Mount Pleasant, IA- The Southeast Conference (SEC) held a contested race to see who would end up with the conference crown with as many as five teams holding a conceivable chance to win the title, yet the conference crown came down to the final SEC showdown of the season with Fort Madison exiting with the honor despite the Player of the Year residing on the opposing team.
SEC Player of the Year
It is hardly surprising that the player receiving notice from notable Big Ten clubs also earned the SEC Player of the Year, but junior Jaxon Clark of Keokuk did just that with a chance to repeat next season—more on him in the Keokuk section.
Fort Madison
From the cellar two years ago to conference champions this year, the Bloodhounds and Chiefs were expected to tango for the crown, but few probably expected it to come down to a final showdown at Keokuk, yet a 20-point fourth quarter gave Fort Madison the 44-40 victory and sole possession of the SEC.
That win exhibited what Fort Madison could be as a team with an offense that had shown its ability throughout the season, but their defense at times proved to be a liability. For one night the Bloodhounds put it all together as the finished the season with a 13-10 record and an 8-2 SEC record.
Senior Julian Dear was a unanimous choice for All-SEC 1st Team, and he was joined by junior Nolan Guzman. Dear was the leader of that squad and a facilitator with a conference leading 7.1 assists per game to go along with his 2 steals per game, which ranked 2nd in the SEC. Dear also supplied 12.5 points per game.
Guzman was a jack-of-all-trades for Fort Madison, putting up 14.6 points and dishing out 4.1 assists per game, 3rd most in the SEC, along with nabbing 2.3 steals per game, the best mark in the SEC.
Seniors Kenden Bowie and Dayton Lamar earned spots on the All-SEC 2nd Team. Bowie was a highlight reel waiting to happen with enough bounce to fly for lobs from Guzman or Dear, Bowie scored 12.7 points per night and grabbed 6.4 rebounds as well. Lamar was an enforcer, taking home 12.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks—which led the conference—per game.
All-Conference Honorable Mention went to sophomore Darius Foy.
Keokuk
There’s an old saying, “always a bridesmaid, never a bride,” and for Keokuk they have to feeling that way after finishing second in conference for the second consecutive season, despite sporting a 17-8 overall record, the Chiefs finished 7-3 in SEC play with losses to Washington, Burlington, and Fort Madison.
Something must be said though about this team’s ability to overcome a rough start as the Chiefs navigated an 0-3 start to the season and managed to battle an undefeated Knoxville team in substate championship, falling 63-55 as Jaxon Clark finished with a 31 point/13 rebound double-double.
The Chiefs had some excellent role players, but this team followed wherever Clark went. The junior boasted the 7th best double-double numbers in the state of Iowa with 22.7 points and 14.4 rebounds per game.
Off his past two seasons, he has scored over 1,000 points in his career as he currently sits at 1,078. Clark also blocked 2.1 shots per game, while shooting 66.7% from the field, led the conference, and 32% from three-point land.
On the All-SEC 2nd Team were seniors Brenton Hoard and Tramell Smith. Hoard was the second leading scorer on the team with 11 points per game. The guard was vital in passing with 3.4 assists per game and on defense with 1.9 steals per game, which both ranked 4th in the conference.
Smith added 9.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1 steal per game to help the Chiefs from the #3 spot.
Seniors Drake Anderson and Chevy Barnes were named All-Conference Honorable Mentions.
Washington
After a fast 3-0 start to conference, the Demons came crashing down back to earth going 2-5 over their next seven SEC games to finish the year 5-5 in conference play and 9-14 overall. One of those last wins came against Burlington, which gave them the tiebreaker for 3rd place.
Logan McDole, a senior, was the lone All-SEC 1st Team selection for Washington. McDole averaged 13.1 points per game and supplied 3.4 assists per game, which both ranked 5th in the conference. He also grabbed 4 rebounds and 1.3 steals per game.
