Playoff Preview: 1A-2

<a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/02/1A-3.png"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-1126617" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/02/1A-3-1024x815.png" alt="" width="848" height="675" /></a>   The favorite: Lake Mills entered last year’s state tournament as the #1 seed in 1A before being upset by eventual champion Wapsie Valley. The Bulldogs haven’t let that bother them, rolling teams again this year, winning their first 17 games by an average of 31 points a game, including a sweep of possible semifinal opponent Bishop Garrigan by 26 a game. They are an overwhelming favorite here behind the strength of their senior inside-out tandem of [player_tooltip player_id="964863" first="Caleb" last="Bacon"] (12.2, 9.9 rebounds) and [player_tooltip player_id="964828" first="Dashawn" last="Linnen"] (18.8). Linnen is a nightly threat to score 25+ with his ability to get to the bucket or pull from 3, while junior wing Wyatt Helming (13.3) has emerged as a strong secondary scorer. This group shares the ball at a high-level, dishing out 19.5 assists a game, and they’re excellent defensively. It would be a major upset if Lake Mills odesn’t come out of this district. The biggest threat: A pair of sophomores lead Newman Catholic in slashing wing [player_tooltip player_id="956891" first="Douglas" last="Taylor"] (18.9) and point guard [player_tooltip player_id="956889" first="Max" last="Burt"] (9.2, 6.7 assists), with junior James Jennings (13.0) serving as a solid secondary scoring threat. The Knights will get to play their first two games at home, and they already hold a head-to-head win over Bishop Garrigan. As of this writing, the Knights are playing their best basketball of the season, winning five straight by an average of 32.6 points a game. The dark horse: Last year’s 1A runner-up, Bishop Garrigan, features the single most dominant player in this district in senior big man [player_tooltip player_id="796104" first="Angelo" last="Winkel"] (28.3, 14.2 rebounds, 3.7 blocks). Winkel will play Division I basketball at Augustana and is an athletic big man who runs the floor, protects the rim and controls the glass. Senior wing Kyle Schaaf (15.6, 41.9 3P%) is a good perimeter shooter, but the question will be whether or not they can get enough production out of their role players to pull an upset. Players to watch 2021 [player_tooltip player_id="964828" first="Dashawn" last="Linnen"], Lake Mills 2021 [player_tooltip player_id="964863" first="Caleb" last="Bacon"], Lake Mills 2022 Wyatt Helming, Lake Mills 2023 [player_tooltip player_id="956891" first="Douglas" last="Taylor"], Newman Catholic 2023 [player_tooltip player_id="956889" first="Max" last="Burt"], Newman Catholic 2022 James Jennings, Newman Catholic 2021 [player_tooltip player_id="796104" first="Angelo" last="Winkel"], Bishop Garrigan 2021 Kyle Schaaf, Bishop Garrigan 2021 [player_tooltip player_id="964891" first="Dominyk" last="Price"], North Iowa 2023 Rylan Barnes, West Hancock   <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/02/1A-4.png"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-1126618" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/ph/uploads/2021/02/1A-4-1024x804.png" alt="" width="850" height="667" /></a>   The favorite: West Fork isn’t as heavy of a favorite in this district as Lake Mills is in 1A-3, but the Warhawks are still a prohibitive favorite to emerge from this group. They went nearly a month earlier in the season without a game due to COVID exposure from another team, but they’ve put together a strong 12-3 record as of time of this writing, with their three losses coming to a very good 2A Dike-New Hartford, 3A Iowa Falls-Alden and a ranked 3A Clear Lake. This group was a state semifinalist last year and brought back a good chunk of that roster, led by the senior tandem of [player_tooltip player_id="964830" first="Kayden" last="Ames"] (16.6) and [player_tooltip player_id="964833" first="Jakob" last="Washington"] (10.1, 7.4 rebounds). Ames is a sharpshooting guard who can drill 5-6 3s in a hurry and change games in a heartbeat. The Warhawks have also gotten strong production out of seniors [player_tooltip player_id="964886" first="Cail" last="Weaver"] (10.0) and Joe Ingham (11.6, 6.6 rebounds). This group is experienced and talented, and should be ready to go against this group. The biggest threat: Janesville has a player that West Fork could struggle to slow down in junior forward [player_tooltip player_id="962655" first="Wiley" last="Sherburne"] (23.5, 7.1 rebounds), a versatile forward who can score inside and out and dominate the glass. Fellow forward Joey Carlson (10.0) is another efficient forward, and junior point guard Leo Dodd (7.7, 9.1 assists) is a fantastic lead guard who can really pass the ball. The Wildcats have a pair of players who could create issues, and they’ll get their first two games at home, another edge. The dark horse: The other major difference-making player in this district is Nashua-Plainfield senior wing Austin Bienemann (23.6, 9.1 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 3.0 steals), a player who can impact the game on both ends of the floor with his ability to get to the bucket, pass and rebound. Sophomore guard Bo Harrington (10.7) and senior Bradyn Burman (9.6) give the Huskies some additional scoring punch, but it’s Bienemann who has the ability to take over a game and get this team a few upset wins. Players to watch 2021 [player_tooltip player_id="964830" first="Kayden" last="Ames"], West Fork 2021 [player_tooltip player_id="964833" first="Jakob" last="Washington"], West Fork 2021 Joe Ingham, West Fork 2021 [player_tooltip player_id="964886" first="Cail" last="Weaver"], West Fork 2022 [player_tooltip player_id="962655" first="Wiley" last="Sherburne"], Janesville 2022 Leo Dodd, Janesville 2021 Austin Bienemann, Nashua-Plainfield     <h3 style="text-align: center;">SUBSTATE FINAL PREDICTION</h3> Lake Mills vs. West Fork This would be one of the best 1A substate finals, should it happen, a great matchup of conference foes who rarely get to play each other since they’re in separate divisions in the Top of Iowa. Lake Mills has been incredibly impressive again this year, and [player_tooltip player_id="964828" first="Dashawn" last="Linnen"] is the best player on the floor. The Bulldogs punch their ticket to Des Moines for the second straight year in a great, tight game.