Playoff Preview: 3A-4
In this article:
Recker The favorite: Despite the fact that they play in a 2A league, we like Monticello in this substate. After qualifying for the 2A state tournament last year, the Panthers brought back all five starters from that group and…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue Reading
The favorite: Despite the fact that they play in a 2A league, we like Monticello in this substate. After qualifying for the 2A state tournament last year, the Panthers brought back all five starters from that group and they’ve been on a mission this year, winning games by an average of 31 points a game. Buoyed by a strong defense and a disciplined, efficient offense, the Panthers aren’t going to beat themselves. Senior forward Justin Recker Justin Recker 6'6" | PF Monticello | 2021 State IA (15.2, 7.2 rebounds) leads the team in scoring and rebounding, while all five starters are key contributors in sophomore Tate Petersen Tate Petersen 6'1" | PG Monticello | 2023 State IA (12.0, 39.7 3P%), and seniors Luke Lambert Luke Lambert 6'3" | PG Monticello | 2021 State IA (10.3, 4.8 assists), Connor Lambert Connor Lambert 6'4" | SF Monticello | 2021 State IA (8.3) and Ty Kehoe Ty Kehoe 6'0" | PG Monticello | 2021 State IA (4.3). Freshman Preston Ries (7.5) has given them some additional scoring off the bench. This veteran group is on a mission, is elite defensively, and isn’t going to back down from anyone. In a strong substate, they’ll have to work hard to make their way back to Des Moines, but this is the team to beat, despite being seeded 2nd in this group.
The biggest threat: Another strong defensive team in this substate is top-seeded Solon, who has a 17-2 record at the time of this writing. New coach Jared Galpin, who came over from Regina, has really gotten this athletic group to buy-in on the defensive end of the floor, and his group has responded, allowing just 49.6 points a game. David Bluder David Bluder 6'4" | SF Solon | 2021 State IA (15.3) leads the offensive attack, with three others – Kinnick Pusteoska (9.3), Carson Shive Carson Shive 6'0" | SG Solon | 2021 State IA (9.5) and Ben Cusick Ben Cusick 6'3" | PF Solon | 2021 State IA (9.6) – just under double-figures. They’ve played a more difficult schedule this year, but Monticello’s group has more postseason experience.
The dark horse(s): Central DeWitt has some strong wins this year against teams like Solon, Davenport North, North Scott and Assumption. The Sabers can be a bit inconsistent, but they’ve proven that they can beat good teams this year, and 6-6 junior big man Shawn Gilbert (14.9, 6.9 rebounds) is a matchup problem. Gilbert is a huge young man with great touch and the ability to stretch the floor, and smaller teams could have a real issue trying to defend him. Senior guard Henry Bloom Henry Bloom 6'1" | PG Central DeWitt | 2021 State IA (14.3, 37.5 3P%) is a solid contributor as well for this group. The other team to watch in this substate is West Delaware, led by senior guard Kyle Kelley Kyle Kelley 6'3" | SG West Delaware | 2021 State IA (20.6), who is a threat to score 30+ and take over a game. Blake DeMoss Blake DeMoss 5'10" | CG West Delaware | 2022 State IA (9.4) and Logan Woellert Logan Woellert 6'1" | SG West Delaware | 2021 State IA (8.3) pair with Kelley to give the Hawks an experienced backcourt that could make some noise.
Players to watch
2021
Justin Recker
Justin
Recker
6'6" | PF
Monticello | 2021
State
IA
, Monticello
2021
Luke Lambert
Luke
Lambert
6'3" | PG
Monticello | 2021
State
IA
, Monticello
2023
Tate Petersen
Tate
Petersen
6'1" | PG
Monticello | 2023
State
IA
, Monticello
2021
David Bluder
David
Bluder
6'4" | SF
Solon | 2021
State
IA
, Solon
2021
Ben Cusick
Ben
Cusick
6'3" | PF
Solon | 2021
State
IA
, Solon
2022 Shawn Gilbert, Central DeWitt
2021
Henry Bloom
Henry
Bloom
6'1" | PG
Central DeWitt | 2021
State
IA
, Central DeWitt
2021
Kyle Kelley
Kyle
Kelley
6'3" | SG
West Delaware | 2021
State
IA
, West Delaware
2022
Blake DeMoss
Blake
DeMoss
5'10" | CG
West Delaware | 2022
State
IA
, West Delaware
2021
Trey Johannes
Trey
Johannes
6'4" | SF
Center Point-Urbana | 2021
State
IA
, Center Point-Urbana
2021
Caiden Atienza
Caiden
Atienza
6'5" | PF
Maquoketa | 2021
State
IA
, Maquoketa
SUBSTATE FINAL PREDICTION
Solon vs. Monticello
Don’t expect a lot of scoring if this is the substate final, but this would be one of the most competitive games around the state. With this pair of great defensive teams, we’re going with the more postseason-experienced Monticello group to make it back to State, this time in 3A.