Tuesday’s Games to Watch

In this article:

Centennial (3-0) at 4A #3 Ames (4-0)
Centennial lost three starters from last year’s team, but brought back a pair of impact players in Jaron Crews (15.3) and Colin McAleer Colin McAleer 6'3" | SG Ankeny Centennial | 2021 State IA (15.0), who are pacing four players averaging in double figures. They’ve gotten strong production early from junior wings Caden Kelling (10.0) and Jackson Snyder (10.0), and the Jaguars have done an excellent job protecting the ball early, committing just six turnovers a game so far. They’ll have their hands full against an Ames team that is filled with good perimeter defenders.
Ames star guard
Tamin Lipsey
Tamin
Lipsey
6'2" | PG
Ames | 2022
State
#163
Nation
IA
(19.3) hasn’t missed a beat after losing his entire sophomore season to an ACL injury. He’s just as dominant on both ends of the floor as he’s ever been, and now he has a lot of weapons around him.
Keyshaun Brooks
Keyshaun
Brooks
6'1" | CG
Ames | 2021
State
IA
(14.3) was a go-to scorer last year in Lipsey’s absence, and he’s a knockdown shooter with length and athleticism on the wing. Junior big man
Corey Phillips
Corey
Phillips
6'5" | PF
Ames | 2022
State
IA
(10.3) is versatile on both ends, and senior guard
Casey Mumm
Casey
Mumm
5'11" | PG
Ames | 2021
State
IA
(6.0) is a very good defender. This group is still waiting to break in transfers
Jonathan Beverly
Jonathan
Beverly
6'2" | SF
Ames | 2022
IA
(Hoover) and
Trevion Labeaux
Trevion
Labeaux
6'3" | SF
Ames | 2022
State
IA
(Waterloo East), as well. The Little Cyclones play excellent, disciplined defense, and they’ll really make Centennial work for their buckets tonight.
West Branch (6-0) at Camanche (5-1)
West Branch is off to a strong 6-0 start, with only one of their wins coming by single digits. The Bears have been strong on the defensive end, giving up 36 or fewer points in four of their six games. They’ve got three double-figure scorers in
Simon Palmer
Simon
Palmer
6'5" | PF
West Branch | 2021
State
IA
(18.7),
Jeff Bowie
Jeff
Bowie
6'5" | PF
West Branch | 2021
State
IA
(15.7), and Thomas Gould (11.0), and the Palmer/Bowie tandem is great on the glass. This group hasn’t been terribly efficient yet (43-23-66 shooting splits), but their work on the defensive end and on the offensive glass (10.5 a game) has helped offset that.
Camanche enters off a blowout loss to a good 3A Solon team, and they’ve been dealing with injuries early this year. Senior guard
Jordan Lawrence
Jordan
Lawrence
5'9" | PG
Camanche | 2021
State
IA
(15.4) is one of the best defensive players in the state, and he’s become a go-to scorer for them. They’ve gotten good production from senior forward
Zayne Feller
Zayne
Feller
6'7" | PF
Camanche | 2021
State
IA
(12.8) and junior wing Adam Dunlap (8.6) as well.

Senior (1-2) at 4A #2 Cedar Falls (4-0)
Senior has been a bit underwhelming to open the year, escaping West Delaware with a one-point, buzzer-beating win, then dropping games to Wahlert Catholic and Western Dubuque. We had fairly high expectations for the Rams this year, ranking them in the top-10 in 4A to open the season, but they haven’t played to expectations so far. There is a lot of talent on this roster, however, and they’ll be dangerous on a nightly basis moving forward. They’ve been led by senior big man Jim Bonifas Jim Bonifas 6'5" | PF Senior | 2021 State IA (15.7, 8.7 rebounds), who has been dominant in the paint. Senior guard Cain McWilliams Cain McWilliams 5'10" | CG Senior | 2021 State IA (9.7) and wing Tyler Schuster Tyler Schuster 6'2" | SF Senior | 2021 State IA (8.7) have been solid scoring options as well, and this is a group that is going to be really deep. They like to apply pressure and use their athleticism and length to create chaos, but they’ll have difficulty doing that against a veteran Tigers backcourt.
If Waukee didn’t exist, Cedar Falls would have far and away the most talented roster in the state. The Tigers are led by senior wing
Landon Wolf
Landon
Wolf
6'5" | CG
Cedar Falls | 2021
State
IA
(18.5) and big man
Chase Courbat
Chase
Courbat
6'9" | C
Cedar Falls | 2021
State
IA
(12.8), who will both play at Northern Iowa. Wolf is one of the most efficient scorers in the state, a big wing armed with a lethal jumper. Junior lead guard
Trey Campbell
Trey
Campbell
6'4" | PG
Cedar Falls | 2022
State
IA
(12.0) is lightning quick and puts constant pressure on his opponent on both ends of the floor. Talented, playmaking wing
Carter Janssen
Carter
Janssen
6'5" | SF
Cedar Falls | 2021
State
IA
(9.3, 5.8 assists) has taken a major leap this year, giving them another gifted passer, and sophomore wing
Dallas Bear
Dallas
Bear
6'8" | SF
Cedar Falls | 2023
State
#276
Nation
IA
(5.8, 43.8 3P%) already holds a Division I offer. All of that talent, and we haven’t even mentioned senior big man
Joe Knutson
Joe
Knutson
6'8" | PF
Cedar Falls | 2021
State
IA
(5.3), yet. He’ll play college ball at D2 Truman State, and gives them a big, physical presence in the paint. This group is deep and talented.

