Substate Preview: 4A-2
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The favorite: Defending champion Valley hasn’t been quite as dominant as most expected this season, but the Tigers dealt with injuries to their top two players – Curtis Stinson Jr Curtis Stinson Jr 6'5" | PG Valley | 2025 State…
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Continue ReadingThe favorite: Defending champion Valley hasn’t been quite as dominant as most expected this season, but the Tigers dealt with injuries to their top two players – Curtis Stinson Jr Curtis Stinson Jr 6'5" | PG Valley | 2025 State #157 Nation IA (19.4, 51.7 FG%) and Xzavion Robinson Xzavion Robinson 6'1" | PG Valley | 2025 State #342 Nation IA (17.3, 3.4 assists) – who combined to miss 14 games this season, with very few of those absences overlapping. They may still be gelling together now, but one thing is for sure – nobody wants to see this team in their substate. They showcased just how dynamic they can be on both ends of the floor at last year’s state tournament, and with most of those pieces returning, it may still be their title to lose. Stinson and Robinson are two of the best guards in the state, regardless of class, and their blend of size, strength, IQ, quickness, and athleticism is nearly impossible for anyone at this level to compete with when they’re engaged and have it rolling. Jayden McGregory Jayden McGregory 6'1" | PG Valley | 2026 State IA (10.3), a Des Moines North transfer, has given the Tigers some additional length and athleticism on the wing, pairing with Kiki Deng Kiki Deng 6'4" | SG Valley | 2025 State IA (9.8) to fill a defensive role. Trevin Jirak Trevin Jirak 6'9" | C Valley | 2025 State #349 Nation IA (10.3, 7.7 rebounds, 1.9 blocks) holds down the paint on the defensive end and has a decent little face-up game offensively, and they can go really big if they want to and pair Jirak with Marcus McGregor Marcus McGregor 6'4" | PF Valley | 2025 State IA (2.0), giving them beef, athleticism, and physicality in the paint. Kyle Cason Kyle Cason 6'0" | SG Valley | 2025 State IA (9.8) is the unsung glue guy of the unit, a good shooter who can play on or off the ball, and he does a lot of little things for this group. This is the most talented team in the state, and if they turn it on, watch out.
The biggest threat: Redek Born Redek Born 6'3" | PG Norwalk | 2024 State IA (22.7, 4.0 assists) is the best non-Valley player in this substate, and that makes Norwalk dangerous. Born has saved his best basketball for last, averaging 29.8 points on 56-37-90 shooting over the last five games for the Warriors. That type of dynamic three-level scoring can carry a team to a bunch of wins, especially when the Warriors are able to surround him with good perimeter shooting threats like Aidan Harder Aidan Harder 6'3" | SG Norwalk | 2024 State IA (9.5, 34.9 3P%), Timothy Koerselman (7.8, 36.6 3P%), and Grady Sigrist (6.2, 31.6 3P%). Born is obviously the headliner, and jumping up to play against CIML competition like Valley in the substate final will be tough, but with Born on the floor, anything is possible for this group.
The dark horse: Council Bluffs Jefferson isn’t a program that is accustomed to much success on the hardwood. Their 18 wins this season is more than the previous five seasons combined (15), and this is just their four winning season of the last 18. They’ve qualified for the state tournament just once, in 1970, and while it would take a significant upset to get to Des Moines, this is a team that has handled business this season, and they have a chance to make history. The Yellow Jackets are led by a quintet of seniors – Jayden Calabro Jayden Calabro 5'9" | PG Council Bluffs Jefferson | 2024 State IA (20.9, 3.4 assists), Jordan Dewaele Jordan Dewaele 6'6" | PF Council Bluffs Jefferson | 2024 State IA (17.4, 8.0 rebounds), Devin Davis-Conti (11.3, 38.0 3P%), Jaden Dewaele (9.5, 6.4 rebounds), and Victor Atupra (6.3, 2.0 steals – and when you watch them play, you don’t see a team that is used to losing. They play with confidence, and have a toughness about them that makes them dangerous. Calabro, a Council Bluffs Lincoln transfer, has been a major difference maker for this group, giving them a backcourt scorer and playmaker, while Davis-Conti pairs well with him as a shooter. The Dewaele boys are both strong, athletic forwards who compete on the glass, and Atupra has been stout defensively. This group isn’t going to back down from anyone.
Players to watch
2025
Curtis Stinson Jr
Curtis
Stinson Jr
6'5" | PG
Valley | 2025
State
#157
Nation
IA
, Valley
2025
Xzavion Robinson
Xzavion
Robinson
6'1" | PG
Valley | 2025
State
#342
Nation
IA
, Valley
2025
Trevin Jirak
Trevin
Jirak
6'9" | C
Valley | 2025
State
#349
Nation
IA
, Valley
2025
Kyle Cason
Kyle
Cason
6'0" | SG
Valley | 2025
State
IA
, Valley
2026
Jayden McGregory
Jayden
McGregory
6'1" | PG
Valley | 2026
State
IA
, Valley
2025
Kiki Deng
Kiki
Deng
6'4" | SG
Valley | 2025
State
IA
, Valley
2024
Jayden Calabro
Jayden
Calabro
5'9" | PG
Council Bluffs Jefferson | 2024
State
IA
, Council Bluffs Jefferson
2024
Jordan Dewaele
Jordan
Dewaele
6'6" | PF
Council Bluffs Jefferson | 2024
State
IA
, Council Bluffs Jefferson
2024 Devin Davis-Conti, Council Bluffs Jefferson
2024
Redek Born
Redek
Born
6'3" | PG
Norwalk | 2024
State
IA
, Norwalk
2024
Aidan Harder
Aidan
Harder
6'3" | SG
Norwalk | 2024
State
IA
, Norwalk
2024
Grant Uecker
Grant
Uecker
6'3" | PG
Urbandale | 2024
State
IA
, Urbandale
2024
Brevin Phillips
Brevin
Phillips
6'5" | PF
Urbandale | 2024
State
IA
, Urbandale
2025 Cade Westerhoff, Fort Dodge
2025 Drake Warland, Fort Dodge
2025 Charlie Fry, Des Moines Lincoln
2025 Damarius Parker, Des Moines Lincoln
SUBSTATE FINAL PREDICTION
Valley vs. Norwalk
Despite the greatness of Redek Born Redek Born 6'3" | PG Norwalk | 2024 State IA , this is one of the easiest substates to pick in any class. Defending champion Valley rolls back to the state tournament, where they’ll be considered one of the favorites to repeat.