Home US SportsNCAAW Senior hoops standouts from Sioux Falls Christian, Rapid City Stevens receive top honor

Senior hoops standouts from Sioux Falls Christian, Rapid City Stevens receive top honor

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Senior hoops standouts from Sioux Falls Christian, Rapid City Stevens receive top honor

SIOUX FALLS — Sioux Falls Christian’s Griffen Goodbary and Rapid City Stevens’ Taaliyah Porter have been named the 2025 South Dakota Mr. and Miss Basketball.

The two high school basketball standouts were selected Sunday during the Hansen & Anderson Basketball banquet. Hansen-Anderson Basketball has announced the state’s Mr. and Miss Basketball winners for 48th years, as selected by the state’s high school coaches.

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Goodbary is the Sioux Falls Christian boys basketball player named Mr. Basketball. Porter is the second Rapid City Stevens girls basketball player named Miss Basketball, joining Becky Hammon in 1994.

Rapid City Stevens’ Taaliyah Porter and O’Gorman’s Sadie Mehrman (left) and Kyra Hermanson (21) battle for a loose ball during their semifinal game in the state Class AA girls basketball tournament on Friday, March 14, 2025, at Rapid City. O’Gorman won 58-31.

Griffen Goodbary (Mr. Basketball)

The honor is the latest for the 6-foot-11 forward, who has signed to play college basketball for Drake University.

He was also named the Gatorade South Dakota Boys Basketball Player of the Year in 2024 and 2025 and the South Dakota Basketball Coaches Association’s Class A player of the year this winter.

The two-time Class A first team all-state selection averaged 18 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game this season. He added 36 blocked shots. He helped lead the Chargers to a Sioux Falls Christian to a 24-1 record and the 2025 state Class A championship by tallying 32 points and 15 rebounds in a 61-51 championship game win over Hamlin.

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He finished his career with 1,146 points, 450 rebounds, 181 assists and 45 steals.

Sioux Falls Christian's Griffen Goodbary (22) goes for the block against Dakota Valley's Logan Collette during their semifinal game in the state Class A boys basketball tournament on Friday, March 15, 2024 in the Summit Arena at The Monument in Rapid CIty.

Sioux Falls Christian’s Griffen Goodbary (22) goes for the block against Dakota Valley’s Logan Collette during their semifinal game in the state Class A boys basketball tournament on Friday, March 15, 2024 in the Summit Arena at The Monument in Rapid CIty.

Taaliyah Porter (Miss Basketball

The 5-8 senior guard earned South Dakota Basketball Coaches Association (SDBCA) Class AA first team all-state honors for a second-straight year this winter after earning second-team honors as a sophomore in 2023.

Porter averaged 22.1 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game for the Raiders this season, leading Stevens to a 17-7 record and a fourth-place finish in the state Class AA tournament.

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She scored 1,667 career points, surpassing Hammon for the most in Rapid City Stevens basketball history and sixth all-time on the Class AA girls basketball scoring list. Porter added 632 rebounds, 205 assists and 201 steals during her career.

Porter still has not announced her college choice.

Other Mr. & Miss Basketball Finalists

Three northeastern South Dakota players were among the other finalists for the awards. Bryon Laue, who led Castlewood to the state Class B boys basketball title, and Easton Neuendorf, who led defending champion Hamlin to a runner-up finish in the state Class A tournament, also were up for the Mr. Basketball Award. Krista Langager of Sisseton was a finalist for Miss Basketball.

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Other Mr. Basketball finalists included Benson Kieffer of Rapid City Christian, Gilbert White Jr. of Rapid City Central. Landon Dulaney of Brandon Valley, Luke Bruns of Dakota Valley, Markus Talley of Mitchell, Maverick LeBrun of Dell Rapids St. Mary, Nicholas Hanson of Viborg-Hurley and Trevon Beckman of Dell Rapids St. Mary.

Other Miss Basketball finalists included Althea Gust and Emma Marshall of Centerville, Grace Peterson of Sioux Falls Washington, Jenna VandeWeerd of Canton. Jodene Big Crow-Hunter of Mahpiya Luta, Lennix DuPris of Pierre. Madala Hanson of Dell Rapids St. Mary, Mya Kochuten of Spearfish and Reagan Rus of Mount Vernon-Plankinton.

Follow Watertown Public Opinion sports reporter Roger Merriam on X (formerly known as Twitter) @PO_Sports or email: rmerriam@thepublicopinion.com

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Hansen-Anderson Basketball names state’s top basketball seniors

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