Prologue
To Maple Grove for the section 5AAAA 4 vs 5 game. A big line of fans outside the door right before tip of this Cooper vs Crimson battle is enough to make steam come out of my ears and my face turn red. So the late arrival once again means no concessions which is a disappointment. Kansas and Minnesota on hand to watch Rashad Vaughn. Flip Saunders enjoying the game with Tubby. I can imagine the conversation. Hey Tubby, is the job really that hard, I could do it couldn't I?
Game Time
Rashad Vaughn with 7 points in the 1st 3 minutes as he buries a 3, pulls up for a jumper and puts back a miss. 9-8 Cooper at the 15 minute mark. Maple Grove post Erik Olson with a huge night. He reaches double figures at the 11:10 mark. 19-16 Maple Grove lead. Olson with a putback for a 3 point play. 24-20 Crimson at the 8:01 mark. 29-26 when Lavar McCollough knocks down his 2nd 3 of the half and back to back buckets by Billy Kellogg for a 7-0 run. 39-33 Cooper at the half.
9-2 Maple Grove run to start the 2nd half with Jake Weineke knocking down a 3 for the lead. He had 5 of the 9 points in the run. McCollough back to back for 3 and Vaughn inside for 2 free throws. 8-0 run and Cooper has their biggest lead 49-42 with 13:13 left. Grant Kaufman keeping the Crimson close. A 3 point play cuts the lead to 4, then a free throw and Olson puts back a miss. 55-52 Cooper with 9:15 left. McCollough with a putback and a Kellogg triple to extend the lead to 8. Maple Grove taking quick shots and they were cold the rest of the way. Vaughn 3 of 4 free throws with good patience out of a high triangle psuedo delay that gave Vaughn an iso at the foul line. 67-56 Cooper with 5:26 to go. A couple more Vaughn buckets keep the lead intact. Cooper wins 78-67.
Post Game
Maple Grove finishes their season 16-10, 13-7 in the tough NW Suburban. Erik Olson a big night with 33 points and likely double digit rebounds. The lefty had his way inside most of the night. He also showed nice touch going off the glass. Jake Weineke with a couple of 3s and 19 points. Plus he had the task of guarding Vaughn most of the night. Olson, Weineke and point guard Bryce Wojta will be signficant losses.
Cooper once again goes on the road to win in the 1st round. They'll get a rematch with Park Center who they beat in the 1st round last year. Rashad Vaughn 28 points and 9 rebounds. Most of that going to the rim after some early cold shooting. Fellow wing Lavar McCollough comes up big with 4 3s and 20 points. His back to back 3s after Maple Grove took the lead early in the 2nd half loomed large. The Hawks get nothing from the bench but 9,10 and 11 from the rest of the starters. That should be an outstanding semifinal against the Pirates. Star power, athleticism, and ability to light up the scoreboard at a quality venue.
Showing posts with label Rashad Vaughn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rashad Vaughn. Show all posts
2013 Timberwolves Shootout Review
Its the 2013 Timberwolves Shootout. I've been very critical of the scheduling but let's give some credit where credit is due. A quality job done by Jeff Munneke and his staff putting together the best set of games we've had to look forward to in many years. No food but 64 oz of Pepsi to keep me awake and refreshed for the early games. Here's are some of the sights and sounds.
Game 1: #5A Lakeview Christian vs Onalaska (WI)
Iowa State in the building early to take in their recruit Matt Thomas from Onalaska. Onalaska goes with the expected diamond and 1 on Anders Broman. Bjorn Broman knocks down a pair of NBA 3s for an 8-4 Lakeview Christian lead. Matt Thomas gets it going with a stretch where he scores 10 of 12 Hilltoppers points. 23-13 lead for Onalaska at the 7:50 mark. LCA goes on a 9-2 run to cut the lead to 25-22 at the 5:50 mark. Thomas with 9 more (11 per the book on a tip that he probably didn't get) as Onalaska goes up 43-32 at the half.
Thomas 3 of 4 free throws as the lead stays 51-39 with 12:16 left. Anders Broman to Bjorn Broman for 3 and a Bjorn runner. Thomas right back with 4 in a row. Anders with 2 more buckets. Thomas scores and the lead is 64-48 with 6:55 left. Anders with a 3 point play as LCA hangs within 11. Thomas slams the door with a pair of free throws and then gets undercut in a dangerous looking play but its a 3 point play. That helps push the lead to 18 and Lakeview Christian never threatens again. Onalaska wins 77-62. Matt Thomas officially listed with 43 and 14 coming up 1 point short of Rick Rickert's Shootout record. Anders Broman 10-19 for 26 points. Bjorn Broman 21 points and 9 rebounds. LCA goes 5-21 from behind the arc while Onalaska only shot 4-22 from there. Give an undermanned LCA squad credit for hanging in on the glass and keeping the game from becoming from a blowout early.
Game 2: #1 3A De La Salle vs Blue Valley Northwest (KS)
Hoiberg hanging around to see another Cyclones recruit Clayton Custer. Reid Travis starts out 1-4 but he does get it going for the 1st Islanders points of the game. 7-2 Islanders at the 13:55 mark. Travis adds 2 free throws at the 8:36 mark for a 13-6 lead. A critical adjustment by the Huskies in a timeout sees them go to a 5 out look. Interestingly they call it False Motion. Clayton Custer with a 3 point play and a Kyle Harrison 3 cut the lead to 1. Then Custer on the drive for 2 and a pair of bonus free throws for a 12-2 run. Only Islander offense is 2 more Travis buckets inside. The Huskies run down the clock for a Custer pullup at the buzzer. 24-19 Huskies at the half.
Back and forth we go to start the half. Travis on a high/low feed, Custer 4 in a row and Travis 2 more. 32-29 Blue Valley at the 13:10 mark. Then a David Salach tip dunk for his only 2 of the day and Custer with a steal for 2 more. 38-31 Blue Valley with all the momentum and Dave Thorson needs a timeout. The Huskies get a T in the celebration (questionable but head of refs loves the call). Jarvis Johnson with a pair of free throws and a drive for 2 more. 42-39 Blue Valley with 8:15 left. Custer on the drive countered by Travis with 2 free throws and another inside bucket. Then a great set call for a Scott 3 and De La Salle is back on top 46-44 with 5 minutes left. Back and forth until a Travis free throw off a Luke Scott missed free throw ties the game at 50 with 1:43 left. Blue Valley gets a bucket, followed by an impatient miss looking for Travis inside. De La Salle has to foul and the bonus free throws from Vince Fritz are good. De La Salle misses a 3 and Clayton Custer makes 3 of 4 free throws to put the game away. Blue Valley Northwest defeats De La Salle 57-52 to give head coach Ed Fritz his 500th career win. Clayton Custer 26 points and 8 rebounds. Reid Travis 29 and 15. 3 point shooting crazy cold in this one too. Blue Valley 1-15 and De La Salle 2-11 from deep. 15 offensive rebounds for De La Salle for a 37-20 overall advantage on the glass. That helped keep DLS in it but 18 turnovers to 8 hurt their cause.
Game 3: #3AAAA Roseville vs West Des Moines Valley (IA)
Mack Johnson out of the Roseville lineup with a bum ankle. That's a big loss. Iowa commit Peter Jok off to a quick start for Valley with 14 points in the 1st 7:16. Roseville has lots of pieces but they don't really have a good piece to defend an athletic high caliber wing like Jok. Jok picks up his 2nd foul with 10:30 left and has to sit with Valley leading 22-11. Jordan Burich very active and effective for Roseville in the half. His putback starts a 7-0 run after Jok sits. Burich inside for 2 free throws after Jok returns late in the half. Jok with a putback before he sits for the last minute to avoid the 3rd foul. 30-26 Valley at the half. Jok 16 points and only played 9 minutes. Burich almost a double double in the half with 9 points, 9 boards and 3 blocks thanks to 7-10 FTs.
Logan Brown 4 quick points to tie the game in the 1st 40 seconds of the half. Jok off an inbounds lob and a dunk for a 42-38 Valley lead with 11:32 left. Roseville staying close with Burich in the post at the 9 minute mark to cut the Valley lead to 44-41. Jok with a 3 point play off a turnover and the lead expands to 55-46 with 5:43 left. Brown with back to back 3s and a Burich free throw with 3:53 left. 55-53 Valley holding on. Then head coach and former Iowa star Jeff Horner decides to face guard Brown. That strategy is huge as Valley finishes the game from there on a 14-0 run to win 69-53. Peter Jok 34 and 8 on 13-20 shooting for Valley. Logan Brown 20 and 5 for Roseville. Jordan Burich ends up with Andrei Kirilenko type numbers of 15 points, 14 boards, 4 steals, 5 blocks. 9-16 at the line held his point total down but 8 offensive boards were big. Valley 1-13 from 3 in a recurring theme of the day. Roseville 6-16 from 3 but only 15-52 overall (28.8%) as the loss of Johnson really stunted their offense.
Game 4: #2AAAA Apple Valley vs Robbinsdale Cooper
Roy Williams and Hubert Davis from North Carolina along with Tubby Smith join Fred Hoiberg at courtside for this one. Rashad Vaughn with a drive for 2 and then a dunk 3 minutes in for a 10-5 Cooper lead. Dennis Austin 4 in a row to tie the game at 12. Then Tyus Jones for 2 and a 3 point play. Vaughn picks up his 2nd foul but no way he sits. Austin still effective as his layup at 8:15 extends the Apple Valley lead to 26-19. Then Vaughn with 2 buckets in an 8-2 run to cut the Eagles lead to 28-27 at the 6:15 mark. Vaughn with a fade away in the post and a Billy Kellogg 3 and the Cooper lead is 36-30. Dustin Fronk for 3 and then Vaughn turns it over and Tyus Jones takes it the other way just in time to beat the buzzer. 36-35 Cooper at the half. Vaughn 15 points, Jones 9 and 5 assists.
Vaughn fading in the post and going glass on a very slick move. Cooper countering the option of Harry Sonie on defense by posting Vaughn. That caused big James Horton to get some minutes guarding Vaughn. Vaughn makes 2 free throws for a 5 point lead with 15:38 left. Austin has his own matchup advantage and Apple Valley makes the adjustment by finding him inside. Back to back hoops for him down low. Vaughn with 2 huge 3s and another bucket for 8 straight Cooper points. What do we have here, its Cooper leading 54-43 with 11:40 left.
But the rest of the game is all Apple Valley. Fronk with a layup and a 3 in a 10-0 to cut the lead to 54-53 with 9:22 left. After Vaughn swats Tyus in transition and a Cooper timeout. Fronk with a bomb to tie the game at 56. Vaughn right back with a nasty 3. Austin killing inside as he's fouled and misses 2 free throws. Back to him for the hoop and harm but another missed freebie and another post bucket. A Cooper layup keeps them within 1, 61-60 with 5:05 left. Sonie for 3, Tyus with a 3 point play. Austin with 2 free throws, Tyus with a bucket and 2 free throws and Cooper is down 9. Vaughn blocked on 1 end and Tyus converts it with an assist to Austin running for 2. Timeout Cooper with 2:33 left but its out of reach down 74-63. Apple Valley wins 80-70. Rashad Vaughn leads all scorers with 35 points and 7 boards. He shot 14-33, 4-11 from 3. Tyus Jones 18 points, 4 boards, 8 assists, 2 steals on 7-10 shooting. Dennis Austin came up large with 22 points and 12 rebounds. Dustin Fronk added another fine performance of 21 points and 5 rebounds. The rest of the Cooper roster shoots a blistering 16-29. But their lack of defense reared its ugly head again as Apple Valley shot 57.7% for the game and 62.5% for 2nd half. They held Cooper to 38.9% in the 2nd half.
All Timberwolves Shootout Team
Matt Thomas - Onalaska
Peter Jok - West Des Moines Valley
Clayton Custer - Blue Valley Northwest
Reid Travis - De La Salle
Dennis Austin - Apple Valley
2nd Team
Tyus Jones - Apple Valley
Anders Broman - Lakeview Christian
Rashad Vaughn - Cooper
Dustin Fronk - Apple Valley
Jordan Burich - Roseville
Game 1: #5A Lakeview Christian vs Onalaska (WI)
Iowa State in the building early to take in their recruit Matt Thomas from Onalaska. Onalaska goes with the expected diamond and 1 on Anders Broman. Bjorn Broman knocks down a pair of NBA 3s for an 8-4 Lakeview Christian lead. Matt Thomas gets it going with a stretch where he scores 10 of 12 Hilltoppers points. 23-13 lead for Onalaska at the 7:50 mark. LCA goes on a 9-2 run to cut the lead to 25-22 at the 5:50 mark. Thomas with 9 more (11 per the book on a tip that he probably didn't get) as Onalaska goes up 43-32 at the half.
Thomas 3 of 4 free throws as the lead stays 51-39 with 12:16 left. Anders Broman to Bjorn Broman for 3 and a Bjorn runner. Thomas right back with 4 in a row. Anders with 2 more buckets. Thomas scores and the lead is 64-48 with 6:55 left. Anders with a 3 point play as LCA hangs within 11. Thomas slams the door with a pair of free throws and then gets undercut in a dangerous looking play but its a 3 point play. That helps push the lead to 18 and Lakeview Christian never threatens again. Onalaska wins 77-62. Matt Thomas officially listed with 43 and 14 coming up 1 point short of Rick Rickert's Shootout record. Anders Broman 10-19 for 26 points. Bjorn Broman 21 points and 9 rebounds. LCA goes 5-21 from behind the arc while Onalaska only shot 4-22 from there. Give an undermanned LCA squad credit for hanging in on the glass and keeping the game from becoming from a blowout early.
Game 2: #1 3A De La Salle vs Blue Valley Northwest (KS)
Hoiberg hanging around to see another Cyclones recruit Clayton Custer. Reid Travis starts out 1-4 but he does get it going for the 1st Islanders points of the game. 7-2 Islanders at the 13:55 mark. Travis adds 2 free throws at the 8:36 mark for a 13-6 lead. A critical adjustment by the Huskies in a timeout sees them go to a 5 out look. Interestingly they call it False Motion. Clayton Custer with a 3 point play and a Kyle Harrison 3 cut the lead to 1. Then Custer on the drive for 2 and a pair of bonus free throws for a 12-2 run. Only Islander offense is 2 more Travis buckets inside. The Huskies run down the clock for a Custer pullup at the buzzer. 24-19 Huskies at the half.
Back and forth we go to start the half. Travis on a high/low feed, Custer 4 in a row and Travis 2 more. 32-29 Blue Valley at the 13:10 mark. Then a David Salach tip dunk for his only 2 of the day and Custer with a steal for 2 more. 38-31 Blue Valley with all the momentum and Dave Thorson needs a timeout. The Huskies get a T in the celebration (questionable but head of refs loves the call). Jarvis Johnson with a pair of free throws and a drive for 2 more. 42-39 Blue Valley with 8:15 left. Custer on the drive countered by Travis with 2 free throws and another inside bucket. Then a great set call for a Scott 3 and De La Salle is back on top 46-44 with 5 minutes left. Back and forth until a Travis free throw off a Luke Scott missed free throw ties the game at 50 with 1:43 left. Blue Valley gets a bucket, followed by an impatient miss looking for Travis inside. De La Salle has to foul and the bonus free throws from Vince Fritz are good. De La Salle misses a 3 and Clayton Custer makes 3 of 4 free throws to put the game away. Blue Valley Northwest defeats De La Salle 57-52 to give head coach Ed Fritz his 500th career win. Clayton Custer 26 points and 8 rebounds. Reid Travis 29 and 15. 3 point shooting crazy cold in this one too. Blue Valley 1-15 and De La Salle 2-11 from deep. 15 offensive rebounds for De La Salle for a 37-20 overall advantage on the glass. That helped keep DLS in it but 18 turnovers to 8 hurt their cause.
Game 3: #3AAAA Roseville vs West Des Moines Valley (IA)
Mack Johnson out of the Roseville lineup with a bum ankle. That's a big loss. Iowa commit Peter Jok off to a quick start for Valley with 14 points in the 1st 7:16. Roseville has lots of pieces but they don't really have a good piece to defend an athletic high caliber wing like Jok. Jok picks up his 2nd foul with 10:30 left and has to sit with Valley leading 22-11. Jordan Burich very active and effective for Roseville in the half. His putback starts a 7-0 run after Jok sits. Burich inside for 2 free throws after Jok returns late in the half. Jok with a putback before he sits for the last minute to avoid the 3rd foul. 30-26 Valley at the half. Jok 16 points and only played 9 minutes. Burich almost a double double in the half with 9 points, 9 boards and 3 blocks thanks to 7-10 FTs.
Logan Brown 4 quick points to tie the game in the 1st 40 seconds of the half. Jok off an inbounds lob and a dunk for a 42-38 Valley lead with 11:32 left. Roseville staying close with Burich in the post at the 9 minute mark to cut the Valley lead to 44-41. Jok with a 3 point play off a turnover and the lead expands to 55-46 with 5:43 left. Brown with back to back 3s and a Burich free throw with 3:53 left. 55-53 Valley holding on. Then head coach and former Iowa star Jeff Horner decides to face guard Brown. That strategy is huge as Valley finishes the game from there on a 14-0 run to win 69-53. Peter Jok 34 and 8 on 13-20 shooting for Valley. Logan Brown 20 and 5 for Roseville. Jordan Burich ends up with Andrei Kirilenko type numbers of 15 points, 14 boards, 4 steals, 5 blocks. 9-16 at the line held his point total down but 8 offensive boards were big. Valley 1-13 from 3 in a recurring theme of the day. Roseville 6-16 from 3 but only 15-52 overall (28.8%) as the loss of Johnson really stunted their offense.
Game 4: #2AAAA Apple Valley vs Robbinsdale Cooper
Roy Williams and Hubert Davis from North Carolina along with Tubby Smith join Fred Hoiberg at courtside for this one. Rashad Vaughn with a drive for 2 and then a dunk 3 minutes in for a 10-5 Cooper lead. Dennis Austin 4 in a row to tie the game at 12. Then Tyus Jones for 2 and a 3 point play. Vaughn picks up his 2nd foul but no way he sits. Austin still effective as his layup at 8:15 extends the Apple Valley lead to 26-19. Then Vaughn with 2 buckets in an 8-2 run to cut the Eagles lead to 28-27 at the 6:15 mark. Vaughn with a fade away in the post and a Billy Kellogg 3 and the Cooper lead is 36-30. Dustin Fronk for 3 and then Vaughn turns it over and Tyus Jones takes it the other way just in time to beat the buzzer. 36-35 Cooper at the half. Vaughn 15 points, Jones 9 and 5 assists.
Vaughn fading in the post and going glass on a very slick move. Cooper countering the option of Harry Sonie on defense by posting Vaughn. That caused big James Horton to get some minutes guarding Vaughn. Vaughn makes 2 free throws for a 5 point lead with 15:38 left. Austin has his own matchup advantage and Apple Valley makes the adjustment by finding him inside. Back to back hoops for him down low. Vaughn with 2 huge 3s and another bucket for 8 straight Cooper points. What do we have here, its Cooper leading 54-43 with 11:40 left.
But the rest of the game is all Apple Valley. Fronk with a layup and a 3 in a 10-0 to cut the lead to 54-53 with 9:22 left. After Vaughn swats Tyus in transition and a Cooper timeout. Fronk with a bomb to tie the game at 56. Vaughn right back with a nasty 3. Austin killing inside as he's fouled and misses 2 free throws. Back to him for the hoop and harm but another missed freebie and another post bucket. A Cooper layup keeps them within 1, 61-60 with 5:05 left. Sonie for 3, Tyus with a 3 point play. Austin with 2 free throws, Tyus with a bucket and 2 free throws and Cooper is down 9. Vaughn blocked on 1 end and Tyus converts it with an assist to Austin running for 2. Timeout Cooper with 2:33 left but its out of reach down 74-63. Apple Valley wins 80-70. Rashad Vaughn leads all scorers with 35 points and 7 boards. He shot 14-33, 4-11 from 3. Tyus Jones 18 points, 4 boards, 8 assists, 2 steals on 7-10 shooting. Dennis Austin came up large with 22 points and 12 rebounds. Dustin Fronk added another fine performance of 21 points and 5 rebounds. The rest of the Cooper roster shoots a blistering 16-29. But their lack of defense reared its ugly head again as Apple Valley shot 57.7% for the game and 62.5% for 2nd half. They held Cooper to 38.9% in the 2nd half.
