Substate Preview: 2A-4
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District 7 The favorite: Lake Mills has been dominant again this season, winning games by an average of 26.5 points a game and rolling to an undefeated regular season. The Bulldogs, who have been great in 1A for several years…
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Continue ReadingDistrict 7
The favorite: Lake Mills has been dominant again this season, winning games by an average of 26.5 points a game and rolling to an undefeated regular season. The Bulldogs, who have been great in 1A for several years now, will now move up to 2A postseason play, but should still be considered a heavy, heavy favorite in this district. Lance Helming Lance Helming 6'5" | PF Lake Mills | 2024 State IA (17.9) leads a quartet of double-figure scorers for a team that is putting up 72.1 points a game, good for 6th in the class. The ‘Dogs are one of three 2A teams to rank within the top 10 in scoring offense and defense (6th, 45.6). Denton Kingland Denton Kingland 6'0" | SG Lake Mills | 2023 State IA (17.2, 42.7 3P%) and Eli Menke (12.4, 42.3 3P%) are knockdown shooters, and Aiden Stensrud Aiden Stensrud 6'6" | PF Lake Mills | 2025 State IA (11.8, 9.7 rebounds) has been excellent in the paint on both ends of the floor. The Bulldogs own a head-to-head win over Osage, the #2 seed in the district, by 32 points.
The biggest threat: The district’s #2 seed, Osage, gets their semifinal game at home, which is a boost. The Green Devils have a potent offensive attack that has four players averaging in double figures, led by sophomore guard Madden Uhlenhopp Madden Uhlenhopp 6'1" | SG Osage | 2025 State IA (16.9), a versatile three-level scorer who can get hot and carry his team for stretches. Freshman guard Quinn Street Quinn Street 5'11" | PG Osage | 2026 State IA (14.6) leads the team in assists and has been a great addition to their backcourt, and Max Knudsen Max Knudsen 5'10" | SG Osage | 2024 State IA (10.3) and Drew Tusler (10.2) are veteran players with a lot of experience. Outside of Lake Mills, this is the most dynamic offensive team in the district, and since it’s not going to be easy to slow down the Bulldogs, teams may need to try to outscore them, giving a nod to Osage.
The dark horse: On the other end of the spectrum is North Fayette Valley, a team that has a lot of good athletes and plays really good defense, allowing just 48.4 points a game this season. If the TigerHawks are able to slow the game down and make it a halfcourt slugfest, their physicality and athleticism could lead to a few upsets and a surprising district championship. Sophomore Cael Reichter (15.7, 9.0 rebounds) and senior Blake Reichter (11.9, 7.7 rebounds) dominate on the glass, pulling down a combined 6.7 offensive rebounds a game, gaining valuable extra possessions.
Players to watch
2024
Lance Helming
Lance
Helming
6'5" | PF
Lake Mills | 2024
State
IA
, Lake Mills
2023
Denton Kingland
Denton
Kingland
6'0" | SG
Lake Mills | 2023
State
IA
, Lake Mills
2024 Eli Menke, Lake Mills
2025
Aiden Stensrud
Aiden
Stensrud
6'6" | PF
Lake Mills | 2025
State
IA
, Lake Mills
2025
Madden Uhlenhopp
Madden
Uhlenhopp
6'1" | SG
Osage | 2025
State
IA
, Osage
2026
Quinn Street
Quinn
Street
5'11" | PG
Osage | 2026
State
IA
, Osage
2025 Cael Reichter, North Fayette Valley
2023 Blake Reichter, North Fayette Valley
2024 Kole McCormick, Waukon
2024 Tommy Miller, Forest City
District 8
The favorite: Behind the strong play of Padraig Gallagher Padraig Gallagher 6'5" | SF Beckman Catholic | 2023 State IA (22.0), Beckman Catholic has gone 11-3 since the holiday break, shaking off a slow start to the season and showing that they can play with some of the best teams in the class. Gallagher, a 6-5 wing who scores seemingly at will, is posting 52-43-88 shooting splits and is a threat to drop 35 points on any given night. Eli Kluesner Eli Kluesner 6'1" | SF Beckman Catholic | 2024 State IA (9.8) and Aiden Wessels (9.1) have been the other consistent scoring threats for the Blazers, and then their role players have all had some solid nights as scorers. A team that plays excellent defense (16th in 2A, 49.6 points), has played an extremely tough schedule (3rd in 2A), and has the best player in the district (Gallagher), Beckman is a very deserving favorite to come out of the district.
