Playoff Preview: 3A-7
Bowen Born The favorite: High scoring guard Bowen Born (36.6) leads a Norwalk team that is looking to improve on last year’s runner-up finish with the school’s first state title, and they appear to be in prime position to…
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The favorite: High scoring guard Bowen Born (36.6) leads a Norwalk team that is looking to improve on last year’s runner-up finish with the school’s first state title, and they appear to be in prime position to do so. Born, a Northern Iowa signee, is putting together one of the best individual seasons in Iowa high school history. Until very recently, he was on pace to break the single-season scoring record held by Brooks McKowen, and he’s been scoring at an insane rate with eye-popping efficiency (56-43-87 shooting splits). It’s not just a one-man show, though. Tyler Johnson (14.7, 47.6 3P%) is a fantastic shooter who gets plenty of open looks off of Born drive-and-kicks, and Scott Anderson (5.7, 40.0 3P%) can knock down open looks as well. Born’s ability to create plays for others, in addition to his remarkable efficiency, is what makes this team so dangerous. Sure, outside of Born and Johnson, nobody else averages over 5.7 points a game, but a different player steps up every night to fill the role of tertiary scorer, and that’s all this group needs. And, if the game is tight late, they have the ultimate game-icer in Born, who is 164-188 (87.2%) from the line.
The biggest threat: Dallas Center-Grimes jumped out to a 7-0 start this season behind the strong play of guards Cole Glasgow (16.1) and Luke Rankin (14.3), before stumbling a bit in the middle of the season. The Mustangs are back to playing strong ball, winning seven of their last nine down the stretch, with the two losses coming to an 18-3 Indianola team, and to Norwalk. Glasgow is one of the better scoring guards in Iowa’s 2022 class, while Rankin has been stellar with the ball in his hands this season, dishing out 132 assists against just 39 turnovers. This group doesn’t shoot it very well from deep (29.7% as a team), but the ability that Glasgow and Rankin have to take over a game on either end of the floor is huge. Guard play wins at the high school level, and this team has the second best group of guards in the substate. Norwalk swept them in the regular season, but the second meeting (66-56) was much closer than the first.
The dark horse: ADM was extremely close to putting together an outstanding season, going 12-9. Those nine losses came against teams with a combined winning percentage of 76.3% (142-44), and SEVEN of them came by four or fewer points. The Tigers have guard play in Jaxson Millsap (15.5), Nathan Mueller (14.4), Tate Stine-Smith (9.3) and Caden Mager (8.8), and a big body in the paint in Nathan Conrad (8.5) that makes this a well-balanced bunch. Millsap, Mueller and Stine-Smith have combined to make 118 3s this season, and if they get hot, this is a team that can make a run to the substate final.
Players to watch
2020 Bowen Born, Norwalk
2020 Tyler Johnson, Norwalk
2022 Cole Glasgow, Dallas Center-Grimes
2021 Luke Rankin, Dallas Center-Grimes
2020 Jaxson Millsap, ADM
2021 Nate Mueller, ADM
2020 Matt Ockey, Gilbert
2021 Tony Terrones, Gilbert
2020 Jack Dresser, Gilbert
2020 Tyler Sansgaard, Nevada
2020 Kody Kruschwitz, Nevada
2022 Jevin Sullivan, North Polk
2020 Brendan Ivory, Perry