All Timberwolves Shootout Team
Matt Thomas - Onalaska
Peter Jok - West Des Moines Valley
Clayton Custer - Blue Valley Northwest
Reid Travis - De La Salle
Dennis Austin - Apple Valley
2nd Team
Tyus Jones - Apple Valley
Anders Broman - Lakeview Christian
Rashad Vaughn - Cooper
Dustin Fronk - Apple Valley
Jordan Burich - Roseville
A star-studded doubleheader
Labels:
Rashad Vaughn,
Tyus Jones
Prologue
A night of stars as its an early 5 PM tilt between Cooper and Hopkins followed by a city battle between Apple Valley and Eastview. Only a beverage at Eastview (12 oz of Pepsi always good) but never bad to get the 20oz Coke and Walking Taco at Hopkins. Though I am a bit disturbed they're staying with this unique version rather than the previous. Full house at Apple Valley made for a very good atmosphere. Western Michigan took in both games with the Howard Pulley guys. Northland (coolest guy in the UMAC) and UW-River Falls (baddest man in the WIAC) take in the Apple Valley/Eastview game.
Game 1 - Robbinsdale Cooper at #4AAAA Hopkins
Rashad Vaughn a couple of quick assists to Darrious Denson for layups. Then a 15-0 Hopkins run with 3 triples puts Hopkins up 20-10 at the 10 minute mark. Vaughn would start 0-4 then make 4 in a row ending with an NBA 3. 31-19 Hopkins at the 6:40 mark after that bomb. Vaughn with a pullup for 2. a steal for 2 more and a straight away 30 footer as Cooper goes on a 14-3 run over the last 3:30 of the half. That cuts the Hopkins lead to 40-35 at half. Vaughn with 16 points.
Cooper off to a quality start in the half with Lavar McCollough and Billy Kellogg knocking down consecutive 3s to tie the game at 45 with 15:10 to play. Hopkins would once again pull out their point zone with 11:30 to play and a 50-48 lead. Philip Stribling with a pair of putback and Jake Wright with a pair of dagger 3s to top off a 22-6 Hopkins run. 70-54 Hopkins leading with 5:35 left and Cooper needs a timeout. Can't leave Wright any space and the Hawks never really did that well in this one. Vaughn tries to keep Cooper going as he spins for 2 and goes coast to coast for a 3 and then 3 more for a personal 8-0 run. He adds a 3 point play with 2:07 left to keep Cooper within 8. A late 3 finishes his stat line but its not enough. Hopkins wins 85-70. Hopkins has 4 in double figures led by Jake Wright's 20 and a great night off the bench from Stribling with 17. Rashad Vaughn 13-30 from the floor on my sheet for 36 points to go with 8 rebounds. Overall, not a great game though. In this humble basketball guy's opinion, I see that he needs to improve his fundamentals (e.g closeouts) and effort on the defensive end, improve his shot selection (many misses were forced shots tonight) and better control and change his negative emotions during adverse circumstances, especially towards teammates. Lavar McCollough with 12 points as the only other Hawks player in double figures.
Game 2 - Eastview at #2AAAA Apple Valley
Its the return of Tyus Jones after missing 3 full games and most of the Hopkins game 2 1/2 weeks ago. He takes a turnover the other way and finishes through the contact for a 3 point play. 8-5 Eagles at the 14:22 mark. Ben Oberfeld wheeling it down the floor and he takes the feed down the lane and hammers it home at the 11 minute mark to keep Eastview within 4. He adds a lefty finish and 2 free throws. 17-15 Apple Valley at the 7:10 mark. Dustin Fronk has been playing really well lately and he starts to heat up again. A layup, a triple and then he finishes the 10-0 run with 2 more. 26-15 Apple Valley now up double digits at the 5 minute mark. Oberfeld with a pair of buckets in a 9-2 Eastview run to close to 28-24 but Fronk buries another 3 and Brock Bertram with a block on 1 end and gets the reward on the other. 33-24 Apple Valley lead at the half.
Dennis Austin a pair of layups on sweet passes from Tyus, Fronk with a bucket and another Austin 2 as Apple Valley gains more distance. Tyus with a bucket and fouled but can't convert the 3 point play. Its a 12-2 Apple Valley run to start the half for a 45-26 lead at the 13:27 mark. Fronk with a floater, a sweet backdoor play from Eastview (see below), an extra pass finds Harry Sonie for 3 and Fronk to the reverse layup. 56-36 Apple Valley with 5:33 left when Tyus sits. He should be done for the night. Fronk hits another 3 to push the lead to 21 but Eastview scores the next 7 thanks to a pair of their own bombs. That cuts the lead to 14 with 2:59 left and Tyus is back in there. Oberfeld inside cuts the lead to 12. Tyus finishes the Apple Valley scoring at the 1:15 mark with a drive. Oberfeld with a last second 3 point play but that doesn't affect the outcome. Apple Valley wins 61-52. Ben Oberfeld with 23 points,12 boards, 3 assists. No other hope though, the rest of the team shoots 30% (12/40). Tyus Jones still not 100% finished with 11 points, 8 assists and 5 steals. Dustin Fronk leads with 24 points. Dennis Austin 16 points and 7 rebounds. Apple Valley shoots 49.1% for the game. A bit of a surprise with Eastview's physical style and Tyus Jones that Apple Valley only shot 5 free throws for the game. The game was at Eastview's pace but not enough firepower.
Play of the Day
Our play of the day is actually the same concept from both Hopkins and Eastview for a backdoor layup. Hopkins really liked this for Blake Hoffarber but did run it tonight to start the 2nd half (a little detail that Hopkins usually does). Saw this from both squads tonight.
Hopkins runs this out of a straight 2-3 high set. The point guard will dribble under the 2 guard to exchange spots. The post will fill the ball side elbow, the weakside wing with cut to the backside block and the flash hard to make a catch on the backside elbow. He then hits the 2 guard going backdoor with his defender caught ball watching.
Eastview gets the same end result (cross guards high and then flash to weakside elbow and high 2 guard back door) but here's how they get there. They start with 2 guards high, 2 on the blocks and corner on the same side original side as the point guard. As the point guard dribble swaps with the 2 guard, the corner guy runs the baseline off the double screen. Then each post diagonally flashes to the opposite elbow after their screen. In this case it's Oberfeld who makes the 2nd diagonal cut to the elbow for the pretty assist.
A night of stars as its an early 5 PM tilt between Cooper and Hopkins followed by a city battle between Apple Valley and Eastview. Only a beverage at Eastview (12 oz of Pepsi always good) but never bad to get the 20oz Coke and Walking Taco at Hopkins. Though I am a bit disturbed they're staying with this unique version rather than the previous. Full house at Apple Valley made for a very good atmosphere. Western Michigan took in both games with the Howard Pulley guys. Northland (coolest guy in the UMAC) and UW-River Falls (baddest man in the WIAC) take in the Apple Valley/Eastview game.
Game 1 - Robbinsdale Cooper at #4AAAA Hopkins
Rashad Vaughn a couple of quick assists to Darrious Denson for layups. Then a 15-0 Hopkins run with 3 triples puts Hopkins up 20-10 at the 10 minute mark. Vaughn would start 0-4 then make 4 in a row ending with an NBA 3. 31-19 Hopkins at the 6:40 mark after that bomb. Vaughn with a pullup for 2. a steal for 2 more and a straight away 30 footer as Cooper goes on a 14-3 run over the last 3:30 of the half. That cuts the Hopkins lead to 40-35 at half. Vaughn with 16 points.
Cooper off to a quality start in the half with Lavar McCollough and Billy Kellogg knocking down consecutive 3s to tie the game at 45 with 15:10 to play. Hopkins would once again pull out their point zone with 11:30 to play and a 50-48 lead. Philip Stribling with a pair of putback and Jake Wright with a pair of dagger 3s to top off a 22-6 Hopkins run. 70-54 Hopkins leading with 5:35 left and Cooper needs a timeout. Can't leave Wright any space and the Hawks never really did that well in this one. Vaughn tries to keep Cooper going as he spins for 2 and goes coast to coast for a 3 and then 3 more for a personal 8-0 run. He adds a 3 point play with 2:07 left to keep Cooper within 8. A late 3 finishes his stat line but its not enough. Hopkins wins 85-70. Hopkins has 4 in double figures led by Jake Wright's 20 and a great night off the bench from Stribling with 17. Rashad Vaughn 13-30 from the floor on my sheet for 36 points to go with 8 rebounds. Overall, not a great game though. In this humble basketball guy's opinion, I see that he needs to improve his fundamentals (e.g closeouts) and effort on the defensive end, improve his shot selection (many misses were forced shots tonight) and better control and change his negative emotions during adverse circumstances, especially towards teammates. Lavar McCollough with 12 points as the only other Hawks player in double figures.
Game 2 - Eastview at #2AAAA Apple Valley
Its the return of Tyus Jones after missing 3 full games and most of the Hopkins game 2 1/2 weeks ago. He takes a turnover the other way and finishes through the contact for a 3 point play. 8-5 Eagles at the 14:22 mark. Ben Oberfeld wheeling it down the floor and he takes the feed down the lane and hammers it home at the 11 minute mark to keep Eastview within 4. He adds a lefty finish and 2 free throws. 17-15 Apple Valley at the 7:10 mark. Dustin Fronk has been playing really well lately and he starts to heat up again. A layup, a triple and then he finishes the 10-0 run with 2 more. 26-15 Apple Valley now up double digits at the 5 minute mark. Oberfeld with a pair of buckets in a 9-2 Eastview run to close to 28-24 but Fronk buries another 3 and Brock Bertram with a block on 1 end and gets the reward on the other. 33-24 Apple Valley lead at the half.
Dennis Austin a pair of layups on sweet passes from Tyus, Fronk with a bucket and another Austin 2 as Apple Valley gains more distance. Tyus with a bucket and fouled but can't convert the 3 point play. Its a 12-2 Apple Valley run to start the half for a 45-26 lead at the 13:27 mark. Fronk with a floater, a sweet backdoor play from Eastview (see below), an extra pass finds Harry Sonie for 3 and Fronk to the reverse layup. 56-36 Apple Valley with 5:33 left when Tyus sits. He should be done for the night. Fronk hits another 3 to push the lead to 21 but Eastview scores the next 7 thanks to a pair of their own bombs. That cuts the lead to 14 with 2:59 left and Tyus is back in there. Oberfeld inside cuts the lead to 12. Tyus finishes the Apple Valley scoring at the 1:15 mark with a drive. Oberfeld with a last second 3 point play but that doesn't affect the outcome. Apple Valley wins 61-52. Ben Oberfeld with 23 points,12 boards, 3 assists. No other hope though, the rest of the team shoots 30% (12/40). Tyus Jones still not 100% finished with 11 points, 8 assists and 5 steals. Dustin Fronk leads with 24 points. Dennis Austin 16 points and 7 rebounds. Apple Valley shoots 49.1% for the game. A bit of a surprise with Eastview's physical style and Tyus Jones that Apple Valley only shot 5 free throws for the game. The game was at Eastview's pace but not enough firepower.
Play of the Day
Our play of the day is actually the same concept from both Hopkins and Eastview for a backdoor layup. Hopkins really liked this for Blake Hoffarber but did run it tonight to start the 2nd half (a little detail that Hopkins usually does). Saw this from both squads tonight.
Hopkins runs this out of a straight 2-3 high set. The point guard will dribble under the 2 guard to exchange spots. The post will fill the ball side elbow, the weakside wing with cut to the backside block and the flash hard to make a catch on the backside elbow. He then hits the 2 guard going backdoor with his defender caught ball watching.
Eastview gets the same end result (cross guards high and then flash to weakside elbow and high 2 guard back door) but here's how they get there. They start with 2 guards high, 2 on the blocks and corner on the same side original side as the point guard. As the point guard dribble swaps with the 2 guard, the corner guy runs the baseline off the double screen. Then each post diagonally flashes to the opposite elbow after their screen. In this case it's Oberfeld who makes the 2nd diagonal cut to the elbow for the pretty assist.
2013 Timberwolves Shootout Preview
Its once again time for the annual Timberwolves Shootout. This year is a different schedule with only 4 games but some of the better games we've seen in the event in a few years. Those games are early thanks to the Timberwolves hosting Portland in the night cap. Here's my look at what to expect from the 4 games.
9:00 AM Game 1 - #5A Lakeview Christian vs #2 D2 Onalaska (WI)
Onalaska makes a return trip to the shootout after losing at the end to Apple Valley last season. They are 7-2 with their only losses to #5 D1 Milwaukee Hamilton with national star Kevon Looney and conference rival La Crosse Aquinas with Wisconsin signee Bronson Koenig (see more about that battle here). Their star Matt Thomas is ranked #58 in the nation by Rivals.com in the class of 2013. The sweet shooting guard is averaging 27.8 points per game for the Hilltoppers. But they aren't a 1 man band. With a supporting cast of players like Clint Rihn, the Hilltoppers are a serious threat to repeat as Division 2 state champions.
Lakeview Christian features the Broman brothers, Anders and Bjorn. Anders is 6'2 wing who just set the all time career scoring record in Minnesota. Bjorn runs the show but can fill it up as well. He had 10 3s against Blake in the tipoff classic. The rest of the roster is thin but they will knock down 3s, specifically lefty Josh Plys. They had 21 bombs in that Blake game.
Expect Onalaska to use the same tactics as they did last year against Tyus Jones, a 1-3 zone with 1 man face guarding Anders Broman. Gaps in the middle of the zone could be exploited. Onalaska doesn't have a serious inside threat so that helps Lakeview Christian out. But Onalaska is too talented and Lakeview Christian is not a good defensive team. I'll take the Hilltoppers to cruise in this one.
11:00 AM Game 2 - #1AAA De La Salle vs #1 6A Blue Valley Northwest (KS)
De La Salle returns from The Corn Palace after 2 impressive wins against ranked teams from New York and South Dakota. Junior forward Reid Travis is ranked #41 nationally by Rivals.com (#29 by ESPN) and just picked up an offer from Michigan State to add to his many offers. The forward is having a huge year putting up over 30 a night for the Islanders. Point guard Jarvis Johnson also has high major interest. Shooting guard Luke Scott is one of the top shooters in Minnesota. Wing Sacar Amin is one of the top sophomores in Minnesota. So in other words, the Islanders are loaded and a major favorite to repeat as state champs in class AAA.
The Huskies from Blue Valley NW (Overland Park, KS) are currently ranked #1 in Kansas class 6A, the largest schools. They have a sweet shooting guard in junior Clayton Custer. He's ranked #97 by Rivals.com and has committed to Iowa State. Keep an eye on fellow 2014 guards Ben Richardson, Vince Fritz and Kyle Harrison as well. All 4 played with Nike program Mokan Elite during the summer. Blue Valley NW is ranked #4 in the current PrepNation.com Midlands region poll and they've already beaten #5 Nixa, MO. De La Salle is #6 in that same poll. These 2 teams saw each other play in Des Moines in December. Blue Valley NW knocked off fellow TWolves Shootout team West Des Moines Valley 55-51 in that event. I expect this to be the best game of the event.
1:00 PM Game 3 - #3AAAA Roseville vs #8AAAA West Des Moines Valley (IA)
Roseville enters the game 8-0 and just put up 113 points against formerly ranked Moorhead on their home court. The Raiders are loaded at the guard spots with Mack Johnson, another sweet shooter, Logan Brown, Kobe Critchley and Ben Farmer. Jordan Burich controls the inside as 1 of 4 players averaging double figures for the Raiders. Johnson leading the way at 21 a game. They are as deep as any team in the state with at least 10 guys who give them quality minutes.
Valley comes in to the game with a record of 6-2 with losses to Blue Valley Northwest in Des Moines and Ankeny. De La Salle beat Ankeny at the event in Des Moines. Their 6'6 star wing Peter Jok will play at Iowa next season. He's averaging almost 25 a night as one of the top scorers in Iowa. He adds almost 8 rebounds a night. When he played here in the Best Buy Summer Classic after his freshman year he was one of the top 20 players in the country. Then he injured a knee right after that. That injury cost him the next 2 seasons. He finally came back for last July's open period. Its a fascinating story. It will be very interesting to see him now after seeing him the 1st week of July right after he came back. 6'5 Senior Clint Boffeli gives them a 13.1 a night. Both him and Jok are making over 2 3s per game with over 40% from deep.
3:00 PM Game 4 - #2AAAA Apple Valley vs Robbinsdale Cooper.
The local matchup of the 2 best players in the class of 2014 will be the biggest circus we've seen in a while at the shootout. Tyus Jones is #1 overall in the ESPN 2014 rankings while Rashad Vaughn is #10. Of course the big question is will Tyus play or not. He aggravated his back in the game against Hopkins on December 18th and hasn't played since. My info is that its questionable but if I had to guess, I would guess he sits out. But Apple Valley has proven they can win without him all fall and this season. They just knocked off #5 Osseo in St. Cloud without Jones playing. They also came from behind to knock off #4 Hopkins after Jones left that game with only 5 minutes of playing time. Shooter Dustin Fronk has played very well in Jones absence with over 25 a night in those 4 games. Freshman center Brock Bertram seeing more time for the Eagles as well as one of the state's top 2016 prospects. Dennis Austin is a difficult matchup with strength and quickness. They have shooters in players like Chris Laymon and Robert Tobroxen.
On the Cooper side, Vaughn is one of the most dynamic 1 on 1 players we've seen in the state in a long time. Lavar McCollough is an athletic wing who may really surprise some people in this event. He's averaging over 15 a night and was dynamite in the tipoff classic against Minnetonka. With or without Tyus, this will be a classic example of team over individual. Vaughn will likely put on a show to keep it close, but Apple Valley is that good. If Tyus plays it could get ugly as Cooper is not good defensively giving up over 68 a night.
9:00 AM Game 1 - #5A Lakeview Christian vs #2 D2 Onalaska (WI)
Onalaska makes a return trip to the shootout after losing at the end to Apple Valley last season. They are 7-2 with their only losses to #5 D1 Milwaukee Hamilton with national star Kevon Looney and conference rival La Crosse Aquinas with Wisconsin signee Bronson Koenig (see more about that battle here). Their star Matt Thomas is ranked #58 in the nation by Rivals.com in the class of 2013. The sweet shooting guard is averaging 27.8 points per game for the Hilltoppers. But they aren't a 1 man band. With a supporting cast of players like Clint Rihn, the Hilltoppers are a serious threat to repeat as Division 2 state champions.
Lakeview Christian features the Broman brothers, Anders and Bjorn. Anders is 6'2 wing who just set the all time career scoring record in Minnesota. Bjorn runs the show but can fill it up as well. He had 10 3s against Blake in the tipoff classic. The rest of the roster is thin but they will knock down 3s, specifically lefty Josh Plys. They had 21 bombs in that Blake game.
Expect Onalaska to use the same tactics as they did last year against Tyus Jones, a 1-3 zone with 1 man face guarding Anders Broman. Gaps in the middle of the zone could be exploited. Onalaska doesn't have a serious inside threat so that helps Lakeview Christian out. But Onalaska is too talented and Lakeview Christian is not a good defensive team. I'll take the Hilltoppers to cruise in this one.
