Jeff Johnson

The Iowa High School Athletic Association’s latest boys’ basketball rankings were released Monday. Four of the eight schools in the Metro are in the top 10 of their respective classes, including three in Class 4A.

Cedar Rapids Jefferson’s boys’ basketball team found itself down 21 points to Cedar Rapids Washington in the second half and 16 after three quarters. But a mammoth comeback in the fourth gave the J-Hawks a stunning 65-61 win Friday night at Wash.

Here are boys’ basketball standings for Gazette-area schools and conferences. These are through Thursday, Feb. 27.

The Decorah boys’ basketball team is 13-1 and ranked second in Class 3A. The Vikings, who made it to the state tournament semifinals last season, are led by what Coach Jonathan Carlson calls their Batman and Robin: senior guard Zach Driscoll and junior center Cael LaFrentz, who average 50 points per game between them.

The Iowa Heartlanders are conducting a Women In Sports Night for their ECHL game Saturday night at Xtream Arena against Kalamazoo. Part of the promotion is a Hockey 101 Class pregame and appearances by players Mellissa Channell-Watkins and Sophie Jacques of the Professional Women’s Hockey League.

Call It Both Ways: High school basketball podcast with Gazette sportswriters Jeff Linder and Jeff Johnson talking area high school basketball.

The Cedar Rapids Prairie boys’ basketball team seemed to announced their impending arrival to everyone in Class 4A earlier this season when it upset Cedar Rapids Kennedy. A 71-70, double-overtime win Tuesday night over top-ranked Cedar Falls might just show that the Hawks have indeed arrived.

Clear Lake took over the top spot in Class 3A in the latest Iowa High School Athletic Association boys’ basketball rankings, released Monday. The other No. 1s remain the same: Cedar Falls in 4A, Western Christian in 2A and Bellevue Marquette in 1A.

This Hillcrest Academy boys’ basketball team has a 15-1 record after a big 48-45 win Friday night over WACO at Wayland, avenging the Ravens’ only loss this season. That was head coach Dwight Gingerich’s 753rd career victory in 43 years, which places him fourth all time in the state of Iowa.

Duane Orr was announced Friday as the new head varsity football coach at Linn-Mar High School, pending school board approval. He has three decades of experience at schools like Columbus Junction, Council Bluffs Lewis Central, Mount Vernon and Cornell College.

This is the first of a two-year sharing agreement between HLV High School and Tri-County High Schols for their athletics programs. There are 24 kids out for boys’ basketball, with the varsity team owning a 7-6 record, more than the schools had combined on their own last season. In this case, sharing has meant winning.

Call It Both Ways: High school basketball podcast with Gazette sportswriters Jeff Linder and Jeff Johnson talking area high school basketball.

The Marion boys’ basketball team trailed Mount Vernon by 16 points late in the first half Tuesday night. Then the Wolves completely turned everything around, eventually going on to a 65-46 win.

The parent Minnesota Twins announced Tuesday that Brian Meyer will be the manager of the 2025 Cedar Rapids Kernels. Meyer has been manager at low-Class A Fort Myers, getting into professional baseball after a long stint as a college coach.

Guerin Slezak is only 18 years old but is the captain of this Cedar Rapids RoughRiders hockey team. In his second season in the United States Hockey League, he is the quintessential defensive defenseman.