The end of the high school basketball season substantiated what we thought all along, that this was a vintage year in Metro prep basketball for boys and girls.

You have the Players of the Year in Jarrod Uthoff and Kiah Stokes, along with the Class 4A state champions with the Linn-Mar Lions, which is proof positive how good it really was. But maybe of even more interest will be to be follow these champions into their collegiate careers.

What will the likes of Uthoff, Paige, Bohannon and Oglesby look like in four years? Let's put it in horseracing jargon for those four: Will the last horse to enter the derby, ala Marcus Paige (only a junior), be the first in the NCAA winner's circle in four seasons?

The rundown might look like this: Out of Gate No.1 would be Matt Bohannon, the reason being he fits the track that he's going to at the University of Northern Iowa.

Out of Gate No.2 would be Josh Oglesby, because there are more openings on the track at Iowa.

Out of Gate 3 would be Jarrod Uthoff, because of all the questions to be answered: How much weight is he going to put on? Is he going to grow to be a 7-footer? And how will he fit in Badger red?

And on the outside lane out of Gate 4 will Paige, who will be heading to North Carolina after next season. At this time of year, three or four years from now, will he get the roses that go to the NCAA champion?

This, my friends, is another plus for staying the course and seeing where it leads you.

Before we go to that, how many races will have been won by Kiah Stokes in a few years at Connecticut? She would seem to be the winner of the race for most NCAA tournament appearances.

Put it all together and Metro sports fans will have a lot to watch as these champions take their games to the next level. We wish them the very, very best and congratulate them on giving the Metro the best high school season we've ever had.