Preseason All-Conference: Lakes
Player of the Year: Owen Coburn, Spirit Lake (2019)
A South Dakota State commit, Coburn is not only the best center in the conference, but maybe in the state. He started his high school career at H-M-S before transferring into 3A Spirit Lake last season, where he immediately excelled. Look for him to carry that momentum of his sophomore season into a dominant junior one.
First Team (2016-17 stats in italics)
Owen Coburn, Spirit Lake (2019) 18.2 PPG, 70 FG%, 1.4 BPG, 9.5 RPG
Coburn is a 6-foot-10 post who will dominate each night out. The D1-bound prospect should average north of 20 points and 10 rebounds per game, and could see his field goal percentage rise above 70 percent this winter.
Will Pottebaum, LeMars (2018) 15.1 PPG, 52 FG%, 49 3FG%, 2.6 APG
One of the best shooters in the state, Pottebaum not only canned 48 3s last season — more than any returning player in the conference — but he did it at an extremely efficient 49 percent clip. Look for him to be lethal again from deep this winter.
Brady Kluender, Spencer (2018) 14.7 PPG, 49 FG%, 2.7 APG, 2.1 SPG
Also a standout on the diamond, Kluender batted .488 and posted a 2.50 ERA for the Tigers’ baseball team this summer. Now, he’ll switch gears and look to improve upon his stellar junior season on the hardwood.
Alex Van Dyke, Spirit Lake (2018) 13.0 PPG, 51 FG%, 2.7 APG, 5.7 RPG
With good size at 6-foot-4 and an ability to do a little bit of everything well, Van Dyke will be a perfect compliment to the dominance of big-man and Preseason POTY, Owen Coburn. The two of them could very well lead the Indians to Wells Fargo Arena this coming March.
Jacob Vis, Western Christian, Hull (2019) 8.8 RPG, 72 FG%, 1.2 SPG, 1.4 BPG, 5.8 RPG
A rangy 6-foot-6 post, Vis had something of a coming out party last March at the state tournament. He was essential in helping the guide the Wolfpack to yet another state title, and showed glimpses of a guy who could become a dominant post over the next two seasons.
Second Team
Trevor Freisner, Estherville Lincoln Central (2018)
Caleb Harmsen, Western Christian, Hull (2018)
Blake Vermelum, Emmetsburg (2018)
Jack Benson, Cherokee, Washington (2018)
Cham Deng, Storm Lake (2019)
Honorable Mentions
Frankie Ramos, Spirit Lake (2018)
Kade Carpenter, Spencer (2018)
Chase Hough, Spencer (2019)
Brian Egeland, Estherville Lincoln Central (2019)
Jacob Heinrichs, Estherville Lincoln Central (2018)
Nick Christensen, Spirit Lake (2018)
Gabe Eckstaine, LeMars (2018)
Ryan Hurd, Cherokee, Washington (2020)
Jayson Moeller, Estherville Lincoln Central (2018)