Youth doesn’t slow top-ranked West

CEDAR RAPIDS - The scariest thing about the Iowa City West boys basketball team is not its explosiveness on offense or its relentless style of play.

No, the scariest thing about the top-ranked Trojans - with only one senior on their roster - is that they probably are a year away from being their best.

Sophomores Devontae Lane and Connor McCaffery combined for 36 points, and junior Tanner Lohaus added 14 to lead West to a 68-46 win over Cedar Rapids Washington last night in a Mississippi Valley Conference game at Washington.

Senior David DeLeo missed his fifth game for the Trojans because of a deep thigh bruise that has been slow to respond to treatment. The only game he played, against perennial Minnesota power Hopkins, he scored 25 points.

West started two sophs and three juniors. The rest of the 14-man squad also are juniors.

'The scary part is they are only going to get better,” Washington Coach Adam Sanchez said. 'Obviously, they have a ton of talent and they have five guys that are going to be back next year, and some talented guys coming off the bench that will be back.

'It's very scary for our league.”

West Coach Steve Bergman isn't buying the early praise for the Trojans.

'I think we're struggling finding that bench component and I don't think we found out much tonight, maybe, but we'll just keep plugging away,” Bergman said. 'They're young and inexperienced guys.”

Lane and McCaffery both played on West's state tournament team of a year ago.

'The strength of this team is I think we'll have a different leading scorer almost every night,” Bergman said.

Lane scored 16 of his 20 points in the first half as West (6-0, 3-0 MVC) built a 38-27 lead. Lohaus had six points in the third quarter when the Trojans outscored Washington 18-7 to take a commanding 56-34 lead into the fourth period.

'Their talent level and their strength inside just kind of wore on us,” Sanchez said.

Junior Jared Printy lead Washington (1-3, 0-3) with 11 points. Senior Keegan Moore had 10.

Washington plays at New Hampton Monday. West is idle until after the holiday break.