Iowa high school boys’ state basketball 2025: Brackets, predictions, top players and more

DES MOINES — Six teams from the Gazette area will play this week at the boys’ state basketball team.

That’d be North Linn in Class 1A, Jesup and LaPorte City Union Community in 2A, Cedar Rapids Xavier in 3A, Linn-Mar and Cedar Rapids Kennedy in 4A.

Jesup and Union are two of four teams from the North Iowa Cedar League to qualify for state. Grundy Center (2A) and Gladbrook-Reinbeck (1A) are the others.

The Metro is well represented again. It’s the second time in three years there are a trio of teams in the tournament. Marion, Cedar Rapids Xavier and Cedar Rapids Kennedy all made it in 2023.

This is the second time in four years the Metro has two teams in the 4A portion of the tourney. Kennedy and Cedar Rapids Prairie made it in 2022.

North Linn is a state qualifier for a ninth consecutive season. That’s the second-longest streak in state history, tied with Linn-Mar (2004 through 2012).

Iowa City West has the longest state qualifying streak (10).

Three of the four champions from last season are back to defend their titles: West Des Moines Valley (4A), Western Christian (2A) and North Linn (1A). Valley seeks its third consecutive big-school title.

The following are thumbnails on each of the four classes:

Class 4A

THE SCHEDULE

Quarterfinals

Monday, 10:30 a.m. — No. 4 Waukee Northwest (21-3) vs. No. 5 Cedar Rapids Kennedy (20-4)

Monday, 12:15 p.m. — No. 1 Cedar Falls (21-2) vs. No. 9 Dubuque Senior (17-6)

Monday, 2 p.m. — No. 2 Linn-Mar (21-2) vs. No. 7 Waukee (18-6)

Monday, 3:45 p.m. — No. 3 West Des Moines Valley (20-3) vs. No. 6 Ames (21-2)

Semifinals

Wednesday, 5:30 p.m. — Top bracket

Wednesday, 7:15 p.m. — Bottom bracket

Championship

Saturday, 1 p.m. — Semifinal winners

THE FAVORITE

Eight of the top nine teams in the Iowa High School Athletic Association’s final 4A rankings qualified, so it’s a really good field. The exception was ninth-ranked Senior, which beat No. 8 Cedar Rapids Prairie in a substate final. Valley seeks a three-peat and has a very good starting five that includes two of the top players in the state in guard Zay Robinson and center Trevin Jirak (a Northern Iowa signee). Waukee Northwest also has a tremendous starting five, but lost twice in the regular season to Valley. Linn-Mar has won 15 in a row, including a win over Cedar Falls, the last Eastern Iowa school to win a 4A championship (2020). The Tigers beat Valley in the regular season and have been ranked No. 1 most of the winter. You can likely pick one of those four. What’s new this season is 4A begins the state tournament, meaning teams play Monday, Wednesday, Friday instead of three consecutive days (Wednesday, Thursday, Friday). That should favor teams like Valley and Linn-Mar, which aren’t particularly deep.

THE LOCALS

Hard to believe Linn-Mar’s previous state tournament appearance was 2012. The Lions have a serious Iowa Mr. Basketball candidate in 6-foot-9 center Davis Kern. The South Dakota State signee averages 22.9 points, 9.9 rebounds, three blocks and almost four assists per game. He recently surpassed Linn-Mar legend Marcus Paige to become the Metro’s all-time career leading scorer (he has 1,738). Junior power forward Tyler Hilton (11.6 ppg) has improved noticeably throughout the season, senior wing Payson Nietert (11.0 ppg) is a big 3-point threat and senior guard Mason Matson (10.7 ppg, team-best 4.3 assists per game) has been steady as a rock all season. Linn-Mar’s losses were to Cedar Falls early in the season (one avenged later in the season) and to Ankeny (a game in which starting guard Trey Wright did not play because of sickness).

This is the fourth straight trip to state for Kennedy, an impressive feat. The Cougars lost to Valley in last year’s 4A championship game and graduated a number of key pieces, so this would be considered a reload. Senior guard Trey McKowen (an Upper Iowa signee) easily has been Kennedy’s best player, averaging 22.3 ppg, 4.9 apg and 3.8 steals per game. Senior wing Reuben Schlaak is Kennedy’s only other double-figures scorer (12.4 ppg). Kennedy’s losses were by six to Cedar Falls, by one to Cedar Rapids Prairie, by two to Linn-Mar and by 29 to Northwest. A two-point victory over fellow state qualifier Dubuque Senior is probably the Cougars’ best win this season.

THREE PLAYERS TO WATCH

Davis Kern, 6-foot-9 senior, Linn-Mar — Could end up being this year’s Iowa Mr. Basketball. Averages 22.9 points and 9.9 rebounds per game. Metro’s all-time career scoring leader. South Dakota State signee. Four-year starter.

William Gerdes, 6-9 junior, Cedar Falls — Holds an offer from Iowa. Averages 16.9 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. Shoots 68.1 percent from the field.

