10 Best: Cedar Falls at Iowa City Liberty
IOWA CITY — A patient and efficient offensive game plan from Iowa City Liberty gave 4A defending champion Cedar Falls all they could handle on Tuesday night, before the #7 Tigers used some pressure defense to pull away late, beating…
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Continue ReadingIOWA CITY — A patient and efficient offensive game plan from Iowa City Liberty gave 4A defending champion Cedar Falls all they could handle on Tuesday night, before the #7 Tigers used some pressure defense to pull away late, beating the Lightning 58-50.
Liberty got out of the gates quickly, scoring on three of their first four possessions of the game, grabbing a 7-0 lead and forcing a Cedar Falls timeout. The Tigers rebounded nicely, finishing the quarter on an 11-3 run to take a 11-10 lead after one. The second quarter was back-and-forth and the Lightning took a slim 28-26 lead into the break.
A huge third quarter from Cedar Falls senior guard Mason Abbas gave the Tigers a 43-38 lead after three, as Abbas scored 11 points in the frame. Liberty tied the game at 43 with about five minutes to play, then the Tigers ramped up the defensive pressure, throwing a variety of different full court pressure looks at the Lightning, who didn’t handle it well, as the Tigers pulled away for the win.
Cedar Falls (9-2, 7-2) was led by Mason Abbas, who led three Tigers in double figures with 19 points (11 in the third quarter). Logan Wolf and Josh Ollendieck each added 16 in the win.
Liberty (5-7, 3-6) was led by Ethan O’Donnell, who had 13 points, while Andre Brandon chipped in 10.
Team | 1Q | 2Q | 3Q | 4Q | F |
Cedar Falls | 11 | 13 | 19 | 15 | 58 |
Iowa City Liberty | 10 | 16 | 12 | 12 | 50 |
Individual scoring
Cedar Falls: Mason Abbas 19, Josh Ollendieck 16, Logan Wolf 16, Ben Sernett 3, Jackson Frericks 2, Jack Campbell 1, Jaxon Heth 1
Iowa City Liberty: Ethan O’Donnell 13, Andre Brandon 10, Isaac Bender 8, Ben Houselog 6, Ira Hazeltine 6, Basil Aldoss 3, Sam Funke 2, Grayson Tyler 2
MVP: Mason Abbas (Cedar Falls)
You could make a real argument for any of Cedar Falls’ three double figure scorers as the MVP of the night, but it was Abbas’ play in the third quarter that got the Tigers a bit of breathing room and allowed them to pull out the win. His 11 third quarter points were massive.
Best offensive performance: Mason Abbas (Cedar Falls)
Abbas did his scoring in a variety of ways, getting to the rim both in transition and within the halfcourt setting, knocking down a few mid-range jumpers (including a pretty turnaround fadeaway on the baseline, ala Dirk Nowitzki), and went 1-2 from behind the arc. He had 19 points on 8-9 from the floor (2-2 FT), and added a few assists for good measure.
Best defensive performance: Logan Wolf (Cedar Falls)
The versatility is what has always, and will always, stand out for Wolf, who will play both football and basketball at Northern Iowa. The 6-4 guard is capable of defending just about every spot on the floor at the high school level, combining his great length with high-level athleticism and lateral movement. He’s a lockdown defender on the perimeter, and capable of protecting the rim as well, as evidenced by his three blocks in the game.
Best shooter: Josh Ollendieck (Cedar Falls)
Ollendieck has been fantastic this year for the Tigers, and was really good again on Tuesday night, going 5-6 from the floor, including 3-4 from behind the arc. A long, 6-2 guard, he has picturesque form and extended range on his jumper, and he showed the ability to shoot it both off the catch and the dribble.
Best rebounder: Andre Brandon (Liberty)
The 6-5 junior pulled down eight rebounds on the night to go with his 10 points, despite battling foul trouble for a good portion of the game. He’s aggressive on the glass on both ends of the floor, and while we’d like to see him box out harder and more consistently, he has a nose for the basketball.
Best passer: Logan Wolf (Cedar Falls)
Wolf had a co-game-high three assists, but probably could’ve had double that number. He’s not the level of passer as a Jake Hilmer, of course, but he keeps the ball moving on the offensive end and finds the open man far more often than not.
Liberty’s best: Ethan O’Donnell
After getting off to a slow start, O’Donnell scored nine of his team high 13 points in the second quarter, helping give the Lightning the halftime lead. A 6-4 sophomore, the combo forward showed the ability to score inside and out for Liberty.
Best player off the bench: Chase Courbat (Cedar Falls)
The 6-9 sophomore is ranked No. 1 in our 2021 rankings, and despite going just 0-1 from the floor, he made an impact on this game, pulling down four rebounds and blocking three shots. The long, athletic big man is a long-term project, and he’ll definitely need to add some weight and physicality to his game, but there are an awful lot of tools here to work with, and he should be on the radar of every mid-major program in the Midwest.
Cedar Falls’ story to watch moving forward: Is this team capable of repeating?
In short, yes. The Tigers have as good a shot as any team in 4A this year at cutting down the proverbial nets in March. They’re loaded with length and athleticism, have a go-to guy in Logan Wolf, and a lot of quality shooters and role players around him. When they really get engaged on the defensive end, like they were in the fourth quarter, they’re really tough to score against. There are 10-12 teams that we think have a real shot in Class 4A this year, and Cedar Falls is certainly among them.
Liberty’s story to watch moving forward: Is this group capable of pulling a postseason upset?
It’ll depend a bit on the matchup, but yes, this group is capable of making a postseason run given the right draw. They’re young and still struggle a bit against pressure, but if a team is going to sit back in their defense and let the Lightning run their offense, they can score and score efficiently, while milking clock and making it a shorter game. This group has some nice pieces and some talented shooters who can get hot and beat just about anyone.