Class 3A Substate Quarterfinal Preview

The Top Five Games

Denison-Schleswig (16-5) at ADM (10-11)

Denison-Schleswig has the better record, but ADM blew the Monarchs out on January 30, notching a 78-50 win and getting a higher seed in the substate in large part because of that overwhelming result. Expect the rematch to be a bit closer. Denison-Schleswig is led by senior guard Carson Seuntjens Carson Seuntjens 6'1" | PG Denison-Schleswig | 2023 State IA (17.5) and junior Luke Wiebers Luke Wiebers 6'1" | SG Denison-Schleswig | 2024 State IA (11.9), giving them a dynamic pair of playmakers in the backcourt. ADM counters with junior guard Adam Bryte Adam Bryte 6'2" | SG Adel-DeSoto-Minburn | 2024 State IA (14.6, 46.7 3P%), one of the state’s elite shooting threats, and senior forward Vince Benetti Vince Benetti 6'4" | PF ADM | 2023 State IA (10.5, 9.7 rebounds), a physical forward that Denison-Schleswig will struggle to contain on the glass.

West Delaware (12-10) at Decorah (13-7)

These teams met last week in a non-conference game, a 57-44 Decorah win at West Delaware behind 19 points from Ben Bockman Ben Bockman 6'4" | SF Decorah | 2024 State IA . The Vikings were outstanding defensively in that game, allowing just nine second half points and holding the Hawks to just 29.2% shooting. Bockman (pictured), a 6-4 wing, is averaging nearly 23 points and 9 rebounds this season with 47-39-81 shooting splits. With his size and ability to shoot it, he’s a difficult matchup for West Delaware. The Vikings also get double digits in scoring from Matthew Bockman Matthew Bockman 6'1" | SG Decorah | 2024 State IA (10.4) and Tate Johnson (10.3), while Kaden Quandahl (8.5, 7.8 rebounds) provide some physicality in the paint. West Delaware is led by their senior backcourt of Bryce Smith (11.4), Maddux Lott (10.8), Hayden Lyness (9.5), and Tyrus Werner (7.0). They don’t shoot it very well from the arc (30.1 3P%), so they’ll need to aggressively attack Decorah off the dribble to hang with the Vikings.

Lewis Central (10-11) at Harlan (15-5)

These Hawkeye Ten rivals split their regular-season meetings, with Lewis Central winning 51-33 on January 3, and Harlan getting revenge with a 51-42 win over February 3. Each team won on their own home court, which should give the edge to the Cyclones here. Harlan is led by a trio of double-figure scorers in Jacob Birch Jacob Birch 6'1" | SF Harlan | 2023 State IA (15.3, 9.1 rebounds), Bradley Curren Bradley Curren 5'11" | PG Harlan | 2023 State IA (12.7), and Franz Reisz (12.2, 8.9 rebounds). Mitch Osborn once again has a physical, athletic team that uses their strength to grind opposing teams down. The Cyclones do a great job on the glass, pulling down 35 rebounds a game, and they don’t beat themselves, averaging just 8 turnovers a game. Lewis Central will need to get a big game out of junior wing Nash Paulson Nash Paulson 6'2" | SG Lewis Central | 2024 State IA (13.1) if they want to go into Harlan and pull off the upset. The Titans don’t shoot it well from deep (21.6%), but, like Harlan, uses their physicality to their advantage to grind teams down.

Maquoketa (13-8) at Wahlert Catholic (11-10)

This one should be fun, as Maquoketa loves to get up and down and use their quickness to their advantage, while Wahlert looks to play a bit more of a deliberate game, using their size and physicality to control the tempo. Maquoketa is led by junior guards Tye Hardin Tye Hardin 6'0" | PG Maquoketa | 2024 State IA (17.6) and Ty Hinz (14.4), while wing Carter Meyer Carter Meyer 5'11" | SF Maquoketa | 2024 State IA (15.8) and senior guard Kasey Coakley Kasey Coakley 5'11" | SG Maquoketa | 2023 State IA (11.0) provide additional firepower. The Cardinals are small, but they play fast, fire up a bunch of 3s, and have a number of players who can beat you. Wahlert is long, with Nolan Berendes Nolan Berendes 6'4" | SF Wahlert Catholic | 2023 State IA (13.6) and Seamus Crahan Seamus Crahan 6'6" | SF Wahlert Catholic | 2023 State IA (8.6) both listed around 6-6 and with a ton of length and versatility on both ends of the floor. Forward Duke Faley Duke Faley 6'5" | C Wahlert Catholic | 2023 State IA (12.3) is another versatile option for the Golden Eagles, an athletic forward who can score inside and out. Wahlert has had an inconsistent year, but when they’re playing at their best, they’re one of the best teams in 3A.

