Conference Preview: Iowa Star South

<!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>The Teams</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Baxter (16-5 last season, 51.9% of scoring returning): </strong>The Bolts lost a big-time scorer with the graduation of Treyton Travis, who averaged 21. 5 points a game last season. And while that is certainly a significant loss, they're well equipped to handle it with senior forward Perrin Sulzle (13.8, 9.7 rebounds) and junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='1460951' first='Eli' last='Dee'] (12.5, 40.2 3P%) returning. That tandem will be far-and-away the best in the division, and will be one of the best in the conference as a whole, making them heavy favorites in the South. Sulzle is a tough, athletic forward who finishes well around the rim, protects the paint defensively (2.1 blocks per game), and controls the rim. Dee is a knockdown shooter both off the dribble and the catch, and he has really improved as a ball-handler and playmaker. Cainan Travis (8.5) gives them an athletic wing scorer, and junior Staden Vansice (2.4) and seniors Matt Richardson (1.6) and Logan Rainsbarger (1.3) return to provide some depth. It would be a pretty big upset if Baxter didn't run the division again this year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>BCLUW (5-17, 22.4%):</strong> BCLUW is one of the teams that was hit hardest by graduation among small schools, losing their top three, and five of their top six scorers from last year's team. Senior forward [player_tooltip player_id='2721707' first='Owen' last='Myers'] (6.3, 50.9 FG%) is the lone returnee among the top six scorers, and he'll be asked to shoulder a heavy load this season. Juniors Aiden Frank (3.5) and Wyatt Gould (3.3) saw a fair amount of playing time last season and will step into bigger roles this season. With a bunch of new faces taking the court for the Comets this season, replicating last year's five wins would be a success.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Collins-Maxwell (8-14, 51.6%): </strong>The Spartans bring back a pair of double-figure scorers, and three of their top four, from last year's team. They'll be led by the senior tandem of Josef Dvorak (11.6, 7.3 rebounds) and Ian Beattie (10.0, 4.4 assists), while junior guard Cooper Wierson (8.4) provides some additional perimeter scoring and should be the best shooting threat on the roster. The talent on the roster probably isn't quiet as good as the likes of Colo-Nesco or Baxter, but this is a group that should finish in the middle of the pack in the division and could be a thorn in the side of one of the upper-tier teams on a few occasions this winter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Colo-Nesco (11-11, 59.6%): </strong>Like Baxter, the Royals lose a big-time player in Lucas Frohwein, who averaged 21.6 points and 10.1 rebounds last season. Also like Baxter, they're equipped to handle that departure with the return of the senior trio of Gannon Short (11.7, 6.5 rebounds), Breckin Clatt (7.6, 5.0 assists), and Mark Bower (7.2, 5.3 assists). Clatt and Bower figure to be the best playmaking backcourt in the division, both posting solid assist-to-turnover ratios and showing they are capable of running the offense, while Short will hold down the interior. Several other contributors - Lucas Daggett (5.8), Jack Angell (4.2), and Brady Handsaker (3.2) - also return with some experience. If the Royals can find some more shooting (just 27.1 3P% last season), they could push Baxter at the top of the division.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>GMG (11-12, 48.2%): </strong>The Wolverines posted a few quality wins last season, beating Belle Plaine and Colo-Nesco (twice) in the final month, showing some of the potential that that group had. They lost leading scorer Jabari Woodbury to graduation, as well as two other key contributors, but bring back three impact players from last year's roster in Rider Kupka (10.1), Colin Teske (9.0), and Grady Dieleman (8.0). That trio gives them a solid base to build upon this season, and if some of the newer faces like Jonas Buchanan, Brody Becker, and Caleb Ferch can thrive in their bigger roles, they could push for a top-3 finish in the division.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Meskwaki Settlement (1-18): </strong>There are no individual stats entered on Bound from last year's Warriors team, but they lost just one player from the listed roster to graduation. This group won just one game last season and posted a -40.4 point differential, so anything would be an improvement.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>North Tama (8-12, 73.3%): </strong>In a division that was hit pretty hard by graduation, the Redhawks bring back their leading scorer, and five of their top six scorers overall, giving them a chance to make a marked improvement this season. Senior wing Josh Dostal (13.0, 6.6 rebounds) is the headliner, having led the team in scoring and rebounding last season. Kayler Morris (12.3) should have the ball in his hands quite a bit after finishing second in assists last season, and Tyrus Luker (5.9), Chaz Hall (3.4), Brayton Cibula (3.0), and Kayvin Morris (2.1) give them a number of experienced pieces returning. This group was young, but largely competitive, last season and should be a team that shows immense improvement in 2024-25.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Projected Order of Finish</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>1. Baxter<br>2. North Tama<br>3. Colo-Nesco<br>4. GMG<br>5. Collins-Maxwell<br>6. BCLUW<br>7. Meskwaki Settlement</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Analysis: </strong>It would be a pretty big shocker if anyone other than Baxter took home the South Division this season given how successful that program has been recently and the amount of talent they have returning. If anyone is going to push them at the top, it may be North Tama, who returns a ton of experienced from a team that was pretty competitive last season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Preseason Player of the Year</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2025 Perrin Sulzle (Baxter): </strong>Good arguments could be made for either Sulzle or [player_tooltip player_id='1460951' first='Eli' last='Dee'] here, but we'll side with the big man who controls the glass, protects the rim, and can score efficiently around the rim. Baxter is the team to beat, and Sulzle is one of the biggest, literally, reasons why.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Players to Watch</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>2025 Perrin Sulzle (Baxter)<br>2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1460951' first='Eli' last='Dee'] (Baxter)<br>2025 Cainan Travis (Baxter)<br>2025 Josh Dostal (North Tama)<br>2026 Kayler Morris (North Tama)<br>2025 Tyrus Luker (North Tama)<br>2025 Josef Dvorak (Collins-Maxwell)<br>2025 Ian Beattie (Collins-Maxwell)<br>2026 Cooper Wierson (Collins-Maxwell)<br>2026 Rider Kupka (GMG)<br>2025 Colin Teske (GMG)<br>2025 Grady Dieleman (GMG)<br>2025 Gannon Short (Colo-Nesco)<br>2025 Breckin Clatt (Colo-Nesco)<br>2025 Mark Bower (Colo-Nesco)<br>2025 [player_tooltip player_id='2721707' first='Owen' last='Myers'] (BCLUW)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->