Boys’ basketball notebook: Brayson Laube breaks Marion’s longstanding record for career points

MARION — The leading scorer in the history of Marion High School boys’ basketball. Think about that and all the history involved for a minute.

Brayson Laube has more career points than Kasey Semler, more than Amry Shelby and Todd Twachtman. A week ago, he surpassed Hugh Leffingwell.

“Those records are really tough,” Laube said. “When I was younger, I really looked up to Kasey Semler because I knew about him and his family. I never had, like, a goal to break the record. But as I’ve played for a little while, it was kind of in my sights, so I just kept scoring, I guess.”

If you don’t know Leffingwell’s tragic story, he played on a loaded freshman team at the University of Iowa in the 1952-53 season with guys who would go on to be known as the Fabulous Five: Carl Cain, Bill Logan, Bill Seaberg, Sharm Scheuerman and Bill Schoof. Leffingwell was diagnosed with leukemia shortly after that season and died.

“I know a little bit about him, heard a little bit about his story,” Laube said. “That he was a great, great man and great basketball player.”

And Laube is at very least a tremendous kid and basketball player. He’s averaging 22 points per game this season for the Class 3A fourth-ranked Wolves (13-3), who have won seven in a row and 11 of 12.

Marion plays Friday night at West Delaware. Laube takes 1,388 career points into that game.

He has played since he was a freshman, though his game has changed. Almost strictly a 3-point shooter as a ninth-grader, he got stronger and quicker, developed a dribble-drive and mid-range game to go with long-distance shooting.

Laube also is second on Marion’s team in rebounding and assists and leads in steals. He was a first-team all-stater last season, scoring 35 points in the Wolves’ overtime loss to Winterset in the Class 3A state tournament quarterfinals.

“I knew moving forward that I needed to continue to grow as a player,” he said. “To help my game and help my team, and going to college, past college with the goals that I have, I knew I needed to get a lot stronger. Just a lot of working out with my family and friends. Working on getting stronger, using my size as an advantage.”

Laube will play college ball for an outstanding Division II program at Augustana (S.D.). Both of his sisters, Mia (St. Thomas, Minn.) and Kayba (Northern Iowa), have or are still playing in college.

His parents, Ami and Corby, also played. Let’s just say hoops are a big deal in this family.

“Basketball bonds our family to another level,” Brayson said. “I don’t think any family has more of a bond coming from a sport than ours. We’re really competitive, a lot of trash talking, but we all just love the game so much. It just bonds us. It’s hard to explain.”

Around The Hoop

— Maquoketa Valley senior guard Avery Holtz surpassed 1,000 points in his career during his team’s 72-32 win Tuesday over Springville. Holtz had 23 points in the game. Maquoketa Valley has a 12-5 record, has won four games in a row and seven of its last eight.

— We’re down to 12 undefeated teams left in the state. They are North Linn, Grand View Christian, Dunkerton and WACO in Class 1A, Central Lyon, Ida Grove OABCIG, Lake Mills, Sioux Central and West Burlington in 2A, Bondurant-Farrar in 3A and Cedar Rapids Kennedy and Sioux City East in 4A.

— Estherville-Lincoln Central junior guard Owen Larson is the state’s leading scorer at 30.9 points per game. Jack Miller of Jesup leads the area in scoring (24.7). Laube leads the Metro.

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