Playoff Preview: 4A-7
The Favorite: Waukee started out 14-0, but came back down to earth in January with two straight losses against West Des Moines Valley and Ankeny Centennial. Since the last lost, the Warriors have won seven straight, and will likely close out…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingThe Favorite: Waukee started out 14-0, but came back down to earth in January with two straight losses against West Des Moines Valley and Ankeny Centennial. Since the last lost, the Warriors have won seven straight, and will likely close out the season on a nine-game winning streak. The 1-2 junior punch of Tucker DeVries (21.2) and Payton Sandfort (20.2) are tough to stop and can put up points in a hurry, and at an efficient rate. Freshman Pryce Sandfort (8.5) has picked up his game as of late, including a 21-point performance against Southeast Polk a few weeks back. Six-foot-7 forward Wyatt Heston is a knockdown 3-point shooter. Lincoln Swanson, the lone senior in the starting lineup, doesn’t score much, but he’s an active interior player that is very active whether it be rebounding, boxing out, or blocking shots. He’s got a good feel for the game and will be a good find for a D3 program somewhere. Waukee has the best field goal percentage (52.9) in the state for Class 4A and the second-best 3-point field goal percentage at 44.8 percent. The question for Waukee will be the bench. Roughly 95 percent of Waukee’s scoring comes from its starting five. The bench will need to find ways to deliver along with the other starters if Sandfort and DeVries are having a tough time getting going.
Biggest threat: West Des Moines Valley is my biggest sleeper team in Class 4A. The Tigers were one of the Warriors’ two losses this year and could’ve handed them a third loss but Waukee found a way to escape. The leading scorer for Valley is senior guard Jake Auer (15.8). Auer is a tough-minded guard who can create his own shoot for himself and others. The thing I like about Auer is how much he wants the ball in his hands. He’s a high IQ hooper. He’s shooting just under 40-percent from 3 this season. Junior point guard Ty Walker (14.1) is second in the scoring department for Valley. Walker is a solid all-around lead guard who has great poise and makes smart decisions with the basketball. Sophomore big man Eli Raridon is putting up 12.9 points per contest, and while being recruited for football, is a tough cover on the basketball court. Drew Jirak is a role player who does a lot of the dirty work while Grant Rieker has the ability to knock it down from deep. Valley will be one to watch this postseason.
Darkhorse: Des Moines Lincoln seems to be the most likely dark horse in this substate. The senior duo of Ben Badger (17.7) and Nate Feller (14.2) carry a good chunk of the scoring load. This group likes to get up and down the floor, and put the ball in the bucket. They don’t shoot the ball at a high rate, but their tempo makes up for their lack of shooting efficiency.