Cedar Rapids Kennedy blows out another opponent, eyes No. 1 ranking in Class 4A

CEDAR RAPIDS — As we hit the last day of the boys’ basketball week, it seems pretty certain the top-ranked Class 3A team from Cedar Rapids will slide down a notch or two or three in next week’s Iowa High School Athletic Association poll.

Cedar Rapids Xavier has lost back-to-back games.

But it seems pretty certain we’ll get a new No. 1 in Class 4A that’ll likely come from Cedar Rapids. Specifically, that’d be Cedar Rapids Kennedy.

The Cougars ripped apart a quality 3A club from Dubuque Wahlert, 86-55, Friday night at the Kennedy gym. This was just another in a long line of games Kennedy (10-0) has crushed an opponent so far.

Going into Friday, Kennedy had beaten teams by an average of 34.8 points per game. The Cougars have an 81-point scoring average, which is best in 4A.

They’re leaders or close to being leaders in 4A in assists per game, steals per game, shots taken and made per game, including 3-pointers.

The way they shoot, the way they move the basketball so quickly and down the court, the way they get after you defensively with a barrage of double and triple teams, the way they can’t keep bringing in kids off the bench, the length they can bring in, which is inexperienced but solid ... this is a good team. Perhaps a state championship team in March.

Perhaps a top-ranked team as soon as Monday.

“A lot of us don’t really pay attention to it,” said Kennedy point guard Kenzie Reed. “It’s nice seeing us up there, obviously. We want to be ranked No. 1 at the end of the season.”

⧉ Related article: Photos: Cedar Rapids Kennedy beats Dubuque Wahlert in boys’ basketball, 86-55

“It means a lot,” said Kennedy’s Cyrus Courtney. “But there’s nothing that we’re going to do differently. We’ll just do what we do.”

GREAT idea there.

Kennedy ran off to a 26-11 first-quarter lead and was up 50-23 at halftime. It was 73-38 at the end of three quarters.

The Cougars hit 14 3-pointers, with Colby Dolphin and Carter Newhouse splashing in four apiece. They finished with 12 points apiece, behind leading scorer Courtney, the athletic junior forward who had 17 points, including a 3.

“Height advantage, they had it, so we had to rebound hard,” Courtney said. “We shot the ball well, so, yeah, pretty good game.”

Kennedy was coming off a game Tuesday that wasn’t a really good game. Sure the Cougars beat Linn-Mar by 13 points, but there was some sloppy play, bad shooting that nagged them, just a performance that followed a sloppy practice from the day before.

Practices before this game were much better.

“Really good teams can take wins and learn from them,” said Kennedy Coach Jon McKowen.

Kennedy thought it would have a battle of unbeatens coming up Tuesday night, but 4A No. 8 Dubuque Senior was upset Friday night by Cedar Rapids Washington. Still, it should be a really good game up in the Key City.

AT CEDAR RAPIDS KENNEDY

DUBUQUE WAHLERT (55): Jack Walsh 3-3 1-1 7, Nolan Berendes 5-9 2-4 13, Seamus Crahan 1-4 2-2 4, Luke Smith 1-2 0-0 3, Duke Faley 3-3 5-7 12, Patrick Fitzgerald 1-4 0-0 4, Quinn Walsh 1-2 0-2 3, Ethan Meyer 0-2 0-0 0, Charlie Becker 0-0 0-1 0, Spencer Cummer 0-0 2-2 2, Riley Woods 1-1 0-0 2, Colin Cronin 0-0 0-0 0, Dylan Kern 0-0 1-2 1, Christopher Schmitt 0-0 0-0 0, Anthony Graham 0-0 0-0 0, Michael Winter 2-2 0-0 6, Gabe Auer 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-32 13-21 55.

CEDAR RAPIDS KENNEDY (86): Cyrus Courtney 6-8 4-5 17, Micah Schlaak 4-6 2-2 10, Kenzie Reed 4-9 0-0 9, Colby Dolphin 4-7 0-0 12, Carter Newhouse 4-6 0-0 12, Trey McKowen 3-9 0-0 8, Trevan Krumrei 1-4 2-2 5, Landon Deiters 0-1 2-2 2, Jace Scott 12-2 0-0 3, Griffin Gerdes 1-3 0-0 3, Reid Hall 0-0 0-0 0, Tristan Steichen 1-1 0-0 2, Nolan Grawe 0-1 0-0 0, Reece Murray 2-2 0-0 4, Micah Jauhiainen 0-1 0-0 0, Colton Smith 0-0 0-0 0, Donovan Slick-Driscoll 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 31-61 10-11 86.

Halftime - Kennedy 50, Wahlert 23. 3-point goals - Wahlert 6-18 (Berendes 1-4, Crahan 0-3, Smith 1-2, Faley 1-1, Fitzgerald 0-2, Q. Walsh 1-2, Meyer 0-2, Winter 2-2), Kennedy 14-31 (Courtney 1-2, Reed 1-6, Dolphin 4-5, Newhouse 4-6, McKowen 2-3, Krumrei 1-3, Scott 1-2, Gerdes 0-2, Jauhiainen 0-1, Slick-Driscoll 0-1). Rebounds - Wahlert 20 (Berendes 5), Kennedy 28 (Schlaak, Krumrei 5). Total fouls - Wahlert 14, Kennedy 18. Fouled out - None. Turnovers - Wahlert 19, Kennedy 5.

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