2025 Winterset Shootout: Class 1A/2A Team Takeaways

Class 1A   Madrid (0-3) Wins: Losses: Williamsburg (50-46), Lewis Central (65-54), Urbandale (66-41)   Having lost Toryn Severson, Brody Buck, and Fabian Ortiz-Alaniz to graduation, there are going to be some growing pains this season, especially early on, for the Tigers. They held their own pretty well against three significantly larger schools, and despite the 0-3 record, there were certainly some positives to take away from the weekend. The big man tandem of junior [player_tooltip player_id='2420789' first='Emerson' last='Bridgewater'] and sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='2439640' first='Jevyn' last='Severson'] is going to be nearly impossible for opposing 1A schools to contend with, and if the Tigers are able to get some improvement out of their young, inexperienced, guards over the next few months leading into the season, they could remain a serious contender in Class 1A.   Class 2A   Kuemper Catholic (1-2) Wins: Ames (73-70) Losses: Ankeny (61-53), Waukee (82-49)   The Knights were one of the top teams in 2A last season before getting upset by Union in the substate final, and they'll be entering 2025-26 on a mission. They were playing without junior-to-be [player_tooltip player_id='2420805' first='Dylan' last='Schon'], who was on a visit to Colorado State, and they certainly missed him. That said, they were still solid, notching a win over always strong 4A Ames, and hanging tough with another 4A team in Ankeny. [player_tooltip player_id='1765503' first='Brock' last='Badding'], [player_tooltip player_id='2519974' first='Jack' last='Badding'], and [player_tooltip player_id='2420798' first='Griffin' last='Glynn'], along with Schon when he's with them, give them plenty of shooting, and senior-to-be forward [player_tooltip player_id='1765513' first='Ryan' last='Clair'] looks like he has only continued to improve as an all-around player. He showed great vision operating out of the high-post, and being able to initiate some offense out of that part of the floor can open things up for the rest of the deadly Knight offensive weapons.   Pella Christian (2-1) Wins: Pleasantville (66-20), Bondurant-Farrar (47-35) Losses: Centennial (39-33)   It was a solid weekend for the Eagles, notching a win over 3A Bondurant-Farrar, and hanging tough against 4A Centennial, who was one of the most impressive teams of the weekend. [player_tooltip player_id='2724147' first='Gilbert' last='Flagel'] has put together a great spring with [program_tooltip program_id='2626519' first='Drive' last='Pro Select'], and he was impressive on Saturday as well, using his 6-5 frame to disrupt things on both ends of the floor. The Eagles are going to be long, athletic, and disciplined, as they usually are, and they're going to be a really tough out come 2A postseason play after going through the Little Hawkeye gauntlet throughout the regular season.   Pleasantville (0-3) Wins: Losses: Pella Christian (66-20), Norwalk (69-29), Winterset (59-45)   The Trojans were playing without do-it-all wing [player_tooltip player_id='2419699' first='Braylon' last='Bingham'], one of the top players in the state's 2027 class, and they played against two bigger schools. They got good production out of their young backcourt - junior Cash Klootwyk and sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='2521847' first='Nolan' last='Fichter'] - a pair of talented guards who can knock down shots off the dribble and the catch as well as create plays for their teammates. Bingham is option 1, 2, and 3 for the Trojans, so it's hard to get a good grasp on their potential without him playing, but this was still a good experience for this group.   Roland-Story (1-5) Wins: Carlisle (50-38) Losses: Treynor (59-34), Southeast Polk (52-42), Vinton-Shellsburg (40-24), Ballard (58-42), Center Point-Urbana (47-44)   The Norsemen went just 1-5, sure, but they were largely competitive against all bigger schools (except Treynor). Leading returning scorer [player_tooltip player_id='2754727' first='Luke' last='Thoreson'] was solid all weekend, scoring from all three levels, but I thought that junior-to-be forward [player_tooltip player_id='2906518' first='Eli' last='Van Hove'] was the highlight of the weekend for R-S. He's a strong, bouncy 6-5 big man who displayed impressive athleticism, some rim protection, and he was strong on the glass all weekend. If he's able to develop into the type of player who can reliably get a bucket when they dump it down to him, Roland-Story could be a surprise team in 2A this season.   Treynor (6-0) Wins: Roland-Story (59-34), Center Point-Urbana (55-38), Van Meter (52-38), Carlisle (66-46), Knoxville (55-36), Vinton-Shellsburg (52-43) Losses:   The Cardinals were one of the most impressive teams of the weekend, going undefeated and beating four Class 3A schools. With their top three scorers returning to a state tournament team, there are high expectations heading into 2025-26 for Treynor, who will enter the year as a top-5 team in the class. [player_tooltip player_id='1978103' first='Alec' last='Lovely'], [player_tooltip player_id='2413619' first='Corbin' last='Thien'], and [player_tooltip player_id='2886836' first='Ethan' last='Hill'] are the top returnees and each had solid weekends, but the real takeaway from the weekend was the play of the younger, less known players like [player_tooltip player_id='2523912' first='Kalob' last='Lovely'], Aiden Kellar, and Jude Mieska, who were all good as well. Their "Big 3" will be among the best in the state in 2A, but it will be the development of the players like Lovely, Kellar, and Mieska, who will ultimately determine just how far this group can go in March.   Van Meter (1-2) Wins: Southeast Polk (63-61) Losses: Ballard (68-41), Treynor (52-38)   The Bulldogs were handled fairly easily by both Ballard and Treynor, but they notched a strong win over 4A Southeast Polk. We watched them in their game against Treynor, where they got quality performances out of senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='2381204' first='Brody' last='Notz'], senior wing [player_tooltip player_id='2381239' first='Andon' last='Watson'], sophomore forward [player_tooltip player_id='2780740' first='Garrison' last='Thummel'], and freshman wing Keenan Lundy. I was really impressed by Lundy, a long, skilled wing with a good feel for the game. He has a chance to be a pretty impactful player very early in his high school career. As they always are, they're going to be well-coached, physically tough, and athletic. I think they have the looks of a team that will be balanced offensively, stingy defensively, and will be a thorn in the sides of whichever high-seeded team they end up being paired with in February.

Class 1A