Conference Icebreaker Review

So with the deep freeze ongoing in the metro at about the midway point of each conference schedule, it gives me time to take a look at the league races and pick out 1 team that sticks out for their positive performance so far.  With that in mind, here's a spin thru the 12 metro leagues that I follow.

IMAC
Providence Academy.  The Lions returned most of last year's roster so a solid year wasn't unexpected.  Seeing them jump into the top 10 with wins over fellow ranked teams Breck and Spectrum was a surprise.  They also have a 2 point loss on the road at #5AA Jordan and played #4AA Maranatha to a 10 point loss.  Mark Richelsen has been productive as the go to guy.  Dylan Servais giving them a nice season from his PG spot.  A tough week awaits next week with a rematch at Breck (won 56-47 at home) and their only meeting with Minnehaha.  They have a grudge match with SPA before that.  SPA pulled a 48-37 upset just 2 weeks ago.

Lake
Minnetonka.  Cameron Steele was a known item and he's been outstanding this year.  That includes 45 pts in a blowout of Rochester Mayo.  They also played Wayzata tough this week on the road.  So who has stepped up for Tonka?  The season from Gavin Patton has been eye opening on the wing.  21.8 PPG for him was not expected.  Lyric Radford has also been solid for the Skippers.  A tough home back to back vs #9AAAA Eden Prairie and #4AA Maranatha finishes this week.  That starts a stretch of 5 out of 6 at home before a brutal 5 game finish.

Minneapolis City
Minneapolis Edison.  I'll acknowledge that the Minneapolis City is way down this year.  South, Washburn and Southwest rank as 3 of the worst teams in AAAA.  But despite all that, Edison being in a tie for 2nd in the city for where they've been all these years is still a great story.  The win over Minneapolis Roosevelt definitely was an eye opener and they only lost by 10 at Henry (who likely finishes 2nd in the league).  The Tommies are doing it with balance with veteran leadership in rugged forward Jackson Rusnacko.  The home game next Thursday vs Brooklyn Center will be an interesting test for both teams.

MCAA
Maranatha.  The Mustangs were the easy pick to win the MCAA but having only 1 loss to date and being ranked 4th in the latest state poll is more than expected.  Good home wins over Jordan, Spectrum and St. Croix Prep and a wins at Cristo Rey and Providence stick out.  They go 10 deep and get after it all night.  PG Justin Mason has been terrific and their best outside shot maker.  Christian Davis gives them yet another athletic wing to harass opponents with.  Soph Tristan Lee (CDH transfer) is a bull in a china shop type that is a problem as part of the bench mob as well.  Plus they are big and deep up front with Hakim and Clarence Daniels on the glass.  Travaris Ricks-Wessah and Chase Carter are very good for them too.

Metro East
North St. Paul.  Dajuan Carter has arguably the greenest green light in the state (see also Gabe Madsen at Rochester Mayo).  Not shocked that he's having a huge season with his ability to hit from deep or attack.  Shaheed Muhammed has been the eye opener as the other scorer with 17 PPG.  Add in solid play from Brenden Lankford-Johnson and they can plug in role guys from there.  They don't have a bad loss on the schedule and have rebounded from a tough 0-3 start.  That includes a win on the island at De La Salle which is always a tall task.  They stand 3rd in the Metro East right now and have the top 2 at home in the 2nd rotation of league play.

Metro West
St. Louis Park.  I had no expectations for the Orioles after losing all their double figure scorers.  All they've done is go 5-0 in Metro West play including a home buzzer beater over league favorite Chaska last week.  They're on a 6 game winning streak right now.  Robbinsdale Cooper and Chanhassen visit next week to finish a 4 games in 7 days stretch.  4 players average double figures.  That includes 14.5 PPG from returning F Anthony Rayson.  Paris Johnson (15.9 PPG) and Keyshon Howard (10.2 PPG) have stepped up nicely.

