The best of 2025-26 Week 2

A full week 2 is now complete.  22 more games are in the books, here's the best of what I saw and didn't see.

Nominate Me a Commissioner Please!
Monday night I tried to go see an Exploration home game not knowing for sure if they had a home gym or not (turns out they don't).  They were on the road at Metro Schools College Prep.  Then the Hub had the Cristo Rey vs Prairie Seeds location wrong and I read it wrong on the EMAC site.  Wednesday off to Higher Ground, no game.  Thursday, off to Community of Peace at Prairie Seeds and the game must have been late with no JV because I arrived early only to find locked doors.

Sad to see the Tipoff Classic get cancelled due to safety concerns.  Thankfully many of the teams were able to play the games as regular non-conference games.  But we lost the chance for some non-metro teams to be on the big stage such as the Hills-Beaver Creek vs Braham game.  One fun outcome though was Breck and Liberty Classical matching up as they couldn't reschedule their out-state opponents.  Liberty ends up winning that game which is an eye opener that will probably get more attention than the game they would have had.

Monday
St. Paul Central rolls along with an 18 point win over Camden.  Camden fell apart late and then they pulled the plug with 3:15 to play and it was only a 15 point game.  The Camden freshman bigs, Lamar McBride and star prospect Malik Martin, didn't disappoint.  Both ended up with double doubles.  McBride is a wrecking ball on the glass.  Martin is a smooth lefty and while the jumper needs work, you can why he has the hype.  Camden would come from 6 down at half on Saturday to pickup a very good win over Maranatha at the Southside Showcase.  Glad I mentioned Trequan White in my preview as he had another big game in the win.  Also in the Southside Showcase, Central would go on to easily beat Minneapolis South.

Tuesday
Forward Isaan Kitila of St. Anthony with a clutch 2nd half controlling the paint.  Huskies won their Tri-Metro matchup with Fridley 70-61 in overtime.  PACT defeated Eagle Ridge 65-58 in a MCAA showdown.  Good guard matchup there with PACT's Fred Onyinkwa (18 pts) and ERA's Braxton Ray (20 pts) leading their teams.  Low scoring affair saw Rochester John Marshall defeat Hastings 50-39  Rockets had a 17-2 run and held Hastings without a FG for 11 minutes in the 2nd half.  Eden Prairie continued their good start with a 81-64 section win at Shakopee.  That was a 24 point game early in the 2nd half.  Carter Pulrang with 6 of his 7 triples in the first half on his way to 27 points.  Hamze Yusuf really pushes the pace and attacks the rim.  He scored 19 pts.  Luke Schroeder with 26 points for Shakopee but not much help beyond that.  Shakopee 0-3 and all of those in the section to start the year.  But some adjustment was to be expected with an all junior starting lineup.  White Bear Lake with a good Suburban East win at Mounds View.  Colin Piper made a living at the foul line in the 1st half on his way to 23 points in the win.  Andrew Aitkin 25 points and 5 triples for Mounds View.

Wednesday
The battle of Bloomington highlighted a quiet schedule.  Jefferson took an 11 point lead with 13:30 to go but only scored 3 field goals the rest of the way.  Star soph PG Judah Mitchell was the story for Kennedy after that.  A couple of steals and a tip in to spark an 8-0 run to make it a game.  Then 2 hoops with under 2 minutes left to keep Kennedy ahead.  He iced it at the line with 2 FT with 8 seconds left.  Mitchell with 15 of his 24 in the 2nd half.  Kennedy wins 49-44.  They also added soph Musunguindji Mwenentanda from Sioux Falls Lincoln.  He was a top 10 prospect in South Dakota.  Add in 8th grader Jerrell Washington Jr and you have a group to keep an eye on long term.  MTS went into Jump City and had no problems with High School for Recording Arts.  Running time victory for the Wolves 85-41.

Thursday
Now the first of back to back days of making up for lost time with the Wright County Conference.  Jack Burke of SW Christian and Kolby Christl of Chanhassen lighting it up in their game.  SW Christian would fall behind by 10 at the half but tie the game at 59 with 5:34 left.  Christl with a triple and a 3 point play in a 10-1 run after that to keep Chan ahead.  The Stars would get 1 final chance but couldn't convert.  75-73 Chanhassen win.  Christl with 4 triples and 35 points.  Bennet Barger adds 21 points for the Storm.  Jack Burke with 32 points and 7 threes to lead SW Christian. Jameson McCarthy 12 of his 14 in the second half for the Stars.

In my live game, Delano hung around with #5AAA Mahtomedi until late in the first half.  Zephyrs stretched a 5 point lead late to 12 at the half.  Then they ran away in the second half on their way to a 74-38 win.  Delano trying some triangle and 2 (or so it appeared) on Mark Graff and Willie Roelofs in the first half.  Always fun to see some junk defense.  Noah Carlson 19 points and 5 triples to lead Mahtomedi.  Most of that damage in the 1st half.  Roelofs14 and Graff with 12.

Friday
Game of the day saw #6AA Holy Family win 74-68 at #10AA Minnehaha.  Holy Family opened up a 16 point first half lead.  That was cut to 9 before going back to 15.  Holy Family hung on from there.  They played most of the 2nd half without PG Geno Ward (11 pts 1st half).  Having that ball handler was a factor.  Minnehaha PG Carter Cupito with 4 steals, 3 of them leading to layups in the rally.  But the 4th was a highlight chasedown block by Dylan Baker with 1:36 left in a 6 point game.  Add in the game circumstances and it was a major wow moment.  Cupito 18 points and all those steals to lead Minnehaha.  Guard Ayden Green showing a nice burst on his way to 16 points.  Drew Coleman 20 points and Lexyn Grof adds 15 for Holy Family.

Buffalo went on the road for a 70-66 win at St. Louis Park.  Lots of trading runs in this one.  Buffalo 8 in a row for a lead only to see St. Louis Park score the last 10 of the half and go to halftime up 33-32.  Then a 9-0 Orioles run to open a 10 point lead in the 2nd half.  Buffalo flips the script 9-0 to take the lead with 7:40 left.  They stretch it to 7 and hang on.  Matthew Jordan 23 points on 13-18 FTs.  Soph Thomas Jordan continues to impress with 29 points (11-14 FT).  No Eli Hegle for the Bison.  St. Louis Park wing Matthew Johnson continues to be a name to watch.  He scored 21 points to lead the Orioles.

Forest Lake used a 12-2 run early in the 2nd half to gain just enough separation from Irondale.  Jayden Dillard with a late stepback 3 that was a dagger in a 4 point game.  Rangers win 67-57.  Dillard leads Forest Lake with 15 points. Cameron Cramble using his size advantage for a game high 29 points and he added 10 rebounds on my sheet.  Forest Lake running some skip action on the first play of the game for DJ Westman.  Thank you UConn for that.  I'm here for it.  A fun set even it does involve an element of THE WORLD'S WORST OFFENSE.

St. Croix Lutheran defeated New Life Academy 84-73.  The Crusaders jumped out to a 17-1 lead but a pesky 2-3 zone from the Eagles saw the lead cut all the way down to 7.  St. Croix Lutheran pushed the lead back to 22 before a late rally tightened up the final score.  Isaac Garcia 5 triples and 17 points.  3 of those triples to extend the lead in the 2nd half.  Thomas Hermann with 20.  Forward Riley Johnson adds 18 for the Crusaders.  John Norring 23 points and 4 triples for New Life.

The late game was the back half of the Minnesota River Conference Revival Tournament out at Mayer Lutheran. Mayer Lutheran led most of the game.  A 10-0 run early in the 2nd half was the difference here.  Junior guard Ben Lindesmith 25 points to lead the Crusaders to victory.  Soph Carter Neitzel adds 16 points.  They start 4 juniors and a sophomore with 2 freshman off the bench.  Mitchell Schmidt leads Jordan with 17 points.  8th grader Henry Hanzel showing he's ready with 13 points.  The lanky forward will definitely be one to watch for the Hubmen in the future.

Spectrum struggled with United Christian Academy.  Spectrum went 7 minutes without a FG in the 2nd half. United Christian went 5 minutes without a FG against the Sting 1-3-1 during that same stretch.  United Christian up 3 with 2 minutes left but they give up a 10-2 run to end the game.  3 ball ties it, then Eli Miller coast to coast for the lead.  UCA ties it and its Miller with the putback for the lead again.  UCA gets a good look at a final 3 that doesn't go.  They give up 2 offensive boards on free throws in the final minute which was a killer.  Lots of open 3s against the zone for UCA.  Spectrum wins 68-63.  Evan Grover 15 pts, Sam Rich 14 for UCA.  Eli Miller 23 points, Cody Benson 22 to lead Spectrum.

Saturday
I did an online version of what I would have watched if the Tipoff Classic had been played. But being online added the advantage of being able to jump sites.

#7AAA Orono blewout Faribault 77-39 in the opener.  Orono taking advantage of suspect Faribault guard play.  That made post touches for Ryan Kreager few and far between.  He was held to 3 points.  Brennan Doherty with 5 3s and an assist for the 1st 17 Orono points.  He finished with 20 points. Tommy Lundell adds 15.  Breuer Wolff 13 points and 11 rebounds to lead the Falcons.

Best game of the day was the #1AAA Totino-Grace 72-64 win over #5AAAA Hopkins.  A 17-3 TG run would give them a 10 point lead going to the break.  Hopkins would rally back to take a 50-44 lead on an Ahmed Nur dunk.  TG right back with a 9-0 run. Dothan Ijadimbola with 2 buckets.  Malachi Hill with a big 3 off an offensive rebound and 2 FTs to push the lead to 7 and Hopkins couldn't recover.  Dothan Ijadimbola was terrific with 27 points and the 2 clutch buckets with under 4 min left.  Its the best I've seen him play in a while.  Malachi Hill adds 14.  Xavier Frelix 15 to lead Hopkins.  Tre Moore, Jayden Moore and Ahmed Nur each add 13.

Good win 65-61 for Lakeville North at Spring Lake Park.  That was despite Nolan Myren going off for 32 points for Spring Lake Park.  But nobody else was in double figures.  A surprisingly sloppy game from SLP.  Owen Brezinski leads Lakeville North with 19 points.  He had an important putback in the last minute.  Dane Danielson adds 16 points and 12 rebounds.