11:00 AM Game 2 - #1AAA De La Salle vs #1 6A Blue Valley Northwest (KS)
De La Salle returns from The Corn Palace after 2 impressive wins against ranked teams from New York and South Dakota. Junior forward Reid Travis is ranked #41 nationally by Rivals.com (#29 by ESPN) and just picked up an offer from Michigan State to add to his many offers. The forward is having a huge year putting up over 30 a night for the Islanders. Point guard Jarvis Johnson also has high major interest. Shooting guard Luke Scott is one of the top shooters in Minnesota. Wing Sacar Amin is one of the top sophomores in Minnesota. So in other words, the Islanders are loaded and a major favorite to repeat as state champs in class AAA.
The Huskies from Blue Valley NW (Overland Park, KS) are currently ranked #1 in Kansas class 6A, the largest schools. They have a sweet shooting guard in junior Clayton Custer. He's ranked #97 by Rivals.com and has committed to Iowa State. Keep an eye on fellow 2014 guards Ben Richardson, Vince Fritz and Kyle Harrison as well. All 4 played with Nike program Mokan Elite during the summer. Blue Valley NW is ranked #4 in the current PrepNation.com Midlands region poll and they've already beaten #5 Nixa, MO. De La Salle is #6 in that same poll. These 2 teams saw each other play in Des Moines in December. Blue Valley NW knocked off fellow TWolves Shootout team West Des Moines Valley 55-51 in that event. I expect this to be the best game of the event.
1:00 PM Game 3 - #3AAAA Roseville vs #8AAAA West Des Moines Valley (IA)
Roseville enters the game 8-0 and just put up 113 points against formerly ranked Moorhead on their home court. The Raiders are loaded at the guard spots with Mack Johnson, another sweet shooter, Logan Brown, Kobe Critchley and Ben Farmer. Jordan Burich controls the inside as 1 of 4 players averaging double figures for the Raiders. Johnson leading the way at 21 a game. They are as deep as any team in the state with at least 10 guys who give them quality minutes.
Valley comes in to the game with a record of 6-2 with losses to Blue Valley Northwest in Des Moines and Ankeny. De La Salle beat Ankeny at the event in Des Moines. Their 6'6 star wing Peter Jok will play at Iowa next season. He's averaging almost 25 a night as one of the top scorers in Iowa. He adds almost 8 rebounds a night. When he played here in the Best Buy Summer Classic after his freshman year he was one of the top 20 players in the country. Then he injured a knee right after that. That injury cost him the next 2 seasons. He finally came back for last July's open period. Its a fascinating story. It will be very interesting to see him now after seeing him the 1st week of July right after he came back. 6'5 Senior Clint Boffeli gives them a 13.1 a night. Both him and Jok are making over 2 3s per game with over 40% from deep.
3:00 PM Game 4 - #2AAAA Apple Valley vs Robbinsdale Cooper.
The local matchup of the 2 best players in the class of 2014 will be the biggest circus we've seen in a while at the shootout. Tyus Jones is #1 overall in the ESPN 2014 rankings while Rashad Vaughn is #10. Of course the big question is will Tyus play or not. He aggravated his back in the game against Hopkins on December 18th and hasn't played since. My info is that its questionable but if I had to guess, I would guess he sits out. But Apple Valley has proven they can win without him all fall and this season. They just knocked off #5 Osseo in St. Cloud without Jones playing. They also came from behind to knock off #4 Hopkins after Jones left that game with only 5 minutes of playing time. Shooter Dustin Fronk has played very well in Jones absence with over 25 a night in those 4 games. Freshman center Brock Bertram seeing more time for the Eagles as well as one of the state's top 2016 prospects. Dennis Austin is a difficult matchup with strength and quickness. They have shooters in players like Chris Laymon and Robert Tobroxen.
On the Cooper side, Vaughn is one of the most dynamic 1 on 1 players we've seen in the state in a long time. Lavar McCollough is an athletic wing who may really surprise some people in this event. He's averaging over 15 a night and was dynamite in the tipoff classic against Minnetonka. With or without Tyus, this will be a classic example of team over individual. Vaughn will likely put on a show to keep it close, but Apple Valley is that good. If Tyus plays it could get ugly as Cooper is not good defensively giving up over 68 a night.
The Big High School Weekend
Labels:
Rashad Vaughn,
Tyus Jones
Prologue
A long weekend of back to back midnight arrivals at The Czar's Palace. But 9 games in 28 and a half hours is well worth it. Quality dominos pizza at North St. Paul for their tourney to go with the beefy size 24oz of pepsi. Add in a very respectable hot dog and 1 pepsi and 1 coke at the Breakdown Tipoff Classic. For those of you tracking it, and if you are, don't eat as much as me, here are the up to date counts. I'm at 15 beverages for a total of 248 oz. The hot dog was the 6th of the season to go with 2 slices of pizza.
Polar Classic (Friday)
Friday was the opening round of the Polar Classic at North St. Paul. Fridley took on Eagan in the opener. Fridley played without their top player, guard Michael Murray. He's missed the season so far due to a football concussion but is expected to return next week. Chaney Pal inside to keep Fridley within 11-9 at the 12:45 mark. Eagan up 23-17 at the 8:31 mark as they take a timeout. That sparks a 30-4 run across halftime to blow the game wide open. Michael Gorder took over during the early part of the 2nd half to complete the run. Fridley doesn't get their first field goal of the 2nd half until the 12:25 mark. Its too late by that time. Eagan wins 77-45. Gorder finishes with 21, 8 and 3 steals. 11 for Amane Akane to lead Fridley. Eagan soph GT Johnson getting some time running the point. The Wildcats have a bunch of 6'3-6'5 banger types so they can go big.
The late game was Harding taking on North St. Paul. Harding would jump all over the Polars to the tune of 34-15 with 4:30 left in the half. Bobby Anderson lighting it up off the Harding bench. The Polars would score 9 of the final 10 points in the half. That was partially thanks to Harding missing their last 7 free throws of the half during that stretch. The game would hover around the 10-14 point margin for most of the 2nd half. Anderson with a steal and spin and Harding held a 68-52 lead with 2:35 left. That looked to seal it but Harding couldn't finish it as they were turning the ball over and missing free throws. Joe Messerole would knock down a 3 and 2 more bombs from Jake McDonough would cut the lead to 70-67 with 20.3 ticks left. Kenny Reed would make a free throw but Devin Bateman would putback a miss and get fouled. Free throw no good with 9.7 left. 71-69 Harding. Doc Wells with 1 free throw to give NSP life. McDonough would be fouled with 3.9 left down 3 but only shooting 2. He makes the 1st and intentionally misses the 2nd. North can't come up with it. Harding makes 1 more free throw for a 73-70 win. Harding finishes 9-30 from the foul line but hangs on. Bobby Anderson 24 points off the bench to lead the Knights and Kenny Reed with 21. Jake McDonough and Devin Bateman 13 each. Joe Messerole 12, Devonne Dickens 11.
Breakdown Tipoff Classic (Saturday)
A packed house for the late games (and we do mean late) means I took in only the 7 games in the west gym. In fact I only left the gym once all day. Here's what I saw
Game 1: Buffalo vs Woodbury
What an adventure this game was. Renard Suggs and Ethan Freer go back and forth with 14 points each in the 1st half. Freer buries a 3 at the buzzer for a 39-34 Buffalo lead at half. 65 all with 2:30 left when Woodbury got back to back 3s from Matt Ambriz and Diallo Powell. The lead was still 6 inside a minute. Freer with 5 straight Bison points but Woodbury breaks the press for an easy Mario Franco layup. 77-72 Royals with 30 seconds left. Collin Olmscheid had a huge 2nd half. He would bury a 3 and after Suggs missed a front end, Olmscheid made 2 free throws to tie the game with 10.1 left. Suggs would have a chance but miss. Buffalo had 1 last tip that was off. Off to OT tied at 77.
Similar story in the 1st OT. Suggs with 2 free throws to put Woodbury up 85-79 with 1:14 left. Freer with a free throw then a quick Woodbury miss. Jackson Schepp buries a 3. Suggs makes 1 of 2 and then fouls Jonathon Singer on a 3. Singer makes all 3 to tie the game at 86, 21.3 left in OT. Suggs miss and Ambriz would have a final attempt blocked. We'll play double OT.
Olmscheid with his 4th 3 to put the Bison up 5 and they wouldn't look back. Buffalo would make 9 of 10 free throws in the 2nd OT. Bison win a crazy game 100-95. Ethan Freer leads all scorers with 31. Collin Olmscheid 18 of his 24 in the 2nd half. Jackson Schepp 8-8 FTs in the second OT and finishes with 23. Renard Suggs with 30 and 5 3s to lead Woodbury, many points leaking out too. Diallo Powell with 20. Mario Franco 14, Matt Ambriz 13 on 3 3s.
Game 2: #3AAA Blake vs #4A Lakeview Christian
Great strategy from Blake in this one as they face guarded Anders Broman and when he did get a catch they ran a 2nd guy at him. I'm totally dumbfounded why everybody else doesn't do this, specifically in section 7A where you play him all the time. This is a must see game tape for them. That combined with the great balance and size allow Blake to pull out to a big lead. But LCA would hang around thanks to another impressive game from Bjorn Broman. I've said it before I'll say it again, everytime I've seen Lakeview play I've been more impressed with Bjorn than Anders. Bjorn knocks down 6 of the 9 LCA 3s in the half. Too much Blaine Crawford with 14 inside. 49-33 Blake at half.
Bjorn with a 4 point play after a couple of nice John Veil assists. LCA not going away down 53-42, 16:04 left. 6 in a row from Blake push the lead back to 17. Then Anders gets on the board with 14:40 left. He adds a 3 and a pair of free throws to cut the lead to 12. Crawford again inside and a turnover is a Kebu Johnson dunk. Anders with another 3. Pick and roll and its Bjorn for 3. Josh Plys with another LCA 3. 69-58 Blake with 11:30 left. Veil to Kebu for a layup, Veil jumper, Kebu steal for 2, Veil to JR Bascom for a short jumper. The lead back to 18 and LCA needs a timeout but that run puts it away once and for all. Blake wins 100-85. Bjorn Broman leads all scorers with 10 3s and 33 points. Anders Broman scores all 20 of his points in the 2nd half. I had him shooting 7-14 (missed 1st 4) and 5 assists for 14 more points. Josh Plys 6 standstill 3s for 18 points. The strategy held Anders in check but allowed many standstill 3s for LCA. They knocked down a staggering 21 3s total and with 50 listed as a state record for attempts, that's something that the state records guy may want to investigate. Blaine Crawford 26 points, too much size inside. Kebu Johnson 24, John Veil 15 points and 8 assists. (Czar's Note 12/9/12 upon further video Veil had at least 13 assists and possibly 2-3 more depending on how loose your interpretation of assist is)
Game 3: #2AAAA Hopkins vs Tartan
No Xavier Hall for Tartan due to injury. Tartan center Brody Jackson playing well inside as the Titans opened a 36-25 lead. Hopkins would counter with a 9-0 run thanks to a pair of Jake Wright 3s. Tartan would finish the half on a 16-4 run. Back to back 3s and then a Jackson bucket inside. But Jackson would leave with an injured right ankle on the play and not return. 52-39 Tartan at half. An 8-0 Tartan run midway through the 2nd half with the 1st 6 thanks to Kharie Kirkland would extend the Tartan lead to 77-58 with 7:45 left. When was the last time you saw a Hopkins team down 19?
Hopkins would fight back behind the play of Jamal Davis. A pair of 3 point plays and a couple more buckets for him and the lead is down to 8 with 2 minutes left. Kamali Chambers 2 free throws and a Nick Johnson bucket on a turnover. 83-79 Tartan with 56.9 left after 21-6 run. 2 Tartan free throws matches another Davis bucket. Down 4 inside of 30 seconds Hopkins would miss and free throws would finally seal it. Tartan wins 88-85. Kharie Kirkland was bothered by the Hopkins pressure D but still came up huge with 26 points to lead all scorers. Jamal Davis 18 of his 24 in the 2nd half to bring Hopkins back. Jake Wright 15 of his 18 in the 1st half with 4 3s.
Game 4: #3AAAA Eden Prairie vs Rice Lake, WI
Interesting that Rice Lake ran America's Play for Henry Ellenson right off the bat. Grant Shaeffer back in the lineup for Eden Prairie. He came off the bench at the 16:08 mark. Brandyn Christman with 6 early points as Rice Lake jumps on EP 13-5 (9-0 in there). Eden Prairie would respond with a 14-0 run of their own. Andre Wallace with a 3 and a bucket in that run for a 19-13 EP lead at the 8:20 mark. Henry Ellenson all over the glass but picks it up on offense with a layup and a post bucket. Then he's fouled on a 3 and knocks down all 3 free throws. His putback in the last minute is countered by Alex Ihrke for 3 at the halftime buzzer. 27 all at the break.
The 2nd half is all Rice Lake. Adam West for 3 in a 12-0 Rice Lake run to start the half (na na na na na Batman!). After a pair of Shaeffer free throws, Rice Lake on the run and its a lob to Ellwood Ellenson who rises high for the monster throw down. Anthony Anderson finally gets the 1st EP field goal of the half at the 11:40 mark. 43-31 Rice Lake in command. Ihrke with another 3 and Wallace for 3. Time out EP down 46-40 with 8:34 to play. The Ellensons would put the game away. Henry with back to back buckets, then Ellwood for 2 of his own, Henry again for 2 and adds a free throw. Ellwood with a bucket with 3 minutes left. 63-48 Warriors with 3 left. Rice Lake wins 67-51. Henry Ellenson finishes with 21 points and 20 rebounds on my sheet. Alex Ihrke leads EP with 14 points. EP backcourt struggles. Shaeffer 1-9 FGs on my sheet for 8 points. Andre Wallace 10 points on 4-18 shooting.
Game 5: #4AAAA Osseo vs Eastview
Interesting to see Eastview pull out the old Dana Altman/Johnny Orr 2-3 high offense. With only Ben Oberfeld returning, scoring was a question mark and the 1st field goal doesn't come until the 10:50 mark. Meanwhile Osseo is already up 10-2 when that happens. Bridge Tusler with a pair of steals for buckets in that spurt. Eastview would grind their way back. Oberfeld inside for 2 and the foul 10-9 Osseo at the 9:08 mark. Theisen sits with foul #2 at the 7:12 mark. Tusler picking up with an assist for a layup and another steal for 2. 19-11 Osseo at 6:32. Mark Dwyer with all 5 of his points in a row to tie the game at 20 at 3:50 mark (9-1 Eastview run). 25-21 at the half but no one sees it as due to the games being way late, Kentucky coach John Calipari and an assistant make their way into the full bleachers.
Eastview would get as close as 38-33 with 7:43 left thanks to back to back buckets by Oberfeld. But not enough offense in this one. Osseo goes on to win 50-40. Bridge Tusler 16 points and all over the place as usual impacting everything on both ends. Wheeler Baker 11 points. Ian Theisen held to 2 late free throws as the big man matchup never materialized. He did add 9 rebounds. Ben Oberfeld 16 points and 7 boards on my sheet. Ryan Lockhard 8 of his 10 in the 2nd half for Eastview.
Game 6: #1AAAA Apple Valley vs #6AAAA Park Center
The main event of the evening and it was a raucous atmosphere, mainly thanks to the outstanding Park Center student section. You won't see a better flag (pirate flag in this case) in a student section anywhere. Tyus Jones jumping center as Brock Bertam doesn't start (yet) for Apple Valley. Dennis Austin 6 quick points and Apple Valley jumps out to a 13-3 lead. Tyus already distrubing during the 9-0 run. Quinton Hooker won't let Park Center go away as he scores 9 of the next 11 for the Pirates. Soph Arione Farrar Jr adds a layup to tie the game at 17. 9:07 left and Apple Valley needs a timeout. Pirates get another bucket after the timeout to lead 19-17 after a 16-4 run. Tyus coast to coast for 2, then to Robert Tobroxen for a 3. Hooker scores and then scores again after Tyus is blocked. Tyus to Austin for another layup. Tyus grabs his own miss for 2 free throws. Hooker by Tyus for 2 more. 28-27 Apple Valley with 4:30 left in the half. Tyus to the basket for 2. Hooker to Isaiah McKay for 3. Tyus back to back buckets late and a long assist for a Harry Sonie bucket to beat the buzzer. 43-35 Apple Valley at half. Hooker 13 points. Tyus 12 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists in the half.
Dennis Austin too much to handle inside with a bucket and 3 point play. Dustin Fronk with a steal for 2 and Tyus to Tobroxen for 2 more. Apple Valley stretching the lead to 54-43 with 13:40 left. Tyus for 2 and then pulling up on the break for 3. 63-49 Eagles with 11:12 left. Park Center too high powered to be done yet. McKay for 3, Treyton Daniels nice fade in the post. Hooker an assist for a layup. 63-56 Apple Valley after a 7-0 Pirates run and still 8:18 to play. Hooker with a jumper, Tyus misses a front end and Isaac Matthews with a putback to close an 11-0 Pirates run. 63-60 Eagles with 7:10 left and we've got a ball game again.
Austin to Tobroxen for a layup, Tyus with a free throw after a Pirates jumper. 66-62 Apple Valley. Then Daniels with a post feed and goes to the rim and gets it back for a 2 handed smash and the Pirates student section blows up. Devin Buckley scores with 3:40 left to tie the game at 66 and its all Park Center right now. Hooker with an offensive board outworking people inside and makes a free throw. A Park Center block on 1 end and its Buckley with a 3 point play on the other with 2:21 left. That blows the roof off as the Park Center fans are going absolutely bananas. Tyus flails for 2 free throws and Park Center turns it over after a timeout. But Apple Valley misses. Buckley scores again to push the lead to 72-68 with 1:30 left. Tyus misses a 3 but Hooker turns it over. Austin with a pretty spin to cut the lead to 72-70 with a minute left. Isaac Matthews misses a front end with 30.2 left as Apple Valley had 1 foul to give and delayed giving it. Now the Eagles have life. Tyus faceguarded and can't get it. Eagles miss but Tyus tracks down the rebound on the right wing with 15 seconds left and here we go. Drive to the right baseline is a tough shot and no good. Hooker fouled with 4.7 left and he misses the front end. But Apple Valley travels on the rebound. Park Center turns it over with 0.5 left but a final inbound full court is picked off. Park Center knocks off the state's top team in an thriller 72-70. Pirate fans swarm the floor afterwards. Quinton Hooker comes up large for Park Center with 26 points and 8 rebounds. Devin Buckley 12. Hard to believe Apple Valley could only score 7 points in over 11 minutes. Tyus Jones finishes with 20 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists on my sheet. Dennis Austin 17 points.
Game 7: Robbinsdale Cooper at #9AAAA Minnetonka
So this game doesn't start until 10 PM thanks to the long games in front of it. In fact the other gym is almost done when this game gets underway. Riley Dearring would get off to a good start with 7 early points. Lavar McCollough keeping Cooper close with a bucket and a pair of 3s. He adds a putback for a 16-13 Coooper lead at the 11 minute mark. Riley Dearring getting a breather with 2 fouls but would return in the half. Tonka would open up a double figure lead on a 14-0 run. Grant Kellogg starting it with a pair of buckets. Soph Justin Moes back to back 3s. Post Bremiah Snyder adds a pair of hoops during the run too. 27-16 Skippers at the 6:55 mark. McCollough 2 free throws and a Billy Kellogg 3 cut the lead to 7. Then Rashad Vaughn finally gets on the scoreboard. He scores 9 points in the last 5:20 of the half. A silly foul allows Andrew Grosz (back on the Skippers roster now) to knock down 2 free throws. 41-36 Minnetonka lead at halftime.
