Vikings’ Grobe named second team All-State

 DES MOINES (March 16) -- AHSTW junior Raydden Grobe was named second team All-State in Class 2A on Tuesday morning as the Iowa Print Sports Writers Association released its All-State Boys Basketball selections for the 2020-2021 season.
 Members of the IPSWA, with assistance from more than two dozen coaches, chose three all-state teams per class during a virtual meeting on March 13, also naming Waukee senior Tucker DeVries this year’s Mr. Iowa Basketball.
 Grobe, who earlier this month was voted Player of the Year in the Western Iowa Conference, was one of three WIC players to receive all-state recognition, joined by third-teamers Sid Schaaf of Treynor (2A) and Leyton Nelson of Tri-Center (1A).
 Grobe helped lead the AHSTW boys to a 20-3 overall record this past season and a tie for the WIC regular season title with Treynor at 14-2. The Vikings split their two conference matchups with the Cardinals before losing to them in a district final game 84-53.
 Grobe, an athletic 6-foot-2 wing player, paced AHSTW with a scoring average of 18.9 points per game while also averaging 5.2 rebounds. He totaled 57 assists, 41 steals and 26 blocked shots in 23 games, shooting 46.9 percent from the field overall and 35 percent from three-point range. He made a team-high 50 treys in 143 attempts and shot 68.6 percent (48-of-70) at the free throw line.
 Grobe is a multi-talented player on the floor, whether knocking down threes and pull-up jump shots, scoring on dribble-drives to the hoop or flushing slam dunks off Viking steals. Along with talented sophomores Kyle Sternberg and Brayden Lund, Grobe was one of three players on the team to average at least 16.8 points per night.
 Grobe has been a full-time starter the last two years for AHSTW head coach G.G. Harris and was also the Vikings’ top scorer off the bench as a freshman.
“Raydden’s passion for basketball has been evident since I’ve been here,” Harris said. “In fact, I remember as a third grader Raydden having to play in a Summer JV league game just to make five players. Even as a third grader, Raydden has never been shy or lacked the confidence to score the ball.
 “He has developed into a relentless scorer and has elevated his game each and every year. I expect the same and maybe even more going into his senior year.”
 Harris added: “Besides being able to score, Raydden has shown the potential to be a tenacious defender. When he is playing ‘D’ at a high level, our team is very tough to beat.
 “I think a lot of people have high expectations for Raydden. He wants it that way. He’s a competitor. Raydden continues to make the time to work on his game and I’m proud of him in this honor. It’s well earned, but this isn’t his peak or our team’s peak for that matter.”