ELDRIDGE, Iowa - It's a question Shamus Budde has asked himself numerous times since the conclusion of last basketball season.

"How good is Brandon Voss?" the North Scott coach echoed at a recent practice. "I'm curious to really see."

As a sophomore last season, Voss awoke Mississippi Athletic Conference opponents with superb play at the point. He led the league in assists (6.3 a game) and steals (3.7).

Last summer was set to be his time to bask in AAU glory, catching the eyes of recruiters and fine tuning his game.

Except Voss had other ideas.

Instead of living in the gym, he relocated to the baseball diamond, resuming duties at catcher after a year away from the sport. And in the fall he played his second season of varsity golf, nearly transforming from a duffer into a single-digit handicapper.

Those decisions came with concessions, for Voss personally and the Lancers basketball team. And he's OK with that.

"I'm not getting as exposed not going to that July (AAU) circuit," Voss said. "I guess it's just something I have to sacrifice to get everything in if that's what I want to do."

Don't confuse diversity with complacency.

Even though he's 5-foot-9 with a pedestrian vertical leap, Voss would relish the opportunity to play college basketball. He just isn't going to bypass other competitive opportunities to throw himself in front of scouts.

He hasn't exactly been slacking off either.

In the past year, Voss has packed on 15 pounds of muscle to what is now a 140-pound frame.

It's too early to say how Voss' additional extra-curricular activities (which Budde whole-heartedly supports) will impact the basketball team.

Nothing about Voss causes Budde to even raise an eyebrow after last year's success.

"The thing that surprised me the most about Brandon was just how consistent he was," Budde said. "For a sophomore, you're just waiting for him not to have a good game. And it never did happen."

In only three of his 23 games last season did Voss fail to score at least 10 points, and he averaged 15.8.

North Scott finished 16-7 last season, largely because the team played 50 games the summer before. This summer, though, the full unit assembled for just four games, leaving little indication of what to expect from a junior-heavy team.

The benefit is that Voss is back with his own class, rekindling bonds that began on a fifth-grade traveling team.

The element of surprise won't play in Voss' favor this season, which is exactly why Budde is eager to see how his all-state guard fares under scrutiny.

Budde, himself a proven winner as a point guard at Bettendorf in the mid-'90s, has followed Voss' progress since fifth grade and doesn't hold too many concerns.

Opposing coaches definitely don't feel they've solved the speedy sharpshooter.

"His quickness with the ball in his hands is the amazing part," Pleasant Valley coach Steve Hillman said. "I still have nightmares about Brandon getting in the lane and hitting an off-balanced shot, a tear drop, over one of our guys."

The Spartans twice fell to North Scott last year, including a signature 36-25 decision. Low-scoring slowdowns vaulted the Lancers within a couple possessions of a state tournament berth last March.

It remains to be seen if this year's bunch will adopt a similar approach, not that it necessarily matters.

"Obviously, the fans come to watch the game," Voss said. "For us, you have to think about it from a winning or losing standpoint.

"If that's what it takes, we'll do what has to be done."