McCollough starts the 2nd half off with a flying 1 handed dunk and a behind the back assist to Darrious Denson for a layup. Dearring stretches the lead to 9 with 6 points in a row. McCollough then goes up high and rejects jumping jack Mike Fernando at the rim. Big time play. Then a layup on the break. 49-43 Minnetonka lead with 13:05 left. Dearring with a 3 ball countered by an extra pass for a Billy Kellogg 3. Snyder taking over inside with back to back hoops. Vaughn with an inbounds jumper. Snyder again and Vaughn 2 free throws. 58-53 Minnetonka with 8:58 left. Dearring with a 3 and then back to back buckets. That extends the Skippers lead to 69-57 with 5:45 left. Vaughn with a steal for 2 but Snyder again inside and another Moes 3 slams the door. 74-59 at that point and Minnetonka goes on to win 79-71. Riley Dearring 16 of his 23 in the 2nd half to go with 8 rebounds. Bremiah Snyder 10 of his 16 in the 2nd half. Lavar McCollough leads all scorers with 26 for Cooper. Rashad Vaughn 15 points and 9 rebounds on my sheet, only 6 points in the 2nd half.
Overall Thoughts
A great day of games and what a zoo it was. Great teams and great results with plenty of drama. I could do without the national anthem twice. While the crowd went nuts for it, I was one of many who thought it was a case of trying to do way too much. The other major negative for the day was the public address. It wasn't good last week at the girls event and it was frankly unacceptable for an event of this stature. Wrong names, mispronounced names, refusal to correct those names etc. It was really ugly (like my webcast last year). With all the money this event brings in, to not bring in a PA announcer was not a good choice. So instead of complaining about it, I'll volunteer my time to do it next year if they can't or won't find anybody. Give the Breakdown some credit as they have traditionally learned from their mistakes. See this year where they put the premier game in the main gym prior to Minnetonka playing rather than jamming it in the smaller East gym. The event gets better every year, but it will be hard to top the great day that we had this year.
Play of the Day
Its the sideline out of bounds from Eastview. Its very similar to last season but still good stuff.
Setup is 3 across the foul line and 1 on the block as follows.
A long weekend of back to back midnight arrivals at The Czar's Palace. But 9 games in 28 and a half hours is well worth it. Quality dominos pizza at North St. Paul for their tourney to go with the beefy size 24oz of pepsi. Add in a very respectable hot dog and 1 pepsi and 1 coke at the Breakdown Tipoff Classic. For those of you tracking it, and if you are, don't eat as much as me, here are the up to date counts. I'm at 15 beverages for a total of 248 oz. The hot dog was the 6th of the season to go with 2 slices of pizza.
Polar Classic (Friday)
Friday was the opening round of the Polar Classic at North St. Paul. Fridley took on Eagan in the opener. Fridley played without their top player, guard Michael Murray. He's missed the season so far due to a football concussion but is expected to return next week. Chaney Pal inside to keep Fridley within 11-9 at the 12:45 mark. Eagan up 23-17 at the 8:31 mark as they take a timeout. That sparks a 30-4 run across halftime to blow the game wide open. Michael Gorder took over during the early part of the 2nd half to complete the run. Fridley doesn't get their first field goal of the 2nd half until the 12:25 mark. Its too late by that time. Eagan wins 77-45. Gorder finishes with 21, 8 and 3 steals. 11 for Amane Akane to lead Fridley. Eagan soph GT Johnson getting some time running the point. The Wildcats have a bunch of 6'3-6'5 banger types so they can go big.
The late game was Harding taking on North St. Paul. Harding would jump all over the Polars to the tune of 34-15 with 4:30 left in the half. Bobby Anderson lighting it up off the Harding bench. The Polars would score 9 of the final 10 points in the half. That was partially thanks to Harding missing their last 7 free throws of the half during that stretch. The game would hover around the 10-14 point margin for most of the 2nd half. Anderson with a steal and spin and Harding held a 68-52 lead with 2:35 left. That looked to seal it but Harding couldn't finish it as they were turning the ball over and missing free throws. Joe Messerole would knock down a 3 and 2 more bombs from Jake McDonough would cut the lead to 70-67 with 20.3 ticks left. Kenny Reed would make a free throw but Devin Bateman would putback a miss and get fouled. Free throw no good with 9.7 left. 71-69 Harding. Doc Wells with 1 free throw to give NSP life. McDonough would be fouled with 3.9 left down 3 but only shooting 2. He makes the 1st and intentionally misses the 2nd. North can't come up with it. Harding makes 1 more free throw for a 73-70 win. Harding finishes 9-30 from the foul line but hangs on. Bobby Anderson 24 points off the bench to lead the Knights and Kenny Reed with 21. Jake McDonough and Devin Bateman 13 each. Joe Messerole 12, Devonne Dickens 11.
Breakdown Tipoff Classic (Saturday)
A packed house for the late games (and we do mean late) means I took in only the 7 games in the west gym. In fact I only left the gym once all day. Here's what I saw
Game 1: Buffalo vs Woodbury
What an adventure this game was. Renard Suggs and Ethan Freer go back and forth with 14 points each in the 1st half. Freer buries a 3 at the buzzer for a 39-34 Buffalo lead at half. 65 all with 2:30 left when Woodbury got back to back 3s from Matt Ambriz and Diallo Powell. The lead was still 6 inside a minute. Freer with 5 straight Bison points but Woodbury breaks the press for an easy Mario Franco layup. 77-72 Royals with 30 seconds left. Collin Olmscheid had a huge 2nd half. He would bury a 3 and after Suggs missed a front end, Olmscheid made 2 free throws to tie the game with 10.1 left. Suggs would have a chance but miss. Buffalo had 1 last tip that was off. Off to OT tied at 77.
Similar story in the 1st OT. Suggs with 2 free throws to put Woodbury up 85-79 with 1:14 left. Freer with a free throw then a quick Woodbury miss. Jackson Schepp buries a 3. Suggs makes 1 of 2 and then fouls Jonathon Singer on a 3. Singer makes all 3 to tie the game at 86, 21.3 left in OT. Suggs miss and Ambriz would have a final attempt blocked. We'll play double OT.
Olmscheid with his 4th 3 to put the Bison up 5 and they wouldn't look back. Buffalo would make 9 of 10 free throws in the 2nd OT. Bison win a crazy game 100-95. Ethan Freer leads all scorers with 31. Collin Olmscheid 18 of his 24 in the 2nd half. Jackson Schepp 8-8 FTs in the second OT and finishes with 23. Renard Suggs with 30 and 5 3s to lead Woodbury, many points leaking out too. Diallo Powell with 20. Mario Franco 14, Matt Ambriz 13 on 3 3s.
Game 2: #3AAA Blake vs #4A Lakeview Christian
Great strategy from Blake in this one as they face guarded Anders Broman and when he did get a catch they ran a 2nd guy at him. I'm totally dumbfounded why everybody else doesn't do this, specifically in section 7A where you play him all the time. This is a must see game tape for them. That combined with the great balance and size allow Blake to pull out to a big lead. But LCA would hang around thanks to another impressive game from Bjorn Broman. I've said it before I'll say it again, everytime I've seen Lakeview play I've been more impressed with Bjorn than Anders. Bjorn knocks down 6 of the 9 LCA 3s in the half. Too much Blaine Crawford with 14 inside. 49-33 Blake at half.
Bjorn with a 4 point play after a couple of nice John Veil assists. LCA not going away down 53-42, 16:04 left. 6 in a row from Blake push the lead back to 17. Then Anders gets on the board with 14:40 left. He adds a 3 and a pair of free throws to cut the lead to 12. Crawford again inside and a turnover is a Kebu Johnson dunk. Anders with another 3. Pick and roll and its Bjorn for 3. Josh Plys with another LCA 3. 69-58 Blake with 11:30 left. Veil to Kebu for a layup, Veil jumper, Kebu steal for 2, Veil to JR Bascom for a short jumper. The lead back to 18 and LCA needs a timeout but that run puts it away once and for all. Blake wins 100-85. Bjorn Broman leads all scorers with 10 3s and 33 points. Anders Broman scores all 20 of his points in the 2nd half. I had him shooting 7-14 (missed 1st 4) and 5 assists for 14 more points. Josh Plys 6 standstill 3s for 18 points. The strategy held Anders in check but allowed many standstill 3s for LCA. They knocked down a staggering 21 3s total and with 50 listed as a state record for attempts, that's something that the state records guy may want to investigate. Blaine Crawford 26 points, too much size inside. Kebu Johnson 24, John Veil 15 points and 8 assists. (Czar's Note 12/9/12 upon further video Veil had at least 13 assists and possibly 2-3 more depending on how loose your interpretation of assist is)
Game 3: #2AAAA Hopkins vs Tartan
No Xavier Hall for Tartan due to injury. Tartan center Brody Jackson playing well inside as the Titans opened a 36-25 lead. Hopkins would counter with a 9-0 run thanks to a pair of Jake Wright 3s. Tartan would finish the half on a 16-4 run. Back to back 3s and then a Jackson bucket inside. But Jackson would leave with an injured right ankle on the play and not return. 52-39 Tartan at half. An 8-0 Tartan run midway through the 2nd half with the 1st 6 thanks to Kharie Kirkland would extend the Tartan lead to 77-58 with 7:45 left. When was the last time you saw a Hopkins team down 19?
Hopkins would fight back behind the play of Jamal Davis. A pair of 3 point plays and a couple more buckets for him and the lead is down to 8 with 2 minutes left. Kamali Chambers 2 free throws and a Nick Johnson bucket on a turnover. 83-79 Tartan with 56.9 left after 21-6 run. 2 Tartan free throws matches another Davis bucket. Down 4 inside of 30 seconds Hopkins would miss and free throws would finally seal it. Tartan wins 88-85. Kharie Kirkland was bothered by the Hopkins pressure D but still came up huge with 26 points to lead all scorers. Jamal Davis 18 of his 24 in the 2nd half to bring Hopkins back. Jake Wright 15 of his 18 in the 1st half with 4 3s.
Game 4: #3AAAA Eden Prairie vs Rice Lake, WI
Interesting that Rice Lake ran America's Play for Henry Ellenson right off the bat. Grant Shaeffer back in the lineup for Eden Prairie. He came off the bench at the 16:08 mark. Brandyn Christman with 6 early points as Rice Lake jumps on EP 13-5 (9-0 in there). Eden Prairie would respond with a 14-0 run of their own. Andre Wallace with a 3 and a bucket in that run for a 19-13 EP lead at the 8:20 mark. Henry Ellenson all over the glass but picks it up on offense with a layup and a post bucket. Then he's fouled on a 3 and knocks down all 3 free throws. His putback in the last minute is countered by Alex Ihrke for 3 at the halftime buzzer. 27 all at the break.
The 2nd half is all Rice Lake. Adam West for 3 in a 12-0 Rice Lake run to start the half (na na na na na Batman!). After a pair of Shaeffer free throws, Rice Lake on the run and its a lob to Ellwood Ellenson who rises high for the monster throw down. Anthony Anderson finally gets the 1st EP field goal of the half at the 11:40 mark. 43-31 Rice Lake in command. Ihrke with another 3 and Wallace for 3. Time out EP down 46-40 with 8:34 to play. The Ellensons would put the game away. Henry with back to back buckets, then Ellwood for 2 of his own, Henry again for 2 and adds a free throw. Ellwood with a bucket with 3 minutes left. 63-48 Warriors with 3 left. Rice Lake wins 67-51. Henry Ellenson finishes with 21 points and 20 rebounds on my sheet. Alex Ihrke leads EP with 14 points. EP backcourt struggles. Shaeffer 1-9 FGs on my sheet for 8 points. Andre Wallace 10 points on 4-18 shooting.
Game 5: #4AAAA Osseo vs Eastview
Interesting to see Eastview pull out the old Dana Altman/Johnny Orr 2-3 high offense. With only Ben Oberfeld returning, scoring was a question mark and the 1st field goal doesn't come until the 10:50 mark. Meanwhile Osseo is already up 10-2 when that happens. Bridge Tusler with a pair of steals for buckets in that spurt. Eastview would grind their way back. Oberfeld inside for 2 and the foul 10-9 Osseo at the 9:08 mark. Theisen sits with foul #2 at the 7:12 mark. Tusler picking up with an assist for a layup and another steal for 2. 19-11 Osseo at 6:32. Mark Dwyer with all 5 of his points in a row to tie the game at 20 at 3:50 mark (9-1 Eastview run). 25-21 at the half but no one sees it as due to the games being way late, Kentucky coach John Calipari and an assistant make their way into the full bleachers.
Eastview would get as close as 38-33 with 7:43 left thanks to back to back buckets by Oberfeld. But not enough offense in this one. Osseo goes on to win 50-40. Bridge Tusler 16 points and all over the place as usual impacting everything on both ends. Wheeler Baker 11 points. Ian Theisen held to 2 late free throws as the big man matchup never materialized. He did add 9 rebounds. Ben Oberfeld 16 points and 7 boards on my sheet. Ryan Lockhard 8 of his 10 in the 2nd half for Eastview.
Game 6: #1AAAA Apple Valley vs #6AAAA Park Center
The main event of the evening and it was a raucous atmosphere, mainly thanks to the outstanding Park Center student section. You won't see a better flag (pirate flag in this case) in a student section anywhere. Tyus Jones jumping center as Brock Bertam doesn't start (yet) for Apple Valley. Dennis Austin 6 quick points and Apple Valley jumps out to a 13-3 lead. Tyus already distrubing during the 9-0 run. Quinton Hooker won't let Park Center go away as he scores 9 of the next 11 for the Pirates. Soph Arione Farrar Jr adds a layup to tie the game at 17. 9:07 left and Apple Valley needs a timeout. Pirates get another bucket after the timeout to lead 19-17 after a 16-4 run. Tyus coast to coast for 2, then to Robert Tobroxen for a 3. Hooker scores and then scores again after Tyus is blocked. Tyus to Austin for another layup. Tyus grabs his own miss for 2 free throws. Hooker by Tyus for 2 more. 28-27 Apple Valley with 4:30 left in the half. Tyus to the basket for 2. Hooker to Isaiah McKay for 3. Tyus back to back buckets late and a long assist for a Harry Sonie bucket to beat the buzzer. 43-35 Apple Valley at half. Hooker 13 points. Tyus 12 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists in the half.
Dennis Austin too much to handle inside with a bucket and 3 point play. Dustin Fronk with a steal for 2 and Tyus to Tobroxen for 2 more. Apple Valley stretching the lead to 54-43 with 13:40 left. Tyus for 2 and then pulling up on the break for 3. 63-49 Eagles with 11:12 left. Park Center too high powered to be done yet. McKay for 3, Treyton Daniels nice fade in the post. Hooker an assist for a layup. 63-56 Apple Valley after a 7-0 Pirates run and still 8:18 to play. Hooker with a jumper, Tyus misses a front end and Isaac Matthews with a putback to close an 11-0 Pirates run. 63-60 Eagles with 7:10 left and we've got a ball game again.
Austin to Tobroxen for a layup, Tyus with a free throw after a Pirates jumper. 66-62 Apple Valley. Then Daniels with a post feed and goes to the rim and gets it back for a 2 handed smash and the Pirates student section blows up. Devin Buckley scores with 3:40 left to tie the game at 66 and its all Park Center right now. Hooker with an offensive board outworking people inside and makes a free throw. A Park Center block on 1 end and its Buckley with a 3 point play on the other with 2:21 left. That blows the roof off as the Park Center fans are going absolutely bananas. Tyus flails for 2 free throws and Park Center turns it over after a timeout. But Apple Valley misses. Buckley scores again to push the lead to 72-68 with 1:30 left. Tyus misses a 3 but Hooker turns it over. Austin with a pretty spin to cut the lead to 72-70 with a minute left. Isaac Matthews misses a front end with 30.2 left as Apple Valley had 1 foul to give and delayed giving it. Now the Eagles have life. Tyus faceguarded and can't get it. Eagles miss but Tyus tracks down the rebound on the right wing with 15 seconds left and here we go. Drive to the right baseline is a tough shot and no good. Hooker fouled with 4.7 left and he misses the front end. But Apple Valley travels on the rebound. Park Center turns it over with 0.5 left but a final inbound full court is picked off. Park Center knocks off the state's top team in an thriller 72-70. Pirate fans swarm the floor afterwards. Quinton Hooker comes up large for Park Center with 26 points and 8 rebounds. Devin Buckley 12. Hard to believe Apple Valley could only score 7 points in over 11 minutes. Tyus Jones finishes with 20 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists on my sheet. Dennis Austin 17 points.
Game 7: Robbinsdale Cooper at #9AAAA Minnetonka
So this game doesn't start until 10 PM thanks to the long games in front of it. In fact the other gym is almost done when this game gets underway. Riley Dearring would get off to a good start with 7 early points. Lavar McCollough keeping Cooper close with a bucket and a pair of 3s. He adds a putback for a 16-13 Coooper lead at the 11 minute mark. Riley Dearring getting a breather with 2 fouls but would return in the half. Tonka would open up a double figure lead on a 14-0 run. Grant Kellogg starting it with a pair of buckets. Soph Justin Moes back to back 3s. Post Bremiah Snyder adds a pair of hoops during the run too. 27-16 Skippers at the 6:55 mark. McCollough 2 free throws and a Billy Kellogg 3 cut the lead to 7. Then Rashad Vaughn finally gets on the scoreboard. He scores 9 points in the last 5:20 of the half. A silly foul allows Andrew Grosz (back on the Skippers roster now) to knock down 2 free throws. 41-36 Minnetonka lead at halftime.
McCollough starts the 2nd half off with a flying 1 handed dunk and a behind the back assist to Darrious Denson for a layup. Dearring stretches the lead to 9 with 6 points in a row. McCollough then goes up high and rejects jumping jack Mike Fernando at the rim. Big time play. Then a layup on the break. 49-43 Minnetonka lead with 13:05 left. Dearring with a 3 ball countered by an extra pass for a Billy Kellogg 3. Snyder taking over inside with back to back hoops. Vaughn with an inbounds jumper. Snyder again and Vaughn 2 free throws. 58-53 Minnetonka with 8:58 left. Dearring with a 3 and then back to back buckets. That extends the Skippers lead to 69-57 with 5:45 left. Vaughn with a steal for 2 but Snyder again inside and another Moes 3 slams the door. 74-59 at that point and Minnetonka goes on to win 79-71. Riley Dearring 16 of his 23 in the 2nd half to go with 8 rebounds. Bremiah Snyder 10 of his 16 in the 2nd half. Lavar McCollough leads all scorers with 26 for Cooper. Rashad Vaughn 15 points and 9 rebounds on my sheet, only 6 points in the 2nd half.
Overall Thoughts
A great day of games and what a zoo it was. Great teams and great results with plenty of drama. I could do without the national anthem twice. While the crowd went nuts for it, I was one of many who thought it was a case of trying to do way too much. The other major negative for the day was the public address. It wasn't good last week at the girls event and it was frankly unacceptable for an event of this stature. Wrong names, mispronounced names, refusal to correct those names etc. It was really ugly (like my webcast last year). With all the money this event brings in, to not bring in a PA announcer was not a good choice. So instead of complaining about it, I'll volunteer my time to do it next year if they can't or won't find anybody. Give the Breakdown some credit as they have traditionally learned from their mistakes. See this year where they put the premier game in the main gym prior to Minnetonka playing rather than jamming it in the smaller East gym. The event gets better every year, but it will be hard to top the great day that we had this year.
Play of the Day
Its the sideline out of bounds from Eastview. Its very similar to last season but still good stuff.
Setup is 3 across the foul line and 1 on the block as follows.
- Post on the ball side elbow.
- Passing guard on the ball side block
- Sbooter at the nail.
- Screener on the backside elbow.
2013 Breakdown Tipoff Classic Quick Hits Preview
Instead of a brutally long breakdown (no pun intended) of every game at the Breakdown Tipoff Classic, I'm going to give you 1 item to watch in each game and my predictions for each game
West Gym Games
Game 1: Buffalo vs Woodbury
Buffalo is off to a 1-2 start against a tough schedule. This is Woodbury's season opener with a talented squad but one that is still adjusting to a new system. Keep an eye on Buffalo's defense against the Woodbury dribble drive offense. 3 games in vs a team that is only playing game 1. I'm going to take Buffalo here.
