Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

Basketball was the common bond that helped Masen Miller and Even Brauns forge a friendship.

This season the game gave the two long-time friends and former teammates something else to discuss – the feeling of being the main focus of every opponent’s scouting report.

Every team that faced Regina this season keyed on its senior point guard Miller.

The same went for West High senior center Brauns who always drew a crowd of defenders in the paint even when he didn’t have the ball.

“We talk about it almost every time we see each other I’ll text him after a game and tell him how teams played me and he’ll tell me what a team did with him,” Brauns said earlier this season. “It’s been nice to have somebody else that knows what I’m talking about and we sympathize a lot with each other.”

Despite facing constant double or triple teams and exotic defenses Brauns and Miller each produced the best seasons of their prep careers this winter.

On Tuesday both players were reward by earning first-team all-state honors from the Iowa Print Sports Writers Association.

Miller was a Class 2A first-team pick for the second year in a row after leading 2A in scoring and ranking sixth in the state with 26.2 points per game.

The 6-foot-1 Miller shot 46 percent from the field including 39 percent from 3-point range while ranking second in the state and tops in 2A with 86 made 3-pointers.

A Truman State recruit, Miller was an 80 percent free throw shooter and led Regina with 6 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 2.5 steals per game.

Brauns was a first-time Class 4A first-team selection after helping West High to a 21-3 record and a state-record 10th consecutive state tournament appearance.

The 6-foot-9 Brauns led the Trojans in scoring with 15.6 points per game while shooting 69 percent from the field and 65 percent from the free throw line.

A Belmont recruit, Brauns led the Trojans with 7.4 rebounds and 2.3 blocked shots per game.

City High senior Keshawn Christian joined Brauns on the Class 4A all-state list, earning third-team honors.

Christian led the Little Hawks with 15.1 points and 7.8 rebounds per game this season while shooting 45 percent from the field and 75 percent from the free throw line.

The 6-foot-3 senior also averaged 1.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game.

Clear Creek Amana junior Christian Withrow was a second-team all-state selection in Class 3A after helping the Clippers to a 21-6 record and a third-place finish at the state tournament in their first state appearance since 1993.

Withrow led the Clippers in scoring with 15.9 points per game and also averaged 6 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.3 steals per game.

Iowa Print Sports Writers Association All-State Teams

Class 4A

First team – Braxton Bayless, Sr., Ankeny; Ty Anderson, Sr., North Scott; Tucker DeVries, Jr., Waukee; Payton Sandfort, Jr., Waukee; Even Brauns, Sr., West High; Michael Duax, Jr., Dubuque Hempstead; DaQuavion Walker, Sr., Waterloo West; Cody McCullough, Sr., Ankeny Centennial

Second team – Josh Ollendieck, Sr., Cedar Falls; Jaleque Dunson, Sr., Sioux City East; Jayden Houston, Jr., Davenport North; Jaron Crews, Jr., Ankeny Centennial; Jake Aver, Sr., West Des Moines Valley; Sam Kilburg, Sr., North Scott; Matt Stilwill, Sr., West Des Moines Dowling; Trae Swartz, Jr., Ottumwa

Third team – Landon Wolf, Jr., Cedar Falls; Emarion Ellis, Jr., Davenport Central; Caleb Schlaak, Jr., Cedar Rapids Kennedy; Keshawn Christian, Sr., City High; Josh Dix, Soph., Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln; AJ Tiogo, Sr., Indianola; Micah Johnson, Sr., Ankeny Centennial; Ryan Riggs, Jr., West Des Moines Dowling

Class 3A

First team – Bowen Born, Sr., Norwalk; Xavier Foster, Sr., Oskaloosa; Kieren Nichols, Jr., Knoxville; Alex Van Kalsbeek, Sr., MOC-Floyd Valley; Easton Darling, Sr., Winterset; Sean Peeters, Sr., Davenport Assumption; Karson Sharar, Jr., Iowa Falls; Keaton Kutcher, Jr., Mount Vernon

Second team – Daniel Wright, Sr., Sergeant Bluff-Luton; Logan Shetterly, Sr., Pella; Wyatt Wegener, Sr., Algona; Connor Drew, Jr., Ballard; Luke Rankin, Jr., Dallas Center-Grimes; Ryan Blum, Jr., Glenwood; Tyler Johnson, Sr., Norwalk; Christian Withrow, Jr., Clear Creek Amana

Third team – Tucker Kinney, Sr., Central DeWitt; Kole Tupa, Sr., Center Point-Urbana; Cole Glasgow, Soph., Dallas Center-Grimes; Andrew Formanek, Jr., Clear Lake; Karter Lein, Sr., Carroll; Connor Bruck, Sr., Harlan; Cael Schmitt, Sr., Dubuque Wahlert; Matthew McDonald, Sr., Centerville

Class 2A

First team – Cooper De Jean, Jr., OABCIG; Masen Miller, Sr., Regina; Caleb Delzell, Sr., Camanche; Austin Miller, Sr., North Linn; Austin Hillmer, Soph., North Linn; Tanner Te Slaa, Soph., Boyden-Hull; Michael Keegan, Sr., Dyersville Beckman; Bryce Coppock, Sr., West Sioux

Second team – Jack Tiarks, Sr., Treynor; Zane Neubaum, Sr., South Central Calhoun; Hunter Dekkers, Sr., West Sioux; Justin Recker, Jr., Monticello; Anthony Pothoff, Sr., Van Meter; Lucas Lorenzen, Sr., Okoboji; Bryce Achenbach, Sr., Woodward-Granger; Keyton Moser, Sr., Boyden-Hull

Third team – Blake Chance, Jr., Albia; Curren Ingram, Sr., Des Moines Christian; Dane Fuller, Jr., Dike-New Hartford; LJ Henderson, Sr., Camanche; Cameron Soenksen, Sr., Camanche; Jack Stogdill, Sr., Treynor; Josh Van Gorp, Sr., Pella Christian; Dan Jungling, Sr., Pella Christian

Class 1A

First team – Trey Shearer, Jr., Montezuma; Nick Reid, Sr., Central City; Angelo Winkel, Jr., Algona Garrigan; JD Stout, Sr., Keota; Kiks Rosengarten, Sr., Wapsie Valley; Kaleb Cornilsen, Jr., Easton Valley; Braden Gibbons, Sr., Madrid; Alex Koppes, Jr., Springville

Second team – Brennan Sefrit, Sr., Bedford; Jackson Louscher, Sr., South O’Brien; Nik Coble, Sr., WACO; Zach Huff, Sr., Don Bosco; Keegan Edwards, Sr., Lone Tree; Noah Beck, Sr., BGM; Kayden Ames, Jr., West Fork; Trey Baker, Jr., Martensdale-St. Marys

Third team – Spencer Schorg, Sr., Remsen-St. Mary’s; Jessen Weber, Sr., Easton Valley; Taurice Grant, Jr., Meskwaki Settlement; Cole Damman, Sr., Baxter; Nathan Moeller, Sr., Prince of Peace; Gage Fry, Sr., Grand View Christian; Creighton Nelson, Sr., Exira-EHK; Chett Helming, Sr., Lake Mills

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