Iowa high school boys’ state basketball 2022: Tuesday’s game previews

DES MOINES — A look at Tuesday’s games at the 2022 Iowa boys’ state basketball tournament at Wells Fargo Arena.

Class 2A Quarterfinals

MID-PRAIRIE (24-0) vs. MONTICELLO (21-3)

When: 10:30 a.m.

Seeds: Mid-Prairie is the 3, Monticello the 6

State tournament history: This is the eighth state tournament berth for Mid-Prairie. The Golden Hawks last qualified in 2010. The school has two runner-up finishes (1970 and 2007) and two fourth places (1972 and 1996). Monticello qualified in 1959, finished fourth in a one-class tourney in 1960, then didn’t get back in until 2020. This is the third consecutive trip: in 2A (this season and 2020) and 3A (2021).

Overview: These teams played at the end of the regular season for the mythical overall River Valley Conference championship, with Mid-Prairie winning, 65-50. M-P won the RVC’s South Division and Monticello the North Division.

Mid-Prairie gives up just 42.6 points per game. Senior forward Carter Harmsen is the main guy offensively for the Golden Hawks, averaging 20 points per game and shooting 52.4 percent from the field. M-P then has four players who score at rates between 7.9 and 10.3 points.

Monticello’s big two are junior point guard Tate Petersen and sophomore forward Preston Ries. Petersen, who started on Monti’s two previous state tourney teams, averages 19.2 points and 5.5 assists per game. Ries averages 18.5 points and 6.9 rebounds.

JESUP (19-5) vs. ROCK VALLEY (19-5)

When: 12:15 p.m.

Seeds: Jesup is the 7, Rock Valley the 2

State tournament history: Jesup has been a state qualifier three previous times: 1995, 1999 (third place in 2A) and 2016. This is the 15th state tournament apperance for Rock Valley. That includes championships in 1996, 1998, 2009 and 2010.

Overview: Jesup was 3-5 at one point this season. Then a 16-game win streak happened, including an upset of Aplington-Parkersburg in a 2A substate final. A-P had beaten the J-Hawks handily in two regular-season games. Jesup leads the 2A field in scoring at 74.6 points per game. Senior forward Carson Lienau has had a great season, averaging 20.9 points and shooting 68.2 percent from the field. Senior Corbin Fuelling (16.5 ppg) and sophomore Jack Miller (15.1 ppg) provide a highly capable guard court.

Rock Valley finished third behind Boyden-Hull and Central Lyon in the powerhouse Siouxland Conference, but beat B-H in a district final, 61-59. It also beat top-seeded Central Lyon, 65-63, in a regular-season finale. Four Rockets average double figures in scoring, led by senior guard Bryson Van Grootheest (18.6 ppg).

Class 3A Quarterfinals

MARION (19-5) vs. WINTERSET (19-5)

When: 3:45 p.m.

Seeds: Marion is the 5, Winterset the 4

State tournament history: It’s the seventh state tourney appearance for Marion, its first since back-to-backers in 2018 and 2019. Marion has won two games at state, one in 1950 and one in 1952. Winterset has three prior state tournament appearances: 1985 (third place), 1987 and 2019 (third).

Overview: You want similarity? These teams have identical records. Winterset beat opponents by 10.8 points on average, Marion by 10.5. Their overall field-goal and 3-point percentages are alike, their effective field-goal percentage even more so (Winterset 52.2, Marion 52.1).

Junior guard Brayson Laube is Marion’s only double-figure scorer at 19.3 points per game. He has taken over 100 shots more than the next-highest Marion shooter and scorer Alex Mota (9.7 ppg). The Iowa football commitment had 25 points in Marion’s substate final win over Clear Creek-Amana.

Winterset is led by senior guards Levi Gurwell (17.5 ppg) and Dawson Forgy (11.2 ppg). The Huskies beat perennial power Pella in the substate finals.

DECORAH (22-1) vs. DEWITT CENTRAL (18-6)

When: 5:30 p.m.

Seeds: Decorah is the 2, DeWitt Central the 7

State tournament history: It has been a long time since Decorah has played at the state basketball tournament. The exact year was 1977. The Vikings also played in the 1972 tourney. DeWitt Central was 3A runner-up in 2014 and also qualified for state in 1981 (2A champion), 1996 and 2007.

Overview: Decorah lost to Western Dubuque in its second game of the season, 49-46, and then has gone on to post a 21-game win streak. The Vikings lead 3A in scoring (71.4 ppg) and scoring differential (24.5 ppg). It’s a balanced offensive attack considering six players average between 8.5 and 14.1 points. The 14.1 average belongs to senior Joseph Bockman. Sophomore point guard Trey McCain averages 11.6 points and a team-best 4.7 assists per game.

DeWitt Central senior center Shawn Gilbert is 6-foot-9 and 300 pounds. He averages 23.8 points and 10.0 rebounds, going off for 45 points in a substate semifinal win over Cedar Rapids Xavier. Senior guard Gibson McEwen averages 13.3 points and is the Sabers’ top 3-point shooter.

Other 3A Quarterfinals

No. 1 Dallas Center-Grimes (19-5) vs. No. 8 Carroll (16-8), 2 p.m.

No. 3 Davenport Assumption (19-5) vs. No. 6 Humboldt (16-8), 7:15. p.m.

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