Conference Preview: Rolling Valley

The Teams Ar-We-Va (6-17): The Rockets had a down year after a fantastic six-year run that saw them averaging 21.5 wins a year. Look for them to rebound this year with their top five, and 11 of their top 12, scorers returning. Will Ragaller (15.6) is the standout scorer here, and if he can become more efficient, he could have a huge junior year. This group struggled to score, shooting just 30.8% as a team from the floor, so that needs to improve in a big way. Junior forward Cooper Kock (7.0, 10.0 rebounds) controls the glass, and this group should be solid defensively. If they can improve on the offensive end, they will see their win total skyrocket back up to well above .500. Boyer Valley (20-3): The Bulldogs ran off 18 straight wins following a one-point season-opening loss to CAM. A pair of double-figure scorers graduated, but they bring back three of their top five scorers from that group, led by senior guard Gavin Reineke (12.1). With the graduations of Lucas Berens and Dylan Berens, Reineke will need to become the go-to scorer, a role he should be just fine in. Junior guard Jaidan TenEyck (8.6) led the team in assists last year and is also back, giving the ’Dogs the best backcourt in the conference. CAM (19-5): The Cougars five losses last year came by an average of six points a game. An extremely balanced team last season, they had seven players who averaged between 6.8 and 10.2 points a game, and four of them return, making CAM the favorite to win the league. Connor McKee (10.1) is the leading returning scorer, but Colby Rich (8.6), Ethan Arp (8.1) and Lane Spieker (6.8) are all solid players, and any of that quartet can lead the team in scoring on a given night. This group should be balanced again, strong on the defensive end and they limit mistakes better than most other teams in the league. Coon Rapids-Bayard (13-10): The Crusaders won eight of nine games in the middle of the year, including an upset win over CAM, but they struggled down the stretch, going just 2-5 in their last seven games. Junior guard [player_tooltip player_id="962664" first="Gabe" last="Obert"] (13.4) is back, as is fellow junior Tanner Oswald (9.5), the team’s top two scorers from last year. They lose quite a few depth pieces, with four key seniors from last year’s team graduating, but the Obert-Oswald duo will be one of the best tandems in the conference, and should keep them competitive. Exira-EHK (11-11): The bad news for the Spartans is that they lost [player_tooltip player_id="956045" first="Creighton" last="Nelson"] to graduation. Nelson averaged 20.9 points and 10.2 rebounds last year, so he’s a huge hole to fill. The good news is that the next four scorers from last year’s team return, led by senior forward Tyler Petersen (12.2), a do-it-all wing who led the team in assists last year and will be asked to become the team’s primary scorer and facilitator. Sophomores Easton Nelson (5.3) and Trey Petersen (3.9) gained valuable experience last year and should be impact players this year. Glidden-Ralston (6-15): Brigham Daniel (11.7) returns as the team's go-to scorer after leading the team in assists last year and finishing second in scoring. Caden Smith (6.2) and Karter Kennebeck (3.2) are the only other returnees with significant experience, so there will be a lot of new faces filling in key roles for the Wildcats. Paton-Churdan (5-17): The Rockets ranked 115th in 1A defensively last year, allowing 59.6 points a game. That number will need to improve this year if they want to win more games. They lost two of their top three scorers to graduation, but everyone else is back, led by senior wing Connor Brus (11.2), who will step into the primary scoring role. Joe Carey (7.1) and Bradyn Smith (6.9) are experienced guards, but this group needs to take better care of the ball after having three times more turnovers than assists last year. West Harrison (10-12): Three of the top four scorers from last year’s team graduated, leaving sophomore forward Sage Evans (8.0, 8.5 rebounds) as the top returnee for the Hawkeyes. Fellow sophomores Mason King (6.7) and Koleson Evans (2.5) saw significant time last year, which will benefit this program moving forward. Woodbine (13-11): The Tigers upset Boyer Valley in the postseason last year, and seven of their 11 losses came by 10 or less, so they were largely competitive. Leading scorer Dylan Hoefer (13.6) is back, and they bring back three of their top four scorers overall. Hoefer also led the team in rebounding at 7.2 a game. [player_tooltip player_id="796145" first="Layne" last="Pryor"] (9.0) is a solid athlete on the wing, and Cory Bantam (7.2) should have the primary ball-handling role. This group didn’t shoot the ball very well from 3 last year, and if they can improve in that area, they could be a dangerous group.   Projected Order of Finish 1. CAM 2. Boyer Valley 3. Woodbine 4. Coon Rapids-Bayard 5. Exira-EHK 6. Ar-We-Va 7. West Harrison 8. Glidden-Ralston 9. Paton-Churdan Analysis: CAM was very balanced last year and returns a lot of pieces from that group, while Boyer Valley lost a good chunk of their scoring production. The league will come down to those schools' head-to-head meetings.   Preseason Player of the Year Connor McKee, CAM (2021): 10.1 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.0 steals, 53.8 FG% McKee is the top returning scorer for what we project to be the league's best team. He has the ability to impact the game on both ends of the floor and should put up strong numbers for a good CAM team. Players to watch Dylan Hoefer, Woodbine (2022) Will Ragaller, Ar-We-Va (2022) Cooper Kock, Ar-We-Va (2022) Gavin Reineke, Boyer Valley (2021) Sage Evans, West Harrison (2023) Connor Brus, Paton-Churdan (2021) Connor McKee, CAM (2021) [player_tooltip player_id="962664" first="Gabe" last="Obert"], Coon Rapids-Bayard (2022) Tyler Petersen, Exira-EHK (2021)