Five 5A Teams Who Will Be Improved
Up next in our daily season preview articles are the five 5A teams who I think will show the most improvement in terms of gained wins. I only looked at the teams who had a winning percentage of under .500,…
Access all of Prep Girls Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingUp next in our daily season preview articles are the five 5A teams who I think will show the most improvement in terms of gained wins. I only looked at the teams who had a winning percentage of under .500, and excluded the .500 teams from a year ago. The 13th article in a series of 73 highlights the five squads who I think will increase their win totals the most. Tomorrow I’ll have 10 1A players who you have to see this season.
Ankeny (9-12 last season)
Ankeny lost three games by two points last year and a couple bounces the other way and they wouldn’t have been subject on this list. Ankeny did lose their leading scorer from a year ago but return a ton of talent. Abigail Johnson returns for her junior year after only playing 12 games last year. In those 12 games she scored 10.8 points a game and a fully healthy season from her will be big. Additionally seniors Ashley Harrington and Kayla Pitz both return along with their combined 14.8 points last season. These three players will have to step up in a big way for this group to flip their record this season. They also have a couple impact freshmen coming in which will really help them out. Look for a really solid season from this guard heavy group.
Cedar Rapids Jefferson (1-19 last season)
With just one senior gone from the team last year, Cedar Rapids Jefferson should be able to take a step forward this season. Junior Kalyn Wise returns as the leading scorer from last year with her 9.6 point per game average. Seniors Grace Jellison, Arianna Hawkins, and Jenna Griffith combined for 19.1 points a game last season and all three look to have a much greater impact offensively. The key for Cedar Rapids Jefferson will be to take care of the ball better as they averaged 19.9 turnovers per game last season. With the experience this roster now has they should be much better at taking care of the ball. Quite a few close games last season tells me that this is going to be a much improved group this upcoming year.
Des Moines Roosevelt (8-12 last season)
Des Moines Roosevelt’s schedule does them no favors. Even though they have to play a tough slate year in and year out I think they’ll be pretty improved this season. A couple close losses for the group disallowed them a winning record but I think this is the year they get it, even though they lose three of the top four scorers. Amaya Davison is a sophomore returner who averaged 7.0 points a game last season. She’ll be counted on quite a bit this season as will the senior trio of Asantee Tillman, Karisma Wright, and Troyisha Merrett. Those three players will provide some leadership to this group and should be able to lead them to a 12 win season. They will also enjoy the addition of some impact freshmen who will really help out immensely.
Marshalltown (2-18 last season)
Marshalltown is the unfortunate benefactor of playing one of the toughest schedules in the state. Even though they saw their fair share of blowouts, they lost by 10 points or less three times showing that they can be competitive. While they likely won’t be a team that wins 10 games this year they could win upwards of 6-7 games. They only lose one senior off of the roster from last season and Erica Johnson and Madi Finch are back as seniors looking to lead the charge. They will also look for bigger contributions from senior Gabby Hines this year. Marshalltown hasn’t seen success in a little while and this is the year to win some games and put them back on the map for the future classes. With eight seniors this is going to be their best shot at knocking down some wins.
Sioux City West (10-14 last season)
Sioux City West loses their leading scorer from a year ago but they return so many different options who can score. Their leading scorer had 10.8 points a game last season but they have six players returning who scored between 7.9 and 4.5 points a game. This season they will be one of the most balanced teams in the state and will see the fruits of their labor. Five seniors are looking to mark their mark on the program this year and lead them to a winning record. Junior Nia Moore will also be in that conversation as one of the top scorers on this team from a year ago. Eight of their 14 losses last year were by 10 points or less. If they can fix some of the mistakes from a season ago this is going to be a really dangerous team.