Northwest Suburban
Robbinsdale Armstrong.  New coach and plenty to replace?  No problem for Jon Bryant.  The Falcons are 11-4 and in a 2nd place tie in the NW Suburban West.  3 players average double figures.  Jake Breitbach (12 PPG) does a bit of everything from a forward spot.  Devin Frye has been steady as a point guard.  Best win was going on the road and beating Park Center 62-56.  They also have road wins over Spring Lake Park, Totino-Grace and St. Louis Park.  Next week is a brutal week for the Falcons as they go to Maple Grove, Osseo and #7AAAA Wayzata

St. Paul City
St. Paul Harding.  Not much in the way of surprises in the St. Paul City this year.  Nothing really special about their wins but they've taken care of the games they need to win in the city.  PG Jovan Christian has done his thing with 17.2 PPG.  But Simeon Sharp (18.2 PPG) and Tierre Davis (16 PPG) have come on nicely for the Knights.  A road, Target Center, home triplet before a big home game with Central next Wednesday.

South Suburban
Eagan.  2nd year coach Josh Peltier is starting to see the fruits of his labor pay off.  2 big section games coming up at Burnsville and home against Apple Valley.  Section 3AAAA is really wide open for seeding and those would be 2 huge wins.  Then a brutal home back to back next weekend vs Lakeville North and Shakopee.  Currently on a 3 game losing streak with a couple of tight losses.  That's after a 5-1 start.  They have a bunch of interchangeable shooters which leads to 3 double figure scorers.  Size and strength are the issue but definitely much improved over a year ago.

Suburban East
Park of Cottage Grove.  Would would have thought Park would be in the middle of the Suburban East pack at 4-4?  Coach Mike Weah almost had it at 5-3 as the Wolfpack gave CDH a whale of a game last week.  They have 5 winnable games coming up before they see the heavy hitters in the Suburban East again.  That should dampen the current 4 out of 5 losses streak.  Domenick Block and Charlie Gorres leading the way as expected on the wings.  Jeremiah Smith inside has given them a nice post presence as well.

Tri-Metro
Holy Angels.  The Johnson brothers (Emmett and Charles) have been more than advertised coming over from Washburn.  That has nailed down the guard spots.  Matt Banovetz and Max Gerstner are making shots and they have Thor Holien inside to finish it off.  They've beaten Providence and won at Holy Family along with a 2 point loss to Waconia.  They have a big one at Tri-Metro East leader St. Croix Lutheran next Tuesday.  That's the only road game in a 3 week stretch.

TCAC D1
Nova Classical Academy.  After starting 0-6 in largely ugly fashion, the Knights have now won 8 out of 9.  They stand 2nd in TCAC D1 with a record of 5-1 after the 1st rotation.  Big league rematch at home with Cristo Rey on Friday.  A must win to stay in the league race but Cristo Rey won the 1st meeting 73-38.  Mathieu LaFrambois has stepped up his scoring this year with 21.5 PPG.  Shea Nelson adds 19.2 PPG at a forward spot but there's very little other scoring behind them.

TCAC D2
Hiawatha.  The Wolves after really struggling last year all of a sudden find themselves on top of TCAC D2 with only 1 loss.  They host fellow league leader Avail Academy on Tuesday to break that tie.  After that, they could run the table into the TCAC D2 tournament.  8th grade PG Jessye Lewis has been terrific averaging 24.5 PPG.  Fellow 8th grader Jaheim Houts (Nuah?) 2nd on the team at 16.1 PPG from his wing spot.  Plus a couple of other double figure scorers.

Independents
Minnesota Transitions.  Granted the schedule has been tissue paper soft.  The loss in the Avail tourney to West Lutheran looms large for section evaluation.  But then again wins are wins.  They have a big 3 of Lashone Patterson, Michael Emery-Minor and Kyrian Christian who combine for over 45 points a night.  The game on Monday Feb 11th at Hope Academy will be a major marker for them.