Jeff Johnson

The Iowa Heartlanders lost Sunday afternoon at home to Toledo, 5-1. They dropped all three games this weekend to the Walleye. But a positive was a season-high 45 shots on goal.

Cliff Broxey of Cedar Rapids is a season-ticket holder for Cedar Rapids RoughRiders home hockey games and attends practice multiple times a week at ImOn Ice. The 73-year-old man loves the RoughRiders, and they love him right back.

The belief is North Linn’s boys’ basketball team hasn’t lost a home game since 2015. That’s a streak that kept stretching Friday night as the Class 1A second-ranked Lynx beat Class 2A No. 6 Alburnett, 64-47.

Sophomore starter Dylan Penning died unexpectedly last week, but his Iowa Valley boys’ basketball team is playing on in honor of him. The Tigers won their first game since his death Tuesday night against Sigourney with a huge fourth-quarter rally.

Watch or listen to the January 19, 2023, Prep Basketball Podcast as Jeff Johnson and Jeff Linder discuss the latest talking points in Iowa high school basketball.

Cedar Rapids Prairie graduate, former Kirkwood Community College and Mount Mercy University player Corbin Day will serve as a hitting coach for the 2023 Cedar Rapids Kernels, it was announced Thursday. Day has been an assistant coach at Kirkwood. Brian Dinkelman will return as Kernels manager.

Cedar Rapids Kennedy moved to the No. 1 spot in Class 4A in this week’s Iowa High School Athletic Association rankings and looked the part Tuesday night by going up to Dubuque and disposing of eighth-ranked Dubuque Senior, 66-44.

Cedar Rapids Kennedy is the new top-ranked team in Class 4A, as the Iowa High School Athletic Association has announced its weekly poll. The Cougars (10-0) play No. 8 Dubuque Senior (10-1) on Tuesday night. Cedar Rapids Xavier lost twice last week and has been moved down from third to first in Class 3A. North Linn remains second in 1A, Alburnett inches to sixth in 2A.

Defenseman Eric Pohlkamp of the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders has had one heck of a month on the ice. He was part of a United States national team that won a gold medal at the World Junior ‘A’ Challenge, was to take part in Monday night’s BioSteel All-American Game in Michigan, was included on NHL Central Scouting’s Mid-Term Rankings of potential NHL draft pick. He’s also had two hat tricks and leads the USHL in scoring by defensemen.

Alburnett’s boys’ basketball team went to 2-0 against River Valley Conference opponents this season with an impressive 64-37 win over Cascade at Saturday’s Wells Fargo Advisors Shootout at Coe College. The Pirates are ranked seventh in Class 2A.

The Cedar Rapids Kennedy boys’ basketball team has rolled its opponents so far this season. Over a 10-0 start, the Cougars’ average win is by over 30 points per game. Kennedy beat Dubuque Wahlert at home Friday night, 86-55.

Watch or listen to the January 12, 2023, Prep Basketball Podcast as Jeff Johnson and Jeff Linder discuss the latest Iowa high school basketball rankings and possible upcoming changes.

Alburnett’s boys’ basketball team goes into Friday with a 10-1 record and a No. 7 ranking. That’s in a new class, as the Pirates have bumped up from 1A to 2A this season.

Marion’s boys’ basketball team hasn’t faced many junk defenses this season, but Center Point-Urbana started Tuesday night’s game with a box-and-one: four defenders in a zone and another face guarding Marion all-state guard Brayson Laube. The Wolves laid waste to that D, getting 14 first-quarter points from Myles Davis in a 75-57 win.

Waukee Northwest, Cedar Rapids Xavier, Central Lyon and Grand View Christian were your No. 1 boys’ basketball teams in the first-ever Iowa High School Athletic Association rankings, released just prior to the holidays. Monday’s second rankings see those teams stay at the top in their respective classes.