STATE TOURNAMENT: Thursday Preview
3A Semifinal: #1 Norwalk (22-3) vs. #5 Ballard (19-6), 2:00 pm
Analysis: Norwalk got off to a slow start against Harlan, but eventually got Bowen Born Bowen Born 5'11" | PG Norwalk | 2020 State #401 Nation IA going and rolled to a 72-37 win in the quarterfinals. Ballard scored just two points in the first quarter of their quarterfinal game against Center Point-Urbana, but won the fourth quarter 19-6, scoring the last eight points of the game to advance to the semifinals.
These teams met in the season opener, a Norwalk win, 79-52. They also met in the quarterfinals last season, an 81-39 Norwalk win. The speed of Born and the rest of the Warriors is just not a good matchup for the Bombers, who have great size and physicality in the paint with Kale Krogh and Connor Drew Connor Drew 6'6" | PF Ballard | 2021 State IA . They’ll need huge games from that duo, and for guard Ashton Hermann to have a big scoring day, if they want to keep pace with the powerful Norwalk attack.
Players to watch
Norwalk:
Bowen Born
Bowen
Born
5'11" | PG
Norwalk | 2020
State
#401
Nation
IA
(37.5 points, 96 assists, 52 steals, 55.9 FG%, 101 3PM, 42.8 3P%, 199-229 FT, 86.9 FT%), Tyler Johnson (14.7 points, 6.0 rebounds, 46.4 3P%)
Ballard:
Connor Drew
Connor
Drew
6'6" | PF
Ballard | 2021
State
IA
(18.3 points, 7.7 rebounds, 52.5 FG%, 40.4 3P%), Ashton Hermann (15.8 points, 66 steals), Mason Murphy (7.0 points, 132 assists), Kale Krogh (7.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 45 blocks)
Our pick: Norwalk 77, Ballard 54
Wright
3A Semifinal: #7 Clear Creek-Amana (20-5) vs. #6 Sergeant Bluff-Luton (15-10), 3:45 pm
Analysis: Clear Creek-Amana was impressive on both ends of the floor in their quarterfinal win over conference foe Mount Vernon. Known for their offensive prowess, it was their work against Mustangs star Keaton Kutcher Keaton Kutcher 6'2" | SG Mount Vernon | 2021 State IA that really stood out, holding him to 4-20 from the floor. The Clippers are playing with a lot of confidence right now, and have a versatile, quick attack with a lot of players who can drive and kick out to open shooters. They’ll need to knock down shots against a Warriors team that is filled with length and size.
Sergeant Bluff-Luton dominated their quarterfinal win over Pella, with their incredible size and length really bothering the Pella scorers. Daniel Wright Daniel Wright 6'8" | PF Sergeant Bluff-Luton | 2020 State IA , a 6-8 forward who can stretch the floor, is the top player for the Warriors. He’ll have a tough matchup with TJ Bollers TJ Bollers 6'5" | PF Clear-Creek-Amana | 2021 IA guarding him. Bollers has been great on the defensive end of the floor this season, but has a tendency to get into foul trouble. If he gets into foul trouble, SB-L will have their way inside and on the glass.
CCA should find a way to keep this one close. They’re playing with a tremendous amount of confidence, but this is a difficult matchup for them.
Players to watch
Clear Creek-Amana:
Christian Withrow
Christian
Withrow
6'1" | CG
Clear Creek-Amana | 2021
State
IA
(15.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 53.6 FG%), Tyler Schrepfer (11.5 points, 74 assists, 57 3PM, 45.2 3P%), Nick O’Connor (11.1 points, 53 3PM, 41.4 3P%),
TJ Bollers
TJ
Bollers
6'5" | PF
Clear-Creek-Amana | 2021
IA
(6.4 points, 6.3 rebounds, 48 blocks)
Sergeant Bluff-Luton:
Daniel Wright
Daniel
Wright
6'8" | PF
Sergeant Bluff-Luton | 2020
State
IA
(14.8 points, 10.0 rebounds, 86 assists),
Jake Layman
Jake
Layman
6'7" | SF
Sergeant-Bluff Luton | 2021
State
IA
(11.0 points), Deric Fitzgerald (10.4 points, 44.4 3P%)
Our pick: Sergeant Bluff-Luton 62, Clear Creek-Amana 57
DeVries
4A Semifinal: #1 Ankeny Centennial (24-1) vs. #4 Waukee (22-2), 6:30 pm
Analysis: Top-seeded Centennial survived a real scare from Davenport North, as the Wildcats had a 3 at the buzzer to win, but it hit the front rim and fell short. Waukee was in control for the whole game against North Scott before a furious late rally from the Lancers fell short.
