2017-18 4A Predictions

[bravos]

1. Sioux City East
2. IC West
3. Dbq Senior
4. Cedar Falls
5. DM North
6. Ankeny Centennial
7. Waukee
8. Dowling
9. CR Prairie
10. North Scott

 

[monte2013]

The title will be won by West or North in my opinion.

 

[EastIowaHawk]

Iowa City West really loses a lot in Lane and McCaffery. Two of their top three are gone, so the road to a championship will be much tougher. Of the teams I've seen, Dubuque Senior could make a serious run at the title next year. I see them them losing only maybe two or three games at most. They can put five really experienced kids who can shoot on the court, and they have stellar guards and a crafty all-state center.. Cedar Falls has a lot of talent back, but I just don't see them going all the way because of the style they play. Dubuque Hempstead will be a top five or six team next year and has a lot of talent if they can stay the course. I've also seen Prairie, North Scott and DM North and they are all good teams. I think next year is more "up for grabs" than in most years and the team that is hot at the end could win it. Summary: NO CLEAR FAVORITE.

 

[makelovenotwar]

EasternIowa I agree with you regarding the talent at DBQ Senior. The only question I see with them is chemistry. I mean this less as a comment on Senior than high school in general that teams with the same/similar rotation back seem to have a hard time figuring out where people fit. It is odd and contradictory but 17 year old males often think their importance should be different that the group.

Separate question, what is the plan for new North Liberty school? Will they start playing varsity basketball next year? Some of their students will come out of the IC West program.....right?

 

[EastIowaHawk]

This year Liberty was playing against the other MVC schools in freshman sports. I know that Wahlert played them in basketball on January 28 in West Liberty. I think that a year from now, 2018- 2019, when Western Dubuque also joins the MVC, that they may play varsity ball-- but it could be the next year after that- 2019- 2020. In football, they would have to be placed in a 4A district; in other sports it would be the regular MVC schedule.

I'll never forget how Iowa City West started out in their first year or two, especially in football. They were getting trounced by 30- 40 points in half their games, and it was a while before they won. In basketball, they started out pretty well. If you look at various MVC teams' school records, a lot of them were against West when they started out. Fast forward-- now West is a state power, and has been for a long time. Don't expect too much from Liberty right away, but you know it'll be a matter of time before they are more-than-competitive. It will be interesting to see how it dilutes the other two schools.

Re: Senior-- they just have too many guys who were key players since they were freshmen. They aren't super big, but you don't have to be in high school. You win with guards, and they have super guards. That's why IC West will be "down" next year; they graduate two 1st team all state guards.

 

[BushWhite]

1. Dbq Senior - vet team ready to roll
2 SC East - just dominate western Iowa 4a
3. Dowling - alot back add a good transfer , bingo
4. Cedar Falls - should survive a tough road
5. DM North - young talent will be fun to watch
6. Waukee - deep talent at every level
7. CR Praire - close last year better this year
8. North Scott - sleepy team with easy path
9. WDM Valley - always has players
10. Iowa City West - Ihsaa guys love their Hawkeyes , will get free ride to state

Dowling might be scary good and front runner. SC East has many returning starters from 3rd place team and is set up for another run. DM North might just blow everyone away with all that talent. Interesting field and up for grabs.

 

[EastIowaHawk]

Dubuque Hempstead returns a lot of key players.

 

[Bulldog198240]

1. Dbq Senior - vet team ready to roll
2 SC East - just dominate western Iowa 4a
3. Dowling - alot back add a good transfer , bingo
4. Cedar Falls - should survive a tough road
5. DM North - young talent will be fun to watch
6. Waukee - deep talent at every level
7. CR Praire - close last year better this year
8. North Scott - sleepy team with easy path
9. WDM Valley - always has players
10. Iowa City West - Ihsaa guys love their Hawkeyes , will get free ride to state

Dowling might be scary good and front runner. SC East has many returning starters from 3rd place team and is set up for another run. DM North might just blow everyone away with all that talent. Interesting field and up for grabs.

What transfer for Dowling?..do you know something or are you just speculating?

 

[todd_schisler]

1. SC East (23-3) Top 2 studs back
2. Dubuque Sr (19-4) Lots of experience back
3. CF (16-8) 7 of top 8 return including AJ Green
4. Waukee (18-4) Nice mix of talent returns
5. IC West (23-3) Some good players along w/Patrick MaC
6. DM North (18-6) Locure, and a couple others return
7. CR Prairie (14-8) Solid nucleus w/ young talent on the way
8. Dubuque Hempstead (18-6) 2 top scorers return and another Duax joining
9. WDM Dowling (16-6) Ingoli and Waggoner return
10.Muscatine (15-7) Wieskamp...

 

[basketball777]

1. Dbq Senior - vet team ready to roll
2 SC East - just dominate western Iowa 4a
3. Dowling - alot back add a good transfer , bingo
4. Cedar Falls - should survive a tough road
5. DM North - young talent will be fun to watch
6. Waukee - deep talent at every level
7. CR Praire - close last year better this year
8. North Scott - sleepy team with easy path
9. WDM Valley - always has players
10. Iowa City West - Ihsaa guys love their Hawkeyes , will get free ride to state

Dowling might be scary good and front runner. SC East has many returning starters from 3rd place team and is set up for another run. DM North might just blow everyone away with all that talent. Interesting field and up for grabs.

