Conference Preview: Twin Lakes
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The Teams Alta-Aurelia (8-14, 58.1% of scoring returning): The Warriors got off to a strong 7-2 start last season before losing 13 of their final 14 games. They lost their leading scorer from that group, but bring back the next…
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Alta-Aurelia (8-14, 58.1% of scoring returning): The Warriors got off to a strong 7-2 start last season before losing 13 of their final 14 games. They lost their leading scorer from that group, but bring back the next two in seniors Ayden Dullea (10.3, 7.3 rebounds) and Jack Bloom (9.9), giving them a solid tandem to build around. Dullea led the team in rebounding last season and is an efficient finisher who can also protect the paint defensively, while Bloom is their top shooting threat. He’ll pair with Cale Brechwald (4.6) and Cameron Stites (4.4) to give them a trio of ball-handlers that they can rely on. The question for this group will be which team was the real Alta-Aurelia team last year, the 7-2 group, or the 1-13 one?
East Sac County (11-11, 86.2%): If a team is going to make a leap into conference contention this year, it may be the Raiders, who bring back their top four scorers, and six of their top seven, from last year’s team. Tony Clair (11.0, 7.7 rebounds) led the team in scoring and rebounding last season and is an extremely efficient scorer. Luke Wright (10.5, 7.6 rebounds) will pair with Clair to give them a pair of dominant rebounders and scorers, while Sam Julin (8.3, 36.6 3P%) is the top perimeter shooter. Caleb Eichhorn (7.3) gives them some additional wing scoring. Ball security and playmaking out of the backcourt will be a question after losing lead guard Aden Vondrak to graduation, but this team is going to be experienced and should be improved on both ends of the floor.
Emmetsburg (15-7, 87.3%): The E-Hawks were extremely young last season and still found their way to 15 wins, so could this be the team to beat in the league this year? Five of their top six scorers last year were sophomores, and another big leap should be expected out of that quintet. Byron Maina Byron Maina 5'11" | PG Emmetburg | 2025 State IA (12.3, 7.5 rebounds) is an athletic wing scorer who can fill it up from all three levels, create off the bounce for his teammates, and compete on the glass. Gavin Swanson (10.1, 3.4 assists) and Carson Baak (6.4, 3.7 assists) are both reliable ball-handlers and playmakers, and Kale Fank (8.5) provides additional perimeter scoring. The other key returnee among those five is Carter Hudson (5.7), an efficient interior scorer. This is a group that won 15 games last season after winning a combined 13 in the previous two years, so it’s not necessarily a program accustomed to success, but that may be changing with this group of 2025 talent.
GTRA (16-5, 15.6%): The Titans lost a ton of production off of last year’s team, with all four double-figure scorers graduating. That leaves junior guard Kasey Hough (7.6) as the only returnee who averaged more than 2.4 points a game last season. He’ll be asked to do a ton for this group this season. They’ll be inexperienced and likely take a significant drop down the league standings this season.
Manson-Northwest Webster (15-8, 58.0%): In junior wings Kelan Koval (14.1) and Logan Moline Logan Moline 6'3" | SF Manson-Northwest Webster | 2025 State IA (13.1), the Cougars have one of the best one-two punches in the league. Both are athletic wing scorers who can attack the rim or play without the ball and knock down shots off the catch, and both are strong contributors on the glass. Fellow junior Matt Condon (5.0) is the only other returnee with much experience, and he’ll provide some more wing scoring.
Newell-Fonda (18-5, 15.0%): Newell-Fonda has been a basketball hotbed for both the boys and girls over the last decade-plus, so despite losing a massive chunk of production from last year’s team, there’s no reason to expect the Mustangs to not compete in the league again. They lost the top five scorers from last year’s team to graduation, and this is a team that averaged just under 80 points a game. Junior Max Carlson (4.7) and senior Ty Tauber (3.7) are the top returnees. There were quite a few freshmen on the varsity roster last year, and they were able to gain a lot of experience in practice against the older standouts, which will benefit them as they transition into major minutes this year. So, while the faces are unknown, the Newell-Fonda program isn’t. Don’t expect too much of a dropoff here.
Pocahontas Area (2-20, 99.7%): The Indians won just two games and only had one of their losses decided by single digits last season. That’s the bad news. The good news is that all but three points return from that roster, so this is going to be a very experienced team that should grow and improve this year. Senior forward Ethan Behrens Ethan Behrens 5'11" | SF Pocahontas Area | 2024 State IA (12.1, 7.6 rebounds) is the top returning scorer and rebounder, while junior guard Gabe Ehn (7.5, 39.2 3P%) is the top perimeter scoring threat. Ehn is a good shooter who moves well without the ball and has a quick release. Look for four sophomores who saw significant time last year as freshmen to take a major leap this year – Collin Dreith (5.1), Chase Flaherty (3.8), Jackson Flaherty (3.3), and Christian Valenzula (3.1). They’ll probably struggle to compete with the top teams in the league again, but they should play more competitive games and continue building with their youth for the future.
