Iowa High School Basketball Player Goes On International Tour

Miles Degner played in Costa Rica with Student Athlete World.

Miles Degner/X

An Iowa high school boys basketball player found himself miles away from home this summer on an international tour.

Miles Degner, who will be a freshman at Cedar Rapids Prairie High School this coming fall, was selected for the Student Athlete World program, which took him to Costa Rica for several basketball games.

“Basketball is life,” Degner told KCRG. “It’s comforting for me whenever I’m going through something rough. I just get out, shoot a basketball; I feel better almost automatically.”

Iowa High School Freshman To Be Played Overseas This Summer

Degner was the lone Iowan on the United States team, as he went up against international players throughout the event.

“I want to play in college one day,” Degner said. “I think if I keep working, I keep trying, I keep doing everything I’m supposed to do, I think I can make it one day.”

On his X (formerly known as Twitter account), Degner lists basketball, baseball and track and field as sports he plays.

History Made By United States Team At International Event

Degner was part of a historical finish for Student Athlete World USA (SAWUSA) during the tour, as the group went 4-0. That marked the first time the team finished undefeated during the Costa Rica trip.

To be selected, Degner had to fill out an application to be considered. The official Student Athlete World website says that “only about 15 percent of applicants are accepted.”

“I send in the application and I wrote this whole essay,” Degner said. “Then they accepted and I was like, ‘no way, I got accepted.’”

Chris Horton served as head coach of the team that included Degner. He is the head coach at Warren Wilson College and a graduate of the University of Florida.

Miles Degner Will Join Strong Cedar Rapids Prairie Program

The Hawks finished 18-6 this past winter after going 19-5 in 2024-25. They have had four seasons with at least 11 wins over the past five years.

Cedar Rapids Prairie will return starters Tae Alexander, Austin Joens and Cayden Larson, as they graduate a number of key players including David Fason and Will Wehr.

Todd Kuntz is the head coach for the Hawks. He was hired to lead Cedar Rapids Prairie after previously serving as the head coach at Dunkerton High School, where he led that program to an appearance at the Iowa High School Athletic Association State Basketball Tournament.