Did the transfer to Dowling change school in the last few weeks so as to get the 90 days in before next season?

 

[maxstabs13]

This is not a ranking, but teams to watch for...

Iowa City West will compete. They are not as strong as past years, but they are sitting with possibly the best player they have ever had in this era.

Cedar Falls will compete, but they will need to get some consistent help from someone other than Green.

Sioux City East is going to be a tough out. They play tough and they play with a refuse to lose attitude.

Dubuque Senior is a very good team, but I think toughness and athleticism is a little lacking for them. Noah Carter will make that team go. Carter Stevens has gotten a little better, but I think more than anything teams have learned how to defend him better. Great team, but I'm not a believer.

Dubuque Hempstead is my sleeper team. I have had my eye on them for the past two years and I think they are starting to get a state level group together.

CR Prairie is a team to watch as well. With a ton of youth and a ton of shooters they can take down anyone on a given night. Physicality is the key for them being successful. They need to compete on the glass and consistently hit shots.

DM North is probably going to be the quickest team in the state. The question is consistency and physicality.

Dowling and Valley... Because one of them is going to make it to state like usual.

Waukee... Height is your friend. They remind me a lot of the Pleasant Valley team from 3 years ago I think that had 6'6, 6'5, and 6'8 starting lineup. Difference is Waukee is sitting with 2 solid tall guys and PV had 1 really solid one and 2 decent ones.

North Scott has the skill and the versatility, but post play will be a question. They are going to need some football tough guys to guard the post. They will need to be superb on defense against taller and stronger teams. They will need the shots to fall in the important games, which generally isn't an issue for them.

Cedar Rapids Kennedy for no particular reason other than it is CRK and recently it seems like they get little credit and perform well. If they put things together they can compete for a state run.

 

[Hawki45]

1. IC West- will be interested to see how Pat McCaffery does when he has to be the man. All indications from AAU and Camps seem to point to him being just fine in that role.
2. Waukee- Athletes all over the floor. Will be battle tested in CIML. Johnson is the real deal.
3. Dubuque Hempstead- Very well coached, with shot makers all over the floor. Duax is so solid, add Keith Johnson and that is a dynamic scoring duo.
4. Dubuque Senior- Stevens and Carter are legit. Those two can get 50 a night on with no problem.
5. Valley- Brinkmeyer is big and athletic, needs to touch the ball more in the post but he can take over a game at any time. Strong guard play will be key this year.

 

[Cheese2]

One team nobody has mentioned that is as talented as any around top to bottom is Waterloo West. They have athletes galore and Coach Berinobis gets his guys to play hard and play together. Talented youngsters will help Harris-Anderson big time this year. Kennedy has a tradition, tough athletes, and one of the best coaches in the Midwest...they will be in the mix again as well in 4A. Really like Waukee on the western side with their length and skill and they are very well coached also...due to break out, get to state, and make some noise.

 

[Cheese2]

Tony Roe's Early Top 10

1. IC West- PMac and a stable of quality players will be ready to go. Back to Back?
2. Sioux City East- Rees and Vanderloo lead a hungry and experienced squad.
3. Dubuque Senior- Carter and Stevens to go with some very solid role players.
4. Cedar Falls- Green to make a run at Mr. Basketball? Club around AJ is athletic and tough.
5. Valley- They are always in the mix like West. Can Brinkmeyer put up big numbers?
6. Waukee- Johnson, Jones, and Hart. This team has the tools to win it all.
7. Pleasant Valley- Excellent defensive team that makes your earn everything.
8. Dubuque Hempstead- Got a taste of Des Moines last year. Duax and Johnson can play with anyone.
9. Linn Mar- Return 6 of 9 top scorers and one of the best juniors in the state in Hutcheson. Haven't been to Des Moines in a while, so they are due.
10. Des Moines Hoover- Elite defensive club that is always a factor.

Lots of strong teams in 4A this season. Is this the year Waukee breaks through and wins it all?

 

[maxstabs13]

Tony Roe's Early Top 10

1. IC West- PMac and a stable of quality players will be ready to go. Back to Back?
2. Sioux City East- Rees and Vanderloo lead a hungry and experienced squad.
3. Dubuque Senior- Carter and Stevens to go with some very solid role players.
4. Cedar Falls- Green to make a run at Mr. Basketball? Club around AJ is athletic and tough.
5. Valley- They are always in the mix like West. Can Brinkmeyer put up big numbers?
6. Waukee- Johnson, Jones, and Hart. This team has the tools to win it all.
7. Pleasant Valley- Excellent defensive team that makes your earn everything.
8. Dubuque Hempstead- Got a taste of Des Moines last year. Duax and Johnson can play with anyone.
9. Linn Mar- Return 6 of 9 top scorers and one of the best juniors in the state in Hutcheson. Haven't been to Des Moines in a while, so they are due.
10. Des Moines Hoover- Elite defensive club that is always a factor.