#1AAAA Wayzata jumped all over #4AAAA Cretin-Derham Hall in the first half.  52-28 at the half with everything going right.  Very much like last year's AAAA championship game.  CDH would cut that lead all the way down to 9 in the middle of the 2nd.  JoJo Mitchell and Ty Schlagel leading that rally.  But CDH runs out of gas and Wayzata runs away for a 96-66 win.  Nolan Anderson 21 pts, 11 rbs, 3 blk on my sheet.  Christian Wiggins 20 points 6 rebounds. Xavy Ivey 18 points.  JoJo Mitchell 26 points and 4 3s to lead CDH.  Ty Schlagel with 12 of his 16 in the 2nd half.

Then over to the Showside Showcase with Anoka taking on the hosts Benilde-St. Margaret's in the late game.  Anoka without Bryce Gaustad, Kolden Johnson and 1 other starter for this one.  All BSM in this one against the depleted Tornadoes lineup.  12 players score with 9 having at least 6 points.  Wing Braylon Kelly-Taylor with 12 points to lead the way.  Brody Lakanen 16 points to lead Anoka.

Then the intended Tipoff Classic final of #8AAAA Prior Lake at Edina.   24 all at half as Edina went 7 minutes without a field goal.  Vince Cronin with a 3 point play and lob dunk off a turnover.  Mason Mohs adds a 3.  Its part of a 19-6 run to open up a 52-41 lead.  Junior forward Trey Theis off the bench with a pair of 3s as Prior Lake tried to cut into the lead to no avail.  Edina wins 68-52.  Kolby Thompson 4 3s and 19 points to lead Prior Lake. Vince Cronin 18 of his 25 in the second half to help Edina pull away.

2025 Southside Showcase 2 Preview

The 2nd round of the Southside Showcase is this Saturday.  Benilde- St. Margaret's will once again host these games.  A full slate of 6 games on the schedule.  Here's a preview of what to watch.

Game 1 11:45 AM: Simley vs #6AA Holy Family 
Holy Family opened their season with a quality section win over Blake 82-80 on Tuesday.  Guard Lexyn Grof leads a higher powered Fire offense that features plenty of shooting.  Point guard Geno Ward along with wings Drew Coleman and Carson Kuchenbecker are also players to watch for Holy Family.  They'll be coming off a quick turnaround as they play at #10AA Minnehaha on Friday night.

Simley started off the season by winning the Randolph tournament but they've struggled recently losing their last 2.  That included a 72-53 loss at New Prague on Tuesday.  Spartans working with a young lineup as they look to get back on the right track.  The following games against St. Paul Harding and their Metro East Conference opener at Hill-Murray are a better opportunity for that.

Game 2  1:15 PM: #8AA Minneapolis North vs St. Cloud Tech
Minneapolis North is off to a strong start going 3-0 against city competition.  That includes a 91-69 win over section rival Hiawatha last week.  The guard duo of J'Marion Sanders and Cordae Williams leads the Polars.  Williams is having a breakout season averaging 18 points a night.  Sanders is pouring in 26.7 points per game with a season high of 35 in the opener at Minneapolis Edison.

St. Cloud Tech lost their opening 2 games last week.  That included a 14 point loss at #6AAAA Alexandria and a close 3 home loss to Marshall.  Going back to last season, the Tigers have lost 16 of their last 17 games.  6'4 junior Jiech Jiech has averaged 27 points in the 2 games.  6'4 Junior Nick Brakes averaged 17 points..  

Game 3 2:45 PM: Minneapolis South vs St. Paul Central 
South opened their season with a blowout win at Robbinsdale Cooper.  The perimeter play for the Tigers is their strength.  Sophomore Jamair Wright runs the show.  Senior Ridwan Ibrahim and junior Ramadan Ibrahim are top scorers on the wings.

St. Paul Central is 4-0 to start the season.  That included a 78-68 win over St. Thomas Academy in last week's Southside Showcase.  Then a quality 73-55 win at Minneapolis Camden on Monday.  Guard Eli Moseman is off to a strong start.  He scored 33 points in the season opener against Woodbury.  He added 23 more in the win at Camden.  His matchup against the South guards will be one to watch.

Game 4 4:15 PM: Minneapolis Camden vs Maranatha Christian Academy
Minneapolis Camden features a pair of talented freshman forwards.  Malik Martin is regarded as the top player in the state in the 2029 class.  The lefty moves smoothly, can handle and score it.  Lamar McBride was a starter for the Patriots last season.  He's a big body who grabs a ton of rebounds.  Both of them had double figure points and rebounds in the loss to St. Paul Central.  Also keep an eye on wing Trequan White as the perimeter option.

Maranatha is 1-1 to start the season.  The Mustangs are on the fringe of the state top 10 poll and a favorite to win the Skyline Conference.  They lost their opener by 2 points at #7AA Lake City.  They rebounded with a blowout win at New Life Academy on Tuesday.  Guard Marcus Marshall is one of the state's top scorers.  Teni Phillips and Eli Ahrends are the size options to counter the strong Camden front line.

Game 5 5:45 PM: Stewartville vs #9AAA Hibbing
Stewartville is 2-0 to start the year.  They have 2 single digit wins including a 3 point win at Hiawatha Valley League rival Lake City.   That start is despite having to replace a significant portion of the roster.  Guard Cayden Heydt leads the Tigers.  Freshman Dexter Simmons has also given Stewartville good minutes already this season.

Hibbing is 3-0 to start the season and the favorite to make state out of section 7AAA.  This is their first road trip of the season.  The Bluejackets feature a lineup of mostly juniors.  Forward Ray Brau and lefty guard Jack Bottoms are players to watch.  Brau is averaging over 23 points with 12 rebounds per game.  He's one of the top junior big men in the state.  Bottoms is a great complement as a shooter.  He had 31 points with 4 treys in the season opening win over Chisago Lakes.

Game 6 7:15 PM Anoka at Benilde-St. Margaret's
Anoka's defeated Stillwater by 4 points in last week's Southside Showcase.  The Tornadoes return this week after losing non-conference games against Northwest Suburban Conference foes Andover and Champlin Park.  The frontline duo of Bryce Gaustad and freshman Kolden Johnson (#2 freshman in Minnesota) has been outstanding.  Both averaging over 20 points per game.  Plus there's Dre Ellis on the perimeter where he can score 20+ on any given night.

The hosts have faced a very difficult schedule to start the season with road losses at #5AAAA Hopkins and #2AAA Richfield.  They recovered from that nicely by putting up 107 points in a blowout win over neighbor Breck on Tuesday.  All of this without their top player, Kobbe Willis, who's out due to injury.  While Anoka is big, the Red Knights are not so we have a classic size vs speed matchup.  The Benilde-St. Margaret's lineup is perimeter oriented with Milton Nuahn, Meech Williams, Jaidyn Girabaldi, Conner Watts, Cameron Best and Ford Nicholas all being important pieces.  Expect plenty of points to be scored in this one.

The best of 2025-26 Week 1

The first full week of games is in the book and the season is now underway for just about everybody.  Apologies to the Wright County East teams as I haven't seen anybody there yet.  But all other leagues and the independents have at least 1 box checked.  Here's a synopsis of the 24 games I saw during the week.

Class A
Impressive opening week for Heritage Christian.  They beat a good Hope Academy team.  Then late Friday they broke the game open in the second half to blow out St. Agnes.  All of this without arguably their best player, forward Aaron Palmer.  Hope Academy was coming off a quality blowout win over Math & Science.  

North Lakes survived a 30 point onslaught from Greg Hovey to hold off International School 57-53.

Class AA
Spectrum junior guard Cody Benson set a new school record with 41 points in the opener against Parnassus on Monday.

Now let's talk some east side hoops.  On Wednesday, Nova Classical held Hmong Academy to 3 2nd half field goals to run away with a win in 4AA.  Hmong Academy with a couple of bigs and a couple of guards for what looks like their best team in a long team. 

Friday night saw St. Paul Harding defeat neighbor Twin Cities Academy 69-62.  That game is a section game now too as Harding as dropped down into 4AA.  Now it wasn't pretty as the game featured 53 fouls, 69 free throws, 2 lunar landings and a showing of Gone With the Wind but a win is a win.  Soph guard Derek Green 22 points and Pierre Glass 12 of his 16 in the 2nd half to help the Knights hold on.  Jacob Stiele with 2nd half foul trouble but he almost carried TCA to a win with 10 of his 21 points in the final 5:13.

How about Mounds Park Academy winning the battle of East Larpenteur on Saturday.  They go into Hill-Murray and get a 53-48 win.  They held the Pioneers to 1 FG in the 1st 10 minutes on their way to a 15-2 start.  John Omoyeni fouling out with just under 4 minutes left was too much to overcome for Hill-Murray.  Pioneers were able to tie the game at 48 with 2 minutes left but never had the lead.  

Class AAA
Good start to the week for a trio of Mississippi 8 teams.  Monday saw Zimmerman blow out Pine City.  Though I was impressed with Pine City soph wing Grant Haverhals.  Zimmerman star wing Thomas McEachern 14 to lead the Thunder.  Monticello blew out a rebuilding St. Michael Albertville squad.  Carson Deibele 23 points and 3 treys for the Magic.  STMA difficulty scoring with a young roster and minimal experience.  Frosh Tanner Heinen with a very productive 11 points off the bench for STMA.

Tuesday saw Becker jump all over Legacy 46-15 to start.  Legacy would cut that lead all the way down to 13 mid second half before falling 85-60.  This had the makings of possibly the top non-con game on both teams schedules but didn't turn out that way.  Nathan Weiss 28 points and 6 treys to lead Becker.  Becker wing Sawyer Brown out due to injury.

Class AAAA
Tuesday saw Bloomington Jefferson upset Holy Angels.  The Jags doing what the Jags do as they're undermanned but run their stuff and don't beat themselves.  Wing Oliver McInerney with a late 3 and 2 late free throws to win it.  Staying in the Metro West, Owatonna beat New Prague 72-48.  Looks like another long year in New Prague.  Soph wing Jackson Holder 13 points and 3 triples for Owatonna.  Junior PG Willie Moore with 21 points to lead Owatonna.

Blaine wing Shiloh Ayitey is off to a nice start.  He had 18 points for the Bengals in a 22 point win over Andover on Tuesday.  Staying in the Northwest Suburban, for entertainment value, watching Coon Rapids guard Kirby Wymore is well worth it.  He had 30 points with 6 triples in a home loss to Apollo.  He followed that up with 26 more points and 6 more 3s in a loss at Cambridge-Isanti.  In that Apollo game, I can see why De'Anthony Sellis is a rising name in the 2027 class.  Big and athletic, he had 16 points in the game.  I also liked how Micah Mwachukwu ran the show for the Eagles including his 17 points.