Zay Robinson, 6-1 senior, West Des Moines Valley — Senior center Trevin Jirak has signed with UNI and is a big presence in the middle for the Tigers. But point guard Robinson is probably their most important player and quite likely the best overall athlete in this tournament. The Iowa State football recruit (as a wide receiver) leads his team in scoring (16.4) and assists (3.7).

JOHNSON’S PREDICTIONS

Quarterfinals

Waukee Northwest over Cedar Rapids Kennedy

Cedar Falls over Dubuque Senior

Linn-Mar over Waukee

West Des Moines Valley over Ames

Semifinals

Waukee Northwest over Cedar Falls

West Des Moines Valley over Linn-Mar

Championship

West Des Moines Valley over Waukee Northwest

  Buy Photo

Class 3A

THE SCHEDULE

Quarterfinals

Monday, 5:30 p.m. — No. 1 Clear Lake (24-0) vs. DeWitt Central (13-11)

Monday, 7:15 p.m. — No. 5 Storm Lake (22-1) vs. No. 7 Adel-DeSoto-Minburn (21-4)

Tuesday, 10:30 a.m. — No. 3 Knoxville (24-0) vs. Cedar Rapids Xavier (15-9)

Tuesday, 12:15 p.m. — No. 4 Huxley Ballard (21-2) vs. No. 8 MOC/Floyd Valley (20-4)

Semifinals

Thursday, 10:30 a.m. — Top bracket

Thursday, 12:15 p.m. — Bottom bracket

Championship

Friday, 3 p.m. — Semifinal winners

THE FAVORITE

There are three unbeaten teams remaining in the state and two of them are in this field. Clear Lake’s closest win was by 11, over Waverly-Shell Rock. Knoxville plays in a primarily 2A conference (South Central), which is why it ended the regular season ranked third by the Iowa High School Athletic Association, behind Clear Lake and Decorah. This class has been topsy turvy all season, so you can probably make a case for just about everyone in this field. If you want a sleeper, check out Cedar Rapids Xavier. The Saints play a 4A-heavy schedule as a member of the Mississippi Valley Conference and hasn’t lost to a 3A team all season (8-0).

THE LOCALS

Xavier rallied from 17 points down in the second half to win its substate final at Decorah. Senior guard Kaleb Wilgenbusch had 29 points in that game and averages 13.6 points per game, second on the team to junior guard Zander Murray (14.3). Junior center A.J. Evans averages 11.0 points and 7.3 rebounds. This is the Saints’ second appearance in three years. It finished second in 2023. There also was a four-year run from 2015-18, including championships in 2016 and 2017.

THREE PLAYERS TO WATCH

Jaidyn Coon, 6-8, junior, Storm Lake — One of the top college recruits in the state in the junior class. Has offers from Iowa, Iowa State, Northern Iowa, Drake, Nebraska, Creighton, Texas Christian and Illinois. Averages 24.2 points and 9.0 rebounds per game.

Landen Norris, 6-5 senior, Knoxville — Has combined with sophomore brother Lincoln to help get Knoxville to the state tournament. Averages 20.8 points and 7.8 rebounds per game. Swing man shoots 59.6 percent from the field.

Thomas Meyer, 6-5 senior, Clear Lake — Averages 16.8 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game. Has signed with the Iowa Hawkeyes football program as a tight end.

JOHNSON’S PREDICTIONS

Quarterfinals

Clear Lake over DeWitt Central

Storm Lake over Adel-DeSoto-Minburn

Cedar Rapids Xavier over Knoxville

Huxley Ballard over MOC/Floyd Valley

Semifinals

Clear Lake over Storm Lake

Cedar Rapids Xavier over Huxley Ballard

Championship

Clear Lake over Cedar Rapids Xavier

Class 2A

THE SCHEDULE

Quarterfinals

Tuesday, 2 p.m. — No. 1 Western Christian (22-3) vs. Jesup (16-9)

Tuesday, 3:45 p.m. — No. 5 Grand View Christian (23-1) vs. No. 6 Treynor (22-3)

Tuesday, 5:30 p.m. — No. 3 West Lyon (21-3) vs. LaPorte City Union Community (17-9)

Tuesday, 7:15 p.m. — No. 4 Orange City Unity Christian (20-4) vs. No. 7 Grundy Center (22-2)

Semifinals

Thursday, 2 p.m. — Top bracket

Thursday, 3:45 p.m. — Bottom bracket

Championship

Friday, 5 p.m. — Semifinal winners

THE FAVORITE

Western Christian. Heavily. Of the Wolfpack’s three losses, two were to good out-of-state teams and to Waukee, which is part of the 4A state tournament field. Western has wins over 2A state tourney qualifiers Unity Christian and MOC/Floyd Valley, though the one over Unity was by just a point. Western always has a tall team, but the tallest player on this season’s team is “only” 6-foot-4.

THE LOCALS

Jesup has the unenviable task of facing Western Christian in the quarterfinals. The J-Hawks graduated their all-time leading scorer last season (Jack Miller, who is at Upper Iowa now), yet somehow has found a way to get to state. They didn’t even get a first-round district bye, yet upset MFL MarMac, Cascade and North Fayette Valley to get to this point. The 57-56 substate final win over NFV came when Ryan Treptow hit a free throw with 2.7 seconds left. The 6-3 senior guard leads Jesup in scoring (20.3 ppg) and rebounds (8.1).

