Jaime Brandt named to girls basketball hall of fame

MARION — Jaime Brandt is coaching another fine girls' basketball team at Linn-Mar, a team good enough to reach the state tournament.

Whether the Lions make it or not, Brandt will make an appearance at Wells Fargo Arena on championship night.

The former Jaime Printy, Brandt is part of the Class of 2017 for the Iowa Girls Basketball Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony is Saturday, March 4.

'I guess I didn't think about it until it happened,' Brandt said Wednesday. 'It's a huge honor, to be in there with all the great players that have played in Iowa.'

Brandt will be joined by Amy Towne (a six-on-six player from Avoca AHST) and Carli Tritz (Sioux City Heelan/Creighton).

Despite a knee injury that cost her most of her sophomore season, Brandt scored 1,391 points in four years at Linn-Mar. In her three full seasons (2005-06, 2007-08 and 2008-09), the Lions compiled a 66-8 record, won three Mississippi Valley Conference divisional titles and reached the state tournament three times.

Linn-Mar was a Class 4A quarterfinalist in 2006, then reached the semifinals in 2008 and 2009.

'It was a lot of fun,' Brandt said. 'I played on a lot of good, competitive teams.

'But like I tell my players now, as much as you want to win, what you remember most is your teammates and the off-court experiences.'

As a freshman, Brandt committed to the University of Iowa, where she ranks No. 3 all-time in scoring, with 1,841 points. She is third in 3-pointers (252) and fifth in assists (412).

After graduation from Iowa in 2013, Brandt rejoined high-school coach Michael Brandt (no relation) on the Linn-Mar bench as an assistant. She was elevated to head coach the next year and owns a 45-16 mark in 2 1/2 seasons, leading the Lions to the 5A state semifinals last year.

This year's team is 9-3.

'To give back to the school where I came from, it's been a blast,' Brandt said. 'The hall of fame is a big honor, but it would be even more meaningful if we're there playing as a team.'

THIEVES ABOUND, ALL AROUND

Led by Solon's Josie Durr, five of the top six ball hawks are from the Gazette area.

Durr, a senior, leads the state with 95 steals, an average of 8.6 per game.

Elkader Central's Ashley Funk is second with 83, followed by Grace Tahahwah of Meskwaki Settlement (fourth, 81), Rylee Menster of Springville (fifth, 77) and Shelby Reicks of Turkey Valley (sixth, 76).

RIVER VALLEY GIANTS COLLIDE

Iowa City Regina (11-0, 9-0) and Cascade (9-1, 8-0) have taken control of their respective divisions in the River Valley Conference. They'll square off Saturday at Regina.

Cascade holds a three-game lead in the loss column in the North Division; the Cougars' lone loss came to North Linn, 46-34, on Dec. 19.

Regina's closest game was a 13-pointer against Bellevue on Jan. 6 and leads the South Division by two games. The Regals are beating their opponents by an average of 33.6 points per game, and have won 33 consecutive regular-season games.

l Comments: (319) 368-8857; jeff.linder@thegazette.com