Rob's Saturday Round-Up 2-10-23

IOWA CITY, Iowa - With much of the perceived balance of power residing in the central part of the state in Class 4A, eyes turned to West Des Moines Valley High Saturday afternoon when the No. 4 Tigers played host to top-ranked Cedar Rapids Kennedy. The Cougars gave everyone something to think about as we inch closer to postseason play.   The visitors closed out an impressive 64-50 victory with a 19-11 advantage in the fourth quarter. Kennedy improved to 19-0 this season, while the Tigers dropped to 15-5.   Junior [player_tooltip player_id='1171679' first='Micah' last='Schlaak'] led the way for the Cougars with 18 points (8-10 FG, 2-3 3PT FG) and 10 rebounds. His classmate, [player_tooltip player_id='1171687' first='Cyrus' last='Courtney'], also posted a double-double with 12 points and 10 boards. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='1167718' first='Colby' last='Dolphin'] scored 17 (3-6 3PT FG), pulled down four rebounds and added two assists, while his classmate, [player_tooltip player_id='956877' first='Kenzie' last='Reed'], dished out seven dimes without a turnover.   Saturday completed a three-games-in-five-day stretch for Kennedy, two of which came on the road. It knocked off Iowa City West Tuesday at home and took down City High Thursday in the Little Hawks' gym.   The Cougars could be tested again Tuesday when they make the short trip down 42nd Street to take on 3A No. 5 Cedar Rapids Xavier. They finish up the regular season against Waterloo East Thursday night, when they will celebrate the seniors.   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   Kennedy wasn't the only MVC team traveling west to face a CIML foe Saturday. Linn-Mar matched up with Ankeny at Valley High for a closely contested contest.   The home team prevailed, 69-65, ending a five-game skid in improving to 7-14 on the campaign. The Lions now have lost five of their last six contests with three of those setbacks coming by seven or fewer points.   Senior [player_tooltip player_id='1167731' first='Jackson' last='Severson'] notched 22 points and distributed five assists for Linn-Mar (7-12). [player_tooltip player_id='1381412' first='Davis' last='Kern'], a sophomore, added 16 points, 10 rebounds, a block and a steal for the Lions.   Junior [player_tooltip player_id='1171660' first='Carson' last='Johnson'] has been averaging a team-high 14.2 points a game this season for the Hawks, while classmate [player_tooltip player_id='1171676' first='Lio' last='Aguirre'] is scoring 12.8 and leading the squad with 6.2 boards.   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   Former CIML foes got together Saturday in Ames with the Little Cyclones playing host to West Des Moines Dowling Catholic. The home team registered a 61-56 overtime victory with sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1381418' first='Jamison' last='Poe'] delivering excitement.   Poe hit a half-court shot as time expired in the third quarter and then converted a buzzer-beating layup to send the game into overtime. Junior [player_tooltip player_id='1476938' first='Jack' last='Wynter'] poured in 24 points for the winners, the second game in a row he hit that total. Ames improved to 15-6.   Senior Drew Mauro has paced the Maroons (8-11) with 11.6 points per game in '22-23, while [player_tooltip player_id='1378073' first='Joey' last='Coppola'] IV has been averaging 10.7.   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   A battle of the Lincolns went down in Des Moines Saturday. Council Bluffs Lincoln visited Des Moines Lincoln. The visitors prevailed, 72-66, in improving to 14-6. The Rails fell to 10-10.   Council Bluffs Lincoln held a 61-51 lead with 3:19 remaining in regulation before the home team cut its deficit to two points with 2:01 on the clock. The Lynx then closed the contest scoring 11 of the game's final 18 points.   Council Bluffs Lincoln has succeeded this winter with four players averaging double figures in scoring. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='1738615' first='Mathok' last='Mathok'] leads the way with 13.8 points and 10 rebounds an outing. Juniors [player_tooltip player_id='1376689' first='Cole' last='Arnold'] (13.2 PPG, 5.3 RPG) and [player_tooltip player_id='1376681' first='Jayden' last='Calabro'] (11.5 PPG), along with sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1381403' first='Creighton' last='Bracker'] (10.3 PPG, 9.2 RPG) help make the Lynx an interesting team to watch entering the postseason.   <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" />   Clear Creek Amana of the WaMaC played host to Northeast Iowa Conference's Decorah Saturday in what turned out to be an entertaining game. The home team pulled out a 74-70 victory in improving to 5-15. The Vikings dropped to 11-7.   The Clippers ended a three-game skid with the help of 19 points and four rebounds from sophomore Andrew Rotzoll. Haiden Hardy, a junior, scored 14 and added four caroms for the winners.   Junior [player_tooltip player_id='1256304' first='Ben' last='Bockman'] paced Decorah with a game-high 21 points (3-7 3PT FG) to go with nine rebounds and four assists. Tate Johnson, a senior, netted 14 and handed out three assists, while classmate Ethan Holthaus added 12 points, five boards and two steals for the Vikings, who also received 12 rebounds from junior [player_tooltip player_id='2377280' first='Kaiden' last='Quandahl'].

IOWA CITY, Iowa - With much of the perceived balance of power residing in the central part of the state in Class 4A, eyes turned to West Des Moines Valley High Saturday afternoon when the No. 4 Tigers played host to top-ranked Cedar Rapids Kennedy. The Cougars gave everyone something to think about as we inch closer to postseason play.