Missouri Girls class six final basketball ratings - March 23rd, 2021

 The question going into this year was not who would win the newly devised Missouri girls class six state basketball title.  The question was, who would Incarnate Word play, and by how much would they win their championship.

It is like Vashon on the boy's side.  All we hear is Red Knights, Red Knights, Red Knights.  The ultimate powerhouse in Missouri girls basketball.  They play basketball like a symphonic orchestra.  Smooth, artistic, ebbing, and flowing but always with a great heart.  For some, they hate their success just like we hated the New York Yankees because they won all the time.  I just find their success perfectly fascinating. Perfect and fascinating.  Coach Dan Rolfes just calls them special.

There was a nice article about the Incarnate Word Academy Red Knights by Steve Overbey over at the Post Dispatch about this year's class six champion team.  The Red Knights won their tenth championship in the last twelve years and their 11th state title in school history, to go with a second-place, 5 third-place, and 2 fourth-place finishes.  That is 19 final four championship-style trophies.  I cannot imagine the trophy case at IWA.

                               Photo by Gordon Radford, Post-Dispatch

The number of championships is mind-boggling and it got me wondering, how does this 29-0 team match up with other years?  

I looked at the high school records from 2000 to present in the Post high school archives and here is the data for the last 10 championship teams.  Of those 10 state champions, only one other was undefeated, the 2013 team led by Napheesa Collier, Nia Roth and Nikiah Bell.   

That team defeated Webb City 63-22, for the championship.

That team wasn't quite as prolific in scoring (69.7 points vs. the 2021 team's 70.1 points per game) but the Red Knights of 2013 held opponents to 36.1 points per game vs. the 40.3 points for this year's team.  I guess we would have to ask coach Dan Rolfes about which team was better?  I am guessing that the 2021-2022 version of the Red Knights might tighten up the defense and raise the roof on offensive points.  You cannot beat an unbeaten season but you can show up past teams with better overall statistics.

The other mind-boggling fact from Overbey's article.  Coach Dan Rolfes has NO seniors.  NONE.  The team is back again next year.  In fact, half the returning team are sophomores and frosh, including top scorer, sophomore Natalie Potts.  I wonder who the favorite for class six will be?

Here are my class six final ratings:

For other posts, check them out here:

Final Ratings Boys Class Six
Final Ratings Girls Class Six
Final Ratings Boys Class Five
Final Ratings Girls Class Five
Final Ratings Boys Class Four
Final Ratings Girls Class Four
Final Ratings Boys Class Three
Final Ratings Girls Class Three
Final Ratings Boys Class Two
Final Ratings Girls Class Two
Final Ratings Boys Class One
Final Ratings Girls Class One
Final Ratings Boys Alphabetical
Final Ratings Girls, alphabetical
Final Ratings Boys, All Classes Combined
Final Ratings Girls, All classes combined
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