Block’s Week 1 Roundup- Senior Performers

<p>It feels great to have high school hoops back in season...mostly. As we await the start for some school’s season to open, some schools did get to start their season this past week. In this piece I’d like to highlight the seniors who performed well throughout the week. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="796203" first="Hunter" last="Farr"], Winterset High School (2021)</strong></p> <p>To kick off the season, the Huskies played a senior-laden Creston team. Though it was close throughout the first half, Winterset ended up pulling away and earning the victory 78-57 thanks to a hot shooting night from [player_tooltip player_id="796203" first="Hunter" last="Farr"]. Farr connected on 50% of his 3pt shots, going 6/12 from the perimeter. His team has good success driving into the lane and kicking out to Farr who had put himself into good shooting positions. The 6’2 senior has to help the Huskies on the boards as well where he pulled down 4 rebounds against the Panthers. I was impressed with the way Farr shot the ball and the way his teammates made a point to get him the ball when he was hot. Through 2 games Farr is averaging 12.5 points per game, and shooting 43.8% from the 3pt line.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="964918" first="Colby" last="Burg"] &amp; [player_tooltip player_id="796171" first="Brance" last="Baker"], Creston High School (2021)</strong></p> <p>In the losing effort last Monday against Winterset, Creston had a couple seniors who I came away with impressed for different reasons. I’ll start with [player_tooltip player_id="964918" first="Colby" last="Burg"] who led his team in points, and through 2 games so far is averaging 18.5 points per game. Burg was 50% from the field in the game against Winterset, where he shot 3/6 from the 3pt line. Burg actively looked for his shot from the perimeter but also looked to attack the Huskies’ defense when there was an opening and did so with good effect. Highlighting [player_tooltip player_id="796171" first="Brance" last="Baker"] is not necessarily for his scoring production, but for the way he spreads the ball around and helps his team rebound. The 6’1 guard is leading his team in both rebounds and assists where he is averaging 3 assists and 6.5 rebounds through 2 games.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="964907" first="Isaac" last="Besh"] &amp; S[player_tooltip player_id="796154" first="Kyler" last="Matthias"], Denver High School (2021)</strong></p> <p>There were a lot of good games this past week and Denver vs Marion was one of them this past Tuesday. 86-81 being the final score in the Cyclones favor, as [player_tooltip player_id="964907" first="Isaac" last="Besh"] and S[player_tooltip player_id="796154" first="Kyler" last="Matthias"] combined for 47 points, making a total of 9 3pt baskets. Besh was also successful at getting into the lane and finishing at the rim converting 6 2pt baskets into 12 of his 26. Denver has high expectations going into the season as they are ranked #7 in our Prep Hoops team rankings in 2A, and these two will be big parts of that.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="796135" first="Bryce" last="Phelps"], Denver High School (2021)</strong></p> <p>I came into the Denver game never have seen Phelps but heard about him from past seasons, and I expected him to score the ball, but what I came away impressed with was the way he was a composed ball handler for the Cyclones and the way he got his teammates involved. Phelps did score 10 points for his team in the meeting with the Indians, but where he was most important was down the stretch taking care of the ball when Marion made a run at the lead.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="964866" first="Gage" last="Franck"] &amp; Garrett Wagner, Marion High School (2021)</strong></p> <p>On the losing end of the Denver-Marion matchup, these two players had a nice game. Franck is a 6’1 guard who scores the ball, starts the offense, and also helps out on the boards. Franck through 2 games is averaging 18.5 points, 6 assists, and 8.5 rebounds shooting on 48.3% FG and 45.5% 3pt line. In the game I saw against Denver, Franck was all over the court. Garrett Wagner was also good for the Indians at 6’6. He provided a good inside presence for his team shooting 71.4% FG and 11 points per game. These two, paired with Sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="956878" first="Brayson" last="Laube"] will be a tough out in Class 3A. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="964821" first="Marcus" last="Kelderman"], Boyden-Hull High School (2021)</strong></p> <p>Kelderman has been highlighted from this past summer and his performances with Showtime Hoopers, but Marcus has taken that momentum into the season as well. Though I wasn’t able to watch the Comets’ first game, I have seen a highlight of his going around. In the game on Friday, I was able to watch against Central Lyon, Kelderman was good at driving the ball. He made a pivotal play late in the game to bring the score even where he got out on the break and finished an and-1 play. The defending state champions will need Kelderman to continue scoring in order to repeat.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="964832" first="Caden" last="Rehmeier"] &amp; CJ Kuehl, Indianola High School (2021)</strong></p> <p>On Saturday, Indianola took on the Lynx from CB Abraham Lincoln at home and this was another close game that came down to the final seconds. [player_tooltip player_id="964832" first="Caden" last="Rehmeier"] was a big reason the Indians came back to make it a close game. He was 4/5 from the perimeter and shot 75% from the floor. Rehmeier has been a good piece for the Indians through 3 games with 14.5 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. CJ Kuehl was also a good proponent for ending the game with 6 points her was efficient and played good defense on the Lynx’s guards. </p> <p><strong>Noah Sandbothe, Coucil Bluffs Abraham Lincoln (2021)</strong></p> <p>A player who I hadn’t seen before but ended the game against Indianola with 12 points and 10 rebounds and a double-double. With his big 6’6 frame, Sandbothe got good, deep positioning on the Indians defenders and was good at finishing around the rim. His ability to corral rebounds helped his team on both ends of the floor and wore the defense down when he was in the game. If he can provide the inside presence he did on Saturday the Lynx will be competitive in Class 4A. Sandbothe is averaging 11 points and 7.5 rebounds so far this season through 2 games. </p>