Eagan's defense clamped down on St. Thomas Academy in their 75-48 opening win.  16 point lead going to the half as they held Lars Osteraas to 1 field goal.  Junior forward Donjae Knox 13 points with an expanded perimeter game.  Junior Ryan Miskowicz 17 points leads Eagan.

Minnetonka doesn't have size but they do pressure the ball well.  They are young with 2 starting freshmen too .  They won at Burnsville 64-54.  Beckham Nelson is one of those freshmen and he had 11 points with a pair of triples.  Anthony Ortiz is the veteran and he led the way with 5 3s and 28 points.  Forward Yannick Amoyi took advantage of the size issue on his way to 19 points.

Wing Blake Johnson 5 triples and 17 points for Farmington in a section win over Rochester Century.  The Tigers held Century scoreless for 7 minutes early in the 2nd half on their way to a 24-2 run.  That broke open their 66-38 win.  

Woodbury fell 56-49 to Hudson on Friday.  Wild first half of this one.  Hudson goes 1-3-1 to start and takes a 9-0 lead.  Woodbury takes their 2nd time out and Hudson goes man.  Junior forward Tyler Erickson is off the Woodbury bench and hits 6 3s in the half.  His streak gets them back within 14-13 and Hudson has to take timeout and go back to the 1-3-1.  Erickson with 7 3s and 23 points in the game.  Bouncy wing Jace Matacyyzski 21 points to lead Hudson.  He had a clutch 3 point play to break a late tie and then a late steal for a dunk to seal it.  He's committed to play baseball at Auburn.

How about Buffalo soph guard Eli Hegle.  After a productive summer playing up with the Buffalo Legacy 16s, he's averaging 30.5 PPG thru 2 Bison wins.  That includes 34 points in a win at Cambridge-Isanti. 

The Big Stage  
The opening 6 games were all blowouts.  But with injuries and the coaching changes after the schedule was made, this is understandable.  Think of this team that wasn't available.  Jayden Moore (Hopkins), Gavin Walter (Champlin Park), Justus Dayee (Tartan), Dane Skime (Orono) and then you had Mu Muhammad of Breck go down with an injury less than 2 minutes into their game.

Game 1: Park Center 77 St. Paul Como Park 58
Park Center no trouble with Como Park.  Joe Jacobs 32 points to lead the Pirates.  Plenty of talented youth on display for Park Center with 8th grade guard Paris Kyles, freshmen Liam Jensen and Tchidi Ejimadu and soph bigs Idris Alowonie and Yahya Soumahoro.  8th grade Landon Williams-Newi saw minutes for Como Park.

Game 2: Minneapolis Washburn 81 Waconia 61
Both teams played the night before.  Washburn rested guys in a blowout loss to Wayzata.  Waconia had a big comeback win against Shakopee.  Waconia got the first couple buckets but then it was all Washburn from there.  Waconia would cut a 18 point halftime lead down to 12 but get no closer.  Another impressive defensive performance for the Millers.  Michael Stevens finding his way around the basket for layup after layup on his way to 24 points.  Alex Young 5 triples and 19 points.  Brayden Gorton with a couple key 2nd half triples on his way to a productive 18 point day for Washburn.  Will Kirsch 25 points but most of that damage was from the foul line where he cashed in 12 times.  This was after 39 points in that Shakopee win.  Forward Luke Hill added 16 in a nice outing for the Wildcats.

Game 3: Orono 90 Breck 67
Orono with a ton of size that I wasn't aware of.  Spartans jump out to a 32-13 lead.  Alex Pilakowski 3 of his 5 triples in the 1st half to lead Orono.  Breck with some nice youth to watch in the future. Soph Max Munsell 14 points to lead Breck as the main replacement for Muhammad.  Frosh Peter Kiedrowski is a wing who can shoot it.  Frosh Cobe Blades can push the pace.

Game 4: Richfield 95 Champlin Park 70
Richfield jumped out to a 31-2 lead and coasted from there  Dre Collins 29 points to lead Richfield.  Tyrece Hagler 19 points off their bench.  Richfield is an explosive team on the offensive end that can really get out and go.  A couple of sophomores for Champlin Park to note.  Mo Dukuly with a poster dunk and 16 points in the game.  Charles Howe off the bench with solid minutes.  Kyler Pust 22 points to lead the Rebels.

Game 5: Totino-Grace 78 Apple Valley 52
The Totino-Grace defense is top notch right now.  They hold Apple Valley star Camare Young scoreless for the first half on their way to a 25 point lead.  Trey Parker 4 triples and 18 points to try to fill in the gap, but TG just too good.  Tian Chatman 16 points off the bench leading a very balanced attack for TG.

Game 6: Maple Grove 86 DeLaSalle 64
There are surprises and then there are surprises.  Maple Grove jumped out to a 24-2 lead in the 1st 6 minutes.  That shocked everybody.  Max Iversen leading that early barrage with triples.  DeLaSalle held to 1 FG in the 1st 8+ minutes also a major part of that.  Maple Grove hits 12 3s in the 1st half and 9 more in the 2nd half as they steamroll to victory.  21-39 from deep before garbage time.  The bench goes absolutely nuts shooting 11-15 from 3.  Max Iversen 26 points and 7 triples.  Kamar Thomas 14 points to lead DeLaSalle.  The end did give some of the DeLaSalle youngsters time to play and man are they loaded there.  That doesn't even count any of the top 8 guys and 7 of them are back next year.

Game 7: Tartan 60 Hopkins 50
Full house for the nightcap.  Definitely an intensity in the building.  Teams would trade first half runs as Tartan would take a 40-36 lead to the break.  Tartan small right now and that made it difficult against a big Hopkins front line.  Really fun to watch soph PG KJ Wilson.  He was fearless carrying the offense with 15 points in the first half.

There was a skirmish in the crowd coming out of halftime.  That seemed to be addressed and the second half started.  I departed at that point only to notice 15 police cars race to the game which was called off at the 9 min mark due to another fight breaking out.  Just a shame to see a terrific game be destroyed by senseless fans.  

Southside Showcase 2026 Preview

This weekend kicks off the long string of weekend events throughout the 2025-26 season.  Here's a look at this weekend's Southside Showcase at Minnehaha Academy.  Opening season events are a terrific chance to see some high quality matchups that wouldn't normally be scheduled.

1:15 PM Hermantown vs Caledonia
The showcase traditionally brings in quality programs from outside the metro and this is a prime example.  Caledonia is a traditional powerhouse in class AA playing out of traditionally tough section 1.  They have to replace 4 double-figure scorers after winning 29 games last year.  Junior Grant King is one of the top sophomores in the state.  He looks to continue the King tradition for the Warriors.

Hermantown features a roster building for next year with no senior starters.  Junior center Sawyer Senst looks like he's a prototype left tackle in football and has good touch inside.  He's a big body that's hard to move.  Point guard Ben Sundland runs the show for the inside out duo.  Sophomore forward Corbin Petcoff is a youngster to watch for the Hawks.

2:45 PM St. Paul Central vs St. Thomas Academy
St. Paul Central is looking to repeat as league champions in the St. Paul City Conference.  They feature one of the league's top players in guard Eli Moseman.  He scored 33 points in the season opening win over Woodbury.  Three other starters also return for the Minutemen.  Coach Cam Jones is in his first year after leading the Hill-Murray program.  He replaces long time coach Scott Howell who finished his coaching career second in conference wins and third in total wins all time amongst St. Paul City coaches.

St. Thomas Academy's new head coach is Pat Sjoberg.  He also has a star to turn to in guard Lars Osteraas.  The lefty can play on or off the ball and is their top option.  The rest of the starting lineup will be new.  Reserves like Dominic Baez will be stepping into bigger roles this season. Baez will likely be one of the guys tasked with slowing down Eli Moseman.  The Moseman vs Osteraas matchup is one of the premier matchups of the day.

4:15 PM Stillwater vs Anoka
Anoka should be one of the better teams in the NW Suburban Conference this season.  Guard Dre Ellis and freshman forward Keldon Johnson return to the lineup.  Ellis is dynamic with the ball in his hands attacking the basket.  Johnson is one of Minnesota's top prospects in the 2029 class.  Forward Bryce Gaustad is a top addition who can play away from the basket in their offense.  Those 2 big men carried the offense in the opener.  Gaustad with the gaudy stat line of 24 points and 21 boards in that game.

Stillwater's strength is their front line so that makes for an interesting matchup.  They may be down a critical piece from that group though.  Carter Zollar didn't play in the season opening loss to rival Mahtomedi.  That would cost them a top scoring option.  He's part of a talented junior class for the Ponies.  Henry Percic is the main option in the backcourt.

6:00 PM St. Louis Park vs Eden Prairie
St. Louis Park has to replace the high flying Curtis twins this season.  They're now playing at North Dakota.  They were part of a large senior class that graduated.  Forward Matthew Johnson and shooting guard Tanner Rose are the main scoring options.  Rose with 22 points and Johnson with 18 in an impressive opening win over Champlin Park.

Point guard Hamze Yusuf leads a high powered Eden Prairie attack.  He led the Eagles opening night win over Washburn with 22 points.  Eden Prairie features a bevy of shooters to go with him.  Guards Carter Pulrang and Grant Sprute are on top of that list.  Forward Cooper Fahning can also step out and shoot it.  The Eagles record might be very deceptive this year because they play in the super difficult and very top heavy Lake Conference.

7:30 PM Minneapolis Southwest at Minnehaha Academy
Minneapolis Southwest is a disciplined and experienced group.  They lost a number of seniors but also played a bunch of juniors who will now step into new roles.  Dashiell Erickson and Owen Boarmen are a couple of wings who can shoot it but have good size and can play inside.  Its a patient group that relies on execution and balance for success.  The Lakers look like a top half team in the Minneapolis City Conference.

Minnehaha has won 9 straight section titles in section 4AA.  They too have to replace a strong senior class.  They'll reload with a young and talented roster.  8th grader Carter Cupito runs the show and freshman Mekhi Abner is a top 2029 prospect.  If you recognize the name Cupito, you'd be right.  Carter's father, Bryan, was a 3 year starting quarterback for Minnesota in the early 2000s.  Junior forward Kellen Troup has a ton of upside with skill and size.  