Rajan Roth took home All-Conference 2nd Team honors. Roth scored eight points per game and nabbed five rebounds per game. He also ranked 3rd in the conference in free throw percentage at 76.3%.
Junior Drew Conrad and sophomore Nic Stone earned All-SEC Honorable Mention.
Burlington
The Grayhounds bounced back from a three-win conference campaign from a year ago to finish 5-5 in the SEC. Unfortunately, for the only squad in the SEC located in Class 4A that was the only success as the Grayhounds finished the year with a 5-16 record.
Their lone bright spot and contender for Comeback Player of the Year if the award existed for the conference was All-SEC 1st Team selection Nehemiah Lewis. After missing most of last year with an injury, Lewis picked right up where he left off and that was dominating the post.
Lewis averaged the 4th best marks in the conference in points at 14.4 and rebounds at 7.1 per contest. If Lewis was having an off night, so was the rest of the team as the big man also contributed to 1.7 assists per game along with 1 block per night.
Michael Kantzavelos, a junior, earned All-SEC Honorable Mention.
Fairfield
What a climb for the Trojans after finishing last year with only one win on the season and an 0-10 mark in conference play, Fairfield collected a 6-16 record and a 4-6 mark in the Southeast Conference behind some solid play of their senior leadership.
One of the seniors receiving his due praise is All-SEC 1st Team honoree Riley Perkins. The guard sat 2nd in the conference in points per game and assists per game at 15.4 and 4.2, respectively. He also added the 3rd most steals per game in the conference at 1.9. Perkins made his money from beyond the arc with 2.6 made threes per game, the best in the conference.
Senior Lucas Konczal and junior Eli Zillman took home All-SEC Honorable Mention.
Mount Pleasant
This year was all about gaining experience for a team that returned only one starter from the squad that won the program’s second consecutive conference title last season. Aptly, the team struggled in the clutch, finishing the season with a 2-20 record overall and 1-9 record in the SEC.
Their lone win in conference play showed the greatest potential for the squad as close game in the fourth quarter usually spelled doom for the squad, but not that night as the Panthers drained 11 threes as a team and outscored Washington 21 to 12 to secure a 62-53 win.
Despite having to negotiate with pain throughout the season, junior Noah Lange was able to earn All-SEC 2nd Team honors. Lange ranked 2nd in conference with 7.7 rebounds per game and 4th in blocks per game with 1.1. He was extremely efficient, nailing 59.1% of his shots as he averaged nearly 10 points per game.
The dangerous junior duo from downtown in Aiden Humble and Ian Reid nabbed All-SEC Honorable Mentions. For another season, Reid led the conference in three-point percentage, hitting 43.3% of his shots from beyond the arc. Humble shot 36.1% from deep as he led the team in scoring with 10.6 points per game.
Academic All-Conference
Player Team
Michael Kantzavelos Burlington
Nehemiah Lewis Burlington
Tomas Rascon Burlington
Drew Myers Fairfield
Riley Perkins Fairfield
Luke Konczal Fairfield
Xavier Kessel Fairfield
Ryan Giberson Fairfield
Spencer McCready Fairfield
Brock Atwood Fairfield
Nolan Smith Fairfield
Jolie Crile (mgr) Fairfield
Julian Dear Fort Madison
Nolan Guzman Fort Madison
Chevy Barnes Keokuk
Drew Campbell Keokuk
Blake Chase Keokuk
Jaxon Clark Keokuk
Mason Claus Keokuk
Brenton Hoard Keokuk
Gracie Thompson (mgr) Keokuk
Kellen Kohorst Mount Pleasant
Noah Lange Mount Pleasant
Ian Reid Mount Pleasant
Jaymisen Rich Mount Pleasant
Colton Syfert Mount Pleasant
Carson Brown Washington
Drew Conrad Washington
Rajan Roth Washington
Carson Ryan Washington
Kael Williams Washington
Oliver Hobscheidt Washington
Conner Leyden Washington
Logan McDole Washington
Colby Mullens Washington
Luke Schiebel Washington