Iowa
Iowa City West handles Cedar Rapids Praiire
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IOWA CITY – He didn’t think a couple of weeks ago that his Iowa City West boys’ basketball team was worthy of a top-10 spot in Class 4A.
After a 66-55 win Friday night over a good Cedar Rapids Prairie team, head coach Steve Bergman said this:
“We’re getting there.”
West (8-3) was pretty dominant in this game against a similar team from Prairie (8-3). Jack McCaffery scored a game-high 28 points for the Trojans, the Butler University signee getting 18 of those in the second half.
Guard Ethan Headings added 16 points, 14 in the first half, as West built a 33-25 halftime lead.
“I think we played really well,” said Headings, who made seven of his nine shots from the field, including a pair of 3-pointers. “We picked up on defense and offense. But there were just some stretches at the end of the second quarter and the end of the fourth quarter that we could have done a lot better.”
Prairie (8-3) fell behind early but rebounded late in the first quarter to grab a 17-16 lead. The meat of the game went West’s way, as it led 56-36 after three quarters.
“There were a lot of good things. A lot of good things,” Bergman said. “The first quarter for us early was awesome, then … That’s what we are. We’re pretty focused, then we’re really not. But, man that start of the game, could have really been something.”
Two of three losses for West have been by one point to Dubuque schools on the road, including Tuesday night’s 52-51 defeat at Class 4A No. 10 Dubuque Senior. The Trojans had the last shot, a good one, but it didn’t go in.
So close to being 10-1.
“We’ve lost two games in Dubuque on Tuesday night by one point,” Bergman said. “Both games we feel like we should have won, but we didn’t … Against Senior, we just couldn’t make free throws. We were like the Iowa women’s team, struggling to make free throws, so they got the lead back. We had the lead most of the game.
“We’re getting closer. We’ve got to handle the ball better. Had a little stretch again tonight where we had four or five turnovers in five or six possessions. We’ve got to keep plugging along.”
Prairie got 20 points from sophomore guard Tae Alexander, but just couldnt get it done. It needs to be a quick flush for the Hawks, who play Saturday night at undefeated Class 3A No. 3 Decorah.
“Ultimately I thought our execution to our game plan was poor,” said Prairie Coach Todd Kuntz. “And ultimately that comes back on me. I thought we had a really good plan, but a lot of times we were out of position. That’s going to happen with high schoolers.”
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AT IOWA CITY WEST
CEDAR RAPIDS PRAIRIE (55): David Fason 2-7 1-4 5, Devin Ikeda 2-4 0-1 4, Jace McDermott 2-6 2-2 6, Tae Alexander 7-11 2-3 20, Austin Joens 1-8 0-0 3, Hudson Kimm 0-1 0-0 0, Will Wehr 3-6 6-6 12, Cayden Larson 1-7 2-2 4, Collin McClintock 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 18-53 13-18 55.
IOWA CITY WEST (66): Mason Goehring 3-9 3-4 9, Jack McCaffery 10-17 5-6 28, Henry Elser 2-3 2-2 7, Julian Manson 1-4 0-0 2, Ethan Headings 7-9 0-0 16, Jack Jensen-Fitzgerald 0-1 0-0 0, Jack Wallace 1-1 0-0 2, KingSton Swayzer 0-0 0-0 0, Greg Ford 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 25-45 10-12 66.
Halftime – West 33, Prairie 25. 3-point goals – Prairie 6-23 (Fason 0-1, Ikeda 0-1, McDermott 0-4, Alexander 4-6, Joens 1-6, Wehr 1-2, Larson 0-3), West 6-11 (McCaffery 3-6, Elser 1-1, Headings 2-3, Jensen-Fitzpatrick 0-1). Rebounds – Prairie 26 (Larson 6), West 30 (McCaffery 8, Goering 7). Total fouls – Prairie 11, West 16. Fouled out – None. Turnovers – Prairie 14, West 13.
Comments: (319)-398-8258, jeff.johnson@thegazette.com
Iowa women’s basketball coach Jan Jensen talks about Northwestern game
Iowa women’s basketball coach Jan Jensen talks about victory at Northwestern on Monday, Jan. 5, 2026, in Evanston, Illinois.
Iowa women’s basketball was lacking some of its vocal leadership on Monday at Northwestern.
Part of that was the fact that Hawkeyes senior Kylie Feuerbach is still sidelined with an ankle injury. Another part was the fact that Chit-Chat Wright was not feeling great.
“No excuse, but Chat’s really sick,” Iowa coach Jan Jensen said after the Hawkeyes’ 67-58 victory. “She didn’t have the flu game like (Michael) Jordan. But she’s really sick, like fever. And I think that just threw her. She was really not vocal tonight. So we were kinda searching, because Chat had been coming (as a leader).”
