Valley basketball tops Waukee Northwest, achieves first Iowa state title 3-peat since 2014
Three-peat accomplished.
Valley cemented its spot in the Iowa high school basketball record books Friday, becoming the second-ever team in Class 4A to win three-straight state championships. The Tigers defeated Waukee Northwest, 60-48, in the title game.
Last season, Valley defeated Cedar Rapids Kennedy, 63-59, in the championship game and in 2023, it took down Northwest, 75-67, to win the title. The Tigers are the first team to win three straight titles since Iowa City West did so from 2012-2014.
“You don’t see too many teams do that,” said junior guard Jayden McGregory. “I think the last team to do it was in (2014). This feels great, this is what you dream about.”
McGregory led the Tigers with 26 points in the championship game. He added eight rebounds and four assists. Zay Robinson scored 15 points, and Trevin Jirak contributed 13 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks.
McGregory put the Tigers on the board first, easing in a layup off an inbound pass from Robinson. That’s when the back-and-forth began, with Northwest tying the game and then taking the lead before Valley tied it again before reclaiming the advantage.
The Tigers outscored the Wolves, 11-3, in the last 5:52 of the first quarter; Northwest’s three points came off a 3-pointer from Bode Goodman. Valley started the second quarter up, 15-7.
Despite turning over the ball on the first possession of the second frame, the Tigers continued to build their lead. Four-straight baskets – and a free throw from Robinson – over the course of two minutes – pushed Valley to a 15-point advantage, the largest of the game to that point.
Northwest never led by more than two points – tracking back to the only lead the Wolves held, just 1:27 into the game.
But Northwest did carry momentum into the locker room. Valley fouled Goodman on a drive, and he made both free-throw attempts. The Tigers turned over the ball with 10 seconds left in the half, and the Wolves finished on a four-point scoring streak, capped by a jumper from Colin Rice.
Still, Valley held a 29-18 lead after the first two quarters.
It took less than a minute of the third quarter for Northwest to cut that margin to single digits, off a Rice layup and a Landon Davis 3-pointer. Valley returned its lead to 10 points just as quickly, though. But that double-digit advantage didn’t last.
Northwest slashed away at the Tigers’ lead. Late in the third quarter, Valley turned the ball on back-to-back possessions, and, around the same time, big man Jirak rolled his ankle and left the game – albeit temporarily.
“We’re in big trouble,” said head coach B.J. Windhorst about his reaction to Jirak’s injury. “He’s a tough kid, man. But you have to focus and try to find a way to win a game without him in there.”
But for most of the third frame, the Tigers led by five points or less, entering the fourth with a 41-37 advantage.
“It’s their character,” Northwest head coach Brett Watson said about his team’s ability to cut into the Tigers’ lead. “They bring it every single day. They’re absolute fighters. They’ve been fighting all season long. The third quarter has been our quarter all year, and we needed that tonight.”
Robinson knocked down a 3-pointer to kick off the scoring in the fourth. He added another basket after a few misses on both sides, but Northwest responded. Valley managed to pull away and – in the final minutes of the matchup – the action turned a bit chippy.
The Tigers didn’t give the Wolves many opportunities to cut away at the lead, and Valley steadily went up by double digits – winning the game by 12 points, claiming another state championship in the process.
Alyssa Hertel is the college sports recruiting reporter for the Des Moines Register. Contact Alyssa at ahertel@dmreg.com or on Twitter @AlyssaHertel.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Valley wins 3rd-straight Iowa high school basketball state championship
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