Playoffs: Week 1 Recap & 4A-5A Players to Watch

The bigger classes are starting to get going in the state playoffs. Many metro league schools look to make their run this year. WIth a lot of  high ranked players in this class. Some up-and-coming freshman. 4A and 5A basketball look to be very exciting. A few teams that really played well first round but just didn’t have the stuff have some promising young talent like Davenport. 48 teams look to make an appearance in 4A while class 5A has 40 teams. Rivalry Games in the Regions Grinnell vs. Pella - Always a battle when the two long-time rivals matchup. Pella looks to spoil Grinnell’s Championship run. Grinnell has a strong group of upperclassmen who look to squash this rivalry game and move out of the region. Sioux City East vs. Sioux City West - The battle of East vs. West will answer which Sioux team will stay alive. West is on a 7 game win streak and really are playing well together. I look for the upset here. East will have to hit there three’s to make it out alive. Close Games to Watch Bondurant-Farrar vs Norwalk - [player_tooltip player_id="163339" first="Katelyn" last="Lappe"] looks to keep her senior campaign going and lead the blue jays. Norwalk’s sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="246152" first="Ava" last="Johnson"] looks to have a big game to show she belongs. I like Bondurant and their young squad in this one. Balanced play will help them advance. Iowa City Liberty vs. Southeast Polk - [player_tooltip player_id="63007" first="Jasmine" last="Barney"], Junior looks to lead her team after downing an extremely tough davenport north in the first round. Barney’s all-around game is amazing. The long point is always moving and has a high motor. Cuts well and is very unselfish. With her scoring, Liberty looks to stay hot and advance. The rams have [player_tooltip player_id="63020" first="Brooklin" last="Dailey"] who looks to matchup well with Jasmine. That battle will be the key to the game. Players to Watch <img class="size-medium wp-image-129024 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2019/12/Ava-Hawthorne-300x300.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="300" /> Senior Spotlight [player_tooltip player_id="128996" first="Ava" last="Hawthorne"] - Gilbert - 30 pts 7 assists 6 steals. Six 3’s. One of the most complete players in her class. Does it all with passion on the court. [player_tooltip player_id="163336" first="Aurora" last="Nehring"] - Newton - 6 blocks. A great rim protector who rebounds well and can score when put in the right spots. <span style="font-size: 1rem;">[player_tooltip player_id="107012" first="Jada" last="Williams"] - 25 pts. Four 3’s. This saucey senior can run the show and shoot well. </span> Jazzy Juniors Doryn Paup - Creston - 31 points 10 rebounds. Strong all-around game. [player_tooltip player_id="127625" first="Kaliyah" last="Sain"] - Cedar Rapids Kennedy - 21 points 5 assists Super Sophs [player_tooltip player_id="246163" first="Grace" last="Knutson"] - Cedar Falls - 23 points. Five 3’s most effective shooter in 5A so far from the field. [player_tooltip player_id="246107" first="Anna" last="Larson"] - Norwalk - 7 assists Fantastic Freshman Morgan Mann - Humboldt - 22 points Karrington Asp - Western Dubuque - 11 rebounds - Lady Martin Bro’s select player. Strong game and is growing in her game well as a freshman [player_tooltip player_id="311381" first="Divine" last="Bourrage"] - Davenport North - Probally the most put together freshman in the crew. Divine is long and strong. She has amazing court vision and is very unselfish. With multiple D1 offers already she scores so well from all levels and is a long strong guard who gets blocks and can defend very well. &nbsp; &nbsp;