DES MOINES — The abundance of private schools at this week’s boys’ state basketball tournament once again has some people questioning if the Iowa High School Athletic Association should look into an enrollment “multiplier” to determine sports classifications for non-public schools.
States such as Missouri and Arkansas use a multiplier system, while other states have separate athletics classes for public and private schools. As an example, the enrollment of Council Bluffs St. Albert (which was in the Class 1A field) would jump from 152 to 228 using a multiplier of 1.5.
There …

As voted by coaches.
2009-10 All-Metro Boys’ Basketball

CEDAR RAPIDS — For the first time in six years, Cedar Rapids Xavier’s journey ended short of March, short of Des Moines.
Fueled by a defensive change, ninth-ranked Cedar Rapids Washington owned the fourth quarter and eliminated No. 12 Xavier, 54-47, in a Class 4A regional semifinal girls’ basketball game Saturday night at Xavier High School.
“It’s all about heart,” said Washington’s Maggie Schneidermann, who hit three first-half 3-pointers to keep the Warriors (14-8) close before they unleased their late barrage.
“They took us out last year. We weren’t going to let it …

Cedar Rapids Washington had an extra hurdle to climb.
Now that it’s cleared, it may have been a benefit.
Ninth-ranked Washington faces No. 12 Xavier in a Class 4A regional semifinal girls’ basketball game at 7 p.m. Saturday at Xavier.
Most of the high-level 4A teams draw quarterfinal byes. Washington (13-8) had to play a first-rounder, though, and handled Cedar Rapids Prairie, 66-32. Xavier (14-7), meanwhile, had a free ride to Round 2.
“There’s a give-and-take to it,” said Washington Coach Frank Howell. “We had two days to prepare for Prairie, then a game, then …

DUBUQUE — Iowa City West Coach Mark Reiland said it was one of those days. A satisfactory effort, but nothing spectacular from his Trojans.
Other Mississippi Valley Conference teams may beg to differ and would likely exchange outcomes any day.
West crowned five champions, tallying 244½ points, to win its seventh straight MVC tournament title Saturday at Dubuque Senior. The Trojans finished a massive 89 points ahead of runner-up Linn-Mar.
The approach is the same every year, according to West senior Nick Moore.
“It’s come in and score as many points as possible,” Moore …

MARION — Kiah Stokes was highly efficient, if not wildly prolific.
Stokes took only eight shots from the floor Friday night, but made every last one of them as Class 4A top-rated Linn-Mar won its 30th straight Mississippi Valley Conference girls’ basketball game, 48-34, over No. 12 Cedar Rapids Xavier at Linn-Mar High School.
“They were physical, so I wanted to be physical right back,” said Stokes, who scored 19 points in front of hopeful suitors like Iowa State women’s coach Bill Fennelly and two coaches from Purdue.
“Once I got the ball, I …

CEDAR RAPIDS — It’s all routine.
The sun rises every morning, sets every evening. Crops are planted every spring, harvested every fall.
And Tom Lilly wins every winter.
Lilly, the girls’ basketball coach at Cedar Rapids Xavier, is on the brink of his 17th consecutive winning season.
In the Mississippi Valley Conference, mostly against larger schools, that’s a feat.
“What can you say? He’s an outstanding coach,” said Mike Winker, Xavier athletics director. “We’re very fortunate to have him as a coach and a teacher.”
“Tom is outstanding with building relationships with people.”
Lilly, 54, is in …

CEDAR RAPIDS — They aren’t starters.
But Tatum Klein, Shelly Stumpff and Ally Disterhoft were critical closers Tuesday night for Iowa City West.
That trio of reserves combined for 10 points in the final 5 minutes as Class 4A ninth-ranked West pulled away from No. 10 Cedar Rapids Xavier in a 46-39 Mississippi Valley Conference girls’ basketball victory at Ron Thillen Gymnasium.
West’s bench scored 23 points, half of the team’s output.
“I expect them to come in and keep doing what we do,” said West Coach B.J. Mayer.
The Women of Troy (12-4 overall, 8-4 …

CEDAR RAPIDS — Mike Brandt teaches art, not geometry.
But there he was, moments after Linn-Mar’s 45-32 girls’ basketball victory at Cedar Rapids Xavier, discussing angles.
As in where, when and how to get the ball to Kiah Stokes.
The Lions had mostly right angles last night. Stokes broke out of a mild shooting slump with 10-of-13 shooting and 24 points as Class 4A third-rated Linn-Mar (10-0 overall, 6-0 Mississippi Valley Conference) pushed its regular-season winning streak to 32 and its MVC string to 23.
“We’re working a lot on the angles in our …

CEDAR RAPIDS — Always effervescent public-address man Rich Paterson had a minor slip-up in the middle of Cedar Rapids Kennedy’s home boys’ basketball game last night. Don’t hold it against him because he’s good at what he does and good for the school he volunteers for.
“Brenden …,” Paterson began as Kennedy guard Brenden Drahn went up for what appeared to be a sure deuce.
You couldn’t blame the PA guy in this case because it was pretty much a wide-open inside shot. And everything else the Cougars were putting up was …