Substate Preview: 1A-8

<!-- wp:image {"id":2341978,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/02/1A-15.png"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/02/1A-15.png?w=609" alt="" class="wp-image-2341978" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>District 15</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The favorite: Madrid </strong>has been ranked within the top 3 in the class for a large majority of the season, and for good reason. They enter postseason play hot, winners of 11 straight, and that includes really good wins over Panorama, Des Moines Christian, Earlham, and ACGC. After getting a taste of the state tournament in a narrow quarterfinal loss to North Linn last season, the Tigers have been on a mission this year and have to be considered a heavy favorite in this district. They're led by a trio of juniors - [player_tooltip player_id='1174816' first='Toryn' last='Severson'] (22.7, 51.3 FG%), [player_tooltip player_id='2397210' first='Brody' last='Buck'] (17.1, 50.9 FG%), and [player_tooltip player_id='2398087' first='Fabian' last='Ortiz-Alaniz'] (16.2, 7.0 assists). All three are good perimeter shooters who can play with or without the ball in their hands. Each is capable of creating looks for themselves or their teammates, and they have great chemistry. Severson is the best player in the district, and you could argue that Buck and Ortiz-Alaniz are the second and third best players in the group. They've swept potential district final opponent Panorama and have played a significantly tougher schedule than Coon Rapids-Bayard, the #2 seed.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The biggest threat: </strong>The #2 seed in the district is <strong>Coon Rapids-Bayard</strong>, a solid defensive team that is allowing 47.1 points a game. They hold solid wins over Exira-EHK (twice) and ACGC, and have one of the best players in the substate in sophomore forward [player_tooltip player_id='1765521' first='Cal' last='Heydon'] (20.5, 8.8 rebounds), a 6-5/6-6 do-it-all combo forward who can score inside and out, defend multiple positions, and create plays for his teammates. Senior forward Cade Behrens (13.0, 6.2 rebounds, 41.8 3P%) is a floor-stretching big who can help provide space for Heydon to operate, and freshman guard [player_tooltip player_id='2906452' first='Caden' last='Oswald'] (7.7, 4.0 assists) has proven himself to be a reliable ball-handler. Getting the semifinal at home, where they are 11-1 this season, is a huge boost for the Crusaders. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The dark horse: Panorama</strong> is actually the higher ranked team by BC Moore's power rankings in comparison to Coon Rapids-Bayard, but having to go on the road for the semifinal bumps them down to the "dark horse" category. The Panthers are a high-powered offensively team that is led by seniors [player_tooltip player_id='1256305' first='Braylon' last='Dawes'] (16.6, 3.9 assists) and [player_tooltip player_id='1587394' first='Maddox' last='Hammerstrom'] 912.8, 5.6 assists), and freshman Trey Boetcher (11.1). They're averaging nearly 66 points a game and while they give up quite a few points defensively, they play a style that forces turnovers and they could make things interesting with their athleticism. They were swept by Madrid, but those losses were by 6 and 15 points, so they know that they <em>can</em> play with the Tigers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline">Players to watch<br></span>2025 [player_tooltip player_id='1174816' first='Toryn' last='Severson'], Madrid<br>2025 [player_tooltip player_id='2397210' first='Brody' last='Buck'], Madrid<br>2025 [player_tooltip player_id='2398087' first='Fabian' last='Ortiz-Alaniz'], Madrid<br>2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1765521' first='Cal' last='Heydon'], Coon Rapids-Bayard<br>2024 Cade Behrens, Coon Rapids-Bayard<br>2024 Ryan Bower, CAM<br>2026 Collin Bowe, CAM<br>2025 Chase Jahde, CAM<br>2024 [player_tooltip player_id='1256305' first='Braylon' last='Dawes'], Panorama<br>2024 [player_tooltip player_id='1587394' first='Maddox' last='Hammerstrom'], Panorama<br>2027 Trey Boetcher, Panorama<br>2025 Bode Wyman, Griswold<br>2025 Peyton Cook, Griswold<br>2024 [player_tooltip player_id='2204868' first='Edward' last='Miller'], Audubon<br>2025 [player_tooltip player_id='2630703' first='Jonathan' last='Bergmeier'], Glidden-Ralston<br>2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2754681' first='Trevon' last='Keely'], Paton-Churdan<br>2025 Pierre Glenn, Woodward Academy</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":2341979,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"media"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/02/1A-16.png"><img src="https://prephoops.