Game 2: #3AAA Blake vs #4A Lakeview Christian
Anders Broman will be a major attraction since he's only 153 points away from the state's all time scoring record (see the full tracker here). The item to watch here is Broman vs Blake defensive wiz JR Bascom and lanky wing Kebu Johnson. I think they hold Broman fairly in check and John Veil and Bjorn Broman even out. I'll take Blake as they're too big and too deep. I think they hold Broman to one of his lowest 2 point totals of the entire season.
Game 3: #2AAAA Hopkins vs Tartan
If you like defense this game is for you. You won't find 2 teams who are better coached and more intense on the defensive end than these 2. Halfcourt buckets will be hard to come by so whoever can do a better job of getting out and running wins this game. I like Hopkins with their depth and more offensive firepower.
Game 4: #3AAAA Eden Prairie vs Rice Lake, WIRice Lake star soph Henry Ellenson (with a Gopher offer) is the main attraction here for a very good Rice Lake team. Eden Prairie rock solid on the defensive end. If they're depleted like on Tuesday vs Washburn than this game is far more interesting. Grant Shaeffer being the major difference maker if he plays. I'll take Eden Prairie thanks to their defense.
Game 5: #4AAAA Osseo vs Eastview
The inside matchup of Ben Oberfeld vs Ian Theisen will be a treat for locals. Theisen has been on the radar for years now and Oberfeld is a Bucknell commit who is as good an overall interior defender as we've seen in a while. Theisen is a major portion of the offense for Osseo so if he's held in check, that's a big deal. I still like Osseo to win as they have too many pieces and besides Oberfeld, Eastview may struggle to score.
Game 6: #1AAAA Apple Valley vs #6AAAA Park Center
Points, points, points. That's at the point guard position with Tyus Jones taking on his summer teammate Quinton Hooker. Its also on the scoreboard as the 1st team to 85 may very well be the winner. Apple Valley gave up 51 to St. Louis Park in the 2nd half the other night. The team that decides to defend more wins. Apple Valley gets enough stops and they have more bench depth. That's why they're at another level from everybody else right now.
Game 7: Robbinsdale Cooper at #9AAAA Minnetonka
High major recruits Riley Dearring (Wisconsin) and Rashad Vaughn (top 20 in the country in 2014) go at it on the wing in this one. Vaughn going more solo while Dearring's teammates have stepped up early in the year. I like Minnetonka at home unless Vaughn decides to put on another vintage performance like last year's 33 points vs De La Salle. For the last 2 games, keep an eye out for high major D1 coaches to be in the gym. Tom Izzo and Thad Matta both attended the Apple Valley opener on Tuesday.
East Gym Games
Game 1: Duluth East vs Prior Lake
No good matchup for Carson Shanks or Jeff Probert is going to be the difference. Keep an eye on Shaq Coleman vs Jon Sobaski at the guard spots. These are the 2 leaders who make their teams go. Prior Lake playing well right now. I like the Lakers to win again.
Game 2: #3AA St. Peter vs #6AA Pelican Rapids
A sleeper game that would likely get more attention if it were any other day of the year. These teams flip-flopped in the AA poll this week. Ryan Bruggeman is a star at the point for Pelican Rapids. Peter Kruize leads the way inside. His matchup with Tucker Forsgren will be the one to watch. I'm going to take Pelican Rapids here with their inside and outside play.
Game 3: #5AAAA Roseville vs #6AAA Holy Angels
Holy Angels struggled against Minnetonka and then couldn't put away Breck before surviving in the last minute. Their guard play has not been up to the high expected standard and their bigs (outside of Charlie Koontz) have been outmuscled. Roseville has great guard play and good interior play. Keep an eye on the Holy Angels defense vs the Roseville guards. If they can keep Roseville from getting lots of open looks, that's a big key. I'm not convinced that happens though, so I'll take Roseville here.
Game 4: #9AAA Minneapolis Washburn vs Hudson, WI
Forward Alex Herink leads the Raiders across the border. The young Washburn lineup struggled in the season opener vs Eden Prairie before winning at Hill-Murray. Nick Anderson makes the ship go. If he plays well, the Millers can be very difficult to guard. How Hudson defends him is the key to watch in this game. Washburn will also need to get offense from another source like Evan Shepherd or Jeff Jones. I'll take Washburn.
Game 5: New Prague vs Maple Grove
A rough and tumble Maple Grove team takes on a changed New Prague team. The guards return and Paul Friendshuh sees his frontcourt mates all graduate. Maple Grove comes in 0-2 and New Prague just lost to lowly Albert Lea. This gets the award for least attractive game of the day. I'll take Maple Grove here.
Game 6: #2AAA Austin vs #7AAAA Edina
Edina has gotten 2 big games from Graham Woodward and they have no wins to show for it. The schedule has been brutal (at Waconia and at Lakeville North). That at least should have Edina prepared. Zach Wessels and Woodward is an entertaining guard matchup with Wessels having size and Woodward speed. Expect Austin to play lots of 3-2 zone and how they guard Woodward with it is my key to the game. Edina hasn't found another scorer yet and the Austin zone is nasty. I like the Packers here.
Game 7: Robbinsdale Armstrong vs Wayzata
An old Lake Conference rivalry closes out the day as these neighboring schools get after it. A good forward matchup with Armstrong's Konner Goettsche and Wayzata's Zach Robertson going at it. They were summer team mates so plenty of familiarity there. Armstrong has lots of players back from last year but Wayzata has more back than usual too. Early in the year defense is ahead of offense and Wayzata does defense. I'll take the Trojans here.
West Gym Games
Game 1: Buffalo vs Woodbury
Buffalo is off to a 1-2 start against a tough schedule. This is Woodbury's season opener with a talented squad but one that is still adjusting to a new system. Keep an eye on Buffalo's defense against the Woodbury dribble drive offense. 3 games in vs a team that is only playing game 1. I'm going to take Buffalo here.
Game 2: #3AAA Blake vs #4A Lakeview Christian
Anders Broman will be a major attraction since he's only 153 points away from the state's all time scoring record (see the full tracker here). The item to watch here is Broman vs Blake defensive wiz JR Bascom and lanky wing Kebu Johnson. I think they hold Broman fairly in check and John Veil and Bjorn Broman even out. I'll take Blake as they're too big and too deep. I think they hold Broman to one of his lowest 2 point totals of the entire season.
Game 3: #2AAAA Hopkins vs Tartan
If you like defense this game is for you. You won't find 2 teams who are better coached and more intense on the defensive end than these 2. Halfcourt buckets will be hard to come by so whoever can do a better job of getting out and running wins this game. I like Hopkins with their depth and more offensive firepower.
Game 4: #3AAAA Eden Prairie vs Rice Lake, WIRice Lake star soph Henry Ellenson (with a Gopher offer) is the main attraction here for a very good Rice Lake team. Eden Prairie rock solid on the defensive end. If they're depleted like on Tuesday vs Washburn than this game is far more interesting. Grant Shaeffer being the major difference maker if he plays. I'll take Eden Prairie thanks to their defense.
Game 5: #4AAAA Osseo vs Eastview
The inside matchup of Ben Oberfeld vs Ian Theisen will be a treat for locals. Theisen has been on the radar for years now and Oberfeld is a Bucknell commit who is as good an overall interior defender as we've seen in a while. Theisen is a major portion of the offense for Osseo so if he's held in check, that's a big deal. I still like Osseo to win as they have too many pieces and besides Oberfeld, Eastview may struggle to score.
Game 6: #1AAAA Apple Valley vs #6AAAA Park Center
Points, points, points. That's at the point guard position with Tyus Jones taking on his summer teammate Quinton Hooker. Its also on the scoreboard as the 1st team to 85 may very well be the winner. Apple Valley gave up 51 to St. Louis Park in the 2nd half the other night. The team that decides to defend more wins. Apple Valley gets enough stops and they have more bench depth. That's why they're at another level from everybody else right now.
Game 7: Robbinsdale Cooper at #9AAAA Minnetonka
High major recruits Riley Dearring (Wisconsin) and Rashad Vaughn (top 20 in the country in 2014) go at it on the wing in this one. Vaughn going more solo while Dearring's teammates have stepped up early in the year. I like Minnetonka at home unless Vaughn decides to put on another vintage performance like last year's 33 points vs De La Salle. For the last 2 games, keep an eye out for high major D1 coaches to be in the gym. Tom Izzo and Thad Matta both attended the Apple Valley opener on Tuesday.
East Gym Games
Game 1: Duluth East vs Prior Lake
No good matchup for Carson Shanks or Jeff Probert is going to be the difference. Keep an eye on Shaq Coleman vs Jon Sobaski at the guard spots. These are the 2 leaders who make their teams go. Prior Lake playing well right now. I like the Lakers to win again.
Game 2: #3AA St. Peter vs #6AA Pelican Rapids
A sleeper game that would likely get more attention if it were any other day of the year. These teams flip-flopped in the AA poll this week. Ryan Bruggeman is a star at the point for Pelican Rapids. Peter Kruize leads the way inside. His matchup with Tucker Forsgren will be the one to watch. I'm going to take Pelican Rapids here with their inside and outside play.
Game 3: #5AAAA Roseville vs #6AAA Holy Angels
Holy Angels struggled against Minnetonka and then couldn't put away Breck before surviving in the last minute. Their guard play has not been up to the high expected standard and their bigs (outside of Charlie Koontz) have been outmuscled. Roseville has great guard play and good interior play. Keep an eye on the Holy Angels defense vs the Roseville guards. If they can keep Roseville from getting lots of open looks, that's a big key. I'm not convinced that happens though, so I'll take Roseville here.
Game 4: #9AAA Minneapolis Washburn vs Hudson, WI
Forward Alex Herink leads the Raiders across the border. The young Washburn lineup struggled in the season opener vs Eden Prairie before winning at Hill-Murray. Nick Anderson makes the ship go. If he plays well, the Millers can be very difficult to guard. How Hudson defends him is the key to watch in this game. Washburn will also need to get offense from another source like Evan Shepherd or Jeff Jones. I'll take Washburn.
Game 5: New Prague vs Maple Grove
A rough and tumble Maple Grove team takes on a changed New Prague team. The guards return and Paul Friendshuh sees his frontcourt mates all graduate. Maple Grove comes in 0-2 and New Prague just lost to lowly Albert Lea. This gets the award for least attractive game of the day. I'll take Maple Grove here.
Game 6: #2AAA Austin vs #7AAAA Edina
Edina has gotten 2 big games from Graham Woodward and they have no wins to show for it. The schedule has been brutal (at Waconia and at Lakeville North). That at least should have Edina prepared. Zach Wessels and Woodward is an entertaining guard matchup with Wessels having size and Woodward speed. Expect Austin to play lots of 3-2 zone and how they guard Woodward with it is my key to the game. Edina hasn't found another scorer yet and the Austin zone is nasty. I like the Packers here.
Game 7: Robbinsdale Armstrong vs Wayzata
An old Lake Conference rivalry closes out the day as these neighboring schools get after it. A good forward matchup with Armstrong's Konner Goettsche and Wayzata's Zach Robertson going at it. They were summer team mates so plenty of familiarity there. Armstrong has lots of players back from last year but Wayzata has more back than usual too. Early in the year defense is ahead of offense and Wayzata does defense. I'll take the Trojans here.
Thoughts from Pulley Jamboree and week 1
Labels:
Rashad Vaughn,
Reid Travis,
Tyus Jones
With Minnesota getting its annual late start, once again I decided to return to The Old Kingdom to start my season. 3 games last week with a surprisingly limited supply of food (no meals at games in Wisconsin) but a worthwhile week anyway. Here are some thoughts on what I saw.
Pulley Jamboree
The annual jamboree is amongst the best around and didn't disappoint this year. 2 sessions of 10 minutes each comprised the games. Many teams choose to use the last 5 minutes for their JV guys so the 1st half has far more meaning. As usual, the pizza was worth the purchase.
Game 1: Minneapolis South vs Braham. South won both sessions by scores of 19-16 and 23-7. Braham with their usual running of THE WORLD'S WORST OFFENSE. The big surprise here was how porous the Braham defense was. South did whatever they wanted getting to the rim, especially in the 2nd session.
Game 2: St. Thomas Academy vs Orono. The revamped Cadets won both sessions by scores of 17-16 and 14-11. Jalen Patterson impressive for the Cadets. St. Thomas longer and taller than expected.
Game 3: Rosemount vs Tartan. Tartan releasing the hounds as they blew out the Irish 26-9 in the 1st half. Brody Jackson getting easy buckets inside thanks to great ball movement from the Titans. Defensively Tartan showing the expected nastiness. They will be no fun to play against. Rosemount going with the dribble drive motion. They definitely have the guards to shoot it. Soph Logan Halvorsen looks like he'll be in the rotation after a nice spring and summer season. Rosemount won the 2nd half 18-9
Game 4: Columbia Heights vs Hill-Murray. Marshawn Wilson on the bench in street clothes for Hill-Murray was the big news of this game. Hill-Murray swept both halves 15-14 and 18-15.
Game 5: Osseo vs Cretin-Derham Hall. CDH featuring a young lineup with 3 sophs and without soph forward Jashon Cornell up front. Add in an off day from Sam Neumann against a bigtime opponent and you can guess the results. Ian Theisen had his way inside, Bridge Tusler controlled play and Osseo rolled out those role players. Orioles roll 23-14 and 27-13.
Game 6: Minnetonka vs Prior Lake. Coaching pals going at it in this one. No Andrew Grosz in the building for Minnetonka. That's a major loss at a guard spot. Prior Lake jumped out to a 13-1 lead in the 1st half. Backup center Jeff Probert with a pair of nice hooks inside during that run. Minnetonka would score the last 11 of the half but never got over the hump. With the benches seeing lots of time, Minnetonka took the 2nd half 12-7.
Game 7: Hopkins vs Holy Angels. No Charlie Koontz for the Stars. Hopkins steamrolled through the 1st half 27-4. Just way too much defense. People don't appreciate just how intense they are on that end. Totally different level than everybody else. Holy Angels kept the 2nd half close but lost 16-15.
Game 8: Park Center vs Cooper. Section rivals at it in this one. Quinton Hooker with a hot 1st half as the Pirates jumped out to a 16-2 lead. Park Center would win the half 24-15 behind 14 Hooker points. Rashad Vaughn showed all game he could get any place he wanted with the ball. He goes for 14 in the 2nd half including a 360 slam on the break. Lavar McCollough with a huge slam as well as it got out of hand. Cooper wins 2nd half 30-15.
Game 9: Apple Valley vs De La Salle
Tyus Jones with a quiet 1st half until a late dunk. He added a couple of clutch assists for 3s late in the 2nd half to seal that half. Apple Valley wins both halves by identical 18-13 scores. Reid Travis without a field goal. Soph Sacar Anim in the starting lineup and played well for the Islanders. Dustin Fronk struggled with his shot early but hit a pair of big 3s in the 2nd half for Apple Valley. Frosh Brock Bertram very active on the glass. Surprised he didn't start this one but I expect that to be remedied sooner rather than later.
The Week in Wisconsin
Earlier in the week I took in 3 games in Wisconsin. The JustAGame Fieldhouse in Wisconsin Dells may be known to some in Minnesota as it hosts a couple of nice AAU tournaments during the spring and summer. They use a showcase court for section play and this year's inaugural Iowa vs Wisconsin border battle. The actual games were absolutely dreadful as Wisconsin Dells pounded Racine Park 90-54 and Kimberly mauled Baraboo 72-16. SW MN State recruit MJ Delmore 24 of his 29 in the 1st half.
The start of the season was #8 Appleton West at #3 De Pere. This one will interest local fans as these teams both play in the border battle at Prior Lake on Feb 2nd. Its a tough road for them as the opponents are Hopkins and De La Salle. Appleton West star Jake Verhagen (Eastern Illinois recruit) struggled in the 1st half at 0-6 but came back to finish with 17 points and 8 rebounds. Lefty guard Matt Reader is a junior who is receiving low D1 looks and NSIC attention. He controlled the game and never changed his speed. Very impressive control of the game from him. Add in 24 points and that was enough for West to win 64-48 and they had the lead the entire way. Final score was worse than it appeared as it was a 40-36 game with 7 minutes left. De Pere's Adam Beyer is an Augustana recruit. He was held to 10 points. Soph shooting guard Brevin Pritzl is one to keep an eye on when he comes here. He had 15 points to lead the Redbirds.
De Pere didn't look good in the game but you can see they'll be a handful for opponents. You'll see 5 out action from them on offense with some wing ball screens. Defensively you'll see man but they also showed some 1-3-1 that I was surprised they didn't go back to late in the game. Appleton West is a 4 out motion team and will play man on defense.
Pulley Jamboree
The annual jamboree is amongst the best around and didn't disappoint this year. 2 sessions of 10 minutes each comprised the games. Many teams choose to use the last 5 minutes for their JV guys so the 1st half has far more meaning. As usual, the pizza was worth the purchase.
Game 1: Minneapolis South vs Braham. South won both sessions by scores of 19-16 and 23-7. Braham with their usual running of THE WORLD'S WORST OFFENSE. The big surprise here was how porous the Braham defense was. South did whatever they wanted getting to the rim, especially in the 2nd session.
Game 2: St. Thomas Academy vs Orono. The revamped Cadets won both sessions by scores of 17-16 and 14-11. Jalen Patterson impressive for the Cadets. St. Thomas longer and taller than expected.
Game 3: Rosemount vs Tartan. Tartan releasing the hounds as they blew out the Irish 26-9 in the 1st half. Brody Jackson getting easy buckets inside thanks to great ball movement from the Titans. Defensively Tartan showing the expected nastiness. They will be no fun to play against. Rosemount going with the dribble drive motion. They definitely have the guards to shoot it. Soph Logan Halvorsen looks like he'll be in the rotation after a nice spring and summer season. Rosemount won the 2nd half 18-9
Game 4: Columbia Heights vs Hill-Murray. Marshawn Wilson on the bench in street clothes for Hill-Murray was the big news of this game. Hill-Murray swept both halves 15-14 and 18-15.
Game 5: Osseo vs Cretin-Derham Hall. CDH featuring a young lineup with 3 sophs and without soph forward Jashon Cornell up front. Add in an off day from Sam Neumann against a bigtime opponent and you can guess the results. Ian Theisen had his way inside, Bridge Tusler controlled play and Osseo rolled out those role players. Orioles roll 23-14 and 27-13.
Game 6: Minnetonka vs Prior Lake. Coaching pals going at it in this one. No Andrew Grosz in the building for Minnetonka. That's a major loss at a guard spot. Prior Lake jumped out to a 13-1 lead in the 1st half. Backup center Jeff Probert with a pair of nice hooks inside during that run. Minnetonka would score the last 11 of the half but never got over the hump. With the benches seeing lots of time, Minnetonka took the 2nd half 12-7.
Game 7: Hopkins vs Holy Angels. No Charlie Koontz for the Stars. Hopkins steamrolled through the 1st half 27-4. Just way too much defense. People don't appreciate just how intense they are on that end. Totally different level than everybody else. Holy Angels kept the 2nd half close but lost 16-15.
Game 8: Park Center vs Cooper. Section rivals at it in this one. Quinton Hooker with a hot 1st half as the Pirates jumped out to a 16-2 lead. Park Center would win the half 24-15 behind 14 Hooker points. Rashad Vaughn showed all game he could get any place he wanted with the ball. He goes for 14 in the 2nd half including a 360 slam on the break. Lavar McCollough with a huge slam as well as it got out of hand. Cooper wins 2nd half 30-15.
Game 9: Apple Valley vs De La Salle
Tyus Jones with a quiet 1st half until a late dunk. He added a couple of clutch assists for 3s late in the 2nd half to seal that half. Apple Valley wins both halves by identical 18-13 scores. Reid Travis without a field goal. Soph Sacar Anim in the starting lineup and played well for the Islanders. Dustin Fronk struggled with his shot early but hit a pair of big 3s in the 2nd half for Apple Valley. Frosh Brock Bertram very active on the glass. Surprised he didn't start this one but I expect that to be remedied sooner rather than later.
