Metro Sports Report

U.S. Cellular could host boys hoops

Boys basketball could take center stage at the U.S. Cellular Center in early March.

Plans are in the final stages to hold Class 3A substate finals and Class 4A substate finals at the arena in downtown Cedar Rapids on March 2 and March 3, with doubleheaders both nights.

Officials from the Iowa High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) and the U.S. Cellular Center hope to reach an agreement this week.

"We are aggressively pursuing this," Sharon Cummins, the executive director of the U.S. Cellular Center, said Tuesday. "I think it's looking really positive, but nothing has been set in stone yet.

Daniels wins Metro Spotlight Award

Cedar Rapids Kennedy senior Zach Daniels is the winner of the Metro Spotlight Award for high school boys this week, the Metro Sports Report announced Sunday.

Daniels has made a name for himself at Kennedy as an elite all-state baseball player, but he's also a successful basketball player for the Cougars and riding an impressive hot streak.

Daniels scored 22 points and had eight steals in a 77-64 loss at Johnston Tuesday night, then he came back three nights later and scored 22 points with six 3-pointers in a clutch 74-61 victory at Cedar Falls Friday.

Australian gives Mustangs a triple threat

James Boonstoppel tried a variety of sports when he was a kid in Australia until he found the one he truly loved.

"I played Australian football, soccer, tennis and cricket. And I tried boxing," he said Saturday. "And when I was 12 I seriously made a commitment to the game of basketball."

The Mount Mercy Mustangs are glad he did.

Boonstoppel scored 12 points and grabbed a career-best eight rebounds Saturday as the 16th-ranked Mustangs clipped AIB, 84-71, in a Midwest Collegiate Conference game at the Hennessey Recreation Center.

Eagles, Mustangs, Kohawks rolling along

Some of the best college basketball in Iowa is being played right here in Cedar Rapids.

It's happening at Kirkwood, Coe and Mount Mercy.

The Eagles, Kohawks and Mustangs are not going to unseat the Cyclones, Panthers and Hawkeyes at the top of the college basketball ladder, but the local schools have enjoyed an extraordinary campaign so far.

Just look at the league standings.

Five of the six teams at Kirkwood, Coe and Mount Mercy are in first place in their conference. The Mount Mercy women are the lone exception, and they're tied for second.