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2024/02/1A-16.png?w=617" alt="" class="wp-image-2341979" /></a></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>District 16</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The favorite: Exira-EHK</strong> is the #2 seed in the district, but given the fact that they've swept top-seed Woodbine, we're making the Spartans the favorite in this district. Both of those wins over the Tigers came by double digits (16 and 11 points). Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='1587298' first='Cash' last='Emgarten'] (17.5) and Aiden Flathers (13.6, 48.0 3P%) lead a deep stable of scoring threats for a Spartans team that ranks 11th in scoring offense, putting up 69.2 points a game. Emgarten is a tough, physical guard who is at his best when he's playing downhill and attacking the rim, while Flathers is the team's most dynamic 3-point shooter, burying 49 3s this season at an extremely efficient clip. Jaiden Pettepier (7.3, 43.3 3P%) and Josh Nelson (10.9, 38.9 3P%) provide additional perimeter shooting, and Jackson Radcliff (9.8, 7.0 rebounds) has been strong in the paint.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The biggest threat: Woodbine</strong> is the district's top seed, and for good reason, as they enter postseason play with a 18-2 record (have a game against 4-15 St. Albert Thursday night, so probably 19-2). They've beaten everyone on the schedule outside of Exira-EHK, and have largely been dominant in those games, with only two games decided by single digits. This is a young team, with two juniors, two sophomores, and a freshman making up their top five scorers. [player_tooltip player_id='1951827' first='Carter' last='Gruver'] (20.9, 4.3 assists), a skilled and quick junior guard, leads the team in scoring and assists, while freshman wing [player_tooltip player_id='1977076' first='Landon' last='Blum'] (13.6) is a high-upside, athletic wing who can score from all three levels. [player_tooltip player_id='2413631' first='Jax' last='Pryor'] (10.1), [player_tooltip player_id='1951828' first='Carson' last='Kelley'] (9.7), and [player_tooltip player_id='2413639' first='Brody' last='Pryor'] (8.2) are the other players of note here. The Tigers can score in bunches, but they'll need to get over the hump against Exira if they want to reach the district final.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The dark horse(s): </strong>There are two potential sleepers in the district, and they're sleepers for different reasons. We'll start with <strong>Riverside</strong>, who has a dominant scorer in [player_tooltip player_id='1171690' first='Grady' last='Jeppesen'] (25.1, 7.4 rebounds), a three-level scorer in the backcourt who can take over a game and drop 35 on any given night. Having that type of explosiveness makes any team dangerous. The other team is <strong>Tri-Center</strong>, with senior big man Christian Dahir (11.5, 10.5 rebounds, 3.0 blocks) providing the type of size and rim protection that teams in the district could struggle with. Freshman guard [player_tooltip player_id='2420637' first='AJ' last='Harder'] (16.4, 5.2 assists, 41.7 3P%) is also a skilled scorer who can get hot from deep and carry this team for stretches.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline">Players to watch<br></span>2025 [player_tooltip player_id='1951827' first='Carter' last='Gruver'], Woodbine<br>2027 [player_tooltip player_id='1977076' first='Landon' last='Blum'], Woodbine<br>2025 [player_tooltip player_id='1951828' first='Carson' last='Kelley'], Woodbine<br>2024 [player_tooltip player_id='1587298' first='Cash' last='Emgarten'], Exira-EHK<br>2024 Aiden Flathers, Exira-EHK<br>2025 Josh Nelson, Exira-EHK<br>2024 [player_tooltip player_id='1171690' first='Grady' last='Jeppesen'], Riverside<br>2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1765504' first='Nicolas' last='Ballenger'], St. Albert<br>2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2420637' first='AJ' last='Harder'], Tri-Center<br>2024 Christian Dahir, Tri-Center<br>2024 Tony Racine, Essex</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>SUBSTATE FINAL PREDICTION</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Madrid vs. Exira-EHK</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Madrid has been on a mission to get back to the state tournament and make some noise after getting a taste of it last season. [player_tooltip player_id='1174816' first='Toryn' last='Severson'] is the best player on the floor, and the skilled 2025 class of the Tigers makes enough plays to lead <strong>Madrid </strong>back to Des Moines.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->