Williamsburg looks to continue special season

WILLIAMSBURG - He knows it sounds so cliche, but Dave Schlabaugh truly believes he knows what has made his Williamsburg Raiders so special this boys' basketball season.

'We have 13 kids that really get along and like competing against one another,” the head coach said.

It sounds as reasonable as anything. Williamsburg takes a 20-1 record, 19-game win streak and number four state ranking into its Class 3A district opener Monday night against Washington (Iowa) at Tiffin.

The Raiders went through the Wamac Conference West Division unscathed, their only loss coming to Anamosa, a good Class 2A team, all the way back on December 5th.

'That game showed us how we did not want to play,” Schlabaugh said.

They haven't played that way since, posting 15 wins by double figures. The closest game was a 52-49 win in middle January over Clear Creek Amana.

The teams played again three weeks later, with Williamsburg victorious by eight. There is the strong possibility of a return-return game in a district final Thursday at Iowa City West.

On the other side of the substate bracket potentially are formidable teams from Fort Madison and Keokuk.

'Going into the season, I don't know if I would have predicted we'd finish 20-1,” Schlabaugh said. 'But I thought we'd be a respectable team, one that would be able to compete in the Wamac Conference.”

It's an interesting mix Schlabaugh has been able to mold together.

He has his son, Zach, at point guard. The senior has posted better than a 2-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio.

'It's been a lot of fun coaching him,” Dave Schlabaugh said. 'We've been in the gym together for so many hours. It's special.”

There are brothers Ben and Jackson Subbert, Ben a freshman and Jackson a senior. The two leading scorers are seniors Adam Klein and Josh Koeppel, who began their careers at different schools: Klein at Iowa City West and Koeppel at Solon.

In fact, Klein averaged five points a game for West's 2014 Class 4A state championship team. He averages a team-best 15.6 points per game for Williamsburg.

It'll be a bonus for the Raiders in the postseason to have a player who has played on the biggest stage.

'The beauty of this thing is that we have a roster full of really competitive players,” Schlabaugh said. 'They look at the big picture.”

Class 3A district openers (or semifinals) will be played around the state, as will substate openers in Class 4A. In the Metro, Marion hosts a 3A district double-header, with Cedar Rapids Xavier playing Benton Community at 6:30 and the Indians hosting Solon at 8.

In 4A, Cedar Rapids Prairie hosts Cedar Rapids Jefferson at 7.

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Monday

CLASS 3A DISTRICT SEMIFINALS

Metro-Area

Cedar Rapids Xavier (13-8) vs. Benton Community (8-13) at Marion, 6:30 p.m.

Solon (9-12) at Marion (14-7), 8 p.m.

Williamsburg (20-1) vs. Washington (Iowa) (6-15) at Tiffin, 6:30 p.m.

South Tama (8-13) at Clear Creek-Amana (15-6), 8 p.m.

Maquoketa (4-17) vs. Davenport Assumption (16-5) at DeWitt, 6:30 p.m.

Mount Vernon (13-8) at DeWitt Central (10-11), 8 p.m.

Independence (2-19) vs. Dubuque Wahlert (12-9) at Manchester, 6:30 p.m.

Center Point-Urbana (8-13) at West Delaware (11-10), 8 p.m.

Waukon (12-9) vs. Crestwood (10-10) at Decorah, 6:30 p.m.

Oelwein (2-20) at Decorah (11-10), 8 p.m.

LaPorte City Union (10-11) vs. Charles City (8-13) at Waverly, 6:30 p.m.

Vinton-Shellsburg (3-18) at Waverly-Shell Rock (19-2), 8 p.m.

State

Storm Lake at LeMars

Sergeant Bluff-Luton vs. Sioux City Heelan at LeMars

Algona at Spencer

Spirit Lake vs. MOC/Floyd Valley at Spencer

Nevada at Webster City

Humboldt vs. Iowa Falls-Alden at Webster City

Mount Pleasant at Fort Madison

Keokuk vs. Fairfield at Fort Madison

Oskaloosa at Pella

Chariton vs. Centerville at Pella

Winterset at Carlisle

Norwalk vs. Knoxville at Carlisle

Grinnell at Bondurant-Farrar

Dallas Center-Grimes vs. Saydel at Bondurant

Huxley Ballard at Gilbert

Perry vs. Boone at Gilbert

Adel-DeSoto-Minburn at Denison-Schleswig

Carroll vs. Greene County at Denison

Glenwood at Atlantic

Harlan vs. Creston at Atlantic

CLASS 4A SUBSTATE QUARTERFINALS

Metro-Iowa City

Cedar Rapids Jefferson (8-13) at Cedar Rapids Prairie (1-20), 7 p.m.

Davenport Central (5-15) at Western Dubuque (18-3), 8 p.m.

State

Counci Bluffs Lewis Central at Sioux City West

Council Bluffs Jefferson vs. Sioux City East at Sioux City West

Fort Dodge vs. Des Moines North at Urbandale

Mason City at Urbandale

Waterloo West vs. Marshalltown at Cedar Falls

Waterloo East at Cedar Falls

Bettendorf vs. Dubuque Senior at Epworth

Davenport North vs. Davenport West at Clinton

Muscatine at Clinton

Burlington at Ottumwa

Ankeny vs. Newton at Runnells

Des Moines Lincoln at Southeast Polk

Johnston at Indianola

Des Moines East at Des Moines Roosevelt

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