The Week in Wisconsin
Earlier in the week I took in 3 games in Wisconsin. The JustAGame Fieldhouse in Wisconsin Dells may be known to some in Minnesota as it hosts a couple of nice AAU tournaments during the spring and summer. They use a showcase court for section play and this year's inaugural Iowa vs Wisconsin border battle. The actual games were absolutely dreadful as Wisconsin Dells pounded Racine Park 90-54 and Kimberly mauled Baraboo 72-16. SW MN State recruit MJ Delmore 24 of his 29 in the 1st half.
The start of the season was #8 Appleton West at #3 De Pere. This one will interest local fans as these teams both play in the border battle at Prior Lake on Feb 2nd. Its a tough road for them as the opponents are Hopkins and De La Salle. Appleton West star Jake Verhagen (Eastern Illinois recruit) struggled in the 1st half at 0-6 but came back to finish with 17 points and 8 rebounds. Lefty guard Matt Reader is a junior who is receiving low D1 looks and NSIC attention. He controlled the game and never changed his speed. Very impressive control of the game from him. Add in 24 points and that was enough for West to win 64-48 and they had the lead the entire way. Final score was worse than it appeared as it was a 40-36 game with 7 minutes left. De Pere's Adam Beyer is an Augustana recruit. He was held to 10 points. Soph shooting guard Brevin Pritzl is one to keep an eye on when he comes here. He had 15 points to lead the Redbirds.
De Pere didn't look good in the game but you can see they'll be a handful for opponents. You'll see 5 out action from them on offense with some wing ball screens. Defensively you'll see man but they also showed some 1-3-1 that I was surprised they didn't go back to late in the game. Appleton West is a 4 out motion team and will play man on defense.
What to watch for in the 2012-13 Season
Labels:
12-13 Season Previews,
Rashad Vaughn,
Reid Travis,
Tyus Jones
The Czar's 2012-2013 Season Preview Series concludes after 5 weeks and 25 previews. In this final preview let's condense everything for the casual fan. Its who to see, what to see, when and where to see it.
10 Teams You Should Watch
10 Players You Should See
10 Events You Should Attend (ordered by date)
Then a jam packed last month of the season. The Border Battle is stacked once again. Apple Valley vs Madison Memorial is the showcase game but there's lots more than that. I'll see Appleton West take on De Pere to open my season. That's a pair of Wisconsin conference favorites who will test their luck here against De La Salle and Hopkins in the Border Battle. Park Center at Osseo is a matchup that could finalize the NW Suburban championship. When these 2 district rivals get together the intensity is at a higher level. Unfortunately the 1st meeting at Park Center is the same night as Hopkins vs Apple Valley. Then a pair of teams expected to be in the top 10 in class A. Maranatha returns to the scene of last year's bounce out of the playoffs. This one could have major implications. The MCAA North Division title, top seed in the conference tourney and top seed in section 4A could all be on the line. If Apple Valley gets knocked off in league play it might just be at Prior Lake on Feb 26th. The Lakers gave Apple Valley all they wanted last year in both games. The point guard and post matchups are enough to make a fan drool. The inaugural Tri-Metro title game will likely feature a rematch of 2 of the best in class AAA, De La Salle and Blake. They also meet at Blake on Feb 12th in a game that will almost certainly determine the regular season champion.
10 Teams You Should Watch
- Apple Valley
- Hopkins
- De La Salle
- Osseo
- Edina
- Roseville
- Park Center
- Eden Prairie
- Blake
- Maranatha
10 Players You Should See
- Tyus Jones (Apple Valley)
- Rashad Vaughn (Cooper)
- Reid Travis (De La Salle)
- Anders Broman (Lakeview Christian)
- Riley Dearring (Minnetonka)
- Graham Woodward (Edina)
- Reggie Lynch (Edina)
- Quinton Hooker (Park Center)
- Brock Bertram (Apple Valley)
- Amir Coffey (Hopkins)
10 Events You Should Attend (ordered by date)
- Breakdown Tipoff Classic at Minnetonka- Dec 8th
- Hopkins at Apple Valley - Dec 18th
- Park Center at De La Salle - Jan 3rd
- Timberwolves Shootout - Jan 5th
- Super 60 Showcase at Heritage- Jan 26th
- Border Battle at Prior Lake- Feb 2nd
- Park Center at Osseo - Feb 5th
- Maranatha at Heritage - Feb 15th
- Apple Valley at Prior Lake - Feb 26th
- Tri-Metro Conference Tournament Championship - Mar 1st
Then a jam packed last month of the season. The Border Battle is stacked once again. Apple Valley vs Madison Memorial is the showcase game but there's lots more than that. I'll see Appleton West take on De Pere to open my season. That's a pair of Wisconsin conference favorites who will test their luck here against De La Salle and Hopkins in the Border Battle. Park Center at Osseo is a matchup that could finalize the NW Suburban championship. When these 2 district rivals get together the intensity is at a higher level. Unfortunately the 1st meeting at Park Center is the same night as Hopkins vs Apple Valley. Then a pair of teams expected to be in the top 10 in class A. Maranatha returns to the scene of last year's bounce out of the playoffs. This one could have major implications. The MCAA North Division title, top seed in the conference tourney and top seed in section 4A could all be on the line. If Apple Valley gets knocked off in league play it might just be at Prior Lake on Feb 26th. The Lakers gave Apple Valley all they wanted last year in both games. The point guard and post matchups are enough to make a fan drool. The inaugural Tri-Metro title game will likely feature a rematch of 2 of the best in class AAA, De La Salle and Blake. They also meet at Blake on Feb 12th in a game that will almost certainly determine the regular season champion.
12-13 Section 5AAAA Preview
Labels:
12-13 Season Previews,
Rashad Vaughn
This is the 22nd preview in my 2012-2013
season preview series. In this preview, a look at section 5AAAA. For a list of all
the season previews, click here.
Defending Champion: Osseo
Predicted Seeding
Sleeper: Robbinsdale Cooper. Anytime you have a top 20 kid in the country in Rashad Vaughn, that means a team can be dangerous. Cooper has plenty returning around him. Remember that the Hawks knocked off Park Center on the road last year in the opening round 2 vs 7 game. If this group puts it together, don't be shocked to see a run at tourney time.
Section Winner: Osseo. The Orioles return leadership and clutch play from Bridge Tusler. They have a quality post in Ian Theisen. They'll have a scorer in Wheeler Baker. Add in plenty of supporting pieces and the Orioles have to be the favorite until beaten.
Defending Champion: Osseo
Predicted Seeding
- Osseo
- Park Center
- Champlin Park
- Centennial
- Robbinsdale Cooper
- Maple Grove
- Irondale
- Coon Rapids
Sleeper: Robbinsdale Cooper. Anytime you have a top 20 kid in the country in Rashad Vaughn, that means a team can be dangerous. Cooper has plenty returning around him. Remember that the Hawks knocked off Park Center on the road last year in the opening round 2 vs 7 game. If this group puts it together, don't be shocked to see a run at tourney time.
Section Winner: Osseo. The Orioles return leadership and clutch play from Bridge Tusler. They have a quality post in Ian Theisen. They'll have a scorer in Wheeler Baker. Add in plenty of supporting pieces and the Orioles have to be the favorite until beaten.
2012-13 North Suburban Preview
Labels:
12-13 Season Previews,
Rashad Vaughn
My 2012-2013 season preview series continues with the seventh preview
in the series. In this preview, we'll take a look at the North Suburban
Conference. For a list of all the season previews, click here.
Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights (2011-12 season 27-2, 16-0 Conference, 1st)
The Red Knights lose 3 players to the D1 rankings including sharpshooting Isaiah Zierden (Creighton), versatile forward Sanjay Lumpkin (Northwestern) and forward Will Dunn (IPFW). Seniors Isaiah Gray, Breion Creer, Danon Briggs and Joe Heck also depart. The entire roster needs to be rebuilt. Armstrong transfer Jayson Edwards is a lightning quick sophomore point guard that will lead the way. Senior guard Sam Hafermann is the top returnee from last year.
Chisago Lakes Wildcats (2011-2012 season 6-22, 3-13 Conference, 9th)
Former Hill-Murray head man Chris Gargaro takes over the program. He was most recently a Tartan and Henry Sibley assistant. Leading scorer Per Gulbranson's 13 points a night need to be replaced. Scorers 2, 3 and 4 return. Vinnie Gorski's 8.6 points a game tops the returning players.
Columbia Heights Hylanders (2011-12 season 12-13, 9-7 Conference, Tied 5th)
Top scorer and worker Jordan Mills departs with his almost 15 points per game. The roster is full of perimeter players. Deon Stanstad returns at 12.9 PPG. Kalante Logan and Dominique Galloway also return. Long and bouncy Christian Esko will man the middle.
Fridley Tigers (2011-12 season 12-14, 6-10 Conference, 8th)
Guard Nate Geving and 15.3 points per game need to be replaced. Fellow guard Michael Murray averaged double figures and should pick up a big chunk of that. He's the only returning starter. Amane Akane, Matt Duehn and Nathen Opare-Addo came off the bench last season and should jump into the starting lineup this year.
Irondale Knights (2011-12 season 14-13, 9-7 Conference, Tied 5th)
The Knights have to replace a trio of guards who all averaged double figures and combined for 35 points a night. Leading scorer Jack Martinek returns after scoring 16.5 per night. He'll get help up front from Ben Ojika. 3 others from the rotation also depart so plenty to replace for the Knights.
North Branch Vikings (2011-12 season 3-24, 0-16 Conference, 11th)
The Vikings lose Tom Kinsella who led the team in scoring at 10.7 a night. Plenty of youth returns with double figure scorer Travis VanElsburg leading that list. Fellow juniors Dylan Dahle and Brandon Thauwald also return. Senior Cody Knobbe is the top senior returning.
Robbinsdale Cooper Hawks (2011-12 season 12-16, 7-9 Conference, 7th)
The Hawks lost 5 of their last 6 to end a disappointing regular season and fall all the way to the 7th seed. But they went on the road and knocked off 2 seed Park Center to start the playoffs. That was likely a large factor in coach Dave Johnson not being retained. Assistant Steve Burton takes over this season. Uber-talented Rashad Vaughn (a top 20 player in 2014 nationally) averaged just under 26 points a game last year. But no one else averaged double figures and the team was below .500 to finish in the bottom half of the league. Wing Eric Brown will be missed but most of the rest of the roster is back. That includes guards Leroy Taylor and Billy Kellogg. Transfer Troy May looks to join that rotation as well. Forwards Lavar McCollough, Darrious Denson and Curtis Shelby all return.
St. Francis Saints (2011-12 season 9-18, 3-13 Conference, 10th)
Their only double figure scorer Andy Julkowski departs after scoring over 15 points per night. Center Jake Johnson showed great improvement over the summer. He just missed out on double figures last year. That won't happen this year for the top returning big man in the league.
St. Louis Park Orioles (2011-12 season 14-13, 10-6 Conference, 4th)
The Orioles return everybody from last year's roster and they add Jeffrey Bonds from De La Salle. Point guard Kashif Hayes is a perfect fit for their dribble drive offense. He topped the scoring list at over 17 per night. Wing DJ Pollard gives them scoring at 15+ and defense. Mahki Moore also averaged double figures. Zach Gilbert-Burke gives them production inside.
Spring Lake Park Panthers (2011-12 season 23-6, 13-3 Conference, 2nd)
Last year's star Sean Scott departs after averaging over 24 points a game and many highlights every night. Guard Bryce Williams averaged almost 20 points a game. That's a ton to be replaced. The next 3 scorers do return. Forward Robert Ben is an athletic front court presence. Guard TC Robinson has the ability to score in bunches. Guard Gary Cook and center Justin Axelson also figure to be in the rotation.
Totino-Grace Eagles (2011-12 season 16-12, 12-4 Conference, 3rd)
The conference schedule was impressive last year for coach Kevin Seim's Eagles. This year all 5 starters need to be replaced. That includes the inside out duo of 6'9 left tackle Nick Carr and shooting guard Sam Meyer. Forward Andy Moritko also departs after averaging double figures. Juniors Reggie Meyer on the wing and sniper Colin Fleming at the point figure to make big contributions.
Predicted Order of Finish
Its the final year in the league for the northern tier of North Branch, Chisago Lakes and St. Francis. They'll move to the east division of the Mississippi 8 next season. In a rare feat of conference realignment, I see that as a positive for both parties. Better competitive balance for the northern schools. For the holdovers, its a nice 8 team league with all metro teams. St. Louis Park and Cooper will be athletic and talented. The teams combine to play 11 of their last 12 games of the season at home. St. Louis Park only plays Spring Lake Park once which is a major help to their title hopes. The rest of the league sees major losses so top to bottom I see a down year overall for the conference.
Conference MVP: Rashad Vaughn - Cooper
Underclassmen to watch:
Jarrette Baptiste - Columbia Heights
Blake Moreno - St. Francis
Adam Buirge - Totino-Grace
Conference Games to Watch
Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights (2011-12 season 27-2, 16-0 Conference, 1st)
The Red Knights lose 3 players to the D1 rankings including sharpshooting Isaiah Zierden (Creighton), versatile forward Sanjay Lumpkin (Northwestern) and forward Will Dunn (IPFW). Seniors Isaiah Gray, Breion Creer, Danon Briggs and Joe Heck also depart. The entire roster needs to be rebuilt. Armstrong transfer Jayson Edwards is a lightning quick sophomore point guard that will lead the way. Senior guard Sam Hafermann is the top returnee from last year.
Chisago Lakes Wildcats (2011-2012 season 6-22, 3-13 Conference, 9th)
Former Hill-Murray head man Chris Gargaro takes over the program. He was most recently a Tartan and Henry Sibley assistant. Leading scorer Per Gulbranson's 13 points a night need to be replaced. Scorers 2, 3 and 4 return. Vinnie Gorski's 8.6 points a game tops the returning players.
Columbia Heights Hylanders (2011-12 season 12-13, 9-7 Conference, Tied 5th)
Top scorer and worker Jordan Mills departs with his almost 15 points per game. The roster is full of perimeter players. Deon Stanstad returns at 12.9 PPG. Kalante Logan and Dominique Galloway also return. Long and bouncy Christian Esko will man the middle.
Fridley Tigers (2011-12 season 12-14, 6-10 Conference, 8th)
Guard Nate Geving and 15.3 points per game need to be replaced. Fellow guard Michael Murray averaged double figures and should pick up a big chunk of that. He's the only returning starter. Amane Akane, Matt Duehn and Nathen Opare-Addo came off the bench last season and should jump into the starting lineup this year.
Irondale Knights (2011-12 season 14-13, 9-7 Conference, Tied 5th)
The Knights have to replace a trio of guards who all averaged double figures and combined for 35 points a night. Leading scorer Jack Martinek returns after scoring 16.5 per night. He'll get help up front from Ben Ojika. 3 others from the rotation also depart so plenty to replace for the Knights.
North Branch Vikings (2011-12 season 3-24, 0-16 Conference, 11th)
The Vikings lose Tom Kinsella who led the team in scoring at 10.7 a night. Plenty of youth returns with double figure scorer Travis VanElsburg leading that list. Fellow juniors Dylan Dahle and Brandon Thauwald also return. Senior Cody Knobbe is the top senior returning.
Robbinsdale Cooper Hawks (2011-12 season 12-16, 7-9 Conference, 7th)
The Hawks lost 5 of their last 6 to end a disappointing regular season and fall all the way to the 7th seed. But they went on the road and knocked off 2 seed Park Center to start the playoffs. That was likely a large factor in coach Dave Johnson not being retained. Assistant Steve Burton takes over this season. Uber-talented Rashad Vaughn (a top 20 player in 2014 nationally) averaged just under 26 points a game last year. But no one else averaged double figures and the team was below .500 to finish in the bottom half of the league. Wing Eric Brown will be missed but most of the rest of the roster is back. That includes guards Leroy Taylor and Billy Kellogg. Transfer Troy May looks to join that rotation as well. Forwards Lavar McCollough, Darrious Denson and Curtis Shelby all return.
St. Francis Saints (2011-12 season 9-18, 3-13 Conference, 10th)
Their only double figure scorer Andy Julkowski departs after scoring over 15 points per night. Center Jake Johnson showed great improvement over the summer. He just missed out on double figures last year. That won't happen this year for the top returning big man in the league.
St. Louis Park Orioles (2011-12 season 14-13, 10-6 Conference, 4th)
The Orioles return everybody from last year's roster and they add Jeffrey Bonds from De La Salle. Point guard Kashif Hayes is a perfect fit for their dribble drive offense. He topped the scoring list at over 17 per night. Wing DJ Pollard gives them scoring at 15+ and defense. Mahki Moore also averaged double figures. Zach Gilbert-Burke gives them production inside.
Spring Lake Park Panthers (2011-12 season 23-6, 13-3 Conference, 2nd)
Last year's star Sean Scott departs after averaging over 24 points a game and many highlights every night. Guard Bryce Williams averaged almost 20 points a game. That's a ton to be replaced. The next 3 scorers do return. Forward Robert Ben is an athletic front court presence. Guard TC Robinson has the ability to score in bunches. Guard Gary Cook and center Justin Axelson also figure to be in the rotation.
Totino-Grace Eagles (2011-12 season 16-12, 12-4 Conference, 3rd)
The conference schedule was impressive last year for coach Kevin Seim's Eagles. This year all 5 starters need to be replaced. That includes the inside out duo of 6'9 left tackle Nick Carr and shooting guard Sam Meyer. Forward Andy Moritko also departs after averaging double figures. Juniors Reggie Meyer on the wing and sniper Colin Fleming at the point figure to make big contributions.
Predicted Order of Finish
- St. Louis Park
- Robbinsdale Cooper
- Spring Lake Park
- Columbia Heights
- Totino-Grace
- Benilde-St. Margaret's
- Irondale
- Fridley
- St. Francis
- Chisago Lakes
- North Branch
Its the final year in the league for the northern tier of North Branch, Chisago Lakes and St. Francis. They'll move to the east division of the Mississippi 8 next season. In a rare feat of conference realignment, I see that as a positive for both parties. Better competitive balance for the northern schools. For the holdovers, its a nice 8 team league with all metro teams. St. Louis Park and Cooper will be athletic and talented. The teams combine to play 11 of their last 12 games of the season at home. St. Louis Park only plays Spring Lake Park once which is a major help to their title hopes. The rest of the league sees major losses so top to bottom I see a down year overall for the conference.
Conference MVP: Rashad Vaughn - Cooper
Underclassmen to watch:
Jarrette Baptiste - Columbia Heights
Blake Moreno - St. Francis
Adam Buirge - Totino-Grace
Conference Games to Watch
- Spring Lake Park at St. Louis Park - Jan 18th
- St. Louis Park at Cooper - Feb 1st
- Cooper at Spring Lake Park - Feb 5th
- Cooper at St. Louis Park - Feb 26th
- Spring Lake Park at Cooper - Mar 1st
- St. Louis Park at Chaska - Nov 30th
- Apple Valley at St. Louis Park - Dec 4th
- St. Paul Central at St. Louis Park - Dec 11th
- Cooper at Maranatha - Dec 18th
- St. Louis Park at Edina tournament - Dec 27-28th
- Cooper at Hopkins - Jan 4th
- Cooper vs Apple Valley - Jan 5th (Timberwolves Shootout)
- St. Louis Park at Minneapolis Washburn - Jan 12th
- Minneapolis Henry at Cooper - Feb 8th
The Big Weekend Preview
Labels:
Rashad Vaughn,
The Big Weekend 2012
The biggest weekend in Minnesota basketball history comes to town this weekend. Nike brings their EYBL to town at High Performance Academy in Eagan. It'll be very interesting to see how the setup there works with all of the fans, coaches and media. IM BBall has the lesser 17s and the 15s/16s from that division. That's at Bursnville and Eastview. NY2LA looks to cash in as they add to their list of tournaments by adding an event here this weekend. They'll take over Hopkins and Minnetonka. Then there's the annual Best Buy Spring Classic in Bloomington. Here's what catches my eye.
