Conference Preview: North Central
The Teams Algona: After winning 17 games last season with prolific scorer Landon Rash at the helm, this year’s Algona squad could struggle to match that success. It will be up to seniors Jackson Helmers and Nick Stein — two very…
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Continue ReadingThe Teams
Algona: After winning 17 games last season with prolific scorer Landon Rash at the helm, this year’s Algona squad could struggle to match that success. It will be up to seniors Jackson Helmers and Nick Stein — two very capable players — to lead the charge this season. They are the only two guys returning with considerable varsity experience.
Clarion-Goldfield-Dows: It’s been a very long time since the Cowboys finished a season above .500, but that seems viable this winter. After winning 7 games last season, they return all five starters, and their seven leading scorers all return. Look for sharpshooter Rhett Darland to light it up from deep, and quick guard Sam Urness could be one of the conference’s leading scorers.
Clear Lake: Thomas Strobeck returns after averaging 19.6 points per game last season as a junior; he’s the conference’s leading returning scorer. Zach Lester is back as well, and he can dish it out with the best of them. That one-two punch will make the Lions one of the best teams in the league this winter.
Hampton-Dumont: It looks like it could be a rebuilding year for the Bulldogs, as seven of their eight regular contributors from last season’s 8-12 squad have graduated. The one returning player who played regular minutes last season is 6-foot-2 forward Logan Gooder. It will be up to guys like Samuel Wragge and Max Aalbers to help carry the load this season.
Humboldt: Leading returning scorer Devon Clark could average north of 15 per game this season, and assist extraordinaire Drew Thomas had the best assist per game average in the league last season. It’s very possible that the Wildcats to eclipse their seven win total from a year ago.
Iowa Falls-Alden: After winning just three games last season, the Cadets will likely far exceed that win total this winter. Senior forward Jace Ites is one of the league’s best players, he averaged 18.3 points per game last season. The four best scorers from last year’s squad are all back, so it should be a much better season in Iowa Falls this winter.
St. Edmond: Charlie Doyle will be top-dog this season for the Gaels, a team that finished last season 17-7. It will be tough to surpass last season’s success with three of the top four scorers gone from that team. But there seems to be a capable crop of guys coming in that make us think there will be more successes for the Gaels this winter.
Webster City: This is one of the bigger rebuilds of any team in the state. The Lynx were great last season, winners of 20 games, thanks in large part to having an almost exclusively senior rotation. The Fuhs brothers led the charge, and averaged 31.3 points per game between them. Now, it’s a new-look squad and it’s leading returning scorer Connor Shannon, averaged 1.6 per game.
Projected Order of Finish
- Clear Lake
- Clarion-Goldfield-Dows
- Algona
- Webster City
- St. Edmond
- Iowa Falls-Alden
- Humboldt
- Hampton-Dumont
Analysis
There’s no clear-cut favorite in this conference, and it was certainly one of the toughest to try and guess. Clear Lake has two preseason first team all-conference guys (Lester, Storbeck), and the preseason Player of the Year, Thomas Storbeck, so we give them a slight edge over a Clarion-Goldfield-Dows team that essentially returns everyone from last season’s team.
Player of the Year
photo credit: globegazette.comThomas Storbeck, 6’2 SG, Clear Lake
It was close here between Storbeck and Iowa Falls-Alden’s Jace Ites, but we are giving the edge to the Clear Lake scoring guard. Storbeck is the conference’s leading returning scorer, he netted 19.6 points per game last season. He’s also one of the best free-throw shooters in the North Central, connecting on 84.7 percent of his attempts as a junior. We expect the good-sized guard to be north of 20 points per game this winter.
Biggest Sleeper
Jackson Helmers, 6’1 G, Algona
He’s the leading returning scorer on a team that has had much success in the conference over the past several seasons. What really caught our attention was his performance at the Norwalk Team Camp in July. He scored 25 points in the first half in one of those games. He could be a big-time scorer for the Bulldogs this winter.
Players to Watch
Thomas Storbeck, 6’2 G, Clear Lake
Jace Ites, 6’4, Iowa Falls-Alden
Charlie Doyle, 6’1, St. Edmonds
Rhett Darland, 6’2, Clarion-Goldfield-Dows
Zach Lester, 6′, Clear Lake
Jackson Helmers, 6’1, Algona
Sam Urness, 5’9, Clarion-Goldfield-Dows
Logan Gooder, 6’2, Hampton-Dumont
Drew Thomas, 6’1, Humboldt
Weston Meyer, 6’5, Iowa Falls-Alden