Wright fought through it and played 34 minutes, scoring 12 points and dishing out seven assists.
Jensen confirmed that Feuerbach remains day-to-day. She hasn’t played since getting hurt Dec. 20 vs. UConn.
“I think (our leadership tonight) was by committee,” Jensen said. “It just wasn’t the same person every time. … It’ll be nice to get Kylie back in that lineup.”
Feuerbach, the team’s best perimeter defender, has missed Iowa’s last three games. Jensen said she is pleased overall with how her team has played defensively in Feuerbach’s absence.
“(Against Northwestern) it was more an ‘us’ problem offensively,” Jensen said. “Our defense held. … We turned the ball over 20 times.”
Two people are dead after a Dubuque bar fight escalated, with one man shooting another and then being killed by police.
An officer with the Dubuque Police Department was outside the Odd Fellows bar just before 1 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 4, when he witnessed a physical altercation, according to a news release from the Dubuque Police Department.
As the officer exited the patrol vehicle, an adult man allegedly used a handgun to shoot one of the people involved in the fight. The officer fired at the offender, who then ran into the bar.
The victim who was shot first was provided medical treatment by officers at the scene and then transported to MercyOne Hospital in Dubuque.
The offender was treated by police officers inside the bar and then transported to UnityPoint Finley Hospital.
Both were later pronounced dead.
The names of those involved are not being released at this time pending notification of family members.
The incident is being investigated by the Dubuque Police Department and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation. The officer involved was not injured and has been placed on critical incident leave in accordance with the department’s policies.
Nick El Hajj is a reporter at the Register. He can be reached at nelhajj@gannett.com. Follow him on X at @nick_el_hajj.
With the season coming out of the holiday break, now is the perfect time to take a look at the top Iowa high school girls basketball players by grade.
These are just some of the top players in Iowa and not a complete list of all of them. Statistics are based on those uploaded to the Bound website by January 4, 2026.
Here are the top junior girls basketball players in Iowa high school basketball:
A high-level producer, Maggie McChesney heads into 2026 averaging 23.6 points, nine rebounds, 2.7 steals, 2.6 assists and over two blocks per game.
The next standout from North Union, Ainsley Ulrich is posting nearly 23 points with six rebounds, and over three steals a night.
Flirting with averaging a double-double is Izzy Gilbertson, as the junior stands at 21.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, four blocks, 3.6 steals and three assists.
Along with posting 20 points and grabbing six rebounds, Cora Sauer also adds four steals and three assists.
A big sophomore season has carried right over for Melina Snoozy, as she leads the Crusaders with 20 points, eight rebounds and 3.5 steals a night, along with averaging a block per game.
Up north is Riley Meyer, a 20-point scorer per game who adds six rebounds and two steals.
Sitting right under 20 points a night is Addy Wolfswinkel, as she is also averaging five rebounds, three assists and three steals.
A standout on both ends, Maryn Franken posts nearly 20 points and over eight rebounds per game with three steals and 1.4 blocks.
Following in the footsteps of Audi Crooks, Graclyn Eastman has been nearly unstoppable for the Golden Bears, scoring 19 points per game with nine rebounds, 3.5 steals, 2.6 blocks and two assists.
Another Maroon standout named Muller, Katie is scoring over 18 points per game with six rebounds, 3.5 assists and over a block and steal.
One of the top players in the North Central Conference, Hayden McLaughlin has taken over as the No. 1 option for the Bulldogs, scoring 17 points per game with nearly six rebounds and two steals.
The Hawks rely on KeaOnna Worley to do a lot, and she delivers nightly, scoring 16.5 points with nearly five assists, four rebounds and two steals.
The balanced Comets are led by Campbell Schulz, as the junior posts 14 points, 4.6 rebounds, four assists, three steals and nearly three blocks.
Forming a powerful 1-2 punch with Addy Wolfswinkel is Deidra Doeden, who averages 18 points and 13.5 rebounds per game.
Down low for North Mahaska is Natallya Linder, a nightly double-double at 15.7 points and 13 rebounds to go along with 2.6 steals, 2.3 assists and a block.
The last name has long been a staple for Pella Christian, and Rachel is carrying it on now, averaging 14 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block per game.
The forward is a threat all over the court for the Falcons, posting 18 points, 11.6 rebounds, two steals, two assists and a block.
Triple-doubles are in the future for Aniya Hardee, as she is averaging nine points, 8.2 rebounds, 7.6 assists and nearly five steals per game.
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