last season at a 45.6% clip.</p> <p><strong><em>2020 [player_tooltip player_id="801860" first="Jake" last="Hull"], Grinnell (20.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 46.4 3P%)</em></strong></p> <p>The 6-4 wing is the league’s second leading returning scorer and rebounder, and his 46.4 3P% is third among returnees with at least 50 3PA last year. He should have a huge year for a Tigers team that should be much improved.</p> <p><em><strong>2020 [player_tooltip player_id="801862" first="Logan" last="Shetterly"], Pella (17.3 points, 2.7 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.2 steals)</strong></em></p> <p>A do-it-all guard, Shetterly ranks highly in a number of categories among returnees: scoring (third), assists (third) and steals (second). He’ll be the focal point of a Pella team that should challenge Norwalk and Oskaloosa at the top of the league.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>Second Team</strong></span></span></p> <p>2021 [player_tooltip player_id="796144" first="Luke" last="Rankin"], Dallas Center-Grimes</p> <p>2022 [player_tooltip player_id="682270" first="Cole" last="Glasgow"], Dallas Center-Grimes</p> <p>2020 [player_tooltip player_id="801891" first="Josh" last="Van Gorp"], Pella Christian</p> <p>2020 [player_tooltip player_id="955322" first="John" last="Oltman"], Pella</p> <p>2022 [player_tooltip player_id="682281" first="Adam" last="Mattes"], Newton</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>Honorable Mentions</strong></span></span><br /> 2020 [player_tooltip player_id="801904" first="Tyce" last="Johnson"], Indianola<br /> 2020 Kyle Long, Newton<br /> 2022 [player_tooltip player_id="962617" first="Noah" last="Allen"], Newton<br /> 2020 [player_tooltip player_id="801905" first="Dan" last="Jungling"], Pella Christian<br /> 2021 [player_tooltip player_id="796150" first="AJ" last="Wilkins"], Grinnell<br /> 2021 [player_tooltip player_id="796166" first="Cole" last="McGriff"], Grinnell<br /> 2022 [player_tooltip player_id="682282" first="Karl" last="Miller"], Pella<br /> 2020 Izsac Schultz, Oskaloosa<br /> 2020 [player_tooltip player_id="955291" first="Scott" last="Anderson"], Norwalk</p>