Go big but avoid the long ride home

After spending opening night in Wisconsin, its time to come back for the Minnesota season.  I took in 3 Saturday games involving teams from section 7AAA.  Definitely needed that to cleanse the palate after the disaster that was Wisconsin vs Minnesota football.  Here's what stuck out to me from those games.

Game 1: Hibbing 78 Chisago Lakes 68
Hibbing's Ray Brau had his way inside in the 1st half, but it was a hot streak from outside to end the 1st half that took a 5 point game to 18 at the break.  14-0 Hibbing going into the half.  That lead was as many as 19 in the 2nd half but Joe Couwenhoven put up 20 of his 30 points in the 2nd half.  The Wildcats would get as close as 7 but a late 3 from Jack Bottoms would slam the door.  Bottoms with 31 points for a limited Hibbing rotation.  Brau did most of his damage in the first half.  I had him with 30 points and 16 rebounds on 10 of 19 shooting, 3 offensive fouls led to 6 turnovers though.  The Chisago Lakes offense very much looking to create off the bounce.

Game 2: Princeton 97 Hermantown 78
A young lineup for Hermantown starting 3 juniors and 2 sophs.  Big man Sawyer Senst is a big body inside that is really hard to deal with.  Hermantown's 1-2-2 press got them off to a nice start.  But then Princeton's run and jump took over and it was all Tigers from there.  Senst with 2 fouls midway thru the first half and then a 3rd at the 4:29 mark.  He would foul out on a charge early in the 2nd half.  But by that point the game was already out of reach.  Big day for Princeton wing Noah Stencel.  He put up 25 of his 37 points in the 1st half.  That included all 6 of his 3s.  Matthew Hallberg added on 15 points.  Guard Ben Sundland led the way for Hermantown with 24 points.  Princeton as usual will play fast and will be very reliant on their 3 point shooting.  Soph Corbin Petcoff for Hermantown scored 11 points and is a nice future piece for the Hawks to work with as they'll return everybody for next season.

Game 3: South St. Paul 87 Duluth Denfeld 54
The first 12 minutes of this one was tight before South St. Paul stretched it out to a 14 point game at the break.   Then the Packers ramped up their defense which led to a 27-4 run.  That blew open a 10 point game and took us to running time.  Donte Branch was the main beneficiary of all the turnovers with 20 points.  Marco London added 5 triples and 21 points.  The Packers with no size had no answer for the quality size of Denfeld.  Carter Brown and Antonio Brown combined for 33 points and had their way in the paint.  That makes the Tuesday matchup vs Minneapolis Camden and their 2 young big men very interesting.

Overall Thoughts 
Not a good day to make the long trips if you were a 7AAA team.  The section is in good hands with talented junior big guys though.  Ray Brau, Carter Brown and Sawyer Senst are good group.  Will Pearson for Chisago Lakes came off the bench and gave the Wildcats their best inside minutes too.  Since its only game 1 I won't play executioner on new coach Tom Terhaar (yet, lol).  Certainly looks like the Wildcats will be able to score though.  Denfeld had a ton to replace at the guard spots and they struggled against South St. Paul's traps and pressure.  Without Mustafa Muhammed, the Packers will be more perimeter oriented.  Addison Tereau with a couple of 3s in that game to show he's more than just a drop off guy in their offense.  Things snowball for better or worse with them.  Once they got rolling in the 2nd half, the game got out of hand very quickly.

2025-26 Opening Night

 

Prologue
Welcome to the 2025-2026 season opener.  Its a unique experience this year as I'll take in a brand new conference and gym to start the year.  This year we open with Minnesota Christian Athletic Conference action.  Its a doubleheader as the Cambridge Christian Boys JV and Girls along with the Owatonna Christian Boys visit Fourth Baptist Christian in Plymouth.  Nice weather, no other games to do, so why not?

Minnesota Christian Athletic Conference you ask?  Isn't that the MCAA?  No folks its not.  The league is in its 2nd year and is comprised of non-MSHSL schools.  That's why they could play tonight.  MSHSL schools can't even scrimmage yet and have to wait another 5 days to play.  The league formed due to the union of the old Christian Athletic League along with Minnesota Association of Christian Schools (MACS) teams.  For those of you who remember Christian Life out of Farmington before they merged with Bethany to form United Christian, they were once a CAL member so not unheard of for the schools to move up.  Like any small school league, teams sometimes move to just a JV level for a couple of years to make things work.

The league is spread out all over the place.  This year for boys basketball its 16 teams split into North and South Divisions as follows.

North:
Cambridge Christian Warriors
Chisago Lakes Baptist Patriots (Chisago City)
Faith Christian Saints (Foreston)
Good Shepherd Lutheran Rams (Elk River)
Lake Region Christian Hornets (Baxter)
St. Cloud Christian Warriors
St. Francis Christian Patriots
Woodcrest Baptist Academy Warriors (Fridley)

South:
First Baptist School Crusaders (Rosemount)
Community Christian Eagles (Willmar)
Fourth Baptist Christian Warriors (Plymouth)
Immanuel Lutheran Trojans (Mankato)
Liberty Christian Golden Eagles (Chippewa Falls, WI)
Owatonna Christian Sabers
Prior Lake Christian Royals
Rochester Area Homeschool Defenders 

Fourth Baptist is a fitting place to be introduced to the league.  For many years it has been the host of the MACS state tourney at the beginning of March.  The cafeteria/atrium area right outside the gym is super handy.  I love the irony of having a Pepsi beverage cooler but selling nothing but being a Coke shop.  No thank you, Dr Pepper please.  I can let that slide for a nice variety at the concession stand, including pizza.  They even had Chick-Fil-A on the menu at the state tourney.

Also a fun fact that I didn't know.  I looked up at the 1000 point scorer banners and there was the name Gresyn Rennie.  Hmmm, that name sounds familiar. He played his sophomore year at Armstrong and then finished his high school career for 2 years at Maranatha Christian.  Very productive high school player. But before that, he was a 3 year varsity player and 1000 point scorer for Fourth Baptist.

Game Time
Now to the games, the boys JV game ended up being the best game of the night.  The home squad came from about 10 down and hit a 3 with 15 seconds to go to win a low scoring affair 35-34. Beyond that its was all blowouts.  In the girls came, Cambridge Christian rolled 53-20.

The boys game had blowout written all over it.  Owatonna Christian didn't have a varsity team in the league last year and dressed 7 underclassmen for this one.  Fourth Baptist coming off a 18-8 league record last year.  They return league player of the year candidate Grant Vikander and 2nd teamer Elijah Forman. It was ugly and quickly.  11-0 Fourth Baptist jumped out just 3 minutes into the game.  They'd stretch that to 29-0 before Owatonna Christian finally got on the board almost 10 minutes in.  46-6 Warriors at half.  They put on the brakes in the 2nd half to keep the score down.  Only 2 field goals in each half for the Sabers.  Fourth Baptist rolls in the MCAC opener 67-13.

Too much size and experience for Fourth Baptist.  Their 3 bigs all dominate.  Senior Grant Vikander 10 points and 7 rebounds in limited minutes.  Senior Carlos Flodstrom 10 points.  Soph Lukyn Williams off the bench behind them with 14 points and 8 boards.  He looks like he'll be a major factor inside for the Warriors the next 2 seasons.  Tyler Stevens and Christian Hoffman each add 9 points.  Nice zone offense from Fourth Baptist vs the 2-3 zone.  For Owatonna Christian, Aidan Seagrist 8 points and a pair of 3s to lead the Sabers.

2025-26 Season In A Nutshell

The Czar's 2025-2026 Season Preview series concludes with the traditional Season In A Nutshell preview.  Its a higher level season overview for the casual fans who don't eat, sleep and breathe hoops like I do.  Its who and what you need to see and when and where to see it.  If you missed any of the conferences or the 156 teams covered in this preview series, the full list can be found here.

New Coaches

• Chisago Lakes - Tom Terhaar
• Cristo Rey Jesuit - Darrell Moffit
• Delano - Chance Veasey
• Eagle Ridge - Kalvin O'Neal
• Hill-Murray - Dustin Hayes
• Irondale - Travis Dedina
• Jordan - Matt Cordes
• Lakeville North - Mike Nolan
• Maranatha Christian - Al Harris
• Math & Science - Rich Berkley
• North Branch - Rob Johnson
• Park Center - Bo Powell
• Robbinsdale Cooper - Ron Howard
• Rosemount - Kevin Smith
• St. Agnes - Malique McCoy
• St. Paul Academy - Kevin Keto (returns from 1 year leave)
• St. Paul Central - Cam Jones
• St. Paul Como Park - Jake Sullivan
• St. Thomas Academy - Pat Sjoberg
• Spectrum - CJ Maternoski
• Trinity - Pat Buchanan
• United Christian - Roy Mould
• Waconia - Nick Perrin

Teams In New Conferences
Note on this section.  I only included City Conference and EMAC changes that I could verify so all updates to those leagues may not be reflected here.

• CHOF to MCAA (basketball only, was independent)
• Cristo Rey to EMAC from Skyline
• Legacy Christian to Skyline from MCAA
• Liberty Classical to MCAA from EMAC
• Maple Grove to Lake from NW Suburban
• Math & Science to MCAA from EMAC
  

Teams In New Sections

Class AAAA

• Alexandria to 8AAAA from 8AAA
• Buffalo to 6AAAA from 8AAAA
• Monticello to 8AAAA from 5AAA
• Two Rivers to 4AAAA from 3AAA
  

Class AAA

• Minneapolis Southwest to 6AAA from 6AAAA

Class AA

• Higher Ground Academy to 4AA from 4A
• Hmong Academy to 4AA from 4A
• New Life Academy to 4AA from 4A
• PACT to 6AA from 5A
• Parnassus Prep to 5AA from 4A
• St. Paul Harding to 4AA from 3AAA

Class A

• Aim Academy joins 4A (new school)
• Community School of Excellence joins 4A (new school)
• Metro Schools College Prep to 4A from 5AA

10 Notable Local Events

• Big Stage (Breakdown) - Dec 6th (Hopkins)
• Southside Showcase I - Dec 6th (Minnehaha)
• Tipoff Classic (Breakdown)- Dec 13th (Edina HS and Edina Community Center) 
  
• Southside Showcase II - Dec 13th (Benilde-St. Margaret's)
• Hutton Winter Classic - Dec 18-20 (Hamline)
• Concordia St. Paul Holiday Classic - Dec 26-27
• Capitol City Classic (Breakdown) - Dec 26-27 (Hamline, Bethel and UNW-SP)
• Southside Super Showcase - Jan 10th (Minnehaha)
• St. Paul Johnson MLK Event - Jan 19th (St. Paul Johnson)
• Border Battle- Feb 7th (Hamline)

