Wells Fargo Advisors Shootout: Top Performers
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2024 Aiden Klostermann (Central City) The 5-9 off-ball guard had a huge game in the Wildcats win over Columbus to open the event, scoring 24 points on 9-15 shooting (5-10 3P) along with 12 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and…
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Continue Reading2024 Aiden Klostermann (Central City)
The 5-9 off-ball guard had a huge game in the Wildcats win over Columbus to open the event, scoring 24 points on 9-15 shooting (5-10 3P) along with 12 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, and 3 blocks. He moves well without the ball in his hands and is armed with a quick release on his jumper. He’s a confident three-level scorer who looked to attack the rim when the defense closed out too hard, and he contributed on the glass in a major way.
2025 Matthew Klostermann (Central City)
The younger Klostermann brother also had a huge game, scoring 18 points (8-13 FG) with 9 rebounds, 6 assists, and a steal. He’s a 5-10 lefty guard with good handle and court vision. He looks to push the tempo when the opportunity presents itself, and he has good body control around the rim and a nice floater game that he uses to score over bigger defenders. He’ll need to grow more, but he had a very encouraging game in this one and is a name to monitor moving forward.
A 6-5 big man who does an excellent job establishing early position and then using his strength to seal his defender, McDermott had a solid day against Durant, finishing with 18 points and 7 rebounds. He has big, soft hands and excellent touch around the rim, particularly with his left. He has good footwork and even showed the ability to be a playmaker for others, showcasing good court vision and passing ability, dishing out a pair of assists when he recognized the double coming early and kicked out to an open shooter.
2023 Casey Gardner Casey Gardner 5'8" | PG Dunkerton | 2023 State IA (Dunkerton)
Gardner leads the state in assists, and in watching him play live, it’s easy to see why. He loves to get others involved, constantly looking for the open man and bypassing his good shot to get a teammate a great shot. He’s a true pass-first point guard who plays with pace, is a good ball-handler, and doesn’t force passes into tight spaces. He also flashed a really nice mid-range game, using creative footwork to help create space to get his shot off, and he absolutely took over the Raiders’ game against Alburnett in the second half. He finished with 13 points and 7 assists in a big come-from-behind win.
2023 Max Weaton Max Weaton 6'6" | PF Fairfield | 2023 State IA (Fairfield)
Wheaton has been putting up big numbers for years now, and we finally got a chance to see him play live, and he was impressive. A long and athletic forward with good hands, he has really good footwork and touch around the rim. He can score in bunches at a highly efficient clip, finishing with 23 points on 11-13 shooting, along with 17 rebounds, 3 steals, and a block. He’s a mobile big who runs the floor and establishes good position, is a good enough ball-handler to take bigger defenders off the dribble and get to the bucket, and does a great job crashing the offensive glass. He’s a switchable defender who doesn’t get lost against smaller guards on the perimeter and who can protect the rim.
The 6-3 big man plays a lot bigger than his listed size because of the energy and physicality that he plays with. He’s a relentless rebounder with a nose for the ball who finished with 19 points and 14 rebounds in the Demons’ big win over Ballard. He has good hands, makes strong contact on his box-outs, and has good touch around the rim with either hand. He also shot 7-10 from the free-throw line, showing good touch and rotation on his shot, suggesting that he may be able to add a little bit of range to his game down the line.
2022 Ashton Hermann Ashton Hermann 6'4" | SG Ballard | 2022 State IA (Ballard)
Hermann showed a little bit of everything that has made him such a highly-touted prospect over the last few years, scoring 33 points with 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 3 steals in the Bombers loss to Washington. He had an off day shooting, going just 11-27 from the floor, but he showed his ability to get to the rim (9-11 FT), a strong mid-range game, and the ability to turn his fantastic instincts on the defensive end into offense in a hurry. Ballard was playing a bit shorthanded in their meeting with the Demons, and Hermann takes a lot of tough, contested shots, but he was a few bad bounces on jumpers away from dropping 40+ points and shooting over 50% from the floor. He didn’t have any really bad misses, just a few shots that were inches away from dropping and turning his below-average efficiency day into a well above average day.
2022 Travis Leyden (Washington)
An off-ball guard with a lightning-quick release and extended range, Leyden is oozing with confidence in his jumper and for good reason. He knocked down three 3-pointers on the day (on 9 attempts), but had a few of his attempts just miss off the front iron, possibly a sign of tired legs from playing in a tough conference game the night before. I love the way he moves without the ball in his hands, finding spaces in the defense to get his shot off, and he has his feet squared and ready to shoot on the catch. He finished with a team-high 19 points in their win over Ballard.
2024 Preston Ries Preston Ries 6'1" | SF Monticello | 2024 State IA (Monticello)
Ries is going to end up being a high-major football player, but he’s putting together a fantastic sophomore year on the hardwood as well. He put up 21 points (8-17 FG) with 6 rebounds in the Panthers win over Regina, showcasing his eye-popping athleticism and using his superior length to impact the game on both ends of the floor. He has solid footwork on his post touches, and has the ability to take bigger defenders off the dribble and get to the bucket.
2023 Tate Petersen Tate Petersen 6'1" | PG Monticello | 2023 State IA (Monticello)
Petersen was arguably the standout player on Saturday because of his strong all-around play on both ends of the floor in the Panthers win over Regina. A three-year varsity starter, he has been asked to step into a bigger scoring role this year for Monticello, and he has thrived. He delivered 20 points on 8-13 shooting (2-5 3P) with 9 rebounds, 9 assists, and 6 steals in their win. He’s a knockdown shooter both off the dribble and the catch, and with his improved frame, he’s more willing to put the ball on the floor and take his defender off the dribble and get to the rim. He sees the floor at a high level and does an outstanding job protecting the rock (9 assists, 1 turnover). Where he was most impressive, however, was with his work on the defensive end. He’s a strong on-ball defender who competes hard on that end of the floor. He moves his feet well laterally and has lightning-quick hands that he uses to swipe steals and lead the offense the other way. Petersen was simply outstanding.
2023 Da’Shon Fisher Da’Shon Fisher 6'2" | SG Liberty | 2023 IA (Liberty)
A 6-0 guard with eye-popping athleticism, Fisher put together a strong game in the Lightning’s win over Linn-Mar, finishing with 19 points and 3 steals on 8-16 shooting. He’s a plus-athlete who uses his quick first step to get by his defender and get to the rim, and he showcased a strong mid-range pull-up game as well, getting good rotation on his lefty shot and a friendly roll on a few occasions. He’ll need to continue adding some more range to his game, but there are a lot of tools here to intrigue coaches at the next level.