Conference Preview: Pride of Iowa
THE TEAMS
Bedford (16-8): The Bulldogs have a huge hole to fill with the graduation of Colt Scott, who averaged more than 21 points a game last season. A trio of seniors from last year’s rotation return, however, giving them some continuity. Quentin Sefrit (7.9), Max McMillin (6.9) and Joel King (4.7) are back, with Sefrit and King looking like capable options on the perimeter, while McMillin should do more of his damage in the paint. It’ll be tough to repeat 16 wins following the loss of Scott, Justin Folkerts and Wyatt Dillon, but this team should still solidly be in the middle-of-the-pack.
Central Decatur (17-7): Big-time scorer Peyton Pedersen is gone after averaging 23.3 a game last season, as is second leading scorer Nick Durell. Carter Boothe (9.8) returns after dishing out 123 assists last season, and he’ll be joined in the backcourt by Kyle (5.9) and Nathan (5.7) Guill. If they can find some increased production out of role players like Mickey Morgan (2.0) and Trae Petty (1.6), they could be an upper-level team in the league once again.
East Union (7-16): The top three scorers return for the Eagles, headlined by a pair of 15-point a game scorers in Mason Gossman (15.5) and Gabe Nixon (15.3). Role players Casey Walter (7.0) and Kyle Campbell (4.2) also return. If this group can take better care of the basketball (205 assists to 355 turnovers last season), they could see a significant spike in their win total. If not, anticipate seeing them right back in the lower half of the league.
Interstate 35 (17-5): Jaylan White, the best player in school history has moved on to the collegiate level, so there will clearly be a huge hole to fill. Also gone are five other important rotation players, so there isn’t much leftover for I-35. Brennan McCuddin (10.6) is back, and Richie Griglione (4.9) had a solid freshman season, but they’ll need to find lots of other pieces to fill in the rest of the puzzle. Look for the Roadrunners to take a significant step backwards this season.
Lenox (19-4): The Tigers lost arguably the most dominant player in Class 1A last season with the graduation of Spencer Brown, who posted a ridiculous line of 23-20-5 (blocks) last season. However, their next three scorers are back in Kaleb Anderson (12.3), Samual Donaldson (11.0) and Dawson Tullberg (8.6). Tullberg was second in the state last season with 214 assists, and while that number figures to drop a bit with Brown gone, he’s still a very good point guard who takes care of the ball and can set his teammates up. Anderson (42.9 3P%, 82 3PM) is one of the better perimeter shooters in the state and should still get plenty of looks, and look for Donaldson to take over the paint duties, although he surely won’t be as dominant as Brown was. This dynamic trio will still be enough to keep Lenox near the top of the league.
Martensdale-St. Mary’s (5-17): Three of the top four scorers are back for the Blue Devils, headlined by Gibson Dakota (11.9) and Bret Barnett (11.4). Holt Matt (6.2) also returns, giving them a solid nucleus to build around. If this group is able to become more efficient offensively (38.0 FG% last year), they can add some wins to their total, but we don’t expect them to make a huge jump towards the top of the league.
Mount Ayr (10-12): Tristan Holmes (2.5) is the top returning scorer for the Raiders, and he scored just 53 points a year ago. The other three returnees – Luke Wurster (20), John Young (4) and Brad Wurster (2) – combined to score only 26 points, so there isn’t a whole lot coming back for this group. This team will be a complete mystery and after losing so much experience (top six scorers gone), they’ll likely find themselves near the bottom of the conference.
Nodaway Valley (18-7): Another Pride of Iowa team that has lost their dynamic star, the Wolverines now must adjust to life after Jackson Lamb, who averaged 26.5 points a game last season. He’s not the only pivotal piece gone from last year’s group, however, as second and third leading scorers Sam Marnin and Nate Venteicher have also graduated. Spencer Lamb (6.9) returns after a solid freshman season, and he’ll likely take over the big-time scorer role. Beau Weinheimer (6.8) is also back, and Dallas Kreager (3.0) had a solid season from behind the arc, knocking down 40% of his three-point attempts. Nodaway Valley rarely loses in conference play, and while they’ll most certainly take a step back after the loss of Lamb, there is no reason to doubt that they won’t be pretty solid once again.
