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Iowa high school boys’ state basketball tournament berths on the line in Class 4A, 3A
8 games on tap in 4A, 1 in 3A
Jeff Johnson
Feb. 27, 2023 1:24 pm, Updated: Feb. 27, 2023 2:26 pm
There are eight Iowa high school boys’ basketball substate final games Tuesday night in Class 4A and one in 3A, including games involving Gazette-area schools Cedar Rapids Kennedy, Linn-Mar and Solon.
Class 3A substate final
(Game at 7 p.m.)
SOLON (18-5) vs. No. 6 NEWTON (17-5) at Oskaloosa
Solon is looking to get to the state tournament for the first time since 2016. The Spartans have been a laying-in-the-weeds sort of team that is on a nine-game win streak. Jake Benzing, a 6-3 junior guard, is the only Solon player who scores in double figures, averaging 18.0 points per game and a team-best 5.9 rebounds. Newton finished third in a treacherous Little Hawkeye Conference that features a pair of ranked Class 4A teams in Indianola and Norwalk. Cole Plowman, a 6-5 senior, leads the Cardinals in scoring and rebounding at 14.7 and 7.2, respectively. Jake Ingle, a 5-7 senior guard, averages 10.6 points and 4.3 assists per game.
Class 4A substate finals
(All games 7 p.m., unless noted)
No. 1 CEDAR RAPIDS KENNEDY (21-0) vs. NORTH SCOTT (17-5) at Iowa City West
Kennedy seeks its second consecutive state tournament berth. It lost to eventual champion Ames in last year’s 4A semifinals. The Cougars finished the regular season unbeaten for the first time in school history, then beat Davenport West in a substate semifinal, 97-46, making 18 3-pointers, a school record. Colby Dolphin leads Kennedy in scoring at 16.0 points per game. The Kirkwood Community College signee shoots 45 percent from beyond the arc. He has set Kennedy’s single-season record with 69 treys. Senior guard Kenzie Reed, an Upper Iowa signee, set Kennedy’s career record for assists earlier this season. North Scott finished in a tie for second place with Bettendorf in the Mississippi Athletic Conference, three games back of Pleasant Valley. The Lancers are led in scoring and rebounding by 6-foot-7 junior Kavon Phillips (14.7 ppg, 8.0 rpg). These teams have one common opponent in Western Dubuque, which they both beat (Kennedy by a 77-40 margin and North Scott by a 58-56 margin).
LINN-MAR (10-13) vs. AMES (16-7) at Nevada
Linn-Mar is the Cinderella substate final team regardless of class. The Lions had to play a substate opener last week, beating Iowa City Liberty, 76-63, then shocked fifth-ranked Indianola on the road, 65-64, on a pair of late free throws. Davis Kern had 31 points in the game, and the 6-foot-8 sophomore has emerged as a bonafide Division I college player, averaging 19.9 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. Linn-Mar has not advanced to the state tournament since 2012, which was the last of a nine-year run to Des Moines. Ames won last year’s 4A state championship, though this is a much different team that thrives with defense. The Little Cyclones started the season 2-4. Junior guard Jack Wynter leads Ames in scoring (14.2 ppg) with 6-7 junior Lucas Lueth next (11.8).
STATE
No. 2 Waukee (21-2) vs. Dallas Center-Grimes (14-9) at Waukee Northwest
No. 3 Waukee Northwest (20-2) vs. Des Moines Roosevelt (14-9) at West Des Moines Dowling
No. 4 West Des Moines Valley (20-2) vs. Waterloo West (17-5) at Marshalltown, 6:30 p.m.
No. 6 Norwalk (19-3) vs. No. 9 Sioux City East (21-2) at Denison
No. 7 Dubuque Senior (19-3) vs. Pleasant Valley (18-5) at DeWitt
No. 8 Cedar Falls (16-5) vs. No. 10 Ankeny Centennial (15-7) at Marshalltown, 8 p.m.