10 Non-Conference Games to Watch (single game events only)

• Wayzata at Prior Lake - Dec 2nd
• Totino-Grace at Prior Lake - Dec 4th 
• Apple Valley at Hopkins - Dec 9th 
• Totino-Grace at Maple Grove - Dec 11th 
• Holy Family at Minnehaha - Dec 12th 
• Cretin-Derham Hall at Totino-Grace - Dec 19th 
• Totino-Grace at Wayzata - Dec 23rd
• Cretin-Derham Hall at DeLaSalle - Jan 31st 
• Wayzata at East Ridge - Feb 9th 
• Hopkins at DeLaSalle - Feb 24th 

10 Conference Games to Watch

• Hopkins at Maple Grove - Jan 30th
• Maranatha at Legacy - Feb 3rd 
• Richfield at DeLaSalle - Feb 4th 
• Maple Grove at Wayzata - Feb 6th
• Apple Valley at Prior Lake - Feb 10th 
• Totino-Grace at Spring Lake Park - Feb 10th 
• St. Paul Central at St. Paul Johnson - Feb 10th 
• Cretin-Derham Hall at East Ridge - Feb 13th 
• Wayzata at Hopkins - Feb 17th
• Prior Lake at Eagan - Feb 20th 

10 Impact Transfers

• Izayah Cook - Wayzata from Sauk Rapids-Rice
• Justus Dayee - Tartan from Simley
• DeAngelo Dungey - Totino-Grace from Breck
• Bryce Gaustad - Anoka from Spectrum
• Max Iversen - Maple Grove from Delano
• Marcus Marshall - Maranatha from Minneapolis North
• Jack Thelen - Maple Grove from St. Michael-Albertville
• Xavier Frelix - Hopkins from Park Center
• Kwa Silikpoh - Osseo from Champlin Park
• AJ Taban - Totino-Grace from Stillwater

10 Upperclassmen to Watch

• Baboucarr Ann - Maple Grove
• Nolen Anderson - Wayzata (Minnesota commit)
• Dothan Ijadimbola - Totino-Grace (Drake commit)
• Max Iversen - Maple Grove (North Dakota St commit)
• JoJo Mitchell - Cretin-Derham Hall (U of St. Thomas commit)
• Jayden Moore - Hopkins
• Ahmed Nur - Hopkins
• Ty Schlagel - Cretin-Derham Hall (Nebraska commit)
• Cedric Tomes - East Ridge (Minnesota commit)
• Christian Wiggins - Wayzata (Iowa St commit)

10 Underclassmen to Watch

• Justus Dayee - Tartan
• Jaylen Greer - Two Rivers
• Ichima Idoko - DeLaSalle
• Kolden Johnson - Anoka
• Malik Martin - Minneapolis Camden
• Lamar McBride - Minneapolis Camden
• Tre Moore - Hopkins
• Emmanuel Oyesanmi - Tartan
• Kevin Wilson - Tartan
• Daniel Zoa - Totino-Grace

10 Local Teams to Watch

• Cretin-Derham Hall
  
• DeLaSalle
• East Ridge
• Hopkins
• Maple Grove
• Richfield
• St. Paul Johnson
• Tartan
• Totino-Grace
• Wayzata

Active Streaks of 20 Games Or More In Conference Play
Nova Classical and Mounds Park Academy broke big losing streaks last season.  Most of this year's streaks are new.

• St. Paul Washington - 36 losses
• Last win was 3/4/22 at St. Paul Humboldt
• Mounds Park Academy - 27 home losses
• Last home win was 2/9/18 vs St. Paul Academy
• Benilde-St. Margaret's - 24 home wins
• Last home loss was 2/8/22 vs Orono
• Burnsville - 23 road losses
• Last road win was 1/24/23 at Rosemount 
• St. Croix Lutheran - 22 wins
• Last loss was 2/2/24 at Maranatha
• Tartan - 22 wins
• Last loss was 2/8/24 at St. Thomas Academy
• Simley - 21 home losses
• Last home win was 1/13/23 vs Hill-Murray

Section Winners

I gave thoughts on 16 conferences plus independents.  I'll match that here with predictions for the winners of 15 metro area sections.  That includes the 6 local A, AA and AAA sections and all 8 AAAA sections.

4A: Liberty Classical.  With Legacy moving up and Heritage graduating everybody, the Lions get the default nod here.

4AA: Minnehaha has won this section 9 straight years.  Hard to see it not being 10.

5AA: Holy Family is thefavorite here with a high powered roster.  Maranatha should be right there with them.  Then a strong list of dangerous teams behind that.  Minneapolis North, SW Christian, Blake and Hiawatha all have talented pieces to move deep in the section.

3AAA: This section has been the city Cinderella story the last 2 seasons.  Its a very weak and wide open section.  I'll take craziness and another city story here.  Give me Minneapolis Roosevelt.
4AAA: De La Salle moves on again from this section.  Johnson is the main threat here.

5AAA: Totino-Grace continues their run without a ton of resistance.

6AAA: Richfield loads up and should make a run thru this section.
1AAAA: I'll take Rochester Mayo here with everybody coming back and a down year for the South Suburban reps of the section.

2AAAA: Not quite the usual section of death but the top half all capable of winning it.  Rivalries galore here only add to the flavor.  Prior Lake is the pick.

3AAAA: The top of this section remains the same.  I like Apple Valley here with Camare Young.  Eagan more than capable of making here too.

4AAAA: The section is top heavy again with a loaded Tartan squad, U of M recruit Cedric Tomes at East Ridge and a very talented Cretin-Derham Hall squad.  Let's go with Tartan in a grudge match of last year's section final.

5AAAA:  Maple Grove.  Easy favorite here with a loaded roster.

6AAAA: Wayzata.  Can't bet against the loaded state champs here.  But Hopkins will not be an easy out.

7AAAA: Another down year in this section.  I see a battle between Anoka and Blaine here.  Anoka moves on.

8AAAA: This section doesn't disappoint and it won't this year either.  Moorhead will have their hands full returning to state with defending AAA champ Alexandria, Bemidji and Brainerd all looking to claim the crown.  I'll take Alexandria here.

Season Thoughts

Plenty to watch and we'll begin with the Lake Conference.  The Breakdown has the top 3 teams as the top 3 in AAAA.  Will be very surprised if Mr Basketball comes from outside these teams.  Can Wayzata repeat?  Will Ken Novak get 20 wins at Hopkins to break the all-time coaching wins record?  Does he stay if he gets the record?  James Ware leaves Park Center to become the coach in waiting at Hopkins.  Just as interesting is Bo Powell leaving Robbinsdale Cooper, going to St. Agnes very briefly and ending up returning to Park Center where he took a struggling program to a state runner up finish in 2014.  Can Tartan or East Ridge break Cretin-Derham Hall's hold on section 4AAAA?  How far does Alexandria go without Chase Thompson and moving up to AAAA?  

The top of AAA locally will be loaded with Totino-Grace and don't miss those Tri-Metro games between Richfield and DeLaSalle.  AA will be well represented  locally with Minnehaha, Holy Family and Maranatha all capable of making a run.  I'll be interested to see how Jordan does with Matt Cordes getting back into the coaching ranks.  He had a great run at New London-Spicer.  The state tournament moves back a week.  It will feel like football with that awkward extra week between making state and the state tourney games.  Time to #ShockTheCzar, let's go!

2025-26 Lake Conference Preview

This is the 18th preview in my 2025-2026 season preview series.  In this preview, I finish my look at my look at each of the metro area conferences with a look at the Lake Conference.  There's 1 more preview left.  That will include section predictions and what to watch.  For a list of all the season previews and how they are done, click here.

Buffalo Bison (2024-25 season 14-14, 2-10 Conference, Tie 6th)
Buffalo has to replace all 5 starters and 6 members of their rotation.  Their 16U grassroots team had a very strong summer season.  Soph Thomas Jordan (8.3 PPG) played up with that group and is the top returning scorer.  He fits the 5 out style well as he can play outside and be their best guy inside for a small lineup.  Fellow soph Eli Hegle is a shooter who also played with that team.  I can see him having a breakout season.  Juniors Matthew Jordan (4.4 PPG) and Tony Jordan will see minutes too.  Plenty of shooting available for this squad.

Eden Prairie Eagles (2024-25 season 13-14, 4-8 Conference, 5th)
The Eagles have to replace their leading scorer Max Lorenson (22.8 PPG).  Guard play will still be their strength starting with PG Hamze Yusuf (17.2 PPG).  He's surrounded by shooters Grant Sprute (6 PPG) and junior Carter Pulrang (6.1 PPG).  Senior Cooper Fahning (6.3 PPG) is the tallest player but he can shoot it too as a stretch 4.

Edina Hornets (2024-25 season 9-19, 2-10 Conference, Tie 6th)
Coach Jon Bryant loses top scorer Billy DeMars (17.3 PPG) to UMD but returns his other 4 starters.  They play a versatile roster.  Forward Vincent Cronin (13.3 PPG) is the top guy.  Gus Carpenter (9.8 PPG) and Mason Mohs (9.5 PPG) are top scoring options.  Ben Rebischke is a starting guard.  Will Newburg joins him in the backcourt.  Junior Adryan Miller gives them a front line option.

Hopkins Royals (2024-25 season 26-2, 11-1 Conference, 1st)
Coach Ken Novak is now 19 wins away from matching the Minnesota all time record held by Bob McDonald.  He brought in James Ware from Park Center to be the next head coach in waiting.  The Royals have to replace 3 of their 5 double figure scorers.  That includes 24.8 PPG from North Dakota recruit Anthony Smith.  But you can always expect a high powered offense.  Star PG Jayden Moore (15 PPG) returns to lead the roster.  He'll likely be a Mr Basketball finalist.  Junior forward Ahmed Nur (10.2 PPG) has seen his stock rise into a high major guy over the last year or so.  Guard Tre Moore (5.9 PPG) also returns to the rotation.

