Waverly-Shell Rock dominates Linn-Mar, 65-48

MARION — The Waverly-Shell Rock boys' basketball team rebounded well from its first conference loss a couple of weeks ago.

OK, so the Go-Hawks aren't technically in the Mississippi Valley Conference. They've just ended up playing a handful of MVC schools this season.

Played them well, too, especially Monday night. Northern Iowa-bound center Austin Phyfe had 15 points and 15 rebounds to help guide his Class 3A second-ranked team past Linn-Mar, 65-48.

The final score doesn't indicate how dominant Waverly-Shell Rock (19-1) was here. This was a 39-14 game at halftime.

The Go-Hawks' lone loss came by five points at Cedar Falls. They own wins over fellow Valley members Waterloo East and Cedar Rapids Xavier, the latter by 22 points.

Linn-Mar knows now how Xavier felt.

'Great energy. Really got things done defensively, which led to our offense,' Phyfe said. 'We came out strong right away. We knew it was Senior Night for them, it was probably going to be a pretty good crowd. We don't get to see a lot of 4A schools, a lot of MVC schools, so we really wanted to come out and prove a point to ourself and to the rest of the people that we can play with anyone. We were really hyped and pumped up for this game.'

Phyfe is the real deal, a thick 6-foot-10 lefty who can bang inside and who has some handles on the perimeter, too. He obviously makes his team what it is, which is really good.

Probably unfairly, W-SR Coach Nate Steege was asked if his team could compete night in and night out in the MVC.

'It's so hard to tell,' Steege said. 'You start comparing scores, and you see (Linn-Mar) beat Cedar Falls. The Valley is a tough league, and we have a lot of respect for it. I do think this team would be able to compete in that league, but I don't think it would be an every year thing for us. When you have a Division I post player, it changes everything. I think you see the way he changes the game for us when he's in there.'

It's not necessarily just Phyfe. Six-foot-five forward Jacob Bahe also thrived in this physically played game with 13 points.

Guards Luke Velky and John Stensland added 11 points apiece. Velky was able to get to the free-throw line where he was a cool 7-for-7.

'I thought we played really well, especially the first half,' Steege said. 'We were locked in, I thought, defensively. Our intensity was really good, we were assignment sound ... Overall, I was happy with our effort. I thought our transition game was good. It was nice to see a bunch of guys step up and contribute tonight.'

Linn-Mar (7-12) has lost four straight and five of six. Sophomore Trey Hutcheson led the Lions with 16 points off the bench.

He's normally a starter, but head coach Chris Robertson has a Senior Night tradition in which his starting five is all seniors. While Waverly is done with its regular season, Linn-Mar has two games remaining: Tuesday night at Iowa City West and Thursday night against Waterloo West.

AT MARION

WAVERLY-SHELL ROCK (65): Jacob Bahe 6-7 1-2 13, Austin Phyfe 7-14 1-1 15, Luke Velky 2-5 7-7 11, John Stensland 3-9 2-2 11, Jackson Little 1-2 0-0 2, Jack Seward 1-3 0-0 2, Jordan Downing 2-2 0-0 4, Braden Holmquist 1-2 2-3 5, Mosai Newsom 1-4 0-0 2, Joey McNally 0-0 0-0 0, Jordan Gayer 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 4-48 13-15 65.

LINN-MAR (48): Brennan McGaffe 1-4 0-0 3, Aaron Pistulka 0-1 0-0 0, Kirby Kerr 2-2 0-0 4, Dylan Hand 2-7 0-0 4, Tyler Voves 0-4 0-0 0, Reese Phillips 2-8 1-2 5, Nolan Ruff 1-2 0-0 2, Nate Annis 0-7 2-2 2, Trey Hutcheson 6-14 0-0 16, Jacob Robertson 3-6 0-0 8, Cole Martin 1-2 0-0 2, Jack Gertsen 1-1 0-2 2. Totals 19-58 3-6 48.

Halftime — Waverly-Shell Rock 39, Linn-Mar 14. 3-point goals — Waverly-Shell Rock 4-11 (Phyfe 0-2, Stensland 3-6, Little 0-1, Seward 0-1, Holmquist 1-1), Linn-Mar 6-17 (McGaffe 1-1, Pistulka 0-1, Hand 0-3, Hutcheson 4-8, Robertson 2-3, Martin 0-1). Rebounds — Waverly-Shell Rock 39 (Phyfe 15), Linn-Mar 28 (Hutcheson 5). Total fouls — Waverly-Shell Rock 11, Linn-Mar 15. Fouled out — None. Turnovers — Waverly-Shell Rock 11, Linn-Mar 7.

l Comments: (319) 398-8259; jeff.johnson@thegazette.com