Best Buy Spring Classic
Most Interesting Pool Matchup: SW MN Stars 16s vs MN Pump N Run 16s- 1:10 PM Saturday Court 5 Jefferson.
I'm hoping Ishmael Wainright rejoins the 76ers for the tournament. He was the leader for a club that swept the late period last July by winning the Fab 48 in Las Vegas and The Best of Summer in Los Angeles. The Michigan Hurricanes return to the cities with star forward Byron Ziegler. Team Nebraska Express also returns after losing last year's Best Buy Summer Classic title game in double overtime. Traditionally strong Team Breakdown from Florida makes the trip in. The Wisconsin Jets make the trip in as a next kid on the block but they've picked up some nice talent in kids like Tim Wagner who played here with Gale-Ettrick-Trempeleau last fall and winter.
I'm hoping for a tNBA vs Pump N Run final in the 15U bracket on Sunday at 1:40. tNBA might have to go through the top Fury team in the quarters though to do it. In the 16s could get a Fury Grosz vs PNR semifinal. EOTO with a tough pool on the other side of the bracket. In the 17s I absolutely love the bracket format with the big games on Friday night. Pump N Run vs KC 76ers (Travis vs Wainright?, that would be cool), Fury Davis vs Team Nebraska Express, Omaha Crusaders vs Iowa PNR-Henderson, Illinois Warriors vs Team Breakdown highlight that schedule.
EYBL/IM BBall
No less than 30 of the top players in 2013 are expected at the 1st session of the EYBL. No surprise then that it also means you have some of the most talented teams in the country. That list begins with the Oakland Soldiers and star Aaron Gordon. The 2014 talent is loaded with Andrew Wiggins, Jahil Okafor, Trey Lyles and D'Angelo Russell. Oh yeah and some kid named Tyus Jones too.
Howard Pulley has 4 games all outside their pool, highest profile should be vs Jackson Tigers on Saturday night at 6:30 on court 2. Kyle Washington not eligible for the EYBL but he will play in the 17U division of the IM BBall event with the 2nd team. Might be the only chance to see him with Pulley in true AAU ball. This group is loaded at 15s/16s with the Nike teams. Minnesota Cyclones, Mokan Elite, Playground Elite, CIA Bounce and top Pulley team (along with the remains of my old 14U team) all in the top 15U division. Similar criminal level of talent in the 16U field.
NY2LA Spring Extravaganza
Best Pool Matchup: KC Run GMC vs Wisconsin Swing - 1:50 PM Saturday Court 3 Hopkins.
Must See Game: Wisconsin Playmakers White vs Net Gain - Friday 7:10 Hopkins Court 4
Crazy Schedule Game: ECI vs 43 Hoops in a pool rematch of last week's quarterfinal in St. Cloud
Top Minnesota Players:
Riley Dearring and Rashad Vaughn - Net Gain
Carson Shanks and Jon Sobaski - Minnesota Select White
2013 Top Players:
Connor Frankamp - KC Run GMC
Luke Fischer, Nick Fuller and Bronson Koenig - Wisconsin Swing
Turner Botz, Toby Hegner and Matt Thomas - Wisconsin Playmakers White
Deonte Burton - TP Elite
2014 Top Players:
Emanuel Mudiay - Texas Select
Kevon Looney - Milwaukee Rebels
Dominique Collier - KC Run GMC
Best Buy Spring Classic
Most Interesting Pool Matchup: SW MN Stars 16s vs MN Pump N Run 16s- 1:10 PM Saturday Court 5 Jefferson.
I'm hoping Ishmael Wainright rejoins the 76ers for the tournament. He was the leader for a club that swept the late period last July by winning the Fab 48 in Las Vegas and The Best of Summer in Los Angeles. The Michigan Hurricanes return to the cities with star forward Byron Ziegler. Team Nebraska Express also returns after losing last year's Best Buy Summer Classic title game in double overtime. Traditionally strong Team Breakdown from Florida makes the trip in. The Wisconsin Jets make the trip in as a next kid on the block but they've picked up some nice talent in kids like Tim Wagner who played here with Gale-Ettrick-Trempeleau last fall and winter.
I'm hoping for a tNBA vs Pump N Run final in the 15U bracket on Sunday at 1:40. tNBA might have to go through the top Fury team in the quarters though to do it. In the 16s could get a Fury Grosz vs PNR semifinal. EOTO with a tough pool on the other side of the bracket. In the 17s I absolutely love the bracket format with the big games on Friday night. Pump N Run vs KC 76ers (Travis vs Wainright?, that would be cool), Fury Davis vs Team Nebraska Express, Omaha Crusaders vs Iowa PNR-Henderson, Illinois Warriors vs Team Breakdown highlight that schedule.
EYBL/IM BBall
No less than 30 of the top players in 2013 are expected at the 1st session of the EYBL. No surprise then that it also means you have some of the most talented teams in the country. That list begins with the Oakland Soldiers and star Aaron Gordon. The 2014 talent is loaded with Andrew Wiggins, Jahil Okafor, Trey Lyles and D'Angelo Russell. Oh yeah and some kid named Tyus Jones too.
Howard Pulley has 4 games all outside their pool, highest profile should be vs Jackson Tigers on Saturday night at 6:30 on court 2. Kyle Washington not eligible for the EYBL but he will play in the 17U division of the IM BBall event with the 2nd team. Might be the only chance to see him with Pulley in true AAU ball. This group is loaded at 15s/16s with the Nike teams. Minnesota Cyclones, Mokan Elite, Playground Elite, CIA Bounce and top Pulley team (along with the remains of my old 14U team) all in the top 15U division. Similar criminal level of talent in the 16U field.
NY2LA Spring Extravaganza
Best Pool Matchup: KC Run GMC vs Wisconsin Swing - 1:50 PM Saturday Court 3 Hopkins.
Must See Game: Wisconsin Playmakers White vs Net Gain - Friday 7:10 Hopkins Court 4
Crazy Schedule Game: ECI vs 43 Hoops in a pool rematch of last week's quarterfinal in St. Cloud
Top Minnesota Players:
Riley Dearring and Rashad Vaughn - Net Gain
Carson Shanks and Jon Sobaski - Minnesota Select White
2013 Top Players:
Connor Frankamp - KC Run GMC
Luke Fischer, Nick Fuller and Bronson Koenig - Wisconsin Swing
Turner Botz, Toby Hegner and Matt Thomas - Wisconsin Playmakers White
Deonte Burton - TP Elite
2014 Top Players:
Emanuel Mudiay - Texas Select
Kevon Looney - Milwaukee Rebels
Dominique Collier - KC Run GMC
2012 Section 5AAAA Semifinals
Labels:
Rashad Vaughn
Prologue
Its off to Rogers and the theater seating for the 5AAAA section finals. Its a pair of defending section champs in game 1 and an upstart with a star looking for another upset in game 2. Mediocre hot dog as the pizza wasn't ready yet. I had to resist the temptation to have the mini donuts. Quality music on the public address and from the Cooper pep band. Nothing like 50 Cent for the introductions. Find me in the gym.
Game 1: #1 Osseo vs #4 Maple Grove
The first half was all about Bridge Tusler of Osseo. He drives for back to back buckets for a 9-6 Orioles lead. Then Tusler for 3 after Maple Grove reclaimed the lead on a Bryce Wojta 3 at the 9:35 mark. Tusler drives and finishes on the left side with left hand. Lets add 2 more on the block.. 23-19 Osseo at the 4:28 mark and Tusler has 15 of those 23. Soph star post Ian Theisen with a pair of free throws on a post up and another post bucket to push the lead to 9 inside a minute to play in the half. Jake Weineke drives for 2 and Grant Kaufman knocks down a 3 to cut the Osseo lead to 31-27 at the half. Tusler with 17 points.
Maple Grove would cut the lead to 2 before a pair of Tusler buckets started an 8-0 run. 41-31 Osseo with 15:20 to play. Pick and roll for Theisen to convert on the reverse layup and he blocks a shot that leads to a Tusler bucket. DJ Hebert drains a 3 and the total run is 17-5. 50-36 Osseo with 12:35 to play. Maple Grove would cut the lead to 8 with 5:40 remaining. Wojta with a nice cut for a layup and reserve post Erik Olson with a putback to end that run. But Maple Grove would not threaten from there. Orioles move on to the section final with a 67-59 win. Bridge Tusler leads all scorers with 29 points. No answer for his strength and getting to the rim. Ian Theisen 15 points and 8 boards going up against the big body of Bemidji State recruit Dan Lochner. Jake Weineke leads Maple Grove with 14.
Game 2: #3 Champlin Park vs #7 Robbinsdale Cooper
Cooper looks in great shape early as Rashad Vaughn scores on a turnover and a jumper. 10-2 Hawks at the 14:14 mark (10-0 run after giving up opening bucket). Vaughn to new starting center Curtis Shelby for 2 and then Vaughn scores after an Eric Brown steal and leaks out on a loose ball for a dunk. 16-9 Hawks at the 11:25 mark and Vaughn has 8. Shelby and Vaughn with another basket each as the lead grows to 22-11 at the 8:25 mark. Champlin Park makes a comeback behind back center Brennan Witt, a sophomore. He scores 8 points in the next 5 minutes as the Rebels cut the lead to 4. Vaughn and Shelby with buckets again. Cooper stretches the lead back to 7, 29-22 at halftime.
Trevor Garrison again had the task of trying to slow Vaughn down but he scores 6 quick points to start the half. Cooper's lead cut to 31-30 with 15:18 to play. Vaughn's pair of free throws with 12:18 left pushes the lead back to 5, 37-32. Witt and Garrison add buckets and with Vaughn changing jerseys on the bench (blood), Anthony Hill goes to the headfake and nails the jumper in the lane for a 38-37 Champlin Park lead. That's their 1st lead since the opening basket. Vaughn returns at the 9:50 mark but Cooper has 6 guys on the floor. That's a technical with the Hawks clinging to a 39-38 lead. It would be their last lead. The Rebels miss both free throws but Hill converts on the possession and then buries a 3. Champlin Park misses back to back front ends but Cooper can't score. Witt comes back and gets the switch on the cross screen. The high-low feed nets him 2 free throws with 5:12 left. 45-39 Champlin Park with the lead after a 13-2 run in 7 minutes. Witt with a nice block on Vaughn and the crowd thought he got Vaughn again but Vaughn makes 2 free throws on the foul. 2:50 left and the Rebels lead 45-41. Rebels hold and make 1 free throw. The Hawks miss a front end. By the time Vaughn makes his first field goal of the half at the 1:07 mark its nothing more than a foul shooting contest. Champlin Park wins 56-48 and will face Osseo for the section title on Friday. The Rebels hold Cooper to 12 points in the first 16:53 of the half. Anthony Hill leads Champlin Park with 18 points. Soph Brennan Witt played very well inside and got the 2nd half start for his play. He finishes with 14 points. Rashad Vaughn leads Cooper with 21 points and 8 rebounds but he was held down in the 2nd half. 5 of his points were in the last 1:07 after the outcome was fairly certain. Nice to see Curtis Shelby rewarded with the start tonight after his solid performance off the bench in the win over Park Center.
Its off to Rogers and the theater seating for the 5AAAA section finals. Its a pair of defending section champs in game 1 and an upstart with a star looking for another upset in game 2. Mediocre hot dog as the pizza wasn't ready yet. I had to resist the temptation to have the mini donuts. Quality music on the public address and from the Cooper pep band. Nothing like 50 Cent for the introductions. Find me in the gym.
Game 1: #1 Osseo vs #4 Maple Grove
The first half was all about Bridge Tusler of Osseo. He drives for back to back buckets for a 9-6 Orioles lead. Then Tusler for 3 after Maple Grove reclaimed the lead on a Bryce Wojta 3 at the 9:35 mark. Tusler drives and finishes on the left side with left hand. Lets add 2 more on the block.. 23-19 Osseo at the 4:28 mark and Tusler has 15 of those 23. Soph star post Ian Theisen with a pair of free throws on a post up and another post bucket to push the lead to 9 inside a minute to play in the half. Jake Weineke drives for 2 and Grant Kaufman knocks down a 3 to cut the Osseo lead to 31-27 at the half. Tusler with 17 points.
Maple Grove would cut the lead to 2 before a pair of Tusler buckets started an 8-0 run. 41-31 Osseo with 15:20 to play. Pick and roll for Theisen to convert on the reverse layup and he blocks a shot that leads to a Tusler bucket. DJ Hebert drains a 3 and the total run is 17-5. 50-36 Osseo with 12:35 to play. Maple Grove would cut the lead to 8 with 5:40 remaining. Wojta with a nice cut for a layup and reserve post Erik Olson with a putback to end that run. But Maple Grove would not threaten from there. Orioles move on to the section final with a 67-59 win. Bridge Tusler leads all scorers with 29 points. No answer for his strength and getting to the rim. Ian Theisen 15 points and 8 boards going up against the big body of Bemidji State recruit Dan Lochner. Jake Weineke leads Maple Grove with 14.
Game 2: #3 Champlin Park vs #7 Robbinsdale Cooper
Cooper looks in great shape early as Rashad Vaughn scores on a turnover and a jumper. 10-2 Hawks at the 14:14 mark (10-0 run after giving up opening bucket). Vaughn to new starting center Curtis Shelby for 2 and then Vaughn scores after an Eric Brown steal and leaks out on a loose ball for a dunk. 16-9 Hawks at the 11:25 mark and Vaughn has 8. Shelby and Vaughn with another basket each as the lead grows to 22-11 at the 8:25 mark. Champlin Park makes a comeback behind back center Brennan Witt, a sophomore. He scores 8 points in the next 5 minutes as the Rebels cut the lead to 4. Vaughn and Shelby with buckets again. Cooper stretches the lead back to 7, 29-22 at halftime.
Trevor Garrison again had the task of trying to slow Vaughn down but he scores 6 quick points to start the half. Cooper's lead cut to 31-30 with 15:18 to play. Vaughn's pair of free throws with 12:18 left pushes the lead back to 5, 37-32. Witt and Garrison add buckets and with Vaughn changing jerseys on the bench (blood), Anthony Hill goes to the headfake and nails the jumper in the lane for a 38-37 Champlin Park lead. That's their 1st lead since the opening basket. Vaughn returns at the 9:50 mark but Cooper has 6 guys on the floor. That's a technical with the Hawks clinging to a 39-38 lead. It would be their last lead. The Rebels miss both free throws but Hill converts on the possession and then buries a 3. Champlin Park misses back to back front ends but Cooper can't score. Witt comes back and gets the switch on the cross screen. The high-low feed nets him 2 free throws with 5:12 left. 45-39 Champlin Park with the lead after a 13-2 run in 7 minutes. Witt with a nice block on Vaughn and the crowd thought he got Vaughn again but Vaughn makes 2 free throws on the foul. 2:50 left and the Rebels lead 45-41. Rebels hold and make 1 free throw. The Hawks miss a front end. By the time Vaughn makes his first field goal of the half at the 1:07 mark its nothing more than a foul shooting contest. Champlin Park wins 56-48 and will face Osseo for the section title on Friday. The Rebels hold Cooper to 12 points in the first 16:53 of the half. Anthony Hill leads Champlin Park with 18 points. Soph Brennan Witt played very well inside and got the 2nd half start for his play. He finishes with 14 points. Rashad Vaughn leads Cooper with 21 points and 8 rebounds but he was held down in the 2nd half. 5 of his points were in the last 1:07 after the outcome was fairly certain. Nice to see Curtis Shelby rewarded with the start tonight after his solid performance off the bench in the win over Park Center.
Vaughn leads Hawks to upset
Labels:
Rashad Vaughn
Prologue
Off to Park Center to the 2nd seeded Pirates take on a natural rival that they should play more in 7th seed Robbinsdale Cooper. Outstanding Walking Taco done in a plastic salad tin. As much as the concept of the bag is important, having the tin does make it much easier to deal with. Late entry for the crowd but we do have the always loud Park Center student section.
Game Time
Quinton Hooker in the lineup but he missed the last 2 days of school due to illness so we'll see how he does. His coast to coast dash and lefty finish puts Park Center up 7-4 at the 15:10 mark. Then Cooper goes on a big run. Rashad Vaughn with the nice left to right spin for 2 and another layup. He adds 2 free throws after a Leroy Taylor 3. The total run is 17-0 in 5:45. 21-7 Hawks at the 9:10 mark. Vaughn banks in a 3 as everything seems to be for the Hawks on this night. He adds 2 more free throws to keep the lead at 14. Vaughn then drives for 2 and finds backup center Curtis Shelby for 2 more. Taylor makes both ends of the bonus and the lead is 35-19 at the 3:54 mark. The Pirates counter with an 11-2 run before the half. Treyton Daniels with 4 free throws to start the run, adds 1 of 2 more from the foul line vs the 3-2 zone and an easy 2 handed follow dunk to end the run just before the half. 39-30 Cooper at the break.
Hooker held down in the 1st half and at times he looked winded. But he came out ready to play in the 2nd half. He makes back to back jumpers to cut the lead to 7. Then Vaughn to Shelby again for a layup. That's after an extra pass nets a wide open 3 for the Hawks. 48-36 Cooper with 15:19 to play as they take the Momentum Killer timeout. Daniels with a free throw and a putback. Then Hooker for 3 and a Josh Matthews 3 point play. Park Center right back in the game down 50-45 with 12:49 left after a 9-2 run. Cooper goes 1-3 from the charity stripe before Josh Matthews makes a pair of freebies to cut the lead to 4.
Then Vaughn and Hooker go after it. Vaughn spins for 2, Hooker puts back his own miss, Vaughn slices his way to the basket for 2. Good body control to avoid the charge. Hooker to Daniels for a layup cutting down the lane after hanging in the air on the baseline under the basket. 55-51 Cooper with 10:27 left. Vaughn with a tip and another Taylor 3 to end a 7-2 spurt. 62-53 Hawks with 7:25 left. Pirates won't go away. Daniels for 2, Hooker with a pair of free throws. Then Hooker fouled off the ball while Isaiah McKay was in the act of shooting a 3. He doesn't get it off before the whistle but he was in the act so score that 3 and Hooker will shoot the 1 and 1. Strange play but upon further review that is the correct rules interpretation. He makes 1 of those 2 free throws to cut the Hawks lead to 64-61 with 5:14 left. Daniels with another putback and the lead is down to 2. Cooper turns it over and Park Center can't convert going the other way with a chance to tie. 4:34 left 65-63 Cooper lead and Hooker goes down with cramps but he'll stay in and gut it out. Vaughn to Shelby to the kick out to Billy Kellogg for the left corner 3. McKay with another 3 to counter that. Shelby with a putback and the lead is back to 4. 70-66 Hawks 2:55 left. That was the last gasp from the Pirates. Josh Matthews banks in a 3 with 42 seconds left to cut the margin to 5. Cooper pulls the upset 79-69.
Post Game
For Park Center, they finish the season at 18-9. They were definitely better than I expected. Its a roster with no seniors, plenty of athletes, enough size, a star in Hooker and a nice complementary piece in Daniels. No reason why the Pirates can't be at least a 2 seed next season. Treyton Daniels leads with 21 points. Quinton Hooker 18 points and a handful of assists. Josh Matthews 16 points.
For Cooper, they advance to face 3 seed Champlin Park next Tuesday at Rogers and I'll be there for that. That's a rematch of a Dec 29th meeting at Bethel that Champlin Park won 62-52 (I covered that game here). They improve to 12-15. Rashad Vaughn leads all scorers with 24 points. He added 10 rebounds and at least 3 assists on 8-17 shooting, 7-8 from the foul line. Not just the Vaughn show tonight as there was great balance. The Hawks add 4 other players in double figures. Center Curtis Shelby off the bench with 14, Eric Brown and Leroy Taylor 12 each and Billy Kellogg with 11 off the bench. 25-0 in bench points for the Hawks.