Pleasantville (14-8): The Trojans are led by the conference’s preseason player of the year pick in Brady Elder (22.5), a dynamic scoring guard coming off a strong summer with the Iowa Barnstormers. With Zeb Adreon graduated, look for Elder’s scoring numbers to go even higher this season. Mac Harken (6.3) is the only other returning starter, while Gauge VanHaalen (3.3) and Devon Dursky (2.6) saw some time last season. They’ll need to find a solid second scoring option alongside Elder, but with him in tow, this group figures to be in the league title mix.
Southeast Warren (2-21): Jackson Fischer (10.3) returns for the Warhawks, but he’s the only returnee who scored more than 38 points for last year’s two-win team (both wins came over Melcher-Dallas). It’s likely going to be another long year in Warren County.
Southwest Valley (6-15): The Timberwolves return all five starters, headlined by Chance Cobb (14.0) and Wyatt McAlpin (9.3). McAlpin was highly efficient last year, shooting 51.8% from the floor, while Cobb has a versatile skill set that allows him to score from anywhere on the court. Trenton Drake (9.2), Scott Palmer (8.9) and Grant Maurer (7.6) are also back, giving them loads of experience. They also bring back Jace Petersen, who played in only two games last season, but showed his scoring ability with 15 off the bench in a loss to Mount Ayr. With him back in the rotation, and the entire starting lineup returning, look for Southwest Valley to make a big leap in the win column.
Wayne, Corydon (11-13): The bad news for the Falcons is that they lost do-everything forward Trent Moore, who led the team in nearly every major category. The good news is that they bring back a fair amount of experience, with their Nos. 2, 4, 5 and 6 leading scorers from last season back in the fold. They’ll be led by Bronson Carpenter (10.9) and Blake Moore (8.3), with Alex Chapman (5.6) and Blake Housley (3.8) figuring to be the other primary contributors. Anytime you lose a player with Moore’s talent, it’ll be difficult to replace, but maybe this team can become a bit more balanced and compete for an upper-half finish in the league.
PROJECTED ORDER OF FINISH
1. Lenox
2. Pleasantville
3. Central Decatur
4. Bedford
5. Nodaway Valley
6. East Union
7. Interstate 35
8. Wayne, Corydon
9. Southwest Valley
10. Martensdale-St. Mary’s
11. Mount Ayr
12. Southeast Warren
Analysis: This race may end up being one of the most interesting in the state with all of the star power that was lost by the top teams in the league. Despite losing one of the state’s most dominant players, we give the edge to Lenox, who has a three-headed monster of an attack that should push them over the top here.
PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Brady Elder, Pleasantville, 2017: 22.5 points, 3.3 assists, 3.1 rebounds, 2.6 steals, 46.5 FG%, 79.7 FT%
An easy choice here, Elder is the leading returning scorer in the conference by seven points a game. He proved he’s not only a scorer by dishing out more than three assistsa game as well. Coming off a solid summer with the Barnstormers, and with Zeb Adreon graduated, Elder could put up even bigger numbers for the Trojans this winter.
BIGGEST SLEEPER
Devon Dursky, Pleasantville, 2018: Listed at 6-6 on last season’s roster, Dursky averaged 2.6 points and 3.5 rebounds a game for the Trojans, finishing third on the team in rebounding. With leading rebounder Zeb Adreon graudated, and some minutes opening up in the paint as a result, look for Dursky to have a big season for Pleasantville.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Brady Elder, Pleasantville, 2017
Mason Gossman, East Union, 2017
Gabe Nixon, East Union, 2017
Dawson Tullberg, Lenox, 2017
Kaleb Anderson, Lenox, 2017
Samual Donaldson, Lenox, 2018
Carter Boothe, Central Decatur, 2018
Brennan McCuddin, Interstate 35, 2017
Gibson Dakota, Martensdale, St. Mary’s, 2017
Chance Cobb, Southwest Valley, 2018