STATE TOURNAMENT: Five takeaways from Tuesday’s action
DES MOINES — Tuesday's state tournament action saw a bit of everything.
After a wild day, these are the teams that advanced to the second round: Camanche, Norwalk, Ballard, Clear Creek-Amana, Sergeant Bluff-Luton, Waukee, and Ankeny Centennial.
Here are five things we learned from Tuesday's slate.
Bowen Born Bowen Born 5'11" | PG Norwalk | 2020 State #401 Nation IA and Norwalk are going to be a tough out in the tournament
Born didn’t have his best day shooting to begin Norwalk’s win over Harlan. His persistence paid off, though, as he made 10 of his final 14 shots. In the meantime, when his shot wasn’t falling, Norwalk spread the scoring load. The other four Warrior starters finished with at least five points. Scott Anderson, who has a reliable 3-point shot, scored 11 and hit three of his six attempts from beyond the arc.
When Born is clicking, he’s unstoppable. But I’d argue Norwalk is at its best when he’s also facilitating to teammates who are knocking down shots. The Warriors could have found themselves in a much deeper hole had others not stepped up.
Given Born’s off start, Norwalk could have ended up much like Mount Vernon, the 3A No. 2 seed. The Mustangs’ sharpshooter Keaton Kutcher Keaton Kutcher 6'2" | SG Mount Vernon | 2021 State IA , one of the top prospects in the 2021 class, struggled to find his shot (3-for-20). In turn, Mount Vernon became the first No. 2 seed to leave Wells Fargo Arena.
Norwalk is resilient, and while it relies on Born for most of its offense, the supporting cast proved on Tuesday it could step up when needed. Great resiliency by everyone on the team.
Ballard’s size might give Norwalk some issues
I know, I just wrote how Norwalk is going to be a tough out in the tournament, but Ballard’s forward tandem of
Connor Drew
Connor
Drew
6'6" | PF
Ballard | 2021
State
IA
and Kale Krogh is pure muscle. The pair completely manned the paint in the win over Center Point-Urbana, forcing the Pointers to work outside. Krogh blocked five shots, and he poses and interesting challenge for Norwalk’s Born, who’s one of the best finishers in the state despite standing at 5’ 11."
If I’m Ballard, I plan a relentless attack in the paint offensively. It’s not like Ballard has an extreme height advantage, but the Bombers have a ton of muscle, especially in their bigs.
Sergeant Bluff-Luton has the most intriguing forward duo in 3A
Three Warrior starters stand at 6’ 7" or taller, but it’s Daniel Wright Daniel Wright 6'8" | PF Sergeant Bluff-Luton | 2020 State IA and Majok Majouk that make things interesting here. Both are fairly versatile for their height. Wright likes to hang atop the perimeter. He led Sergeant Bluff-Luton with five 3-point attempts on Tuesday, making two of them. But he’s also well-built, has a great pivot foot, and possession nice touch around the hoop. Majouk isn’t as developed for the low post game; he’s only an inch shorter than Wright, but he’s much skinnier. But he’s incredibly long -- perfect for swatting away shots and disrupting passing lanes (Majouk finished with three blocks and two steals). He’s more equipped to handle the ball than Wright, as Sergeant Bluff-Luton utilized him as a ball handler when cracking Pella’s press defense in the fourth quarter. Above all, having two players with Wright and Majouk’s height helps tremendously in the rebound game. The pair combined to snag 18 boards in the win. These the versatile players mesh nicely together.
Waukee’s
Payton Sandfort
Payton
Sandfort
6'7" | SF
Waukee | 2021
State
#138
Nation
IA
and
Tucker DeVries
Tucker
DeVries
6'7" | SF
Waukee | 2021
State
#123
Nation
IA
defended North Scott’s
Ty Anderson
Ty
Anderson
6'7" | PF
North Scott | 2020
State
#457
Nation
IA
perfectly
Ty Anderson
Ty
Anderson
6'7" | PF
North Scott | 2020
State
#457
Nation
IA
is one of the highest rated prospects in the state, averaging almost 19 points per game while shooting 57 percent from the floor. Waukee coach Justin Ohl threw length forwards
Payton Sandfort
Payton
Sandfort
6'7" | SF
Waukee | 2021
State
#138
Nation
IA
and
Tucker DeVries
Tucker
DeVries
6'7" | SF
Waukee | 2021
State
#123
Nation
IA
at Anderson, a move that paid off. Anderson scored 11 points, finally reaching the double-digit mark with 1:03 left in the game. He made three of his seven shots from the floor. For reference, he averaged about 11 attempts per game.
Waukee held North Scott to just 15 points in the first half. Anderson scored just two points in the opening quarters, making one of just two shots. He turned the ball over once in the process.
Sandfort and DeVries did an excellent job of not only locking Anderson up when he had the ball, but they consistently denied entry passes to the forward. North Scott saw most of its offense come from Sam Kilburg Sam Kilburg 6'0" | PG North Scott | 2020 State IA , and Waukee can’t be too upset about that.
The Warriors have such a versatile, lengthy starting lineup that will cause problems defensively for the remaining teams in the 4A bracket.
Despite the loss, Davenport North is a pesky defensive team
Davenport North harassed Ankeny Centennial over and over Tuesday. Credit to the Jaguars for their resiliency, though, as this Wildcat team gave them quite the scare. North Davenport forced 11 turnovers in the game and caused havoc with its full-court press. Centennial struggled to even get a shot up in the second half at times, as the Wildcat press forced the offense out of sync. The Jaguars just never got into a rhythm, and they almost went home if Davenport North's shot at the buzzer didn't hit off the front rim.