These CIML foes met on January 28, with Centennial winning 78-70, at Waukee. In that game, Tucker DeVries Tucker DeVries 6'7" | SF Waukee | 2021 State #123 Nation IA scored 36 points on 11-17 shooting, and Payton Sandfort Payton Sandfort 6'7" | SF Waukee | 2021 State #138 Nation IA had 16 on 4-14 shooting. The Warriors struggled to defend the Jaguars big men, and it led to 42 free throw attempts from Centennial, compared to 19 from Waukee. It’s hard to anticipate that big of a free throw disparity happening again. Waukee shot the lights out in the quarterfinals, going 10-19 from behind the arc, and showing no signs of any issues adjusting to the shooting backdrop at Wells Fargo.
In a game with a more even free throw discrepancy, Waukee is probably the better team. Tucker DeVries Tucker DeVries 6'7" | SF Waukee | 2021 State #123 Nation IA is the best player on the floor and carries the Warriors to the championship game.
Players to watch
Ankeny Centennial:
Cody McCullough
Cody
McCullough
6'7" | PF
Ankeny Centennial | 2020
State
IA
(13.9 points, 11.3 rebounds, 70.6 FG%, 59 blocks), Jaron Crews (13.7 points, 111 assists),
Micah Johnson
Micah
Johnson
6'7" | SF
Ankeny Centennial | 2020
State
IA
(12.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, 57.5 FG%)
Waukee:
Tucker DeVries
Tucker
DeVries
6'7" | SF
Waukee | 2021
State
#123
Nation
IA
(21.8 points, 7.9 rebounds, 113 assists, 57.4 FG%, 73 3PM, 50.0 3P%),
Payton Sandfort
Payton
Sandfort
6'7" | SF
Waukee | 2021
State
#138
Nation
IA
(19.6 points, 9.0 rebounds, 63 3PM, 46.0 3P%)
Our pick: Waukee 72, Centennial 65
Wolf
4A Semifinal: #2 Cedar Falls (22-2) vs. #6 Ankeny (19-5), 8:15 pm
Analysis: Ankeny guard Braxton Bayless Braxton Bayless 6'1" | PG Ankeny | 2020 State IA was the talk of the tournament in their first round win, dropping 41 points and 10 rebounds against Iowa City West. Cedar Falls grinded out a win over Dowling Catholic in a superbly played game, getting a steal in the final 30 seconds for a game-winning layup.
The two-time defending champion Tigers are deep and talented, and should have a better chance at defending Bayless than West did. Another key issue that West ran into in the quarterfinals was that they just didn’t have any guards who were comfortable taking the open looks that Ankeny was giving them. That’s not an issue with Cedar Falls. Landon Wolf Landon Wolf 6'5" | CG Cedar Falls | 2021 State IA and Josh Ollendieck Josh Ollendieck 6'3" | CG Cedar Falls | 2020 State IA can really fill it up from deep, and they should be able to score against the Hawks defense. Unless Bayless has another 40 point game in him, it’s hard to see Cedar Falls falling here.
Players to watch
Cedar Falls:
Landon Wolf
Landon
Wolf
6'5" | CG
Cedar Falls | 2021
State
IA
(11.7 points, 50 3PM, 44.2 3P%),
Josh Ollendieck
Josh
Ollendieck
6'3" | CG
Cedar Falls | 2020
State
IA
(11.4 points, 51 3PM, 41.8 3P%),
Chase Courbat
Chase
Courbat
6'9" | C
Cedar Falls | 2021
State
IA
(10.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, 55 blocks),
Trey Campbell
Trey
Campbell
6'4" | PG
Cedar Falls | 2022
State
IA
(5.8 points, 106 assists)
Ankeny:
Braxton Bayless
Braxton
Bayless
6'1" | PG
Ankeny | 2020
State
IA
(22.9 points, 54.9 FG%, 84 assists), Jaxon Smith (14.9 points)
Our pick: Cedar Falls 66, Ankeny 59