Who are the best players in the 2024 Iowa high school girls state basketball tournament?

There’s a saying: Talent breeds success.

That’s true of the 40 teams that advanced to the Iowa girls high school basketball state tournament. But some programs possess a bit more talent than others. Some of them boast a few of the top college basketball recruits in the state.

Johnston is the perfect example of this, considering that the Dragons roster features four players on this list. Ankeny Centennial, Bishop Heelan, Cedar Falls and Dowling all have multiple top recruits on their rosters, as well.

Recruiting success doesn’t always correlate with wins, although, in this case, it does.

Here are 20 of the top girls basketball recruits competing at the Iowa girls basketball state tournament.

Names are listed in alphabetical order.

Vanessa Bickford, Sr., Dallas Center-Grimes

The Minnesota signee is one of the most impactful players who returned from Dallas Center-Grimes' 2023 state championship-winning team, and her success continued into this season. Bickford has averaged 8.8 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists and a steal per game.

Divine Bourrage, Jr., Davenport North

Bourrage is in the middle of her not-so-slow and steady rise in the recruiting world, collecting over two dozen Division I offers. She’s stepped up her game this season, especially after fellow top recruit and Iowa commit Journey Houston’s injury. Bourrage has averaged 19.6 points, 9.1 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 2.8 steals per game.

Mya Crawford, Jr., Ankeny Centennial

The Drake commit is Centennial’s leading lady, and she’s filled her larger leadership role well. She’s top of the Jaguars' stat sheet in almost every category, averaging 15.7 points, 7.2 rebounds, 3.2 steals and 3.1 assists heading into the tournament.

More: Ankeny Centennial basketball player Mya Crawford commits to Drake

Karis Finley, So., Cedar Falls

The Cedar Falls sophomore is on the rise, picking up a pair of offers from Bradley and Drake. She’s one of the Tigers’ top contributors and has averaged 15.7 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.8 steals, 2.5 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game.

Elise Jaeger, Sr., Valley

The future UNI Panther is a large part of the reason why Valley made it to the state tournament. She has averaged 13.7 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.6 steals, 2.1 assists and a block per game – and she has the best shooting percentage in the Tigers’ starting lineup.

Amani Jenkins, Jr., Johnston

The Marquette commit transferred back to Johnston after a season at Des Moines North and hasn’t missed a beat as the Dragons’ go-to big. She is second on the squad with 13.3 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, and she has averaged 1.3 assists, 1.1 blocks and a steal in each matchup.

Grace Knutson, Sr., Cedar Falls

Knutson is committed to Drake, but she first hopes to lead Cedar Falls to a state title. She leads all Class 5A shooters with 23 points per game, and she added 5.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.8 steals per game.

Callie Levin, Sr., Solon

Iowa will get one of the top girls basketball players in the state after her senior season, and Levin is poised to end on a good note. She leads the Spartans with 22.4 points, 7.2 rebounds, 5.1 steals and 4.5 assists per game – all major contributions that landed Solon in the state tournament.

Jenica Lewis, So., Johnston

With her freshman season out of the way, Lewis jumped into a larger role with the Dragons and is one of Johnston’s do-it-all stars. She has averaged 11.6 points, 3.3 rebounds, three assists and 2.2 steals per game. On top of that, she continues to collect Division I offers, with her current total at 38.

More: 25 midseason candidates for the Register's Iowa girls basketball Player of the Year

Averie Lower, So., Clear Creek Amana

Undefeated Clear Creek Amana is led by a super sophomore who holds a few Division I offers. She has averaged 17.6 points per game while shooting 58.8% from the field and 49% from 3-point range. Lower has averaged 5.1 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 1.1 assists per game in her second season of high school basketball.

Ellie Muller, So., Dowling

Muller made a big leap from her freshman to sophomore year, but colleges were interested long before her sophomore success. She holds offers from half a dozen Division I programs, including Iowa State and Drake. The Maroons’ 6-foot-2 forward has averaged 12 points, 10.1 rebounds and 3.4 blocks per game.

More: Ellie and Katie Muller carry on family legacy with Dowling Catholic girls basketball

Jaeden Pratt, Jr., Ankeny Centennial

Pratt is headed to Illinois State after high school, but she still has one more full season left to play. She’s part of a one-two punch at Centennial with Crawford and has averaged 12.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.7 steals per game.

Aaliyah Riley, Sr., Johnston

The Northwest Missouri State signee does a bit of everything for Johnston, averaging 9.1 points, 3.3 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game heading into the tournament. But where Riley really shines is on defense. She’s a large part of the reason why the Dragons enter the state tournament with a perfect 23-0 record.

More: Johnston girls basketball's Aaliyah Riley stands out on an already star-studded squad

Melina Snoozy, Fr., Bishop Heelan

Snoozy landed a handful of offers before her first high school season at Bishop Heelan. She leads the Crusaders with 18.1 points per game and has added an average of 4.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.3 steals per night.

Brooklyn Stanley, Sr., Bishop Heelan

Another big piece of Heelan’s puzzle, the Northwest Missouri State signee has contributed 14.8 points, 8.2 rebounds, 2.4 steals, 2.2 steals and 1.8 assists per game. Nothing shows a do-it-all player quite like Stanley’s stats.

Haylee Stokes, Jr., Estherville Lincoln Central

There is a reason why Estherville Lincoln Central is the No. 1 seed in Class 3A, and that reason is Stokes. Her 24.4 points-per-game average is fourth in the state, and she has averaged 6.8 assists, 5.6 steals and 4.3 rebounds on top of her scoring success. She is headed to Minnesota State after her high school career.

Aili Tanke, Sr., Johnston

The Iowa State signee has been at the top of Iowa girls basketball game for years, and she’s Johnston’s obvious on-court leader. She leads the team with 15.3 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, and she adds 1.9 assists and 1.4 steals. Tanke is a sharpshooter, making 57.3% of her field goal attempts and 50% of her 3-point shots.

Abby Tuttle, Jr., North Polk

Tuttle is headed to UNI after her high school career. She leads the Comets’ junior-heavy squad with 15.5 points, and she adds 4.3 assists, 4.2 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game.

Quinn Vice, Jr., Pleasant Valley

The Drake commit leads a Pleasant Valley squad looking to win a second-straight state championship. She averaged 12.7 points per game while shooting 46.5% from the field. Vice has added an average of 4.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.2 steals per game on a roster with several talented players.

Ava Zediker, Jr., Dowling

It’s difficult to remember that the Creighton commit is only a junior, especially since she’s the leader of this young Dowling squad. She has averaged 18.5 points, five rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.7 steals per game – while shooting 45.4% from the field and 42.3% from beyond the arc.

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: Iowa high school girls state basketball tournament: Top-20 recruits