Tuesday (1/27) Games to Watch

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>3A #10 Center Point-Urbana (11-3) at 3A #6 Solon (14-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Two of the hottest teams in 3A meet up here, with CPU entering this game on a five-game winning streak, while Solon has been perfect so far, winning games by an average of 25 points. The Spartans are headlined by junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='2530471' first='Tate' last='McCollum'], son of new Iowa head coach Ben McCollum. Tate is a flamethrower, averaging north of four made 3-pointers per game, and he's shooting it at a 40.3% clip from 3-point land while averaging 21.2 points per game. He's joined by a slew of great athletes, each of whom is capable of stepping up and being a secondary scorer on any given night in juniors [player_tooltip player_id='2906429' first='Grant' last='Gordon'] (8.9), [player_tooltip player_id='2906433' first='Maddox' last='Kelley'] (7.9), and Simon Einwalter (5.4), senior [player_tooltip player_id='3219739' first='Tanner' last='Heims'] (7.4), and sophomore Luke Merrick (5.1). The Spartans are deep, athletic, and have really been buoyed by the addition of McCollum, giving them a go-to scorer.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>CPU has a more balanced attack, with five players averaging between 7.3 and 14.6 points per game, led by do-it-all wing [player_tooltip player_id='1765520' first='Cooper' last='Grimm']. Grimm is one of the most under-the-radar players in the state, a 6-3 wing who controls the game on both ends of the floor with his length, IQ, and talent. He's averaging 14.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 4.8 assists per game, all tops on the team. [player_tooltip player_id='2886825' first='Cayle' last='Estling'] (10.1, 43.1 3P%) leads the rest of the bunch, joined by [player_tooltip player_id='3219730' first='Lucas' last='Lopata'], [player_tooltip player_id='2413508' first='Kinnick' last='Covington'], and Noah Estling. The newly-ranked Stormin' Pointers are still looking for a statement win, and after playing the Spartans to a three-point game before the break, they should enter this one with plenty of confidence.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Prairie (8-3) at 4A #1 Cedar Falls (13-0)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Prairie entered the year with high expectations, coming off a 19-win year and bringing a majority of the roster back. They got off to a slow start, dropping their first two, but they've won eight of their last nine games heading into this one. [player_tooltip player_id='2023719' first='Will' last='Wehr'] (12.4) isn't shooting it from 3 as well as he's accustomed to, 31.5% from distance, but when he gets it rolling, he's one of the state's elite marksmen. It's only a matter of time before the shot starts to drop in bunches. He leads a balanced Hawks team in scoring, joined in double figures by juniors [player_tooltip player_id='2419754' first='Quantae' last='Alexander'] (12.0), [player_tooltip player_id='2419791' first='Austin' last='Joens'] (11.2), and [player_tooltip player_id='2419840' first='Cayden' last='Larson'] (10.9). The Hawks are putting up 71.5 points per game, 3rd in 4A in scoring, but they'll find Cedar Falls' defense, 3rd in the class at just 44.6 points per game allowed, to be a tougher nut to crack.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Tigers have been a juggernaut so far this season, winning games by an average of 25 points per game behind the 4th-ranked scoring offense (69.6) and 3rd scoring defense in 4A. Senior forward [player_tooltip player_id='1765553' first='William' last='Gerdes'] (20.8, 72.8 FG%) and senior wing [player_tooltip player_id='1777914' first='Jaydon' last='Kimbrough'] (18.9, 46.1 3P%) are the headliners of a deep, talented, and remarkably efficient offensive attack that is shooting 57.5% from the floor as a team. They share the ball extremely well, have a ton of different ways to beat you, and are so well-coached and disciplined on both ends of the floor that they're going to make you beat them. They aren't going to beat themselves.