Second IHSAA Rankings Released

The second set of boys basketball rankings from the Iowa High School Athletic Association were released this morning. With the IHSAA rankings becoming the go-to ranking around the state, the Prep Hoops Iowa poll is now done for the year. That said, I serve on the Class 2A rankings committee, and will release an article each week taking a quick look at the rankings and perhaps making a few notes where I disagree with what the other committees have put together.

Class 1A

1.) (1) Marquette Catholic (11-0)
2.) (2) Madrid (11-0)
3.) (4) St. Mary’s, Remsen (8-1)
4.) (5) Woodbine (9-0)
5.) (9) Gladbrook-Reinbeck (8-1)
6.) (7) ACGC (7-1)
7.) (10) Northwood-Kensett (10-0)
8.) (NR) MMCRU (8-2)
9.) (3) St. Edmond, Fort Dodge (6-2)
10.) (NR) North Mahaska (10-1)

Thoughts: It’s still weird to see North Linn not in these rankings, but to be fair to the members of the 1A committee, the Dunkerton loss isn’t aging terribly well. MMCRU is absolutely deserving of a spot in the rankings, with their losses coming by 4 to a 9-1 Hinton team and by 13 to the top-ranked team in 2A. I’m happy to see ACGC not get penalized, actually moving up a spot despite the Madrid loss. I’m not sure I would have given North Mahaska the final spot over North Linn, Bishop Garrigan, or Hillcrest Academy, but their win over Montezuma keeps looking better and better.

Class 2A

1.) (1) Western Christian (9-2)
2.) (2) Kuemper Catholic (10-1)
3.) (4) Grand View Christian (11-0)
4.) (3) West Lyon (10-1)
5.) (5) Unity Christian (8-2)
6.) (6) West Burlington (11-0)
7.) (7) Monticello (9-0)
8.) (8) Grundy Center (9-0)
9.) (NR) Treynor (7-3)
10.) (9) Cascade (8-2)

Thoughts: We switched Grand View Christian and West Lyon around this week after the Thunder pounded a Nevada team that was ranked in 3A and the Wildcats played a closer-than-expected game against Okoboji. After that, there wasn’t much to discuss in the top 8. Will Grundy Center suffer a loss or two without star Jalen Kirkpatrick Jalen Kirkpatrick 6'6" | SF Grundy Center | 2025 State IA in the lineup? Only time will tell. Treynor jumps in for us after absolutely blasting Tri-Center last Tuesday night, and Cascade doesn’t get punished for a competitive road loss to 3A #3 Decorah.

Class 3A

1.) (1) Ballard (8-0)
2.) (2) Clear Lake (9-0)
3.) (3) Decorah (8-0)
4.) (4) Wahlert Catholic (7-2)
5.) (6) Knoxville (7-0)
6.) (7) MOC-Floyd Valley (9-2)
7.) (5) ADM (7-3)
8.) (NR) Xavier (7-3)
9.) (NR) Storm Lake (7-1)
10.) (NR) Mount Vernon (9-1)

Thoughts: By 3A standards, things were fairly calm last week, with the top seven teams remaining pretty much in their spots. Xavier joins fellow 3A-MVC team Wahlert in the rankings after a week in which they blew out both Western Dubuque and Marion. BC Moore absolutely loves Storm Lake, and while I’m not quite as high as that power rankings system is, the Tornadoes undeniably have immense upside led by Jaidyn Coon Jaidyn Coon 6'7" | SF Storm Lake | 2026 State #132 Nation IA . On the other end of the spectrum is Mount Vernon, a team that BC Moore’s rankings do not like whatsoever (31st despite the 9-1 record). Arguments could have been made for Des Moines Christian or Nevada for that #10 spot as well, but I have no problem giving it to the Mustangs, who just find ways to win.

Class 4A

1.) (1) Cedar Falls (9-0)
2.) (2) Valley (8-2)
3.) (3) Waukee Northwest (8-2)
4.) (4) Kennedy (8-2)
5.) (6) Muscatine (8-0)
6.) (7) Linn-Mar (7-2)
7.) (8) Waukee (7-2)
8.) (5) Johnston (8-3)
9.) (9) Dowling Catholic (8-2)
10.) (10) Senior (6-2)

Thoughts: Not much to see here, as the only changes came from 5-8. Johnston’s 2-point loss to Waukee drops them behind the Warriors, with Muscatine and Linn-Mar each moving up a spot as a result. Cedar Falls remains the class of the class so far, beating teams by an average of nearly 28 points a game, and that’s with a resume that includes wins over three teams ranked within this top 6.