Off to Park Center to the 2nd seeded Pirates take on a natural rival that they should play more in 7th seed Robbinsdale Cooper. Outstanding Walking Taco done in a plastic salad tin. As much as the concept of the bag is important, having the tin does make it much easier to deal with. Late entry for the crowd but we do have the always loud Park Center student section.
Game Time
Quinton Hooker in the lineup but he missed the last 2 days of school due to illness so we'll see how he does. His coast to coast dash and lefty finish puts Park Center up 7-4 at the 15:10 mark. Then Cooper goes on a big run. Rashad Vaughn with the nice left to right spin for 2 and another layup. He adds 2 free throws after a Leroy Taylor 3. The total run is 17-0 in 5:45. 21-7 Hawks at the 9:10 mark. Vaughn banks in a 3 as everything seems to be for the Hawks on this night. He adds 2 more free throws to keep the lead at 14. Vaughn then drives for 2 and finds backup center Curtis Shelby for 2 more. Taylor makes both ends of the bonus and the lead is 35-19 at the 3:54 mark. The Pirates counter with an 11-2 run before the half. Treyton Daniels with 4 free throws to start the run, adds 1 of 2 more from the foul line vs the 3-2 zone and an easy 2 handed follow dunk to end the run just before the half. 39-30 Cooper at the break.
Hooker held down in the 1st half and at times he looked winded. But he came out ready to play in the 2nd half. He makes back to back jumpers to cut the lead to 7. Then Vaughn to Shelby again for a layup. That's after an extra pass nets a wide open 3 for the Hawks. 48-36 Cooper with 15:19 to play as they take the Momentum Killer timeout. Daniels with a free throw and a putback. Then Hooker for 3 and a Josh Matthews 3 point play. Park Center right back in the game down 50-45 with 12:49 left after a 9-2 run. Cooper goes 1-3 from the charity stripe before Josh Matthews makes a pair of freebies to cut the lead to 4.
Then Vaughn and Hooker go after it. Vaughn spins for 2, Hooker puts back his own miss, Vaughn slices his way to the basket for 2. Good body control to avoid the charge. Hooker to Daniels for a layup cutting down the lane after hanging in the air on the baseline under the basket. 55-51 Cooper with 10:27 left. Vaughn with a tip and another Taylor 3 to end a 7-2 spurt. 62-53 Hawks with 7:25 left. Pirates won't go away. Daniels for 2, Hooker with a pair of free throws. Then Hooker fouled off the ball while Isaiah McKay was in the act of shooting a 3. He doesn't get it off before the whistle but he was in the act so score that 3 and Hooker will shoot the 1 and 1. Strange play but upon further review that is the correct rules interpretation. He makes 1 of those 2 free throws to cut the Hawks lead to 64-61 with 5:14 left. Daniels with another putback and the lead is down to 2. Cooper turns it over and Park Center can't convert going the other way with a chance to tie. 4:34 left 65-63 Cooper lead and Hooker goes down with cramps but he'll stay in and gut it out. Vaughn to Shelby to the kick out to Billy Kellogg for the left corner 3. McKay with another 3 to counter that. Shelby with a putback and the lead is back to 4. 70-66 Hawks 2:55 left. That was the last gasp from the Pirates. Josh Matthews banks in a 3 with 42 seconds left to cut the margin to 5. Cooper pulls the upset 79-69.
Post Game
For Park Center, they finish the season at 18-9. They were definitely better than I expected. Its a roster with no seniors, plenty of athletes, enough size, a star in Hooker and a nice complementary piece in Daniels. No reason why the Pirates can't be at least a 2 seed next season. Treyton Daniels leads with 21 points. Quinton Hooker 18 points and a handful of assists. Josh Matthews 16 points.
For Cooper, they advance to face 3 seed Champlin Park next Tuesday at Rogers and I'll be there for that. That's a rematch of a Dec 29th meeting at Bethel that Champlin Park won 62-52 (I covered that game here). They improve to 12-15. Rashad Vaughn leads all scorers with 24 points. He added 10 rebounds and at least 3 assists on 8-17 shooting, 7-8 from the foul line. Not just the Vaughn show tonight as there was great balance. The Hawks add 4 other players in double figures. Center Curtis Shelby off the bench with 14, Eric Brown and Leroy Taylor 12 each and Billy Kellogg with 11 off the bench. 25-0 in bench points for the Hawks.
2012 Section Predictions
Labels:
Rashad Vaughn,
Tyus Jones
Its that fun time of year where I make my picks for the 2012 metro sections. Picks for entertainment purposes only. For those of you who follow me on Twitter (and if you don't, why not? start now!), you'll know that I already have a headstart. I correctly picked Bethany Academy over Glenville-Emmons in the 4 vs 5 game in section 1A west.
For more about the 2012 playoffs, you can also read a pair of my articles for the new website I'm also writing for now, Northstar Hoops Report.
Now on the to the picks!
Class A
Section 1: Bethlehem to oust Bethany on Monday night in the section 1A quarters.
Section 2: Lester Prairie over upstart 11 seed Sleepy Eye before bowing out to CMC. No pick on SW Christian since they've already lost their pigtail game.
Section 4 Pigtails: I'll take the 3 high seeds Liberty, North Lakes, and Nova
Section 4 Round of 16: The top 6 seeds move on without trouble. If Ben Glover plays, I'll take MTS for the upset in the 7 vs 10 game over Legacy, otherwise the Saints move on. He sat out the last regular season game for MTS. CHOF just beat 4 Directions so I'm surprised CHOF has the road game in this one. Give me CHOF in that one.
Section 4 Quarterfinals: High seeds hold with Maranatha, Heritage and Prairie Seeds move on. But I'm going to apply the Glover rule here too. #10 MTS pulls the upset over #2 FAIR if Glover plays.
Section 4 Semis and Championship: #1 Maranatha has beaten Heritage twice but the last meeting they only won by 3. The 3rd time will have to be done on Heritage's home court so expect a better game than you might think. The better game of the 2 will be Prairie Seeds vs the MTS/FAIR winner. FAIR and PSA split a pair of tight games and FAIR was without wildcard Deonte Blakemore in the 1st meeting. If they meet again expect another game in the 80s. I'll take PSA to win that semifinal but then fall in their 1st section final experience against Maranatha. But it will test MCA coach Jeff Wall as the Mustangs will have to figure out a way to defend the high powered Lycans offense.
Class AA
Section 5: Spectrum falls at St. Cloud Cathedral. Providence falls at HLWW.
Section 4 Round of 16: I'll take the 7 top seeds and then St. Agnes should avenge a Friday the 13th loss at Brooklyn Center. North is in a huge tailspin and Breck is as beaten up as any team out there. But Breck has beaten Minnehaha and Roosevelt to finish with a 3 game winning streak. North is 3-21 and seeded ahead of 5 other teams. Serious weakness in the bottom half of this bracket
Section 4 Quarters: St. Agnes gave SCL fits in 1st meeting and their athletes are dangerous. Crusaders move on but the 1 seed going out early here wouldn't be a shock. Trinity and New Life split on the other's home court, expect a quality 4/5 game there. I'll take Trinity with Tony Kuplic as the difference maker. Concordia and Minnehaha move on in the bottom half.
Section 4 Semis and Final: St. Croix Lutheran takes out Trinity in a rematch, Minnehaha holds off Concordia. St. Croix Lutheran continues their run as they move on to state. Gerald McCarver is dangerous enough to lead the Redhawks back to state though.
Class AAA:
Section 1: I'll take New Prague over Waseca and Kasson-Mantorville. Red Wing to beat Winona. Austin to beat Faribault, Red Wing and New Prague for the section title.
Section 3: I'll take high seeds in round 1 but expect another tight one in the 4 vs 5 game. Columbia Heights at Totino-Grace is one of the better games of the night. High Seeds move on to the final and I like De La Salle and how they matchup with Spring Lake Park. Give me the Islanders to win that section.
Section 4: Johnson, Hill-Murray and St. Thomas Academy all win easily. Central's jekyll and hyde squad just lost by 10 at Highland Park I think the Minutemen are more talented but I can't bring myself to pick them on the road. Winner goes out to Johnson in the semis. Hill-Murray vs St. Thomas Academy is tough to figure with the teams splitting double-digit wins. Hill-Murray just won at home by 22. I like the 3 seed Hill-Murray in that game. Hill-Murray has given Johnson some fits over the years but hasn't gotten through. Expect lots of 2-3 zone but Johnson is playing well now, so I'll take them to make another trip to state.
Section 6: A fun section to see 1st round games in. BSM and Washburn win easily. Blake wins at home against a struggling Holy Angels team but the Stars have enough size to deal with Blake, just not enough firepower. Chaska and Richfield are opposites with Chaska not a scoring machine and defensive minded while Richfield wants to run and gun. Difference here is that Richfield hasn't proven they can win on the road (only 1 true road win all year, at South in mid December). Give me Chaska there. BSM takes them out in the semifinals. Washburn is athletic enough and deep to bother Blake and I think they move on but not in a blowout. Washburn can definitely play with Benilde-St. Margaret's but after not making state last year, I think the Red Knights will be on a mission and move on in an epic battle of #1 vs #2 in the state.
Class AAAA
Section 1: Farmington goes on the road and knocks out Rochester Mayo in the 4 vs 5 game, Hastings goes out to Owatonna in the first round, Century defeats John Marshall. Lakeville North defeats Owatonna in the section title game.
Section 2: I like the seeds as given in this section. Interesting game between old rivals Prior Lake and Shakopee in the 1st round. Very underrated matchup of point guards Brandon Arnold and Jon Sobaski in the semifinals. Eden Prairie is young but they defend well enough that I still see them taking out Chanhassen for the section title.
Section 3: A bunch of fun matchups in this section. Shooters Justin Pahl and Dustin Fronk in the 1st round AV vs E Ridge game, Matt Nelson vs CJ Neumann in the CDH/Rosemount game. Then Tillman vs Tyus in the semis, Mandli vs King/Oberfeld in the other semi. Then the toughest ticket to get on section final night, Eastview takes out Apple Valley for a 3rd time. Tyus Jones and Joey King have lit up the scoreboard in both meetings. Harry Sonie is back as another scoring weapon for the Eagles.
Section 4: 1st round sleeper games in the bottom half. Stillwater has given Woodbury fits in the tourney over the years. The young Ponies only lost by 2 at Woodbury in their last meeting. Zach Meyer is the type of big who can bother Tartan, I think they can give the Titans a game. But I'm not willing to pick any 1st round upsets there. Tartan defends well enough and Woodbury doesn't have the size to bother Tartan so I like Tartan in the semis and Roseville over Mahtomedi. The section final is a great matchup of the new guy vs tradition. Guards all over the place in that game. I like Tartan defensively and I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Tartan's kryponite is out of the section (CDH) so they'll finally go back to the state tourney.
Section 5: Osseo moves on in the first round. Maple Grove was a section champ last year and Mitchell Kuck is hurt for Centennial so give me Maple Grove there. Champlin Park takes out Irondale. Very dangerous game for Park Center vs Cooper in the 1st round. Cooper has similar athletes and a star in Rashad Vaughn to carry them. I think Park Center wins but gets a scare. Champlin Park and Park Center split in the regular season but Champlin Park has struggled down the stretch so give me Park Center. I like Osseo to win the title in a game that will either go right to the final buzzer (like the 70-69 game at Osseo) or be a total blowout (like 86-55 at Park Center). Watch that game early on as the district rivals always have it ramped up for this matchup.
Section 6: This is the Hopkins section. End of discussion. But beyond that, Hopkins, Edina and Minnetonka all move on easily in the 1st round. Wayzata is stumbling right now without center Chad Potas (knee). St. Louis Park is a tough matchup with their quickness and dribble drive. They gave Apple Valley all they wanted at Apple Valley but have lost to Edina. I'll take Wayzata in a close one. Edina takes out Minnetonka for a 3rd time before falling to Hopkins in the title game.
Section 7: Duluth East gets the 1st round bye and they won't need it. Expect them to roll here. Forest Lake, Blaine and Anoka all win easily in the 1st round. Anoka is playing well right now with wins over Park Center and Champlin Park recently and they have a star in Marcus Tyus. I like them over Blaine in the semis. Then its too much Woodard, Stafford and Manyang in the final.
For more about the 2012 playoffs, you can also read a pair of my articles for the new website I'm also writing for now, Northstar Hoops Report.
Now on the to the picks!
Class A
Section 1: Bethlehem to oust Bethany on Monday night in the section 1A quarters.
Section 2: Lester Prairie over upstart 11 seed Sleepy Eye before bowing out to CMC. No pick on SW Christian since they've already lost their pigtail game.
Section 4 Pigtails: I'll take the 3 high seeds Liberty, North Lakes, and Nova
Section 4 Round of 16: The top 6 seeds move on without trouble. If Ben Glover plays, I'll take MTS for the upset in the 7 vs 10 game over Legacy, otherwise the Saints move on. He sat out the last regular season game for MTS. CHOF just beat 4 Directions so I'm surprised CHOF has the road game in this one. Give me CHOF in that one.
Section 4 Quarterfinals: High seeds hold with Maranatha, Heritage and Prairie Seeds move on. But I'm going to apply the Glover rule here too. #10 MTS pulls the upset over #2 FAIR if Glover plays.
Section 4 Semis and Championship: #1 Maranatha has beaten Heritage twice but the last meeting they only won by 3. The 3rd time will have to be done on Heritage's home court so expect a better game than you might think. The better game of the 2 will be Prairie Seeds vs the MTS/FAIR winner. FAIR and PSA split a pair of tight games and FAIR was without wildcard Deonte Blakemore in the 1st meeting. If they meet again expect another game in the 80s. I'll take PSA to win that semifinal but then fall in their 1st section final experience against Maranatha. But it will test MCA coach Jeff Wall as the Mustangs will have to figure out a way to defend the high powered Lycans offense.
Class AA
Section 5: Spectrum falls at St. Cloud Cathedral. Providence falls at HLWW.
Section 4 Round of 16: I'll take the 7 top seeds and then St. Agnes should avenge a Friday the 13th loss at Brooklyn Center. North is in a huge tailspin and Breck is as beaten up as any team out there. But Breck has beaten Minnehaha and Roosevelt to finish with a 3 game winning streak. North is 3-21 and seeded ahead of 5 other teams. Serious weakness in the bottom half of this bracket
Section 4 Quarters: St. Agnes gave SCL fits in 1st meeting and their athletes are dangerous. Crusaders move on but the 1 seed going out early here wouldn't be a shock. Trinity and New Life split on the other's home court, expect a quality 4/5 game there. I'll take Trinity with Tony Kuplic as the difference maker. Concordia and Minnehaha move on in the bottom half.
Section 4 Semis and Final: St. Croix Lutheran takes out Trinity in a rematch, Minnehaha holds off Concordia. St. Croix Lutheran continues their run as they move on to state. Gerald McCarver is dangerous enough to lead the Redhawks back to state though.
Class AAA:
Section 1: I'll take New Prague over Waseca and Kasson-Mantorville. Red Wing to beat Winona. Austin to beat Faribault, Red Wing and New Prague for the section title.
Section 3: I'll take high seeds in round 1 but expect another tight one in the 4 vs 5 game. Columbia Heights at Totino-Grace is one of the better games of the night. High Seeds move on to the final and I like De La Salle and how they matchup with Spring Lake Park. Give me the Islanders to win that section.
Section 4: Johnson, Hill-Murray and St. Thomas Academy all win easily. Central's jekyll and hyde squad just lost by 10 at Highland Park I think the Minutemen are more talented but I can't bring myself to pick them on the road. Winner goes out to Johnson in the semis. Hill-Murray vs St. Thomas Academy is tough to figure with the teams splitting double-digit wins. Hill-Murray just won at home by 22. I like the 3 seed Hill-Murray in that game. Hill-Murray has given Johnson some fits over the years but hasn't gotten through. Expect lots of 2-3 zone but Johnson is playing well now, so I'll take them to make another trip to state.
Section 6: A fun section to see 1st round games in. BSM and Washburn win easily. Blake wins at home against a struggling Holy Angels team but the Stars have enough size to deal with Blake, just not enough firepower. Chaska and Richfield are opposites with Chaska not a scoring machine and defensive minded while Richfield wants to run and gun. Difference here is that Richfield hasn't proven they can win on the road (only 1 true road win all year, at South in mid December). Give me Chaska there. BSM takes them out in the semifinals. Washburn is athletic enough and deep to bother Blake and I think they move on but not in a blowout. Washburn can definitely play with Benilde-St. Margaret's but after not making state last year, I think the Red Knights will be on a mission and move on in an epic battle of #1 vs #2 in the state.
Class AAAA
Section 1: Farmington goes on the road and knocks out Rochester Mayo in the 4 vs 5 game, Hastings goes out to Owatonna in the first round, Century defeats John Marshall. Lakeville North defeats Owatonna in the section title game.
Section 2: I like the seeds as given in this section. Interesting game between old rivals Prior Lake and Shakopee in the 1st round. Very underrated matchup of point guards Brandon Arnold and Jon Sobaski in the semifinals. Eden Prairie is young but they defend well enough that I still see them taking out Chanhassen for the section title.
Section 3: A bunch of fun matchups in this section. Shooters Justin Pahl and Dustin Fronk in the 1st round AV vs E Ridge game, Matt Nelson vs CJ Neumann in the CDH/Rosemount game. Then Tillman vs Tyus in the semis, Mandli vs King/Oberfeld in the other semi. Then the toughest ticket to get on section final night, Eastview takes out Apple Valley for a 3rd time. Tyus Jones and Joey King have lit up the scoreboard in both meetings. Harry Sonie is back as another scoring weapon for the Eagles.
Section 4: 1st round sleeper games in the bottom half. Stillwater has given Woodbury fits in the tourney over the years. The young Ponies only lost by 2 at Woodbury in their last meeting. Zach Meyer is the type of big who can bother Tartan, I think they can give the Titans a game. But I'm not willing to pick any 1st round upsets there. Tartan defends well enough and Woodbury doesn't have the size to bother Tartan so I like Tartan in the semis and Roseville over Mahtomedi. The section final is a great matchup of the new guy vs tradition. Guards all over the place in that game. I like Tartan defensively and I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Tartan's kryponite is out of the section (CDH) so they'll finally go back to the state tourney.
Section 5: Osseo moves on in the first round. Maple Grove was a section champ last year and Mitchell Kuck is hurt for Centennial so give me Maple Grove there. Champlin Park takes out Irondale. Very dangerous game for Park Center vs Cooper in the 1st round. Cooper has similar athletes and a star in Rashad Vaughn to carry them. I think Park Center wins but gets a scare. Champlin Park and Park Center split in the regular season but Champlin Park has struggled down the stretch so give me Park Center. I like Osseo to win the title in a game that will either go right to the final buzzer (like the 70-69 game at Osseo) or be a total blowout (like 86-55 at Park Center). Watch that game early on as the district rivals always have it ramped up for this matchup.
Section 6: This is the Hopkins section. End of discussion. But beyond that, Hopkins, Edina and Minnetonka all move on easily in the 1st round. Wayzata is stumbling right now without center Chad Potas (knee). St. Louis Park is a tough matchup with their quickness and dribble drive. They gave Apple Valley all they wanted at Apple Valley but have lost to Edina. I'll take Wayzata in a close one. Edina takes out Minnetonka for a 3rd time before falling to Hopkins in the title game.
Section 7: Duluth East gets the 1st round bye and they won't need it. Expect them to roll here. Forest Lake, Blaine and Anoka all win easily in the 1st round. Anoka is playing well right now with wins over Park Center and Champlin Park recently and they have a star in Marcus Tyus. I like them over Blaine in the semis. Then its too much Woodard, Stafford and Manyang in the final.
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