Linn-Mar High School - Marion, Iowa

Lions roll behind Bohannon's 32

DES MOINES -- Jason Bohannon helped Linn-Mar win the Class 4A state basketball title in 2004 and Zach Bohannon got his state crown with the Lions in 2007.

Now Matt Bohannon wants his.

Bohannon fired in a career-best 32 points Wednesday afternoon as No.1 Linn-Mar hammered Cedar Rapids Washington, 71-54, in the quarterfinals of the 4A state tournament at Wells Fargo Arena.

Bohannon destroyed the Warriors with 24 points in the first half, hitting his first six shots and 10 of 11 overall with a sensational display on the big stage.

"He was terrific," said Linn-Mar Coach Chris Robertson. "I don't know if I've seen a better first half down here in a long time.

"It was great. For a senior, he's pretty hungry to be down here and obviously his goals are really high."

Bohannon is proud of what his older brothers accomplished during their basketball careers at Linn-Mar, but he's always wanted to make a name for himself and win a state title of his own.

Linn-Mar needs two more victories to claim its third state championship in eight years. The Lions will face Iowa City West (20-4) in the semifinals Friday at 1:30 p.m. in another matchup of Mississippi Valley Conference teams.

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Kiah Stokes is Iowa Miss Basketball

The awards from a great high school basketball career continue to be reaped by Linn-Mar's Kiah Stokes.  The latest is the ultimate honor a senior girls basketball player in Iowa can receive.

Stokes has been named Miss Iowa Basketball by the Iowa Newspaper Association, the INA announced Tuesday. She was voted the honor by a panel of sportswriters from newspapers across the state.

Stokes is the first player from Linn-Mar and the fifth from a Metro high school to win the award, which has been presented annually since 1981.  She is only the second Metro athlete to win the award since the entire state switched to playing five-player basketball in 1994. Kennedy's Anne O'Neil won in 2000. The other three Metro winners all came from Jefferson -- Karen Schulte in 1993, Kate Galligan in 1992 and Lisa Becker in 1982.

Stokes led the state in scoring with a 25.0 average and was second in rebounding, averaging 14.9. She also was second in blocked shots with 141. She holds the state record for career blocked shots with 515 and finished No. 4 on the career rebound list with 1,239. She also scored 1,704 points.

Stokes also was named to the INA Class 4A all-state first team, her third such honor is as many days. She was named to the Des Moines Register all-state team Sunday and to the Iowa Girls Coaches Association (IGCA) first team Monday.

Last month Stokes was named a McDonald's All-American. 

Joining Stokes on the INA Class 4A first team are Washington's Tia Dawson, Virginia Johnson from Iowa City High, Ally Disterhoft of Iowa City West, Markisha Wright and Shronda Butts from state champion Des Moines East, Brittni Donaldson of Sioux City North and Maddie Manning from Ankeny.

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Metro stars shooting on the state stage

High school basketball fans in the Metro area have been treated to something very special in local gyms this season, something they may never see again.

Jarrod Uthoff, Josh Oglesby, Marcus Paige, Wes Washpun, Matt Bohannon. Remember those names.

All five of them will play Division I college basketball at a high level. There could be a Mr. Basketball (or two) in the group, and there might be a couple of NBA players.

It's been a special season, and the best part of the campaign begins this week with the Class 4A boys state tournament at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.

Uthoff has Cedar Rapids Jefferson in the field. Oglesby and Washpun have led Cedar Rapids Washington back to Des Moines. Paige and Bohannon have top-ranked Linn-Mar looking for another state title.

All five of those players and their schools played in the state tournament last year. None of them came home with the grand prize, but Linn-Mar is the No.1 seed and the favorite this time around.

It starts Wednesday.

Linn-Mar (23-0) faces Washington (17-8) in an all-Metro opener at 1:45 p.m. at Wells Fargo Arena. Jefferson (17-5) plays Des Moines Hoover (21-2) in the nightcap at 8:15 p.m.

The semifinals are Friday, with the finals and consolation game for third place on Saturday.

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Coaches name Stokes, Dawson all state

Kiah Stokes from Linn-Mar and Tia Dawson from Washington have been named to the Class 4A first team all-state girls basketball team announced Monday by the Iowa Girls Coaches Association (IGCA).

Stokes and Dawson led their respective teams to the state tournament. Stokes' team lost in the semifinals, Dawson's in the first round.

Stokes led the state in scoring with a 25.0 average, and was second in rebounding (14.9) and blocked shots (141). She set the career state record for blocked shots with 515. Stokes is a top candidate for the Miss Basketball Award that will be announced Tuesday.  She also has signed to play college basketball at two-time defending NCAA champion Connecticut.

Dawson saved her best game for last. She scored 27 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in the Warriors' 67-58 first round tournament loss to Iowa City West. She averaged 12 points, 10 rebounds and blocked 91 shots. Dawson is bound for Dartmouth.

State champion Des Moines East had two members of the first team -- Markisha Wright and Shronda Butts.  Virginia Johnson of Iowa City High and Ally Disterhoft of Iowa City West, Sioux City North's Brittni Donaldson and Southeast Polk's Caitlin Ingle also were named to the first team.

Des Moines East's Sam Powell was named coach of the Year. The Scarlets finished 26-0.

IGCA ALL-STATE TEAMS

Class 4A

First Team

Kiah Stokes, Linn-Mar
Shronda Butts, Des Moines East
Virginia Johnson, Iowa City High
Markisha Wright, Des Moines East
Brittni Donaldson, Sioux City North
Caitlin Ingle, Southeast Polk
Ally Disterhoft, Iowa City West
Tia Dawson, Cedar Rapids Washington
 

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