STATE TOURNAMENT: Friday Preview
4A Semifinal: No. 5 Valley (21-3) vs. No. 1 Pleasant Valley (23-1) — 1:30 The Tigers are coming off a hard-fought win against inter-city rival Dowling Catholic, and the Spartans are breezing into the tournament after their shellacking of No.…
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Continue Reading4A Semifinal: No. 5 Valley (21-3) vs. No. 1 Pleasant Valley (23-1) — 1:30
The Tigers are coming off a hard-fought win against inter-city rival Dowling Catholic, and the Spartans are breezing into the tournament after their shellacking of No. 8 seed Dubuque, Senior. Although Pleasant Valley looked dominant in game one — and for much of the season — they have not faced a team like Valley. The Tigers bring a trio of superstars to the table with Turner Scott, Quinton Curry, and Carlo Marble — and the three have a very capable supporting cast. Willl Carius and Carter Milam both double-doubled for Pleasant Valley earlier this week in their quarterfinal win — they’ll need to step-up again to win this one. The Spartans are the higher seed, but Valley is the favorite in this one.
Players to Watch:
Valley: Carlo Marble (8th in ’16), Turner Scott (13th in 16), Pete Economos (15th in ’16), Quinton Curry (5th in 2017), Charley Crowley (42nd in ’17),
Pleasant Valley: Will Carius (12th in ’16), Carter Milam (39th in ’16), John Czarnecki (145th in ’16)
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4A Semifinal: No. 6 Iowa City West vs. No. 7 Cedar Falls — 3:15
With the most talented team in the state, Iowa City West is in state title or bust mode this week. The Trojans, in particular Devontae Lane, seemed engaged during their near wire-to-wire triumph over Des Moines Hoover on Wednesday. They’ll need to stay focused to get by this Cedar Falls squad. The Tigers have been living a charmed life of late, first with a buzzer-beater to win their substate final, then literally a last second foul call sending Tra’Von Fagan to the line for game-winning free throws on Wednesday. That’s not to say the team is not supremely talented. AJ Green is a sophomore phenom at point guard, and his matchups vs. Connor McCaffery and Lane will be fun to watch. Tons of high-level Division I players will be on the court in this one.
Players to Watch
Iowa City West: Wali Parks (4th in ’16), Tanner Lohaus (5th in ’16), Alex Henderson (35th in ’16), Connor McCaffery (1st in ‘1), Devontae Lane (3rd in ’17), Patrick McCaffery (1st in ’19)
Cedar Falls: Tra’Von Fagan (17th in ’16), AJ Green (4th in ’17), TreyShawn Labeaux (24th in ’18)
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1A Final: No. 8 CB, St. Albert (17-9) vs. South O’Brien (24-3) — 6:05
So, we have the two bottom seeds playing each other in the title game, proof that seedings — specifically in the lower classes — mean very little in this tournament. We know that No. 8 seed St. Albert has looked like the best team in the 1A field so far this week, and it’s not close. South O’Brien brings an experienced team, and star-power with ubiquitous wing Damon Struve. One thing is for sure, the Wolverines will not go down without a fight. St. Albert will be favored to win, but this will be a dogfight.
Players to Watch
Council Bluffs, St. Albert: Travis Miller (224th in ’16), Matt Fagan (99th in ’18)
South O’ Brien: Damon Struve (140 in ’16)
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2A Final: No. 4 Cascade (22-3) vs. Western Christian (24-2) — 8:05
In today’s game a battle of bigs is rare — we can thank the Golden State Warriors for that. But a duel in the paint is exactly what we’ll have in this intriguing 2A final. Sioux Falls commit Devin Green has been mostly unchallenged, and subsequently dominant for Cascade this week. Dordt commit Josh Van Lingen posted the tournament’s only 20-20 performance when he smoked Anamosa for 23 points and 21 rebounds. The 6-foot-7 Green is more athletic, but the 6-foot-8 Van Lingen is bigger — keep your eyes around the basket in this one. Western Christian also features a cast of skilled and talented guards, quick and savvy — consider the Wolfpack the favorites in this one.
Players to Watch
Cascade, Western Dubuque: Devin Green (18th in ’16), Johnny Supple (23rd in ’18)
Western Christian, Hull: Josh Van Lingen (16th in ’16), Taylor Miedema (94th in ’16), Ben Gesink (106 in ’17)