Scouting report: Des Moines Hoover vs. Ames
PLEASANT HILL — It was slow-paced. It was a slog. It was exactly what Des Moines Hoover wanted. The Huskies pitched a scoreless third quarter and defeated Ames, 31-24, to claim the Class 4A Substate 2 title and another…
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PLEASANT HILL — It was slow-paced. It was a slog.
It was exactly what Des Moines Hoover wanted.
The Huskies pitched a scoreless third quarter and defeated Ames, 31-24, to claim the Class 4A Substate 2 title and another trip to Wells Fargo Arena for the state tournament.
Both teams struggled to score early as it was just 6-4 Little Cyclones after the first quarter and then 15-11 Ames at halftime. In the third quarter, Ames just stopped scoring at all.
Hoover held Ames without a point for the entire third quarter in a drought that spanned from the 1 minute, 15 second mark of the second quarter to the 6 minute, 52-second mark of the fourth quarter, during which the Huskies outscored the Little Cyclones 13-0 to take control.
The Huskies also took the air out of the ball, taking their time on offense and slowing the pace to a crawl. Ames’ best shot to get back into it came when senior Colby Shane hit a 3-pointer to bring the Little Cyclones to within two, 22-20, with 4:35 to play, but Hoover then controlled the ball for nearly the next 2 minutes until Nate Lee finished an and-one to put the Huskies back up five, a nearly insurmountable number given the defense Hoover plays.
Hoover was seeded third in the state tournament and will draw perennial power Iowa City West in the opener on Wed., March 9, at 8:15 p.m.
Scoring
AHS 6 9 0 9 – 24
DMH 4 7 11 9 – 31
Individual scoring
AMES – Eric Steyer 1 2-3 5, Colby Shane 3 202 9, Michael Agbaje 1 0-0 2, Carter Mumm 2 901 4, Chuol Chuol 1 0-0 2, Joe Evans 1 0-0 2. TOTALS 9 406 24
DES MOINES HOOVER – Y’Vez Quinn 3 6-8 12, Douglas Wilson 2 0-0 4, Nate Lee 3 2-3 8, Kevin Pham 1 2-2 4, Kenny Quinn 1 2-2 5. TOTALS 10 12-15 31
Ames player evaluations
PF Joe Evans (6’3″, 2018) — Evans was giving up a lot of length in his defensive assignment against Hoover’s stellar 6-5 senior Douglas Wilson, but he more than held his own on that end. Wilson finished with just four points, with Evans on him most of the night. Evans wasn’t able to have his typical offensive impact, however, as the Huskies simply shut Ames down.
G Colby Shane (6’2″, 2016) — Shane was good this night, finding a way to shake free of the dogged Hoover defense, but he missed a couple of open 3-point looks that he often makes. He was strong on the defensive end, helping to keep Hover’s guards out of the paint.
G Eric Steyer (6’3″, 2017) — Steyer is a great shooter, but, like Shane, saw a couple of solid looks just spin out. Still, he did well to get the shots he did against a Hoover defense that can’t be over-praised. They’re that solid. If Steyer can improve his already solid ballhandling, he can really make a jump in his senior season. He doesn’t have to improve a lot in that area for it to make a big difference as a big guard with a deadly jumper.
Des Moines Hoover player evaluations
PF Douglas Wilson (6’5″, 2016) — Wilson had a quiet night offensively, scoring just two baskets despite having a big size and athletic advantage against the Little Cyclones, but he was on his game defensively. He anchors the middle of that awesome Hoover defense IQ.
SG Nate Lee (6’4″, 2016) — Lee had maybe the biggest bucket of the game for Hoover, his and-one late in the fourth quarter that put the Huskies up five. He was otherwise a little quiet offensively (his team did only score 31 points), but his explosiveness was on display on the defensive end and in his ability to mix it up inside.
PG Kenny Quinn (5’8″, 2019) — He’s just 5-foot-8, but Quinn makes a big impact for Hoover. The freshman is extremely quick and has excellent handles, two attributes that really helped him beat the first defender and get to the rim. The issue was his height became an issue once he got there, though he was able to get a solid shot attempt off about half the time he penetrated into the deep paint. If he continues to grow – both physically and in his game – it’ll be less of a problem.