Lakeville North at Jefferson observations

So via a warning that I might end up sleeping with the fishes if I attended the Chisago Lakes/Totino-Grace doubleheader, I ended up going to the Lakeville N/Jefferson game instead. Actually, it was due to a late afternoon work meeting, who schedules these things anyway?

So for starters we've got a female lead referee. You don't see that much, especially at the boys level. We have the pep band, but the Jefferson PA guy has music blaring instead. Finally he chops off the music with 13 to go in warmups and we finally have the pep band playing. The kids go to all the trouble to practice and show up only to have the PA play, crazy. With the female ref on duty, its only appropriate that they did a nice version of "I saw her standing there". You need plenty of horns to make a good pep band, but you can't wrong with a good xylophone. Props to the girl who was playing it for the Jefferson pep band.

As to the game, let's just say I should have gone to the Republican Caucus down the hall. Jefferson gets out to a 15-4 lead with 13:11 to go in the half as LN is sloppy vs the Jags 2-3 zone. They extend the lead to 25-13 with 7:44 to go in the half as Moses Alipate is playing well. Jefferson gets the last 4 points of the half to go to the locker room up 38-24. Moses Alipate with 10, Marcus Alipate comes in at 9:52 left and promptly hits a 3 and plays big minutes until his 3rd foul in about 7 minutes. Aaron Barmore with 9.

Jefferson extends the lead more to 46-27 with about 13 minutes to go. A long Aaron Gallegos 3 makes it 52-40 with 8:42 left but a Jefferson 13-4 blows the game open and Jefferson rolls 67-49. No one in double-figures for Lakeville North. Barmore with 21, Moses Alipate with 17 for Jefferson. Marcus Alipate contributes 10 points off the bench. Jefferson's 2-3 zone befuddled the Panthers all night and once LN got behind, they took quick 3s and this was one of those nights where nothing was falling so it got ugly.

Jefferson trying to maybe get the 5 seed in 2AAAA but not fall to #7. They also close to within a half game of Lakeville N in the Lake race for 5th. This one hurt Lakeville N in their race for the #2 in 3AAAA and they need to be careful as Rosemount and Eagan are right there with them.