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>4A #5 Senior (12-1) at 3A #7 Xavier (9-4)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The lone blemish on Senior's resume to date is a 3-point loss to Ames at the Crossover Classic. Outside of that, the Rams haven't really been tested, with only two games decided by single digits - a season-opening win over Brookfield Central (WI), 63-54, and a Friday night win over rival Wahlert Catholic, 69-67. Senior forward [player_tooltip player_id='1172887' first='Tevin' last='Schultz'], averaging 24.3 points per game on 68-47-73 shooting, paces a Rams offense that has been one of the most efficient in the state. Fellow seniors [player_tooltip player_id='1765555' first='Drake' last='Medinger'] (15.6) and [player_tooltip player_id='1765536' first='Cooper' last='Porter'] (12.4, 5.9 assists) join Schultz in double digits and have really been the only three reliable scoring threats this season. This is a group that shares the ball really well (17.7 assists, 7.8 turnovers) and has been stifling on the defensive end, with their role players buying into that end of the floor at a high level.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Xavier has won two in a row after losing four of six out of the holiday break. The Saints are a senior-laden group, led by [player_tooltip player_id='1978144' first='Zander' last='Murray'] (18.6), [player_tooltip player_id='1765554' first='AJ' last='Evans'] (10.4, 8.0 rebounds), and [player_tooltip player_id='1361499' first='Lorenzo' last='Pino'] (9.7). Murray is the team's top offensive weapon, a dangerous player off both the dribble and the catch who can get hot from 3 and get to the bucket off the dribble. Evans, a James Madison commit, is a long, athletic forward who protects the paint at a high level and can score efficiently around the rim, and Pino is the cerebral floor general who gets his teammates involved and shoots it well from 3. Look for the Saints to throw some junk defensive looks at Schultz in an effort to slow him down.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>4A #7 Urbandale (7-4) at 4A #2 Waukee Northwest (12-1)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Don't let those four losses on Urbandale's resume fool you - those losses came at the hands of Dowling Catholic (#3 team in 4A, twice), Northwest (#2), and Waukee (#4). So four losses to top four teams in the state, and the Waukee and most recent Dowling loss were both very close games. The J-Hawks have gotten great production out of a trio of senior wings - [player_tooltip player_id='1978111' first='Jake' last='Pargeon'] (17.5, 52.4 FG%), [player_tooltip player_id='1978101' first='Quentin' last='Teeter'] (16.1, 38.2 3P%), and [player_tooltip player_id='1950542' first='Davis' last='Hardersen'] (14.9, 41.7 3P%). All three provide size, length, and shotmaking on the perimeter, and all three will need to be great if they're going to upset the Wolves here.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Northwest has the most talented starting five in the state, led by the pair of Big Ten commits - [player_tooltip player_id='1978099' first='Colin' last='Rice'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1643192' first='Landon' last='Davis']. That tandem is averaging a combined 35.5 points, 19.6 rebounds, 7.6 assists, 3.7 steals, and 5.5 blocks, and with their combination of size, length, athleticism, and IQ, it's really tough to score against this group. Rice, a Nebraska commit, is a 6-8 wing who can score from anywhere at an efficient clip, and Davis, an Illinois pledge, is one of the state's elite shot blockers. The talent doesn't end there, however. Sophomore guard [player_tooltip player_id='2478747' first='Nash' last='Kooken'], averaging just north of 10 points per game, has offers from Arizona State and Oregon. Senior wing [player_tooltip player_id='1756989' first='Isaiah' last='Oliver'] (9.5, 5.5 assists) is the fifth leading scorer and is an elite athlete headed to Iowa to play wide receiver, and junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='2419793' first='Mack' last='Heitland'] (9.9) is one of the best quarterback prospects in the Midwest, and is a knockdown shooter. Urbandale will have their hands full with this group, loaded with scoring threats.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline">Others to watch<br></span>2A #7 Union (13-1) at East Marshall (10-4)<br>Norwalk (9-4) at 2A #9 Pella Christian (9-5)<br>Ridge View (14-2) at 2A #2 Kuemper Catholic (13-3)<br>MOC-Floyd Valley (11-3) at 2A #6 Western Christian (10-3)<br>3A #2 Storm Lake (12-1) at Cherokee (10-2)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->