Conference Preview: WaMaC West
THE TEAMS Benton Community (16-7): The Bobcats caught fire last season, winning 15 of 16 games after starting the season 0-4. Their season ended with a district championship loss to Mount Vernon. Now, they must replace a number of varsity…
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Continue ReadingTHE TEAMS
Benton Community (16-7): The Bobcats caught fire last season, winning 15 of 16 games after starting the season 0-4. Their season ended with a district championship loss to Mount Vernon. Now, they must replace a number of varsity mainstays and three of their top four scorers from last season. They’ve got a very talented guard coming back, however, in Spencer Touro (10.9), who showed throughout the summer that he’ll be asked to be a major scorer on this team. A gifted scoring guard, he can score from anywhere on the floor (43.4 3P%) and excels at getting to the rim with his handle. Tyler Eggert (9.5) is also back, giving Benton a pair of backcourt standouts. Addison Steinford (2.5) is the only other returnee who saw significant time. With Touro leading the charge, expect to see Benton near the top of the division yet again.
Center Point-Urbana (14-8): Led by the best player in the conference, the Stormin’ Pointers look like a solid bet to win the division. Grant Dirks (15.8), our preseason player of the year, is a tremendous offensive weapon with his size, skill and expanding range. He could average close to 20 points a game this season. But he’s far from alone, as the Pointers bring back some valuable experience on the perimeter in Dylan Harris (6.0), JoJo Frost (6.0) and Mitchell McCauley (5.0). Harris is a solid threat from the arc, Frost is a lightning quick lead guard who can distribute and score, and McCauley helps Dirks out inside the arc with some scoring ability. They lost a lot of scoring and experience with the graduations of Jace Jirak, Mitch Sullivan and Clayton Kramer, but there is still a lot of talent and experience here for CPU.
Clear Creek-Amana (12-11): Lots of talent needs to be replaced in Tiffin, with the top five scorers all gone from last year’s group. The leading returnee is Tate Thomsen (3.0), a rotation player last season. Tyler Hallett (2.6) is the only other player back who scored more than seen points, so this team is going to be a complete mystery.
Independence (4-18): The Mustangs lose three of their top four scorers, including the only two double figure scorers. Sean Geertsema (6.7) is back after a strong freshman season in which he shot 40.7% from behind the arc and led the team in assists. He’ll be the focal point of the program moving forward. Tom Reiff (3.4), Mason Wood (3.0) and Jacob Crawford (2.5) also return after seeing time last season. Still, there just isn’t enough talent here to make a big leap up the standings.
Marion (9-13): The Indians bring back their second and third leading scorers from last season in Baylor Fish (8.3) and Chase Zielke (6.8), giving them an experienced backcourt. Mitch Wiese (3.3) figures to make a substantial improvement in the paint, giving them a decent inside-out attack. This group should finish in the middle of the pack in the division again.
South Tama (5-16): Lots of scoring punch returns for the Trojans, headlined by Clayton Rosenberger (15.3), Gabe Shields (11.1) and Riley Davenport (8.2). If they’re able to keep everyone on the floor (Rosenberger played only 11 games last season), they could make a jump up the standings and push to finish above .500. Seven of their 16 losses last season were by single digits.
Vinton-Shellsburg (14-8): Cole Smith (8.7) and Tyler Bartz (7.8) are back for the Vikings, but this group loses a lot of experience from last year’s senior-laden bunch. Smith and Bartz are the only two returnees with any significant experience and playing time, and they’ll need to become the leaders of this group, which should fall down the division standings a bit.
Williamsburg (3-19): A year after a magical season that ended in Des Moines, the Raiders scuffled to just three wins last season. They should be improved this season with four of their top six scorers back, led by Ben Subbert (8.3) and Isaiahn Powell (6.9). Brandon Blythe (6.4, 6.4 rebounds) should have a big season after shooting 58.3% from the floor last year. Sam Buch (6.8) will pair with Powell to give the Raiders some perimeter shooting, while Blythe and Subbert will hold down the paint. Don’t expect to see this group repeating the magic that Adam Klein, Josh Koeppel and Zach Schlabaugh had two years ago, but they should improve greatly over the three win season of last season.
PROJECTED ORDER OF FINISH
1. Center Point-Urbana
2. Benton Community
3. Marion
4. Vinton-Shellsburg
5. South Tama
6. Williamsburg
7. Clear Creek-Amana
8. Independence
Analysis: This race may be determined by the pair of meetings between CPU and Benton. We give the edge to the Pointers, led by the best player in the league in Grant Dirks.
PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Grant Dirks, Center Point-Urbana, 2018: 15.8 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.4 blocks, 62.9 FG%
Dirks, a versatile and skilled forward, led the division in scoring last season and is the second leading returning rebounder. He also led the division in blocks. An efficient offensive threat, he shot 62.9% from the floor last season and has worked to expand his game out to the arc. An athletic mismatch with his size, strength and quickness, look for Dirks to have a huge junior year as college interest starts rolling in.
BIGGEST SLEEPER
Brandon Blythe, Williamsburg, 2018: Blythe doesn’t get much attention as the Raiders won just three games last season, but he averaged 6 and 6 as a sophomore, shooting 58% from the floor. Watch for this young big to notch several double-doubles this season and place himself among the division’s top players.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Grant Dirks, Center Point-Urbana, 2018
Dylan Harris, Center Point-Urbana, 2018
JoJo Frost, Center Point-Urbana, 2017
Spencer Touro, Benton Community, 2018
Tyler Eggert, Benton Community, 2017
Gabe Shields, South Tama, 2018
Clayton Rosenberger, South Tama, 2017
Cole Smith, Vinton-Shellsburg, 2017
Tyler Bartz, Vinton-Shellsburg, 2017
Ben Subbert, Williamsburg, 2018
Isaiahn Powell, Williamsburg, 2017
Baylor Fish, Marion, 2017