Preseason All-Conference: Little Hawkeye
Player of the Year: 2018 Garrett Sturtz, Newton
A remarkably gifted two-way player, Sturtz nearly carried the Cardinals to a first round upset over Iowa City West last March at the state tournament. Blessed with great footwork and length, he’s a versatile scorer who just knows how to put the ball in the bucket. With Connor Gholson gone, this is entirely his team now, and he’s going to carry Newton to plenty of wins while putting up some incredible numbers.
First Team
2018 Garrett Sturtz, Newton (19.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 1.9 steals, 1.1 blocks, 134 FTM)
He was the best two-way player in the league last year, and he will be again this season. A highly talented scorer who can do so in a number of different ways, he also uses his length to make a major impact on the defensive end. The numbers that he’s going to put up this winter will be eye-popping.
2018 Luke Vaske, Norwalk (20.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 62 3PM, 112 FTM)
The leading returning scorer in the conference, Vaske averaged north of 20 points a game last year and figures to do so again. A talented combo guard capable of scoring in a multitude of ways, his aggressive attacking style allowed him to rank third in the league in free throws made last season, behind only Sturtz and Grinnell’s Cade McKnight.
2018 Jarad Kruse, Oskaloosa (14.1 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 54.8 FG%)
The Indians’ leading scorer, Kruse helped pace an efficient attack that shot better than 50% from the floor as a team. He does a majority of his damage inside the arc, but also proved capable of stepping out and hitting the occasional 3, making 20 of them last year at a 40.8% clip. He was Oskaloosa’s most consistent option last year, and he’ll help carry this team towards the top of the conference.
2018 Steve Borneman, Dallas Center-Grimes (12.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 50.0 FG%)
A lanky wing, Borneman is the Mustangs’ leading returning scorer and rebounder, and is the leading returning assist man in the league. An efficient scorer who contributes across the board, his scoring numbers should raise above the 15 point a game mark.
2020 Xavier Foster, Oskaloosa (7.5 points, 5.8 rebounds, 3.6 blocks, 51.9 FG%)
You could make a pretty solid argument to include Foster’s teammate Cole Henry here (or a few others on the second team for that matter), but we’re projecting significant improvement for the star sophomore on both ends of the floor. He led 3A in blocks by a wide margin last winter, and after a strong summer playing with Pure Prep and Team USA, we look for Foster’s ascension towards the top of Iowa high school basketball to begin this year.
Second Team
2019 Evan Gauger, Indianola
2020 Bowen Born, Norwalk
2019 Cole Henry, Oskaloosa
2018 Ethan Mitchell, Grinnell
2018 Spencer Tucker, Oskaloosa
Honorable Mentions
2018 Jordan Humphreys, Dallas Center-Grimes
2019 Quinn Vesey, Indianola
2019 Tyler Endres, Norwalk
2019 Nick DeJong, Pella
2018 Tanner DeKock, Oskaloosa
2018 Daniel Geistler, Norwalk