Maple Grove Crimson (2024-25 season 23-9, 12-1 NW Suburban Conference, Tie 1st)
The Crimson have loaded up for their inaugural season in the Lake.  High scoring guard Max Iverson (23.2 PPG) comes in from Delano along with Jack Thelen in the middle.  I love the Thelen fit for them.  Maple Grove is one of the rare teams that use big men in traditional ways and Thelen fits that mold.  Add in a high major recruit in junior Baboucarr Ann (14.9 PPG) on the wing and you have a loaded roster.  Bennett Cizadlo is another top 2027 wing who is now eligible.  He played JV last year after transferring in from Totino-Grace.  Henry Knutson (10.1 PPG) is a sneaky good athlete returning at a wing spot as well.  Gavin Elmquist also provides experienced depth.

Minnetonka Skippers (2024-25 season 19-9, 8-4 Conference, 3rd)
Minnetonka was probably my worst analysis of last year as they were far better than I expected.  They have to replace their top scorer Isa El-Amin (24.5 PPG).  They'll still have Willie Wright and Anthony Ortiz (7.3 PPG) on the perimeter.  They'll hope that football star Caleb Francois (9.6 PPG) sticks around for the hoops season rather than leave early for Iowa State. They played a short rotation last year.  I expect the same this year.

St. Michael-Albertville Knights (2024-25 season 18-10, 5-7 Conference, 4th)
STMA has to rebuild the lineup with most of the rotation gone.  That includes 3 double figure graduated scorers and 13.8 PPG from 7 foot center Jack Thelen who's now at Maple Grove.  Size won't be a problem though as Maverick Maros and Drew Demarais return to the front line.  Junior PG Braylon Bohm and Lane Jeffery are top options to be backcourt replacements. Junior Sekou Fofana is another wnig option.  Ethan Jordheim is another front court option.

Wayzata Trojans (2024-25 season 28-4, 10-2 Conference, 2nd, AAAA State Champion)
The defending champs return their top 3 guys and they all averaged over 15 PPG.  Iowa St recruit Christian Wiggins (19.1 PPG) and Minnesota signee Nolen Anderson (17.5 PPG) are the top 2 recruits in the state.  They team up on the wing with Isaac Olmstead (15.6 PPG, UMD commit) running the show.  Tommy Shunmugavelu (4.9 PPG) returns to do the dirty work up front. They also add a top junior in forward Izayah Cook from Sauk Rapids.  He should be used to playing with 3 star seniors as he did that last season.  Guards Xaviahn Ivey and Sam Mohs join forward Brady Lam is just some of the top depth that they also have.

Predicted Order of Finish

1. Wayzata
   
2. Maple Grove   
3. Hopkins 
4. Edina  
5. Minnetonka     
6. Eden Prairie
7. Buffalo  
   
8. St. Michael-Albertville

Conference Overview
The top of the league is absolutely stacked.  The top 3 are all top 5 teams in the state.  Wayzata as the defending state champs with everything back has to be the pick.  Coin toss on Maple Grove and Hopkins.  How quickly the new pieces integrate at Maple Grove is something to watch.  I'm going to take Edina as the best of the rest with 4 starters coming back.  Minnetonka figured it out last year, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt here in a group of 3.  Eden Prairie and Buffalo will be dangerous teams from the 3 point line but they'll live and die by it.  St. Michael has too much to replace especially in a league this tough.

Conference MVP: Jayden Moore - Hopkins

Underclassmen to watch:  

• Thomas Jordan, Eli Hegle - Buffalo
• Jamir Davis - Eden Prairie
• Tre Moore, King Smith - Hopkins 
• Brody Cook, Ben Banwart - Maple Grove 
• Willie Wright, Beckham Nelson, Elliot Thompson - Minnetonka 
• Finn Dorfsman, Tanner Heinen - St. Michael-Albertville

Conference Games to Watch

• Maple Grove at Hopkins - Jan 6th
• Wayzata at Maple Grove - Jan 13th
• Hopkins at Wayzata - Jan 23rd
• Hopkins at Maple Grove - Jan 30th
• Maple Grove at Wayzata - Feb 6th
• Wayzata at Hopkins - Feb 17th

 Non-Conference Games to Watch

• Wayzata at Prior Lake - Dec 2nd 
• Maple Grove vs DeLaSalle - Dec 6th (Big Stage at Hopkins)
• Tartan at Hopkins - Dec 6th (Big Stage) 
• Apple Valley at Hopkins -  Dec 9th 
• Totino-Grace at Maple Grove - Dec 11th
• Wayzata vs Cretin-Derham Hall - Dec 13th (Tipoff Classic at Edina)
• Hopkins vs Totino-Grace - Dec 13th (Tipoff Classic at Edina) 
• Maple Grove vs East Ridge - Dec 13th (Tipoff Classic at Edina) 
• Chaska at Wayzata - Dec 16th  
• Totino-Grace at Wayzata - Dec 23rd
• Maple Grove vs Rochester Mayo - Dec 26th (Capitol City Classic at Bethel) 
• Maple Grove vs Tartan- Dec 27th (Capitol City Classic at Bethel) 
• Hopkins vs Eagan - Jan 10th (Southside Super Showcase at Minnehaha)
• Maple Grove vs Nicolet (WI) - Feb 7th (Border Battle at Hamline)
• Hopkins at DeLaSalle - Feb 24th 
• Maple Grove at Spring Lake Park - Feb 25th

2025-26 South Suburban Conference Preview

This is the 17th preview in my 2025-26 Season Preview Series.  In this preview, we head south for a look at the South Suburban Conference.  For a list of all the season previews and how they are generated, click here.

Apple Valley Eagles (2024-25 season 23-8, 12-6 Conference, 3rd)
The Eagles look to take the another step as they've gone from 4 to 14 to 23 wins and a trip to state in a 3 year span.  Leading scorer Camare Young (18.6 PPG) returns for the Eagles.  He's a nightmare matchup with size and power to go with speed.  He'll play a lot of point forward for them.  Trey Parker (17 PPG) also returns as a guard who can score in a hurry.  Ryan Christansen (5.6 PPG) returns as the stretch 4.  Jaedin Williams will have a bigger role on the wing.  Tylan Ward returns as as rotation guard.

Burnsville Blaze (2024-25 season 4-23, 2-16 Conference, Tie 9th)
Burnsville has to replace a large chunk of their lineup.  Junior forwards Connor McDevitt and Jayden Anunda will be top options this season.  Yannick Amoyi will see inside minutes.  Guard play is a huge question mark.

Eagan Wildcats (2024-25 season 17-12, 10-8 Conference, Tie 4th)
The Wildcats return 4 starters as they look to compete for a league title.  St. Cloud St commit Kevin Kemp (9.7 PPG) controls the middle.  SG Mikey McKenzie (11.5 PPG) is one of the best shooters in the league with deep range.  Leading scorer Alex Schroepfer (16.5 PPG) is the Swiss army knife that does it all and holds it together.  Will Berran returns as their defensive minded guard.  Junior Donjae Knox also returns to the front line.  Senior wing Kyle Peterson also returns to the rotation.

Eastview Lightning (2024-25 season 5-22, 2-16 Conference, Tie 9th)
Wing JC Green (18 PPG) led the Lightning in scoring last season.  He's the only returning starter.  Justice Demarco and Erik Olson will man guard spots.  Daniel Mekonnen will see time on the wing.  Isaac Bone is the top returning option to man the interior.

Farmington Tigers (2024-25 season 15-13, 9-9 Conference, Tie 6th)
Farmington sees 5 of their top 7 scorers from last season graduate.  That includes guard Ryan Beckwith and do everything forward Cole Wilcek.  They were 2 of the 4 double figure scorers.  They also lose junior forward Tommy Schabert (5 PPG) for the season due to injury.  He was poised to be a major contributor.  Forward Briggs Sheridan (9.6 PPG) is the top returning scorer and should be poised for a major increase in his production with the Schabert injury.  He's a big body who will also shoot it from 3.  On the perimeter, Blake Johnson (3.9 PPG), Kale Flees and Max Blandin all return to the rotation.

Lakeville North Panthers (2024-25 season 18-11, 10-8 Conference, Tie 4th)
Longtime assistant Mike Nolan takes over for retired hall of famer John Oxton.  He had a 21-33 record in 2 years as the interim coach from 2006-2008.  Northern State commit Dane Danielson (7.9 PPG) is the top returnee for a team that needs to replace 4 starters.  He had a terrific summer as he's developed into that classic inside out forward.  Tony Johnson (5.1 PPG) is the starter coming back.  Lots of questions beyond those 2.  Juniors Owen Brezinski and Reid Bishop look to complete with a group of seniors for minutes.  Pete Krolak and Dylan Lepinski are a couple of guard in that senior group.

Lakeville South Cougars (2024-25 season 15-12, 9-9 Conference, Tie 6th)
Casey Fliehe (7.2 PPG) is the top returning scorer and the lone returning starter.  Soph Nolan Greene (7 PPG) and Ryker Sanders return to the front line.  Senior guard Collin Johnson (5.3 PPG) was very productive this summer. Expect a big increase in production from him.  Nic Swanson also returns at a guard spot.

Prior Lake Lakers (2024-25 season 22-7, 13.5 Conference, 2nd)
Forward Norbu Jenpa (20.8 PPG) and PG Cade Wozney (11 PPG) have graduated.  That means no double figure scorers return.  The Lakers will still be very dangerous though.  Forward Colten Gunderson (9.4 PPG) is a go to guy inside.  Juniors Kobby Sanbrew and Trey Theis return as forwards with shooter Kolby Thompson.  Zach Christofferson also returns to the front line.  Cole Brinkman is another returning guard.

Rosemount Irish (2024-25 season 11-16, 7-11 Conference, 8th)
Assistant Kevin Smith takes over the program.  He'll have 4 returning starters to work with.  However that won't include leading scorer Jordan VanWinkle (13 PPG).  Guard Peyton Gholson (12.5 PPG) leads the offense.  Senior forwards Jack Burke (9.8 PPG) and Drew Molenaar will now be the top inside guys.  Kavari Flowers and Ja'khi Hollie join Gholson as guards who can handle it.  Mayon Dixon (9.3 PPG) returns as a wing starter.

Shakopee Sabers (2024-25 season 24-7, 16-2 Conference, 1st)
The Sabers have to replace 5 starters with their top 6 scorers.  That's almost 65 PPG gone.  But there's a group of talented juniors waiting in the wings.  Shooter Luke Schroeder (5.8 PPG) could triple or even quadruple his production.  Football standout Blake Betton (4.1 PPG) also returns to the rotation.  Jake Courts is another wing who joined the rotation later in the season.    I think he'll be a name that breaks out.