Fairfield (11-9) at Washington (11-9)

Washington swept the season series between these Southeast Conference rivals, winning 71-67 and 62-49. The Demons have a trio of double-figure scorers that Fairfield can struggle to match up with in Ethan Patterson Ethan Patterson 5'11" | SG Washington | 2023 State IA (19.3, 36.4 3P%), Ajay Six Ajay Six 6'4" | SF Washington | 2023 State IA (11.2), and Aden Six (10.1). Patterson is a dynamic shooter with a quick release off the catch, while the Six brothers are both long, athletic wings who impact the game on the defensive end with their size and they can both get to the bucket offensively. If there is one major area of weakness Washington has, it’s in the painted area. Fairfield’s star big man Max Weaton Max Weaton 6'6" | PF Fairfield | 2023 State IA (20.3, 14.0 rebounds) averaged 21.5 points and 14.5 rebounds in the two regular-season meetings and is the type of athletic, bouncy big man who can give a lot of teams, not just Washington, trouble. If JJ Lane JJ Lane 5'9" | PG Fairfield | 2023 State IA (18.6, 36.6 3P%), Tate Allen Tate Allen 5'11" | SG Fairfield | 2023 State IA (9.5, 34.2 3P%), and Riley Perkins (6.0, 34.6 3P%) can knock down some shots and take a little pressure off of Weaton, they could finally knock Washington off and advance.

Upset Alert

Heelan: The Crusaders lost to LeMars by 13, 62-49, just under a month ago, and while they’re certainly looking to get some revenge for that perplexing loss, it’s something that could sneak into the back of their minds if this game is tight late. Three scored in double figures in that win for LeMars – Andrew Fifita (18), Drew Galles (12), and Teagen Kasel (10), and they dished out 18 assists on 22 made field goals.

Center Point-Urbana: The Stormin’ Pointers are the higher seed here, but Western Dubuque probably has higher top-end talent in senior guard Daviyon Gaston Daviyon Gaston 6'1" | SG Western Dubuque | 2023 State IA (16.0) and junior big man Kanyon Bryte Kanyon Bryte 6'7" | C Western Dubuque | 2024 State IA (13.2, 8.0 rebounds). Gaston, a quick guard who can blow by defenders, will be a tough matchup for CPU.

Nevada: The Cubs host a young but talented Ballard team on Monday night. Ballard has played a significantly more challenging schedule during the course of the year, and they have a dynamic one-two punch on the perimeter in freshman point guard Jude Gibson Jude Gibson 6'0" | PG Ballard | 2026 State IA (15.3, 4.5 assists) and senior sharpshooter Mason Gorsh Mason Gorsh 6'2" | SG Ballard | 2023 State IA (16.2, 38.8 3P%). The Bombers won’t be intimidated going to Nevada, and with the talent they have in the backcourt, they’re a prime candidate to pull off this upset.

Webster City: Yup, a #1 seed needs to be on upset alert here. The Lynx beat Gilbert by just six points, 65-59, back on January 21st, needing overtime to do so. Gilbert led by eight points after three quarters in that one and nearly pulled off the upset despite Webster City shooting 19 more free-throws than the Tigers, and Gilbert shooting just 33.3% from the floor. Gilbert knows that they can stay with the Lynx, this isn’t your typical #1 vs. #8 blowout.

Picking all 32
Substate 1: Webster City over Gilbert, ADM over Denison-Schleswig, Heelan over LeMars, Sergeant Bluff-Luton over Carroll
Substate 2: MOC-Floyd Valley over Storm Lake, Sioux Center over Spirit Lake, Humboldt over Perry, Algona over Spencer
Substate 3: Clear Lake over Hampton-Dumont-CAL, Ballard over Nevada, North Polk over Saydel, Winterset over Boone
Substate 4: Marion over Vinton-Shellsburg, Decorah over West Delaware, Charles City over Independence, Mount Vernon over Crestwood
Substate 5: Xavier over Clear Creek Amana, Western Dubuque over Center Point-Urbana, Assumption over Central DeWitt, Wahlert Catholic over Maquoketa
Substate 6: Newton over Oskaloosa, Washington over Fairfield, Mount Pleasant over Fort Madison, Solon over Keokuk
Substate 7: Waverly-Shell Rock over South Tama, Pella over Knoxville, Williamsburg over Benton, Hoover over Grinnell
Substate 8: Bondurant-Farrar over Carlisle, Clarke over Creston, Glenwood over Atlantic, Harlan over Lewis Central