The biggest threat: MFL-Mar-Mac was clearly the best team in their conference this year, and they blasted their opposition on a nightly basis, winning games by an average of 33.3 points a night. They rank 2nd in scoring offense (77.6) and 3rd in scoring defense (44.3), but that comes with a major caveat – a schedule that ranks 91st out of 96 teams in the class. Nonetheless, the Bulldogs have a talented group with a number of fantastic scoring threats, led by sophomore guard Zach Driscoll Zach Driscoll 6'0" | SG Decorah | 2025 State IA (20.3, 4.8 assists), a quick, three-level scorer who can dominate games even when he isn’t scoring with his ability to create shots for others as well as be a menace on the defensive end. Carver Blietz-Bentien Carver Blietz-Bentien 6'1" | SF MFL MarMac | 2024 State IA (13.9, 8.1 rebounds) has given the ‘Dogs some muscle inside, and Wyatt Powell Wyatt Powell 6'1" | PG MFL MarMac | 2024 State IA (10.9, 4.5 assists) has been a reliable ball-handler alongside Driscoll. The results this season have certainly been impressive, and now they’ll have a chance to show that they can play with anyone.
The dark horse: If there is a team in this district with the horses to get hot offensively and run to a district championship, it’s Denver. The Cyclones have three double-figure scorers, with two others averaging 8.4 and 9.7 points a game and a bevy of skilled marksmen from deep. Clayton Liddle (14.1, 40.9 3P%) is the team’s leading scorer, a big wing who can get hot from deep in the blink of an eye. Eli Ricketts Eli Ricketts 6'1" | SG Denver | 2024 State IA (13.7, 34.5 3P%) is a skilled creator who can get to the rim or play without the ball, and sophomore wing Talan LaFrentz Talan LaFrentz 6'1" | SG Denver | 2025 State IA (10.5, 35.6 3P%) is another wing with pretty good size who can score from all three levels. The Cyclones will look to outscore you, not lock you down defensively, but if there is a team capable of getting hot and upsetting Beckman, this would be the type of team you’re looking for.
Players to watch
2023
Padraig Gallagher
Padraig
Gallagher
6'5" | SF
Beckman Catholic | 2023
State
IA
, Beckman Catholic
2024
Eli Kluesner
Eli
Kluesner
6'1" | SF
Beckman Catholic | 2024
State
IA
, Beckman Catholic
2025
Zach Driscoll
Zach
Driscoll
6'0" | SG
Decorah | 2025
State
IA
, MFL-Mar-Mac
2024
Carver Blietz-Bentien
Carver
Blietz-Bentien
6'1" | SF
MFL MarMac | 2024
State
IA
, MFL-Mar-Mac
2023 Clayton Liddle, Denver
2024
Eli Ricketts
Eli
Ricketts
6'1" | SG
Denver | 2024
State
IA
, Denver
2023 Gannon Shekleton, New Hampton
2023
Carter Steinlage
Carter
Steinlage
6'3" | SF
New Hampton | 2023
State
IA
, New Hampton
2025
Conall Sauser
Conall
Sauser
6'3" | SF
Oelwein | 2025
State
IA
, Oelwein
SUBSTATE FINAL PREDICTION
Lake Mills vs. Beckman Catholic
Of all the 2A substate finals, this one would be one of the most interesting, if it comes to be. Lake Mills has been a juggernaut for a handful of years now, rarely losing, but now they bump up to 2A for postseason play, and their schedule has been much less challenging than what Beckman has had to face. BC Moore’s power rankings system has these two teams separated by just over two points, and that feels right here. Lake Mills has more options, but Beckman Catholic has the best player on the floor and Padraig Gallagher Padraig Gallagher 6'5" | SF Beckman Catholic | 2023 State IA finds a way to will Beckman to the state tournament in a tight one.