Predicted Order of Finish

1. Prior Lake
2. Apple Valley
   
3. Eagan   
   
4. Shakopee
   
5. Lakeville South 
6. Lakeville North
7. Farmington 
8. Rosemount 
9. Eastview
   
10. Burnsville
    

Conference Overview:
I see a trio at the top of the league.  Prior Lake I see as the deepest lineup.  Apple Valley has the most dangerous player.  Eagan has way too much coming back to be picked any lower.  Tons of losses in the middle.  Shakopee just seems to reload and I'll take them to do that here.  Farmington both with 1 versatile big guy but what they put around that guy is key.  The bottom 3 all continue to rebuild.

Conference MVP: Camare Young - Apple Valley

Underclassmen to watch:

• Nolan Greene - Lakeville South 
• Brady Molenaar - Rosemount

Conference Games to Watch

• Prior Lake at Apple Valley - Jan 12th
• Eagan at Prior Lake - Jan 15th
• Apple Valley at Eagan - Jan 20th 
• Apple Valley at Prior Lake - Feb 10th
• Eagan at Apple Valley - Feb 17th 
• Prior Lake at Eagan - Feb 20th 

Non-Conference Games to Watch

• Wayzata at Prior Lake - Dec 2nd
• Totino-Grace at Prior Lake - Dec 4th 
• Apple Valley vs Totino-Grace - Dec 6th (Big Stage at Hopkins)
• Apple Valley at Hopkins - Dec 9th 
• Apple Valley vs Rochester Mayo - Dec 13th (Tipoff Classic at Edina) 
• Prior Lake vs Chaska - Dec 29th (Shakopee tournament) 
• Eagan vs Hopkins - Jan 10th (Southside Super Showcase at Minnehaha) 
• Prior Lake at Cretin-Derham Hall - Jan 24th (The Collision) 
• Apple Valley vs Onalaska (WI) - Feb 7th (Border Battle at Hamline) 

2025-26 Suburban East Conference Preview

This is the 16th preview in my 2025-2026 season preview series.  In this preview, I continue my look at the local big schools with a look at the Suburban East Conference.  For a list of all the season previews and how they were generated, click here.

Cretin-Derham Hall Raiders (2024-25 season 29-2, 17-1 Conference, 1st)
The state AAAA runner up needs a new front line with Tommy Ahneman (18.1 PPG) and Monteff Dixon (12 PPG) graduating.  Wing Ty Schlagel (18.4 PPG) and guard JoJo Mitchell (16.7 PPG, St. Thomas commit) lead a deep group.  4 other reserves return and they add guard Isaac Feller from Bloomington Jefferson.  Junior Dre Frierson-Hollie is the main candidate to be the new interior guy.  Feller, Isaiah Thom, Cartier Russell and Julian Smith join returning PG and defender Jason Johnson on the outside.

East Ridge Raptors (2024-25 season 21-7, 16-2 Conference, 2nd)
Star combo guard Cedric Tomes (27.3 PPG) returns.  He'll play at Minnesota next year.  He'll be recovering from a broken finger suffered during the football season.  Shooting guard Bennett Skinner (11.6 PPG) joins him in the backcourt.  Forward Graham Sanneh (5.4 PPG) also returns to the lineup.  He's shown rapid improvement over the last year.  Andrew Tharaldson joins him on the front line.  Aidan Galvin and soph Ben Koch will be part of the backcourt rotation.

Forest Lake Rangers (2024-25 season 6-21, 3-15 Conference, 9th)
The Rangers return all but 1 member of their rotation. Guard DJ Westman (16.1 PPG) leads the way.  Nobody else averaged more than 7.6 PPG.  Kevin Ndirangu, Adam Sorenson and Connor Johnson join him in the starting lineup.  Landon Schwartz and Alex Sanchez are other front line options.  Jayden Dillard (7.6 PPG) is another scoring option in the backcourt.

Irondale Knights (2024-25 season 5-22, 1-17 Conference, 10th)
Travis Dedina is the new Knights head coach.  He has to replace top guard Jake Dedominces (21.3 PPG) and 6 other seniors.  Forwards Cameron Cramble (12 PPG) and Mason Broussard (6.2 PPG) provide good size up front.  Fisher Killins (5.3 PPG) and Vaughn Macdonald are the top returning guard options.

Mounds View Mustangs (2024-25 season 20-8, 12-6 Conference, 3rd)
Mounds View has to replace their entire lineup of 10 seniors.  Seniors Basil Casper and Qani Mohamed along with junior Connor Crosby will lead the front line.  Juniors Rylan Happel, Ried Defeyter and Andrew Aitkin should be a perimeter rotation with soph Dominic Barrett.

Park Wolfpack (2024-25 season 12-16, 6-12 Conference, 8th)
The guard duo of Anthony Giadyu (18.9 PPG) and Miskir Esayas (14.9 PPG) graduated so no double figure scorers return.  The wing play will be a strength with Aaron Sandin (9.6 PPG) and Brandon Bihm (8.7 PPG) as the top returning scorers.  Junior Justin Ebbers can stretch the floor as their main size guy.  Seniors Caleb Sweet and Keon Moody return at guard spots.  Expect them to once again go with a short bench of only 1 or 2 guys.

Roseville Raiders (2024-25 season 10-17, 8-10 Conference, 6th)
A familiar name returns to Roseville as Tom Critchley Jr takes over.  His dad Tom and brother Ted ran the program a few years ago.  He'll have hall of fame coach Dave Galovich (Crosby-Ironton) on his staff.  Four starters and 8 other seniors have to be replaced.  Forwards Carter Bloomquist and Wayne McGriff return.  Junior wing Micah Wiscus (11.6 PPG) is the leading returning scorer.  No experience outside of those 3.

Stillwater Ponies (2024-25 season 17-11, 11-7 Conference, 4th)
The Ponies lose 3 of their top 4 scorers.  Junior forward AJ Taban (12.9 PPG) was the leading scorer but he's off to Totino-Grace.  But they are deep in that spot.  Juniors Carter Zollar (12.6 PPG) and Owen Stangl (5.9 PPG) should fill in nicely there as top options.  Zach Krusemark and Gabe Smith also saw front court time last season.  Replacing the guard play of Henry Zollar and Manny Smith is also needed.  Senior lefty Henry Percic (4.7 PPG) is the lone experience guard coming back.  Bjorn Naatjes will be a candidate at the point guard spot.

White Bear Lake Bears (2024-25 season 14-12, 9-9 Conference, 5th)
Forward Colin Piper (15.2 PPG, Florida Tech commit) returns but they lose 9 seniors from the rotation.  Junior forward Preston Crider will be another front court presence.  Nick Cardenas is the only other player with any rotation experience.

Woodbury Royals (2024-25 season 10-17, 7-11 Conference, 7th)
Coach Kent Getzlaff returns a pair of starters.  Wings Muad Abdulrahim (12.7 PPG) and Brandan Fahey (6.9 PPG) lead the program.  Junior forward Tyler Erickson (4.5 PPG) and soph guard Ethan Studer (4.2 PPG) are nice young pieces to work with.  Senior Cohen Rogers will also see wing time.  Juniors Ethan Hauser and Nolan Freymiller and soph Carter Wilkerson were JV starters last year.  They'll compete for minutes this season.

Predicted Order of Finish

1. Cretin-Derham Hall
   
2. East Ridge     
   
3. Woodbury 
4. Stillwater  
5. Park 
   
6. Forest Lake
7. Mounds View  
8. Roseville 
9. White Bear Lake
10. Irondale

Conference Overview:
CDH remains the class of the league.  East Ridge has nice balance and a star in Tomes.  After that, drop to Woodbury who I think makes a jump with a nice returning group.  Stillwater will be big, but they'll have to figure out guard play.  Park has a nice wing group to work with.  Forest Lake also looking to make a jump with most everybody back.  Mounds View has to drop with zero experience coming back but they always plug the next group into their system.  Roseville and White Bear Lake also have to replace just about everybody.  Irondale loses their top guy and has struggled for 2 seasons so they stay in the cellar for now.

Conference MVP: JoJo Mitchell - Cretin-Derham Hall

Underclassmen to watch: 

• Anthony Armstrong, Zeke Gilbert- Cretin-Derham Hall
  
• Ben Koch - East Ridge
• Soren Lukkason - Forest Lake
• Dominic Barrett - Mounds View 
• Ethan Studer, Carter Wilkerson - Woodbury

Conference Games to Watch

• East Ridge at Cretin-Derham Hall - Jan 8th 
• Cretin-Derham Hall at East Ridge - Feb 13th

Non-Conference Games to Watch

• Cretin-Derham Hall vs Wayzata - Dec 13th (Tipoff Classic at Edina) 
• East Ridge vs Maple Grove -  Dec 13th (Tipoff Classic at Edina)
• Cretin-Derham Hall at Totino-Grace - Dec 19th
• Cretin-Derham Hall vs Alexandria - Dec 27th (CSP Holiday Tournament) 
• East Ridge at Totino-Grace - Jan 2nd 
• Prior Lake at Cretin-Derham Hall - Jan 24th (The Collision) 
• Cretin-Derham Hall at DeLaSalle - Jan 31st 
• Wayzata at East Ridge - Feb 9th 

2025-26 NW Suburban Conference Preview

This is the 15th preview in my 2025-2026 season preview series.  Its the final week of the preview series and that means its time for the metro big schools.  In this preview, a look at the Northwest Suburban Conference. For a list of all the season previews and how they are done, click here.

Andover Huskies (2024-25 season 11-17, 3-10 Conference, Tie 11th)
The Huskies have to replace their leading guard duo of Alex Kopetzki (18.8 PPG) and Luke Fenton (12.6 PPG).  They'll be strong up front.  Forwards Eddie Miles (10.8 PPG) and Joseph Mapson (8.5 PPG) return to anchor the frontcourt.  Caden Roessler (10.4 PPG) and Colton Miller  (8.8 PPG) return on the perimeter.  Blaine Roessler and Lane Johnson also return to the rotation.

Anoka Tornadoes (2024-25 season 23-8, 9-4 Conference, 5th)
Both leading scorers at the guard spots also depart for Anoka.  That costs the Tornadoes over 34 PPG in scoring and a ton of experience.  Senior guard Dre Ellis (11.5 PPG) should see a big increase in production.  What goes with him at the guard spots is a question mark.  The forward spots will be solid with Brody Lakanen, freshman Kolden Johnson and Spectrum transfer Bryce Gaustad.  

