Substate Preview: 3A-1
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The favorite: MOC-Floyd Valley may not have been tested quite as much as some of the other teams in the substate playing in a largely 2A league, but the Dutchmen absolutely deserved to earn a #1 seed in a substate.…
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Continue ReadingThe favorite: MOC-Floyd Valley may not have been tested quite as much as some of the other teams in the substate playing in a largely 2A league, but the Dutchmen absolutely deserved to earn a #1 seed in a substate. A high-powered offensive team, they’re averaging 68.3 points a game and are one of three 3A teams to rank within the top 10 in both scoring offense (9th) and defense (7th, 49.5). Senior forward Jesse Van Kalsbeek Jesse Van Kalsbeek 6'6" | SF MOC-Floyd Valley | 2024 State IA (23.7, 10.5 rebounds, 58.5 FG%) is the headliner, an efficient 6-4 forward who hasn’t looked to stretch the floor much this season, but he’s certainly capable of doing so. He missed a handful of games this season, which allowed MOC to get some younger pieces more experience, which will in turn benefit them here. A trio of juniors – Blake Aalbers Blake Aalbers 6'0" | PG MOC-Floyd Valley | 2025 State IA (14.2), Ahman Langton Ahman Langton 5'11" | PG MOC-Floyd Valley | 2025 State IA (9.9, 2.2 steals), and Owen Vander Pol Owen Vander Pol 6'5" | PF MOC-Floyd Valley | 2025 State IA (8.6, 60.2 FG%), and sophomore Draeden Punt Draeden Punt 6'5" | PF MOC-Floyd Valley | 2026 State IA (7.1, 53.5 FG%) are the other key players to note here. Aalbers and Langton are both reliable ball-handlers who can create off the bounce, while Vander Pol and Punt give the Dutchmen some size and physicality in the paint. MOC isn’t nearly as efficient as they have been in recent years, especially from the arc (30.9 3P%), but they have a dominant player in Van Kalsbeek, and a slightly easier road to the substate final than #2 seed Heelan has.
The biggest threat: In senior forward Matthew Noll Matthew Noll 6'7" | PF Bishop Heelan | 2024 State IA (22.3, 10.8 rebounds), Heelan has the best player in the substate. A dominant two-way player who can get to the rim whenever he wants, Noll showed just how great he can be in leading the Crusaders to the 3A semifinals last season, and he’s hungry for more this year. It has been a bit of an up-and-down year for Heelan, but this is a team that only played two 3A teams this season (LeMars, Sergeant Bluff-Luton), and they swept both of those series. Senior guard Quinn Olson Quinn Olson 6'3" | SF Heelan | 2024 State IA (12.1, 3.8 assists) has been the leader in the backcourt, while Beau Chamberlain Beau Chamberlain 6'2" | SG Bishop Heelan | 2024 State IA (7.2), Sean Schaefer Sean Schaefer 6'0" | SG Heelan | 2024 State IA (6.4), and Brady Schultz (4.5) are all seniors who have played well in stretches this season. With Noll leading the way, and having played a tougher schedule than the rest of the substate, Heelan will be dangerous.
The dark horse(s): There are two potential sleeper teams lurking in this substate, one on the top of the bracket, and one on the bottom. We’ll start with Sergeant Bluff-Luton, a team that is always peaking around this time of year under coach Adam Vander Schaaf, and this year is no exception. The Warriors have won five straight games down the stretch and are a good defensive team that is comfortable playing in slower games, which postseason games tend to be. Seniors Scott Dickson 912.8) and Emiliano Gonzalez (11.7) are the top scorers, while sophomore guard Isaiah Jervik Isaiah Jervik 6'1" | SG Sergeant Bluff-Luton | 2026 State IA (8.3, 4.5 assists) is a solid lead guard who gets his teammates involved and limits turnovers. The Warriors were swept by Heelan in the regular season, but they lost those two games by a combined nine points, so they know they can play with the Crusaders.
At the top of the bracket, Lewis Central is a potentially dangerous team in the 4/5 game. The Titans are led by senior wing Nash Paulson Nash Paulson 6'2" | SG Lewis Central | 2024 State IA (16.4, 43.2 3P%), an explosive scorer who can get hot from the arc and carry his team for stretches. The Titans had been playing solid basketball since the holiday break, winning eight straight before dropping back-to-back games last week to Harlan and Sergeant Bluff-Luton.
Players to watch
2024
Jesse Van Kalsbeek
Jesse
Van Kalsbeek
6'6" | SF
MOC-Floyd Valley | 2024
State
IA
, MOC-Floyd Valley
2025
Blake Aalbers
Blake
Aalbers
6'0" | PG
MOC-Floyd Valley | 2025
State
IA
, MOC-Floyd Valley
2025
Ahman Langton
Ahman
Langton
5'11" | PG
MOC-Floyd Valley | 2025
State
IA
, MOC-Floyd Valley
2025
Owen Vander Pol
Owen
Vander Pol
6'5" | PF
MOC-Floyd Valley | 2025
State
IA
, MOC-Floyd Valley
2024
Matthew Noll
Matthew
Noll
6'7" | PF
Bishop Heelan | 2024
State
IA
, Heelan
2024
Quinn Olson
Quinn
Olson
6'3" | SF
Heelan | 2024
State
IA
, Heelan
2024 Scott Dickson, Sergeant Bluff-Luton
2024 Emiliano Gonzalez, Sergeant Bluff-Luton
2026
Isaiah Jervik
Isaiah
Jervik
6'1" | SG
Sergeant Bluff-Luton | 2026
State
IA
, Sergeant Bluff-Luton
2024
Nash Paulson
Nash
Paulson
6'2" | SG
Lewis Central | 2024
State
IA
, Lewis Central
2024 Kayden Anderson, Glenwood
2025 Ayden Gibson, Glenwood
2024 Casey Godbout, Glenwood
2026
Jaidyn Coon
Jaidyn
Coon
6'6" | SF
Storm Lake | 2026
State
IA
, Storm Lake
2024
Justin Guynn
Justin
Guynn
6'1" | SG
Storm Lake | 2024
State
IA
, Storm Lake
2026
Cameron Boyd
Cameron
Boyd
6'1" | SG
Storm Lake | 2026
State
IA
, Storm Lake
2024
Carson Bruhn
Carson
Bruhn
6'6" | PF
Sioux Center | 2024
State
IA
, Sioux Center
2024 Briggs Friedmann, Sioux Center
2024
Cael Van Beek
Cael
Van Beek
6'4" | SF
Sioux Center | 2024
State
IA
, Sioux Center
2024 Drew Galles, LeMars
SUBSTATE FINAL PREDICTION
MOC-Floyd Valley vs. Heelan
MOC-Floyd Valley has been the more consistent team this season, but in a one-game setting, we’ll usually side with the team that has the best player on the floor, giving Heelan the edge here. The Crusaders head back to Des Moines and will be a factor in a wide-open 3A race.