Jeff Johnson

No Gazette-area schools are involved in boys’ basketball games this weekend, giving the perfect opportunity do a quick reset. Class 1A and 2A schools are at the district final stage, while 3A and 4A schools wrapped up their regular seasons Thursday night, with the postseason beginning Monday.

The Iowa High School Athletic Association announced Monday afternoon official postseason brackets for boys’ basketball in Class 1A, 2A. Top seeds in their district include Cascade in 2A and North Linn in 1A.

The Decorah boys’ basketball team is 13-1 and ranked second in Class 3A. The Vikings, who made it to the state tournament semifinals last season, are led by what Coach Jonathan Carlson calls their Batman and Robin: senior guard Zach Driscoll and junior center Cael LaFrentz, who average 50 points per game between them.

Duane Orr was announced Friday as the new head varsity football coach at Linn-Mar High School, pending school board approval. He has three decades of experience at schools like Columbus Junction, Council Bluffs Lewis Central, Mount Vernon and Cornell College.

Pairings were set Thursday for the 14-team, 7-game crossover event, which will be held January 4th at the Alliant Energy PowerHouse. Matchups include Cedar Falls and West Des Moines Valley, Dubuque Senior and Waukee Northwest, and Cedar Rapids Kennedy versus Johnston.

An agreement between the parties allows the IHSSN to livesteam and telecast boys’ state tournaments through this school year, with the Iowa High School Athletic Association then gaining all rights. A dispute arose in 2023 over IHSSN’s decision to livestream events on a pay-per-view basis.

There are six freshmen on the Cedar Rapids Washington varsity boys’ basketball roster this season. Three of them start, as does a sophomore. Another frosh came off the bench Monday night in Wash’s 59-55 season-opening win over Mount Pleasant.

A closer look at Iowa’s 13-10 win Saturday night over Nebraska at Kinnick Stadium. Max Llewellyn’s strip sack led to Drew Stevens’ game-winning field goal as the Hawkeyes rallied to win Heroes Game.

Sutton Koller and Dallas Miller are perfect examples of why this Iowa City Liberty football team has had a great season that includes playing in Friday night’s Class 5A state playoff semifinal against three-time defending champion Southeast Polk. Already offensive stalwarts, they were asked to play defense this season, too.

Chase Smith connected with Kye Smith for a 25-yard touchdown with 29 seconds left to give North Scott a 28-24 win, handing Decorah its first loss in the Class 4A state football quarterfinals.