Union Community also has been money in the postseason after a decent but not great regular season. The Knights upset Alburnett and Denver (avenging a regular-season loss) in district play, then shocked second-ranked Carroll Kuemper in a substate final, 77-66. All five starters scored in double figures in that win, which has been a season-long pattern for a balanced team. Four players average between 10.9 and 12.4 points per game. Center Eric Neipert, the only senior on the game, averages 11.1 points and 9.1 rebounds.

THREE PLAYERS TO WATCH

Kaden Van Regenmorter, 6-4 senior, Western Christian — Headed to Morningside. Averages 19.8 points, 6.4 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game. All of those numbers lead the team.

Emiliano Barrantes, 6-8 senior, Grand View Christian — Has signed with D-I Illinois-Chicago. Averages 21.5 points and 14.3 rebounds per game. Had 23 points and 23 rebounds in GVC’s substate final win over West Burlington.

Carson Hoogeveen, 5-11 senior, West Lyon — The guard averages 17.5 points per game and shoots 51.6 percent from the field. He has hoisted 205 3-pointers but made 47.3 percent of them. That’s good.

JOHNSON’S PREDICTIONS

Quarterfinals

Western Christian over Jesup

Grand View Christian over Treynor

West Lyon over Union Community

Orange City Unity Christian over Grundy Center

Semifinals

Western Christian over Grand View Christian

Orange City Unity Christian over West Lyon

Championship

Western Christian over Orange City Unity Christian

  Buy Photo

Class 1A

THE SCHEDULE

Quarterfinals

Wednesday, 10:30 a.m. — No. 4 Gladbrook-Reinbeck (22-3) vs. No. 5 North Linn (23-2)

Wednesday, 12:15 p.m. — No. 1 Bellevue Marquette (25-1) vs. Remsen St. Mary’s (21-4)

Wednesday, 2 p.m. — No. 2 Madrid (25-0) vs. Boyden-Hull (18-8)

Wednesday, 3:45 p.m. — No. 4 Fort Dodge St. Edmond (22-3) vs. No. 9 Woodbine (23-2)

Semifinals

Thursday, 5:30 p.m. — Top bracket

Thursday, 7:15 p.m. — Bottom bracket

Championship

Friday, 7:15 p.m. — Semifinal winners

THE FAVORITE

Bellevue Marquette was in last year’s 1A championship game, losing by a point to North Linn. The Defenders rolled through the regular season, their only loss coming at Dubuque Senior, which is part of the 4A state tournament field. Madrid is one of three undefeated teams (Clear Lake and Knoxville in 3A) are the others. The Tigers’ closest game was a three-point win over Ankeny Christian, a team they then beat in a substate final by 20. Marquette and Madrid are the favorites, though watch out for Fort Dodge St. Edmond, which played a 2A-3A schedule.

THE LOCALS

The ninth straight state tournament appearance for North Linn, which has played in a championship game an unprecedented seven years in a row. Those are amazing streaks for a small public school, any school. The Lynx losses were to 2A Alburnett in overtime and to Dunkerton. Six seniors have led the way for this team, particularly Mason Bechen, who is headed to Division II Northwest Missouri State to be a pitcher in baseball. This year’s undersized team starts a 5-foot-11 player at power forward (Drew Ries) and has no one who plays regularly taller than Bechen and Cade Garman, who also is 6-2 and comes off the bench. Travis Griffith did a great job in his first season as head coach after being a longtime assistant for Mike Hilmer, who left the school to become superintendent at Bellevue.

THREE PLAYERS TO WATCH

Mason Bechen, 6-2, senior, North Linn — An incredible career and an incredible senior season. Bechen broke the school record for most points in a season, averaging 30.1 per game and shooting 57 percent from the field. He is second in career scoring at North Linn, behind only former Iowa Mr. Basketball Jake Hilmer, who is playing professionally in Europe.

Spencer Roeder, 6-5, senior, Bellevue Marquette — An all-stater last season, the forward led Marquette in scoring for a second straight season (20.4 points per game). Also pulls down an average of 9.8 rebounds. Second on the team in assists (4.3 per game).

Toryn Severson, 6-4, senior, Madrid — The forward averages 23.0 points and 7.3 rebounds. He and brother Jevyn (a freshman) average 39 points and 15 rebounds per game between them.

JOHNSON’S PREDICTIONS

Quarterfinals

Gladbrook-Reinbeck over North Linn

Bellevue Marquette over Remsen St. Mary’s

Madrid over Boyden-Hull

Fort Dodge St. Edmond over Woodbine

Semifinals

Gladbrook-Reinbeck over Bellevue Marquette

Fort Dodge St. Edmond over Madrid

Championship

Fort Dodge St. Edmond over Gladbrook-Reinbeck

Comments: jeff.johnson@thegazette.com