Is Surging Calamus-Wheatland a Threat in Class 1A?

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Stealing this idea from the great Ryan James of Prep Hoops Minnesota, we're taking a look at three teams in Class 1A who are trending upwards, and three teams in the class who have hit a bit of a rough stretch of late. </em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Three Up</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>MMCRU: </strong>The Royals have gotten off to a dominant 14-0 start this season, winning games by an average of 31 points on the strength of the #7 scoring offense (71.5) and #7 scoring defense (39.9) in Class 1A. The Royals have seven wins over teams with records above .500 and have a real chance to go undefeated in the regular season, with the biggest remaining test being a showdown against 2A powerhouse Western Christian on February 2. Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='3041731' first='Wyatt' last='Alesch'] (14.4) leads a trio of players averaging in double figures, joined by [player_tooltip player_id='3255100' first='Kamden' last='Bork'] (14.3) and Michael Schmillen (11.0), and this is a group that shares the ball exceptionally well, averaging over 22 assists per game. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Bishop Garrigan: </strong>Fresh off a win over previous #1 St. Edmond, the Golden Bears find themselves atop the Class 1A IHSAA rankings. They've won 13 games in a row, and their lone loss came to Western Christian in a game that they controlled a majority of the time. Junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='2243086' first='Michael' last='Joyce'] (16.5, 4.4 assists) leads a trio of players averaging in double figures, joined by [player_tooltip player_id='2731752' first='Amaury' last='Thomas'] (15.1, 12.4 rebounds) and [player_tooltip player_id='1781875' first='Carter' last='Schwab'] (13.7, 5.6 assists). An athletic, long, physical team that pounds the glass hard, they're pulling down 37.6 rebounds a game, 10th in the class. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Calamus-Wheatland: The Warriors sit at #7 in BC Moore's power rankings system on the strength of a +31.4 point differential. They have the 5th ranked scoring offense (71.9) and 8th scoring defense (40.6), with their lone loss coming by three at the hands of Marquette Catholic, one of the best teams in the class. The question is, however, whether or not this group is for real. The best win on the resume is probably the 15-point win over Maquoketa Valley. Senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='2887794' first='Chase' last='Klatt'], averaging 20 points and 4.5 assists per game, is the headliner, but this is a group that is deep with scoring options. They'll get a chance to avenge the Marquette Catholic loss on February 3rd, when the Defenders come to Wheatland. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Three Down</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Earlham:</strong> The Cardinals got off to a sterling 7-0 start but have lost six of their last eight games under new coach Austin Ash. The good news is that a majority of those losses have come to 2A or 3A schools, going 1-2 against 1A schools in this stretch of games. Led by senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='2479688' first='Griffin' last='Messer'] and junior [player_tooltip player_id='3343988' first='Brady' last='Reynolds'], the Cards average more than 26 3-point attempts per game, a style that invites volatility. Playing in the 2A-3A heavy West Central will prepare the Cardinals well for postseason play, so even though they'll probably take a few more lumps as the regular season winds down, this is going to be a team that teams in 1A don't want to see in their postseason bracket. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Ankeny Christian Academy: </strong>The Eagles have a nice record, sitting at 13-4 at the time of this writing, but they just got blown out by St. Albert, 91-57, and haven't really been very competitive against the four best teams on the schedule. They aren't tested in the Bluegrass Conference, so these non-conference games against the likes of Pella Christian, Lynnville-Sully, and St. Albert serve as a litmus test for them. [player_tooltip player_id='3344417' first='Marcus' last='Pedersen'] leads three in double figures at 15.6 points per game. They'll need to find a way to get some stops against the top-tier teams on the schedule as they head into postseason play. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Riverside: </strong>The Bulldogs have lost five of their last six games, with the lone win coming against a 5-win CAM team. Despite the losses, there is some reason for optimism, as several of the setbacks have come against really good 2A teams, and they've been pretty competitive in those games. Allowing just 51 points per game, and with [player_tooltip player_id='2853953' first='Peyton' last='Amdor'], [player_tooltip player_id='3218251' first='Cole' last='Jeppesen'], and [player_tooltip player_id='2854701' first='Owen' last='Fenner'] each averaging in double figures, the 'Dogs could still be a team in 1A capable of making postseason noise.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->