Player of the Week: Marco Balderas (Week 9)
Marco Balderas (2018)
5’8 PG, South Hamilton
South Hamilton finished their regular season last Saturday with a 70-65 triumph over Iowa Falls-Alden. Senior point guard Marco Balderas was sensational in that game, going for 22 points on 8-10 shooting, and dished out a team-high four assists for good measure.
That’s what we’ve come to expect from the extraordinarily crafty floor general.
Balderas’ South Hamilton team’s win last Saturday ensured them an undefeated regular season: 21-0. And also helped them land at No. 5 in the latest 2A rankings. And Balderas, the MVP of the team, has set them up for another good chance to make this year’s state tourney.
Should the Hawks end up back at Wells Fargo Arena next month, that’d be perfectly OK with us. Balderas is one of the most fun players in the state to watch. His basketball IQ is off the charts, he sees the floor as good as anyone in Iowa, and is a wizard with the ball in his hands.
After earning nearly half of the 1,892 votes cast for this week’s poll, it’s clear that the South Hamilton community is behind Balderas and his Hawks. And why wouldn’t they be? They’re unbeaten, and Balderas is averaging 14.5 points per game on a legit 53/43/79 shooting, along with team-bests 5.3 assists and 2.3 steals per game.
Earlier this season, the small but profoundly effective point guard ended his recruitment by committing to Sioux City NAIA Briar Cliff. The Chargers are getting a good one. But something tells us he’s got a lot left to prove with South Hamilton.