Iowa Mr. Basketball Picks: Class 1A-4A
With the 2019-20 basketball season behind us, Prep Hoops Iowa takes a look at the Mr. Basketball candidates from each class. There is a lot of talent in the state, and for one of the classes, I couldn’t pick between…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingWith the 2019-20 basketball season behind us, Prep Hoops Iowa takes a look at the Mr. Basketball candidates from each class.
There is a lot of talent in the state, and for one of the classes, I couldn’t pick between two players. I also include five other players that I considered in each class.
Let’s take a look.
Class 4A: Tucker DeVries Tucker DeVries 6'7" | SF Waukee | 2021 State #123 Nation IA (Waukee)
DeVries is poised for a big senior season.Though he didn’t have the best state championship performance, the stats that Waukee junior Tucker DeVries Tucker DeVries 6'7" | SF Waukee | 2021 State #123 Nation IA put up this year were ridiculous. DeVries averaged 21.4 points and a little under five assists per game while shooting 56 percent from the field and 48 percent from 3-point land. DeVries shot 160 three-pointers on the year, which was tied for 8th in 4A, and the only person to come close to him that shot more than him was Payton Sandfort Payton Sandfort 6'7" | SF Waukee | 2021 State #138 Nation IA , who shot a 45 percent clip from distance. DeVries is the favorite for Mr. Basketball heading into next season.
Other Candidates: Braxton Bayless Braxton Bayless 6'1" | PG Ankeny | 2020 State IA (Ankeny), Tytan Anderson (North Scott), Even Brauns Even Brauns 6'9" | PF Iowa City West | 2020 State #253 Nation IA (Iowa City West), Payton Sandfort Payton Sandfort 6'7" | SF Waukee | 2021 State #138 Nation IA (Waukee), and Michael Duax Michael Duax 6'5" | SF Hempstead | 2021 State IA (Dubuque Hempstead)
Class 3A: Bowen Born Bowen Born 5'11" | PG Norwalk | 2020 State #401 Nation IA (Norwalk)
Northern Iowa is getting a steal in Born.The most dominant player in the state among all classes was Born, and it wasn’t even close. The Northern Iowa recruit finished his senior season with 983 points, which ranks 3rd all-time for a single season, and ended it with a state title. Born is sixth on the all-time state scoring list with 2,494 points. Born is known for his scoring, but one of the most underrated traits was his passing ability. He also got after it on the defensive end. He’s going to have a heck of a career in Cedar Falls.
Other Candidates: Xavier Foster Xavier Foster 7'0" | C Oskaloosa | 2020 State #71 Nation IA (Oskaloosa), Easton Darling Easton Darling 6'0" | CG Winterset | 2020 State IA (Winterset), Sean Peeters Sean Peeters 6'5" | PF Assumption | 2020 State IA (Assumption), Keaton Kutcher Keaton Kutcher 6'2" | SG Mount Vernon | 2021 State IA (Mount Vernon), and Jacob Schockemoehl (Wahlert)
Class 2A: Masen Miller Masen Miller 6'0" | PG Regina | 2020 State IA (Iowa City Regina) and Austin Miller Austin Miller 6'2" | PF North Linn | 2020 State IA (North Linn)
North Linn’s [player_tooltip player_id="801963" first="Austin" last="Miller"]I had a hard time picking between these two, so I decided to go with both. Masen Miller Masen Miller 6'0" | PG Regina | 2020 State IA finished the year averaging 26.2 points while shooting 46 percent from the field and 39 percent from beyond the arc. Miller was also drawing double and even triple teams almost every night, and was still uber efficient. If Ashton Cook Ashton Cook 6'5" | SF Regina | 2021 State IA hadn’t of gotten hurt, Regina could’ve made a little more noise on the postseason. Truman State head coach Jeff Horner is getting a heck of a talent in Miller.
Austin Miller Austin Miller 6'2" | PF North Linn | 2020 State IA averaged 23 points and shot 69 percent from the field and 56 percent from deep on the year. Miller was the veteran leader for North Linn, and was the only senior starter for a team that started four sophomores and finished runners up in Class 2A. Miller is going to Iowa State to study Agriculture, and he’s going to be a legend in Intramurals in Ames.
Other Candidates: Bryce Coppock Bryce Coppock 5'10" | SG West Sioux | 2020 State IA (West Sioux), Hunter Dekkers Hunter Dekkers 6'1" | PG West Sioux | 2020 State IA (West Sioux), Cooper DeJean Cooper DeJean 6'2" | CG OABCIG | 2021 State IA (OABCIG), Zane Neubaum Zane Neubaum 6'2" | PG South Central Calhoun | 2020 State IA (South Central Calhoun), and Michael Keegan Michael Keegan 6'4" | SF Beckman Catholic | 2020 State IA (Beckham Catholic)
[player_tooltip player_id="576918" first="Nick" last="Reid"] was by far the most dominant player in Class 1A the past two seasons.Class 1A: Nick Reid Nick Reid 6'6" | SF Central City | 2020 State IA (Central City)
Reid finished his high school career with 2,016 points and 1,001 rebounds, making him the 8th player in Iowa high school basketball history to pass the 2,000-point and 1,000 rebound mark. The Emporia State recruit finished his senior season averaging 27.9 points and 20.0 rebounds per game, and that was against double and triples teams on a nightly basis. He’s no doubt the most dominant player in Class 1A.
Other Candidates: Trey Shearer Trey Shearer 5'10" | PG Montezuma | 2021 State IA (Montezuma), JD Stout JD Stout 6'0" | SG Keota | 2020 State IA (Keota), Kiks Rosengarten (Wapsie Valley), Braden Gibbons Braden Gibbons 5'10" | PG Madrid | 2020 State IA (Madrid), and Zach Huff Zach Huff 6'2" | SG Don Bosco | 2020 State IA (Don Bosco)