Iowa’s 2017 ABCs (A-M)
It was an eventful year for Iowa high school hoops and its prospects. From January until now, we’ve been tracking the hoops happenings in the state. Being that the new year is upon us, we reflected back — alphabetically, cus why not — on the busy year behind us.
AJ Green: It was a big year for the smooth Cedar Falls guard, he picked up offers from Minnesota, Iowa State, Nebraska, Clemson, Virginia and others before committing to Northern Iowa, where his dad, Kyle Green, is an assistant coach.
Barnstormers: It was a statement year for the Barnstormers, which is without a doubt one of the more renowned programs in the country. The 16U squad won the adidas Gauntlet.
Carton: The breakout player of the year in Iowa, without a doubt, was Bettendorf point guard DJ Carton. The 6’1 2019 came into 2017 with zero offers, and comes out of it with 13 D1 offers.
Dish: As in North Linn junior point guard Jake Hilmer starting his 2017-2018 season dishing it out to his teammates more that we’ve ever seen. He’s averaging 13.3 assists per game this season.
Efficiency: Referring to St. Edmond then-sophomore Andrew Gibb finishing the 2016-17 season with a 50-50-90 line; 58.2 from the floor, 52.4 from beyond the arc, 90.3 from the line.
Xavier Foster
Foster: Oskaloosa’s 6’9 forward Xavier Foster had a busy 2017, and Iowa’s top-ranked 2020 picked up offers from Texas A&M and Baylor to add to his existing Creighton, Iowa and Iowa State offers.
Grand View Christian: The school came to be in 2014, and it didn’t take long for it to win a state basketball title. The Thunder defeated Gladbrook-Reinbeck 61-50 in the 1A final.
Handle U: A new gym was built in the Des Moines Area, and it has the old Carver Hawkeye Arena floor for its floor. That’s pretty sweet.
Iowa City West: The Trojans won yet another 4A title, defeating Valley 64-50. It’s West’s fourth state title in the past six years.
Joe Smoldt: After a spectacular career, one that included a state title and 2,358 points, the Gladbrook-Reinbeck star was awarded Iowa Mr. Basketball.
Kirkwood: It was an impressive year of recruiting for the Cedar Rapids JuCo. The Eagles’ crown jewel was Hoover’s Douglas Wilson, but they nabbed top-30 guys from 2017 Tajen Ross and Kyle Arrington, too.
Locure: It was an eventful year for the Des Moines North point guard. He led the Polar Bears to state for the first time since 1991, spent his summer playing with nationally renowned program MOKAN Elite, and picked up his first two D1 offers, from Drake and North Dakota.
Muscatine: The Muskies are drawing big crowds this season, and every game is a must-watch. Why? Iowa commit, and the state’s undisputed best player, Joe Wieskamp, is having a season for the ages.