Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

The boys basketball season hasn’t hit the halfway point yet but the holiday break offers a chance for teams to regroup and prepare for the home stretch in January and February.

The state tournament looms just a few months away meaning the most important games of the season still lie ahead.

Before play starts again for teams in 2025 Your Prep Sports takes a look back at the first few weeks of the season and hands out some mid-season awards.

Team With the Best Resume

Clear Creek Amana

The resume is much better than the 4-3 record suggests for Clear Creek Amana.

Clear Creek Amana had as tough of an opening week as any team in Class 3A playing four games in eight days, including three road games and three games against Class 4A competition.

The Clippers went 1-3 in that opening stretch with losses to 4A powers West High and Cedar Rapids Kennedy, a road loss at Solon and a win over 4A Liberty High.

Since the tough stretch the Clippers have won three straight games over WAMAC teams by a combined score of 221-136.

Considering the December schedule, which had five of seven games on the road, a 4-3 start to the season is a win for the Clippers.

Best Win

Solon over Clear Creek Amana

Call it a hunch but the Spartan’s 10-point win over Clear Creek Amana on December 6 is going to continue to look better and better as the season goes on.

Solon controlled the game from the outset on its way to a 57-47 win over Clear Creek Amana that is the only loss of the season for the Clippers against a 3A team.

Four Spartans had at least nine points in the win which is precisely the way Solon figures to have success this season.

Best Game

West High against City High

What else would it be but the first meeting of the season between cross-town rivals?

The lead changed hands six times in the second half alone as West High rallied from a five-point halftime deficit for a 57-53 win over City High.

Neither team led by more than six points in the second half of a game in which the two teams combined to 51 percent from the floor.

Best Start

Regina

In year one under Paul Rundquist last season the Regals opened the season with back-to-back losses before rattling off 13 wins in a row on its way to a 17-7 season that ended in the 2A state quarterfinals.

Regina opened this season with a loss at Northeast (6-2) but has responded with six straight wins to close out December.

The Regals have won games by an average of 17.3 points per game during its current six-game winning streak and have had just one game decided by less than 11 points.

Best Individual Game

Jack McCaffery against City High

West High senior Jack McCaffery had 40 points and eight rebounds on 17-of-26 shooting in a win over Burlington on December 10.

Ten days later McCaffery had perhaps the best game of his career when the Trojans needed it most.

McCaffery had 38 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots in a 57-53 win over cross-town rival City High in the final game before break.

The 6-foot-8 McCaffery was 9-of-16 from the floor, including 3-of-5 from 3-point range and 17-of-19 from the free throw line in the win.

Player That Has Put Themselves on Opponent’s Scouting Report

Regina senior Tate Lynch

Over the past two seasons Lynch scored two total points and missed his only 3-point attempt.

In the first seven games of his senior season Lynch has earned a reputation as a deadeye 3-point shooter.

Lynch is shooting 43 percent from 3-point range while making a team-high 17 pointers and averaging 11 points per game.

Player That Has Stepped Up

West Branch junior Jayden Harris

West Branch coach Jason Kern made it very clear that for the Bears to get wins it needed Harris to step up.

Harris seems to have heard his head coach.

The junior point guard averaged 25 points per game over the final three games in December scoring at least 22 points in each of those games.

On the season Harris is averaging career-highs in points (16.6), rebounds (2.9), assists (2.3) and steals (1.1) while shooting 47 percent from the floor including 37 percent from 3-point range.

Player We Aren’t Talking About Enough

Liberty High sophomore Brady Randall

Randall has quickly established himself as a versatile threat and emerging force on both ends of the court during an impressive start to the season.

The 6-foot-5 sophomore is averaging 12.8 points, a team-high 7 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.3 steals and a team-high 1.3 blocked shots per game for the Lightning.

Randall is shooting 56 percent from the field, including 45 percent from 3-point range and has averaging 16.7 points and 7.7 rebounds per game over the last three games.

Best Individual Surprise

West High junior Mason Goering

So maybe it hasn’t been a huge surprise that Goering has produced at a high rate this season considering the forward averaged 4.7 points and 3.8 rebounds per game in 21 games last season as a key reserve for the West High.

However, it has been great to see Goering back on the court after an injury ended his sophomore season.

Goering has picked up where he left off last season averaging 8.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 2.2 steals and 1 blocked shot per game for West High (4-2).

Mid-Season Newcomer of the Year

City High junior Christoper Watkins

Watkins has made a major impact in his first season in the Little Hawk lineup leading the team in scoring and ranking second in rebounds.

The 6-foot-5 Watkins is averaging 12.9 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game while shooting an impressive 66 percent from the field.

Watkins is shooting 75 percent from the free throw line and leads the Little Hawks in both free throw attempts (24) and makes (18).

Mid-Season MVP

Regina sophomore Will Litton

The Regals have gotten off to the best start among area teams at 6-1 and Litton has been a big reason for the early-season success.

Litton is averaging a double-double with 19.6 points and 10.9 rebounds per game and ranks second on the team in both blocked shots (1.3) and assists (2.4) to go with 1.7 steals per game.

The 6-foot-4 Litton is shooting an eye-popping 74 percent from the floor and 77 percent from the free throw line (13-of-17).

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