Sioux Central (23-1, 7.4%): The Rebels lost their top three, and five of their top six, scorers to graduation, leaving sophomore Owen Mills (2.9) as the top returnee. Mills and senior forward Max Adams (1.9) are the only players returning who appeared in all 24 games last season, so there will be a ton of new faces taking the floor this year. This is a program that has enjoyed success in recent years, but isn’t a program with a sustained history of success, so it will be interesting to see what happens here this year.
South Central Calhoun (17-5, 40.2%): This is a league that was hit hard by graduation, which makes the return of senior guard Gavin Batta Gavin Batta 6'3" | SF South Central Calhoun | 2024 State IA (13.8) even more valuable for the Titans. Batta is capable of getting hot and lighting it up in a hurry for this group, and with two other double-figure scorers graduating, he’ll have ample shot opportunities as a senior. Keegan Soard (5.8, 7.6 rebounds) is great on the glass on both ends of the floor, and juniors Cole Higgins (3.3) and Andrew Anderson (2.9) each saw significant time last season and return into presumably bigger roles. This is a program that has won 17-17-19-19-21 games during the last five seasons, and they should be one of the top teams in the league again despite losing a lot of prduction.
Southeast Valley (1-20, 38.6%): The Jaguars only win last season came against St. Mary’s, a fellow one-win team. Andrew Miller (7.8) led the team in scoring, but is the only returnee among the top four. He contributes on the glass and is able to score around the rim. Carter Ferry (4.6) and Brady Hanson (3.1) are the other notable returnees. Ferry should be the team’s primary ball-handler and playmaker, while Miller and Hanson operate off the ball.
Storm Lake, St. Mary’s (1-20, 10.0%): The Panthers lost nearly everyone from last year’s one-win team, with senior Avery Fetrow (2.9) the only returnee who averaged more than a point per game. This will be an almost entirely new team, and there’s nowhere to go but up.
West Bend-Mallard (9-12, 33.7%): The Wolverines lost their top three scorers to graduation, which is a significant blow, but they do return three players who averaged at least 5.4 points a game last season, so the cupboard isn’t completely bare. Landon Montag (6.8), Jason Zaugg (6.3), and Mitch Stevens (5.4) have all shown some ability to play with or without the ball in their hands and give West Bend a trio of players that they can rely on to create. They’ll be pretty small and could struggle on the glass, but they could look to play a more up-tempo game to try and offset their size a bit.
Projected Order of Finish
1. Emmetsburg
2. South Central Calhoun
3. Newell-Fonda
4. East Sac County
5. Manson-Northwest Webster
6. Alta-Aurelia
7. West Bend-Mallard
8. Sioux Central
9. GTRA
10. Pocahontas Area
11. Southeast Valley
12. St. Mary’s, Storm Lake
Analysis: There isn’t a dominant team in the league this season, with powers Newell-Fonda and Sioux Central losing a ton of production to graduation. Could this be the year Emmetsburg rises up and grabs the league crown? Toss any of the top four in just about any order and you may have the final standings.
Preseason Player of the Year
2024 Gavin Batta Gavin Batta 6'3" | SF South Central Calhoun | 2024 State IA (South Central Calhoun): This is a league that was hit hard by graduation, with the top nine scorers from last season all gone. Batta, South Central Calhoun’s best player, gets the nod here as we project the Titans to finish near the top of the league.
Players to Watch
2024
Gavin Batta
Gavin
Batta
6'3" | SF
South Central Calhoun | 2024
State
IA
(South Central Calhoun)
2025 Kelan Koval (Manson-Northwest Webster)
2025
Logan Moline
Logan
Moline
6'3" | SF
Manson-Northwest Webster | 2025
State
IA
(Manson-Northwest Webster)
2025
Byron Maina
Byron
Maina
5'11" | PG
Emmetburg | 2025
State
IA
(Emmetsburg)
2025 Gavin Swanson (Emmestburg)
2025 Kale Fank (Emmetsburg)
2024
Ethan Behrens
Ethan
Behrens
5'11" | SF
Pocahontas Area | 2024
State
IA
(Pocahontas Area)
2025 Gabe Ehn (Pocahontas Area)
2024 Tony Clair (East Sac County)
2024 Luke Wright (East Sac County)
2025 Sam Julin (East Sac County)
2024 Caleb Eichhorn (East Sac County)
2024 Ayden Dullea (Alta-Aurelia)
2024 Jack Bloom (Alta-Aurelia)
2024 Andrew Miller (Southeast Valley)
2025 Kasey Hough (GTRA)
2024 Landon Montag (West Bend-Mallard)