5A State Tournament: The Inside Look

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Eight teams, five days, and a 5A field loaded with stars, defensive grit, and contrasting styles. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here's your inside look at the 5A Class.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Thanks for tuning in and enjoy!</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>The Big Picture Of The 5A Class</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Overall theme of the class: <strong>Upperclassman Leadership. This Class is filled with talented at all ages and positions but if you look at all of the groups, they all possess one thing in common at the very least and that is their leadership from their upperclassmen on roster. </strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Average margin of victory among qualifiers: <strong>+12.35</strong> <strong>PPG</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Combined record of the field: <strong>136-48</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>How many returning state players: <strong>35+</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>How many teams that were here last year: <strong>4</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>The Favorites</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Johnston Dragons (24-0): </strong>The Dragons are the team to beat out of this 5A Class after going undefeated once again up until this point in the season. This marks the third year in a row that they have gone undefeated throughout their regular season. In the past they also finished things off by winning back2back 5A State Titles and they are hoping by this time next week that they will be able to say that they won back2back2back 5A Titles instead. The Dragons thrive off Guard-play. It's not a secret to anyone. They play the game of Basketball the right way, they run in transition like no other we've seen, they have several prospects on hand that can have a career night offensively if they are feeling themselves, and they limit their opponents to one possession most of the time. Their weakness comes in the form of height as their tallest players getting consistent minutes are only 5'11 but up until this point in the season, that's been good enough so now we will just have to see how they finish things out. They have the #1 seed to kick things off so they control their own fate moving forward.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Dowling Catholic Maroons (20-3): </strong>The Maroons graduated their star PG last season but they haven't missed a beat when it comes to their style of play and holding everyone accountable at each position. They went an impressive 20-3 throughout this season as a whole and they are looking to make their mark at the Casey Center next week in a big way by upsetting the #1 seed - Johnston Dragons. The Maroons will have to face some tough teams to get there though. First they will have DSM - Valley, which is not an easy out and to follow they will get the winner of Waukee NW vs Iowa City West. This is why the #2 and #3 seedings is so important. Dowling Catholic and Waukee NW will have to go through each other first prior seeing the Dragons in the Championship, assuming that they team's win their first contest/s of the week. That is going to play into Johnson's favor but will it be enough? I'm not sure. DC brings the advantage of natural size to the floor. When you possess that and you execute, it can be tough to stop. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Team All Defense</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Waukee NW Wolves (17-5):</strong> The Waukee NW Wolves have a chance to avenge their Playoff State loss last Winter when they fell by 5 to The Dowling Catholic Maroons. The advantage that Waukee NW has over the next week is that they returned everyone from a year ago, when they were in a similar position, while seemingly stepping up their efforts on defense this time around. This season opponents are only averaging just over 40 PPG against this group, giving the Wolves the second lowest opponent PPG average out of this 5A field. That experience from the past means something. Last time around they were in a tough battle in the Semi's with a group that had the best PG leader in the State but this time is a lot different. This time around they will have the Guard advantage against DC if they were to meet in the Semi's again. They just have to make sure that they have a plan set in place so that they can use that advantage thoroughly to come out on top. All of these programs named above are very resilient so it takes more than your best punch to start a game. It takes multiple blows all contest long to come out victorious and that could happen within any of these battles. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>The Dark Horses </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Cedar Rapids - Washington Warriors (18-4): </strong>I'd keep my eye out for CR Washington over the next week if I was any other group in this 5A Class. CR Washington has efficient guard-play with a true 6'3 Center in the middle that takes up a lot of space, attention, and effort. When you pair that together, you get a group with an elite defense near the hoop, that has only lost 4 times this season as a whole. Moving into this Winter, this was not a team that most, if any had in the 5A State conversation but they proved everyone wrong. They got better as the season went on and they never hung their heads on stupid/small mistakes. They stayed positive overall, had fun, and that helped them win a lot of contests over the past few months. Now it's time to see what they can do when the pressure is on. They will have a physicality advantage under the bucket in Round 1 on Monday morning against Ankeny but Ankeny will have the Guard advantage so it comes down to who is going to execute at the highest rate.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Valley Tigers (13-10):</strong> Valley will have a very hard road to winning it all but that's what makes the journey worth it. If it was easy, everyone would do it. Valley is set to take on Dowling Catholic in Round 1. This cross town rivalry could be a decent one if the Tigers decide to play with the intensity that they competed with last contest they were in. They have Senior leadership, they have decent size, and they have surprised a few others already this Winter. It's going to take some things to fall their way but the reality is that anything can happen when you get to the Casey Center. That's why we play the game so we will have to wait and see how the Tigers come out on Monday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Ankeny (15-8):</strong> The Ankeny Hawks will be making their first State WBB appearance this Winter since their town split into two schools back in 2013 and they are looking to make their mark while shocking the world on the way to a 5A State Title. When you have a prospect that can Will their team to success on any given evening, you could come out and win ANY game put in front of you and this group has that player in Creighton WBB commit, [player_tooltip player_id='342205' first='Jayla' last='Williams']. Williams is well-rounded and can carry the group on both sides of the floor to an extent but from there, others will have to play with confidence and step up to produce. This team has proven this Winter that they can keep any contest close when they execute their game-plan so you have to be careful and play every possession like it's your last if you face them. If they smell weakness, they will attack. That's been prevalent all season long and I'm sure that will be blatant during this next week of action as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>5A: The Class By The Numbers</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Lowest Opponent PPG: <strong>Dowling Catholic (39.1 PPG)</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Highest 3PT %: <strong>Johnston (35.8 %)</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Fastest Scoring Team: <strong>Johnston (70.2 PPG)</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Assist Leader: <strong>Dowling Catholic (15.3 APG)</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Most Physical: <strong>Dowling Catholic (35.8 RPG)</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Players You Need To Know</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>The Bucket Getter: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='557354' first='Jenica' last='Lewis'] (20.8 PPG - 44.8%)</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>The Floor General: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='557354' first='Jenica' last='Lewis'] (2.5 Assist-Turnover Ratio)</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>The Rim Protector:<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='582813' first='Ellie' last='Muller'] (3.3 BPG)</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>The Microwave (Best Bench Player): <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='880911' first='Victoria' last='Burpo'] (6.5 PPG, 5.1 RPG)</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>The Glue Player: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='342205' first='Jayla' last='Williams'] (21.1 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 3 APG, 3.5 SPG, 1.1 BPG)</strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list -->