3A #7 Assumption (3-1) at 4A #10 North Scott (4-0)
Assumption has run off three straight double-digit wings following a season-opening loss to a ranked 4A Hempstead team. Senior wing
Emarion Ellis
Emarion
Ellis
6'4" | SF
Assumption | 2021
State
#141
Nation
IA
(16.8) is leading the team in scoring, but isn’t doing so at a very efficient clip yet. The Texas signee is a highly gifted scorer who impacts the game on both ends of the floor, and when he gets it rolling, 3A needs to watch out. They’ve gotten really strong production out of junior wing
Noah Mack
Noah
Mack
6'0" | SG
Assumption | 2022
State
IA
(13.5) and senior guard
Dayne Hodge
Dayne
Hodge
5'11" | PG
Assumption | 2021
State
IA
(12.5), who are a combined 13-30 from 3 (43.3%) so far this season.
Surprise, surprise, North Scott is winning games and taking souls on the defensive end. The Lancers have established themselves as one of the best programs in 4A under Shamus Budde, and it doesn’t matter what they return - they just play defense and grind out win after win. They’re led by senior wing Landon Eiland Landon Eiland 6'4" | SF North Scott | 2021 State IA (13.3), who will play college ball at Truman State. Eiland is an athletic, slashing wing who can also really shoot the ball, and he’s thriving with more opportunities this year. Junior guard Oliver Hughes (13.3) has also gotten off to a really strong start, starting the year 9-21 (42.9%) from behind the arc. If there is an area for this group to improve, they need to protect the ball better, as they’re giving the ball away nearly 16 times a game.
St. Mary’s, Remsen (5-0) at 1A #10 Gehlen Catholic (7-1)
Like North Scott in 4A, St. Mary’s has established themselves as an elite defensive program, and they’re doing it again this year, off to a 5-0 start and holding teams to just 37.2 points a game. The Hawks have four players averaging in double figures, led by sophomore Jaxon Bunkers (13.4), a versatile scorer who is also dishing out 4.2 assists a game. Senior guard Blaine Harpenau Blaine Harpenau 6'0" | SG St. Mary's, Remsen | 2021 State IA (12.4) is experienced, and has made a major impact on both ends, with 4.8 assists and 3.8 steals a game. The other name to look out for here is junior forward Austin Jensen Austin Jensen 6'2" | PF St. Mary's, Remsen | 2022 State IA (10.0, 6.4 rebounds), a physical presence in the paint who controls the glass on both ends.
A young Gehlen Catholic team is coming off a blowout loss to Unity Christian last night, 73-48. They had beaten that Knights team 62-54 earlier this season. They’ve been led by the high-scoring tandem of sophomore
Keaten Bonderson
Keaten
Bonderson
6'0" | PG
Gehlen Catholic | 2023
State
IA
(20.3) and junior
Carter DeRocher
Carter
DeRocher
6'2" | SF
Gehlen Catholic | 2022
State
IA
(18.7). Anticipate seeing St. Mary’s trying to take one of them out of the game, so the other will have to step up in a big way against a very talented defensive team.
2A #10 Treynor (5-1) at Underwood (4-0)
Treynor has dominated this series of late, winning the last seven meetings by an average score of 70.6-47.4. Expect this meeting to be more competitive. The Cardinals have three players averaging in double figures in Tim Zimmerman (16.3), Noah James (14.3) and
Sid Schaaf
Sid
Schaaf
5'11" | CG
Treynor | 2021
State
IA
(15.8), but they aren’t shooting it well from the arc so far this season (just 26% as a team). They’ve made up for it by forcing turnovers on defense and crashing the offensive glass, getting more possessions for themselves.
The Eagles are off to a solid start, led by senior guard Timothy Conn (16.8). They’re shooting 42% from the arc as a team and only turning the ball over 10 times a game, which will be key against a Cardinals team that flies all over the court. In addition to Conn, four others are averaging between 6.5 and 9.5 points a game.