Boys’ basketball notebook: North Fayette Valley’s Cael Reichter a double-double machine

CEDAR RAPIDS - He virtually owns the record book at his school.

He is North Fayette Valley’s all-time leading scorer, its all-time leading rebounder. Recently he became its all-time leader in steals.

You count single season and game, and he has set about a dozen records. Amazing.

But probably not the most amazing thing Cael Reichter has accomplished in one heck of a prep basketball career.

The 6-foot-8 senior forward has secured a double-double (points and rebounds) in 32 consecutive games, a streak that’s active going into North Fayette Valley’s game Friday night against Postville. The last time Reichter didn’t double-double up was Dec. 8, 2023, in a loss to Lansing Kee.

He got into foul trouble that night, finishing with 15 points but only three rebounds.

“Yeah, I’m usually the last guy up the court, so I just grab the rebound. Being a big guy, you sky over people,” Reichter said with a laugh. “I actually looked at it about a week ago, I think, and I noticed all the highlights in the online record book. How I have a few. The double-doubles, I didn’t know I had 32 in a row, if I’m being honest.”

There’s not much doubt this kid is the best player in North Fayette Valley, quite likely North Fayette and Valley CEW history. Perhaps, West Union North High School, Fayette High School and Valley High School history.

Reichter is tall but also very skilled. He was a point guard at one point, growing four to five inches between his freshman and sophomore years to 6-foot-6.

He has grown another couple of inches in height since then.

“He was always tall, but he could always handle the ball,” North Fayette Valley Coach Matt Krambeer said. “Sometimes he’ll bring the ball up for us. He can guard guards, he can guard posts, sometimes we’ll just have him roam around in the middle to affect shots. I refer to him as a 6-8 unicorn for us. Sometimes he can just do things that aren’t normal, especially at a school our size and our conference.

“It’s fun to have him out there. He’s super skilled, he can handle it, he can finish. But he’s also a hard-working kid, fun to be around.”

Reichter averages 28.8 points and 15 rebounds per game for a North Fayette Valley team that is 12-0. He’s shooting 67 percent from the field, including going 12 of 22 from 3-point territory.

OK, he has made just 66.7 percent of his free throws, but considering everything, you’re picking some serious nits with that.

“I think it’s been going really good,” Reichter said. “I’m shooting, like, almost 70 percent from the field, my 3-ball has been going good so far, somewhere around 50 percent. I really have been shooting it well. I think it’s just taking my time once I have it in the spot where I want it to be. Just taking the time and finishing it. Not rushing the shot.”

Reichter has signed with Division II Upper Iowa, where he plans on being a roommate with Cedar Rapids Kennedy all-state guard Trey McKowen. Those two are the only guys in UIU’s recruiting class for next season so far.

But the focus right now for him is this NFV team. The TigerHawks lost to Hudson in a 2A substate final last spring, and the goal obviously is to take things one step farther this season, at least.

Reichter is just one of seven seniors for North Fayette Valley, which is an unusually high number for a smaller school. There are some good athletes around, considering the school went 9-2 in football this past fall (Reichter had 50 receptions, 10 for touchdown as a tight end) and won a state soccer championship last spring (four guys on this basketball team were on that team).

“Being 12-0 is really good for us,” Reichter said. “We’ve played some tough games. Last year we lost to Hudson in substate. It was a really big moment for us, and we kind of lost what we do. We started playing what they play, they sped us up , and we lost the ball. For the remainder of this season, we have to play our ball. We can’t let teams dictate how we play. So we can get out and play our defense, get steals, everything.”

“Our experience is a critical part of it,” Krambeer said. “These guys have really bought into the process. Defending, I think defense is kind of what we hang our hat on. We’re fairly athletic, but they really pay attention to that detail. Not all teams want to get after it defensively. But these guys want to do that.”

Around the hoop

– The top two leading scorers in the state through Wednesday are from Gazette-area schools.

Senior guard Mason Bechen of North Linn is number one at 31.1 points per game. Junior center Cael LaFrentz is second at 30.7 points per game.

Senior forward Caleb Haack of Iowa Valley leads the state in blocked shot at 5.5 per game.

– Chase Haifley scored 27 points and Billie Kindred added 25 as Keota upset Class 1A No. 10 North Mahaska, 71-61, Tuesday night. Freshman Jaxen Christiansen poured in 26 points as Northeast Goose Lake gave Class 2A No. 7 Monticello its first loss of the season, 67-58.

– There are good things that can happen when programs combine. Check out HLV/Tri-County.

The shared program takes a 6-5 record into Friday night’s game against Sigourney with a 6-5 record. Last season, HLV finished 5-16 and Tri-County 1-22.

HLV/Tri-County’s leading scorer is Peyton Roth at 20.7 points per game. He’s a HLV kid.

The team’s second-leading scorer is Levi Molyneux (10.5 ppg). He’s a Tri-County kid.

Comments: (319)-398-8258, jeff.johnson@thegazette.com