AAA belongs in the city

Its back to back AAA playoff nights in St. Paul.

Tuesday: Bloomington Kennedy 78 St. Paul Harding 51
In 3AAA, 6 seed Kennedy gave up the opening FT and then proceeded to go on a 37-6 run.  Harding giving up a bunch of points thanks to turnovers.  Only 2 FGs for Harding in almost the 1st 13 minutes.  Jaylen Williams 3 early bombs.  Laronte Marmont drawing 4 fouls on forward Alex Addai in the 1st half.  There wasn't an answer for him in the post.  Soph Amarion Hanspard adds 11 points in the 1st half as well.  That 30 point gets down to 22 at a couple of points but never closer than that as Kennedy rolls.  They'll play St. Thomas Academy in the semis on Friday.  Terrell Barber leads Kennedy with 16 points, Amarion Hanspard 14, Laronte Marmont with 13.  Simeon Sharp with 18 and Jovan Christian with 16 to lead Harding.  Christian finishes his career with 1645 career points.  That ties him for the Harding school record with current Brooklyn Center assistant coach Steve Priestley.

Wednesday: St. Paul Johnson 43 Fridley 39
Back to St. Paul for the 4AAA 3 vs 6 game.   But the real reason I'm attending is to get in 1 last walking taco for the season.  Have to wash that down with quality Pepsi.  Fridley comes out in a common delay game as they try to pass and cut/backcut against the Governors pressure defense.  The 1st possession lasts 99 seconds.  Not a stall, but patience.  Casey Fisher for 3 off the elevator screen for an 11-6 lead at the 7:07 mark.  Julian Borney back to back hoops for Johnson as they regain the lead 14-13 last in the half.  Micah Coewenhoeven with a floater in the last minute for a 17-16 Fridley lead at the half.

Johnson's played 11 guys and their defense got to Fridley to force a bunch of sloppy turnovers.  Kevin Knox 4 easy hoops in a 12-1 Johnson run for a 30-20 Govs lead with 11-2 left.  Fridley might have let it go too long before their timeout (but thankfully no MoKiller). They score the next 7 to pull within 3 with 6 minutes left.  They'll get a couple chances to tie but can't convert.

Fridley with a miss inside the 2 minute mark but they'll steal it back for 2 Isaac Burns free throws. That cuts the Govs lead to 34-33.  Then a Fridley pick pocket and they'll go the other way for a missed layup.  Johnson immediately lays it in on the other end.  After a quick Fridley missed 3, Johnson will hold.  On a drive, Fridley tries to foul, no whistle and the foul finally gets called as frosh Mac Thomas lays the ball in.  Frustrating call.  That pushes the Johnson lead to 6 with 53.7 left.  Burns counters with a 3, Johnson makes 1-2 FTs and Hassan Kamara hits a 3 with 12 seconds left.  That cuts the lead to 1.  Johnson makes 2 free throws, Fridley misses a forced 3 and Thomas seals it with 1 of 2 FTs with 1.8 left.  Govs advance to play Totino-Grace in the semifinals.  That's currently scheduled for Saturday night but we'll see if the weather changes that.  Freshman Hassan Kamara with 15 points to lead Fridley but he struggled with his shot and turnovers.  Issac Burns adds 12 points.  Mac Thomas leads Johnson with 10 points.  Johnson struggled shooting it but they absolutely crushed Fridley on the offensive glass with pure effort.