Lots of strong teams in 4A this season. Is this the year Waukee breaks through and wins it all?

Davenport West Fall League has a handful of these teams in it...
IC West beat Davenport West by 20ish today.
IC West beat Davenport North with a 3 and only 5 seconds left winning 74-71.
Davenport North beat Dubuque Senior 60-58 after trailing up most of the game until about 5 minutes left.
Dubuque Senior also played a Moline squad that would be Top 10 if in Iowa. Didn't get the score.
Pleasant Valley played CR Kennedy and was leading by 12 when I left mid first half.
(Liberty, Assumption, and Mt. Pleasant will also be making appearances in the coming weeks. Moline will be a good test for Liberty out of the gate next week.)

As we know Cedar Falls won the Justin Sharp Shootout over PV in the summer by 13.
Waukee went 4-1 in the tournament with a loss to North Scott by 10.
North Scott beat Waukee and had a 3 point loss to Cedar Falls and 3rd place loss to Rock Island.
Pleasant Valley went 4-1 with wins over East Moline, Rock Falls, Rock Island, and Bettendorf.
Davenport North went 4-1 with a 2 point loss to Waukee. Wins by 20 and 28 over Dav Central and CR Jefferson.
CR Jefferson went 3-2 beating Assumption for Iowa teams.
Dubuque Senior finished 2-3 with only Stevens from the core group.
CR Wash and IC High Red/White didn't have good showings. Both ICH teams were in the 0-2 round robin. CR Wash was in the loser bracket going 2-3 or 3-2.
Bettendorf and Dav Central had mixed results. Bettendorf won 2 beating DBQ Senior, got thumped by PV without Carton, and Lost to RI and West Delaware. Dav Central won and then lost by 8 to CF. Beat Moline(Missing best players). Lost by 20 to Dav North. Lost to East Moline.

So we have had a nice sample of play in eastern Iowa. CR Prairie, Linn Mar, Waterloo West, Waterloo East, and Dubuque Hempstead are the teams that I am interested to see or know how they look.

 

[Cheese2]

Davenport West Fall League has a handful of these teams in it...
IC West beat Davenport West by 20ish today.
IC West beat Davenport North with a 3 and only 5 seconds left winning 74-71.
Davenport North beat Dubuque Senior 60-58 after trailing up most of the game until about 5 minutes left.
Dubuque Senior also played a Moline squad that would be Top 10 if in Iowa. Didn't get the score.
Pleasant Valley played CR Kennedy and was leading by 12 when I left mid first half.
(Liberty, Assumption, and Mt. Pleasant will also be making appearances in the coming weeks. Moline will be a good test for Liberty out of the gate next week.)

As we know Cedar Falls won the Justin Sharp Shootout over PV in the summer by 13.
Waukee went 4-1 in the tournament with a loss to North Scott by 10.
North Scott beat Waukee and had a 3 point loss to Cedar Falls and 3rd place loss to Rock Island.
Pleasant Valley went 4-1 with wins over East Moline, Rock Falls, Rock Island, and Bettendorf.
Davenport North went 4-1 with a 2 point loss to Waukee. Wins by 20 and 28 over Dav Central and CR Jefferson.
CR Jefferson went 3-2 beating Assumption for Iowa teams.
Dubuque Senior finished 2-3 with only Stevens from the core group.
CR Wash and IC High Red/White didn't have good showings. Both ICH teams were in the 0-2 round robin. CR Wash was in the loser bracket going 2-3 or 3-2.
Bettendorf and Dav Central had mixed results. Bettendorf won 2 beating DBQ Senior, got thumped by PV without Carton, and Lost to RI and West Delaware. Dav Central won and then lost by 8 to CF. Beat Moline(Missing best players). Lost by 20 to Dav North. Lost to East Moline.

So we have had a nice sample of play in eastern Iowa. CR Prairie, Linn Mar, Waterloo West, Waterloo East, and Dubuque Hempstead are the teams that I am interested to see or know how they look.

Hempstead is loaded with experienced talent and young talent. They can play with anybody. It will be interesting to see if the state splits them from Senior in sub state play...they definitely should because both of those teams could win a state title this year! Prairie, LM, and Waterloo West should be strong teams this year that are capable of getting to state.

 

[maxstabs13]

Hempstead is loaded with experienced talent and young talent. They can play with anybody. It will be interesting to see if the state splits them from Senior in sub state play...they definitely should because both of those teams could win a state title this year! Prairie, LM, and Waterloo West should be strong teams this year that are capable of getting to state.

Thanks for the insight. I knew Hempstead as going to be good as well Linn Mar, but didn't know if anyone had seen those teams this summer with comparisons or scores to the teams that I have mentioned and seen.

PS- I don't think ICW will be down much. They still have 4 legit players on the team and that is if none of the supporting cast is playing football. McCaffery wasn't the best player in the game against North. He was somewhat neutralized. Sims as well as another kid who kept hitting 3's about 4-5 feet behind the line were the leading scorers. The kid who hit the 3's had the size of a post but always kicked it out on drives and only took set 3's.

 

[EastIowaHawk]

I don't put a lot of stock in close summer league games because so many players are missing from rosters.