PH Top 250: Tony’s 2025 First Team All-Expo

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>The annual Prep Hoops Iowa Top 250 Expo took place in Grimes on Sunday afternoon. Throughout the next few days, myself and Jeremy Brooks will be running through some of the standout performers from the event, and providing full evaluations of every player in attendance. This article touches on the five best juniors that I saw among the teams I was tasked with covering – Teams 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, and 12.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Most Outstanding Player: Mateo Dzolota (Waukee Northwest)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Dzolota was a new name for me, and he was extremely impressive throughout his three games. A 6-0 guard with a tremendous feel for the game, he does a great job changing speeds and playing with pace to help get by defenders. He's a fantastic ball-handler and has great court vision and is a willing and creative passer. He has good footwork on his drives and is able to create some additional space to get his shot off with his combination of speed, ball-handling, and footwork. He has a pure stroke off the catch and gets the ball into his shooting pocket quickly off the dribble as well. He was dominant as both a scorer and playmaker, dishing out a ton of assists and scoring from all three levels in bunches. He should be a factor at Northwest as a junior. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1288916' first='Cailen' last='Shadrick'] (Bettendorf)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Shadrick is the type of player who can really thrive in this type of setting. He's a fantastic passer with a great feel for the game, and he loves to get his teammates involved. He's able to break down the defense, get into the teeth of it, and then find open teammates who are either cutting or spotting up on the wing. He sees the floor really well and is a gifted passer with the type of court vision and feel that you can't teach. He was excellent on the glass on both ends of the floor, and was able to get to the rim pretty much whenever he wanted, where his strong, physical 6-3 frame comes in handy as he's able to finish through contact well. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1156782' first='Austin' last='Papenberg'] (Waukee Northwest)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A 6-5 scoring wing who can do a little bit of everything on the offensive end, Papenberg had a strong all-around showing as both a three-level scorer and playmaker. He continues to improve as a ball-handler, showing more confidence in putting the ball on the floor and creating looks for himself and his teammates. He sees the floor well and is a good passer who does a great job getting the ball into his teammate's shooting pocket when he dishes it. He has a bit of bounce in him and competes on the glass on both ends of the floor. He has a pure stroke and can stretch the floor. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Jacob Attleson (Waukee)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Attleson was another new name for me, and another impressive offensive weapon who can provide some value as a floor stretcher at 6-5. He has a pure stroke with a high, quick release off the catch. He showed good awareness on the defensive end, rotating over on a few occasions and blocking shots to help out his teammates. He rebounds well and is a good enough ball-handler to bring the ball up the floor. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1288890' first='Aiden' last='Stensrud'] (Lake Mills)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Stensrud was absolutely dominant around the paint on both ends of the floor. A mobile 6-5/6-6 big man with soft hands and great touch around the rim, he was decisive on his post touches, making quick decisions and displaying quick and good footwork. He also did a great job recognizing early double teams and finding open shooters on the opposite wing, showing good court vision and awareness of his surroundings. On the defensive end, he provides some versatility as he can be switched onto smaller players or protect the rim with good timing as a shot blocker. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->