For someone who enjoys numbers as much as this writer does, Quick Stats is one of greatest online sites ever conceived by humankind! There is a wealth of information in those numbers that makes athletics interesting beyond just the contests themselves. So, lets take a look at some of the basketball stats that Quick Stats has to offer.

The season is nearing the halfway point, as the Charger girls have played 10 of their 21 regular season games and the boys have played 9. Play will resume on January 4 when the teams will host ball clubs from Woodward-Granger.

So, during the lull, lets look at some of the statistics made available on Quick Stats. First, a look at the standings for both the girls and boys, including the conference records and overall records.

Girls Standings: Conf. All Boys Standings: Conf. All

Team W--L W--L Team W--L W--L

DM Christian 6--0 8--2 Van Meter 6--0 6--0

Panorama 6--0 8--0 Wood-Granger 6--1 7--2

Van Meter 4--2 7--2 Earlham 5--2 5--3

Earlham 3--2 6--2 Madrid 5--2 7--2

ACGC 4--3 6--4 DM Christian 4--2 6--3

Madrid 2--3 3--5 Ogden 4--2 7--3

Ogden 2--3 6--3 Panorama 3--4 4--4

Pleasantville 2--4 7--4 ACGC 2--5 4--5

Wood-Granger 2--5 3--7 Pleasantville 2--5 3--6

Interstate 35 1--5 2--7 Wood Academy 2--5 3--7

West Cent. Valley 1--6 3--7 Interstate 35 1--6 1--8

West Cent. Valley 0--6 1--7

The Panorama and Des Moines Christian girls will have a showdown game on January 11 at DMC. It could go a long way to determine the conference champion. This writer is picking the Panthers because they seem to have the Lions' number, including a 34-32 win for the Panthers in last years "game to go" to the state tournament. It was the third Panther win over the Lions last year. Because of an increase in DMC's enrollment, the Lions are now a 3A school, while Panorama remains a 2A school. As a result they will not face each other in the post season.

On the boys side, it is doubtful that Van Meter will lose in the conference. There are several very solid boys teams, but the Bulldogs have the size, quickness and athleticism to continue their dominance. A potential challenger to the Bulldogs is Woodward-Granger, which lost to Treynor last year in the "game to go." The Bulldogs and Hawks face one another on January 11 in Van Meter.

There are several team categories in which the Charger girls are doing well. Keep in mind that ACGC has played seven conference games, while most other teams have played only six conference games. The Chargers own the third best field goal percentage at 40.8%, after DMC's 45.5% and Panorama's 41% . They also rank fifth in three point percentage at 24.8% . Panorama leads that category with a success rate of 37.5% . They have the third highest points per game average at 47.0, with DMC (59.0) with Panorama (58.3) going one and two in that category. The local girls have the second highest number of rebounds in the conference with 215. The Chargers also have the second highest number of assists with 91, following only DMC which has 103. On the other hand, ACGC leads the league in turnovers with 157. West Central Valley is next with 119.

When we look at some individual stats, the Chargers have several representatives in the top ten. Jadeyn Carrick ranks sixth in scoring with a total of 75 points. Her average per game of 10.7 ranks her tenth in conference games. Jorja Hoover leads the league in assists with 27. Kylie Young (20), Jorja Hoover (17), and Genevieve Hoover (17) rank second, third and fourth in steals. Kennedy Young ranks third in total rebounds with 48.

The boys' team is averaging 58 points per game which ranks them sixth (Madrid leads with 77.1), while their conference defensive average is 68 ranking them 11th of the twelve teams. (Van Meter leads in defensive average, surrendering just 35 points per tilt.) The Charger boys' field goal percentage of 40.0 puts them in the number eight spot (Van Meter is tops with 55.6%). ACGC has handed out 81 assists, good for sixth in the conference (Madrid leads with 133). The Chargers' 33 steals places them tenth in that category (Van Meter has 87). ACGC has turned the ball over 108 times, placing them second behind Pleasantville's 117.

In individual top ten statistical categories, Bryce Littler places seventh in scoring with 102 points and also in points per game with an average of 14.6. Noah Sargent is third in the league with 17 three point baskets, while his percentage of three point makes is tops in the league for those who have shot at least 25 three pointers--a sterling 58.6% on 17 successes out of 29attempts! Littler and Noah Nelson are tied for tenth in assists with 21 each. Quynton Younker ranks seventh in rebounds with 53, for an average of nearly eight per game.