Blaine Bengals (2024-25 season 16-12, 6-7 Conference, Tie 6th)
The Bengals have to replace 3 of their 4 double figure scorers.  Senior wing Shiloh Ayitey (19 PPG) looks to be one of the league's top scorers again.  Guard Tulla Gemta (8.9 PPG) also returns to the starting lineup.  Guards Gavin Weir, Tim Radtke and Owen Clark will see guard time.  Cade Neilson returns to the front line.  It'll be a senior laden lineup 

Centennial Cougars (2024-25 season 15-14, 5-8 Conference, Tie 8th)
Centennial has to replace 4 of their top 5 scorers.  That includes star wing Jackson Driessen and his 23.8 PPG.  Forward Tristan Hanson (15 PPG) leads the lineup.  Wing/Forward Zach Espinosa (4 PPG) will see a much increased role.  The perimeter rotation sees senior Shawn Eline to run the point.  Juniors Wesley Kukkonen and Brett Pullman join him.  Sophomores Bryant Richardson and Brady Anderson are depth options.

Champlin Park Rebels (2024-25 season 23-5, 11-2 Conference, Tie 3rd)
The dynamic wing duo of Tyler Wagner (27.7 PPG) and Preston Thielke (12 PPG) needs to be replaced. But there's still plenty to work with.  Junior wing Gavin Walter (8.9 PPG) has waited his turn.  He should expand on a great grassroots season to be the lead guy this winter.  Soph Moussa Dukuly and Pierless Davis will join him on the outside.  Kyler Pust (8.5 PPG) is a leader at a guard spot. Great Emadamerho is an option to take over the forward spot.

Coon Rapids Cardinals (2024-25 season 7-20, 1-12 Conference, 14th)
Coon Rapids loses their top 2 scorers which is over 44 PPG and a huge hole on the wings.  The Cardinals will be led by a small senior guard trio of Kieran Wymore (7.1 PPG), Konnor Young and Cody Dagogo.  Wymore is the only returnee who averaged more than 4 PPG last season.  Junior TJ Neal joins them in the perimeter rotation.  Senior Jadon Ekoue returns in the middle along with Bo Adeuga.

Elk River Elks (2024-25 season 8-20, 5-8 Conference, Tie 8th)
The Elks lose guard Max Spanier (12.4 PPG) but return everybody else.  Guard Levi Harris (20 PPG) and big forward Dominic Webster (10.4 PPG) are a nice duo to work with.  David Balisidya, Chase Sheldon and Amani Kuhl join Harris in the backcourt.  Jackson Boll is a super hard worker and a dynamic rebounder to go with Webster.  Fun player to watch.  Brody Thompson and 7 footer Lincoln Jeno LaPlante are also frontline options.

Osseo Orioles (2024-25 season 7-20, 3-10 Conference, Tie 11th)
It was another surprising down year for Osseo but this is a new year with a brighter outlook.  Kwa Silikpoh and Joel Saah transfer in to man the guard spots.  Both come from Park Center but Silikpoh was the starting PG at Champlin Park for half of last season before leaving.  Owen Counce joins them at a guard spot.  Wing Quincy Johnson also returns.  Trey Shaffer returns at a forward spot.  That's a spot that the Orioles have traditionally been able to always plug in as a productive role guy.

Park Center Pirates (2024-25 season 16-11, 11-2 Conference, Tie 3rd)
The Pirates are facing a mass exodus.  Four double figure scorers graduated.  Coach James Ware left to be the head coach in waiting at Hopkins.  Xavier Frelix followed him there along with the pair that left for Osseo.  DaRoyce Mills and Joseph Jacobs return in the backcourt.  Yahya Soumahoro saw back end rotation minutes in the middle. 

Robbinsdale Armstrong Falcons (2024-25 season 5-22, 3-10 Conference, Tie 11th)
Coach Rob Ware has to replace his 2 double figure scorers.  Junior wing Alex Olson (10.1 PPG) was a nice breakout story last season.  He'll be the primary option this season.  Seniors Eli Kuempel join and Aidon Reinke join him as returning starters.  Gabriel Hall and Reinke should be the primary guards.  Calan Pilon will be another inside out rotation option.  Max Peters-Hebert will see inside minutes.

Rogers Royals (2024-25 season 10-17, 6-7 Conference, Tie 6th)
All 5 starters and the top 5 scorers need to be replaced.  Guards Xyarien Jackson (4.1 PPG) and Tucker Sawdey lead that group.  Jason Lutgen and Owen Ahlbrecht will be the front line.  The 6'8" Ahlbrecht had a nice summer and is a breakout candidate.  Sam McApline will see wing time.  All of those players are juniors as the Royals build for 2 seasons.  Senior guard Colin Anderson provides experience.

Spring Lake Park Panthers (2024-25 season 11-16, 4-9 Conference, 10th)
The Panthers went with a junior lineup last year and that should pay off this year.  Wing Nolan Myren (19.8 PPG) leads a strong group of guards.  Colin Welch (11.1 PPG) and junior Cal Spencer (8 PPG) return with Myren as starters.  Sawyer Thomsen, Nolan Roach and Tyler Wilkinson will be in that perimeter rotation too.  Forward Aaron Jeppson (6 PPG) returns to the starting lineup too.  He's 6'10" (and you can't teach that), long and lanky but can stretch the floor shooting it.  James Pelkey joins him on the front line.

Totino-Grace Eagles (2024-25 season 23-7, 12-1 Conference, Tie 1st)
Coach Nick Carroll looks to lead the Eagles back to a state championship.  Malachi Hill (14 PPG) and Tian Chatman (9.6 PPG) return to lead the guards.  Drake commit Dothan Ijadimbola (12.4 PPG) returns on the wing.  Stillwater transfer AJ Taban is an inside out option.  Breck transfer DeAngelo Dungey is another great wing option.  Depth options Jaylan Hynes and Daniel Zoa also return to the rotation.  Then you have quality options like Luther Bunge and Shay Jackson from last year's JV also looking for time.

Predicted Order of Finish

1. Totino-Grace
   
2. Spring Lake Park 
3. Champlin Park 
4. Anoka 
5. Osseo
6. Elk River 
7. Blaine  
8. Rogers   
9. Park Center
10. Andover
11. Robbinsdale Armstrong 
12. Centennial 
13. Coon Rapids

Conference Overview:
Maple Grove has moved to the Lake Conference and that takes away a league heavyweight.  That means Totino-Grace is far and away the favorite.  Spring Lake Park is the best of the rest with most of their lineup returning.  Anoka and Champlin Park have strong pieces coming back as well.  Osseo should rebound with their additions.  Elk River and Blaine will once again battle in the middle.  Park Center drops and Rogers loses a ton but will be better than expected.  Coon Rapids clearly at the bottom with the other 3 trying to avoid them.

Conference MVP: Nolan Myren - Spring Lake Park

Underclassmen to watch: 

• Kolden Johnson - Anoka 
• Bryant Richardson, Brady Anderson - Centennial 
• Mousssa Dukuly - Champlin Park 
• Daniel Zoa - Totino-Grace
  

Conference Games to Watch

• Totino-Grace at Spring Lake Park - Feb 10th

Non-Conference Games to Watch

• Totino-Grace at Prior Lake - Dec 4th 
• Totino-Grace vs Apple Valley - Dec 6th (Big Stage at Hopkins) 
• Totino-Grace at Maple Grove - Dec 11th
• Totino-Grace vs Hopkins - Dec 13th (Tipoff Classic at Edina)
• Cretin-Derham Hall at Totino-Grace - Dec 19th
• Totino-Grace at Wayzata - Dec 23rd
• East Ridge at Totino-Grace - Jan 2nd
• Totino-Grace vs Germantown (WI) - Feb 7th (Border Battle at Hamline) 
• Maple Grove at Spring Lake Park - Feb 25th

2025-26 Outstate AAAA Preview

This is the 14th preview in the 2024-2025 season preview series.  Week 3 of the series ends with a look at the 9 non-metro class AAAA schools.  That means the AAAA schools that aren't otherwise included in the previews.  For a list of all the season previews and how they are done, click here.

Alexandria Cardinals (2024-25 season 29-3, 17-1 Conference, 1st Central Lakes, AAA State Champions)
The 2024-25 Class AAA state champs make the jump up to class AAAA.  Losing Mr Basketball winner Chase Thompson is huge.  But the Cardinals still look to return to the state tourney with most of the rest of the roster.  They have top notch perimeter play with guards Mason Witt and Talan Witt and wing Gavin Roderick.  Myles Gray and Grady Starzl also return.  Thomas Hinrichs is a worker that fits them very well.

Bemidji Lumberjacks (2024-25 season 15-12)
Bemidji returns 4 starters from last year.  High scoring combo guard Jaxon Boschee (26.7 PPG) and forward Austin Riewer (14.6 PPG) are a solid inside out duo.  Jeron Huseby (9.3 PPG) and Rhys Sneide also return to the starting lineup as guards.  Beyond that, they'll need to figure out the depth options since the rest of the returning experience is very limited.

Brainerd Warriors (2024-25 season 14-14, 8-8 Conference, 5th Central Lakes)
The Warriors return wing Korde Roseman (17.2 PPG) and wing Grant Johnson (7.5 PPG)  to their starting lineup.  They are 2 of the taller players on the roster but aren't interior guys so what they do there will be a question mark.  Guard Eli Tautges (14 PPG) and forward Garrett Gilbert (9.3 PPG) are the main pieces that need to be replaced.  Junior Blake Fenstad and soph Luke Merseth will also be in the guard rotation.

Duluth East Greyhounds (2024-25 season 10-17)
The Greyhounds return 3 nice pieces.  Guard Ty Nyberg and LaDanian Bowman join junior forward Simon Winkels.  Bowman was a breakout player last year.  Roman Durand is another front line option.  Soph wing Ty Schingen will see an expanded role.

Moorhead Spuds (2024-25 season 24-8, AAAA 5th place)
Moorhead has to replace their top 2 scorers in wing Reign Battle (20.8 PPG) and PG Brian Zarazua (16.7 PPG).  Zarazua's leadership was a key piece for them.  Juniors David Mack (16.1 PPG) and Jett Feeney (7.6 PPG) are football standouts but can hoop too.  Soph Romeo Kromah had a very nice grassroots season. Those 3 make up another good perimeter group.  Junior Austin Dryburgh returns inside along with Edmund Wotoe.

Owatonna Huskies (2024-25 season 14-14, 10-10 Conference, 6th Big 9)
Coach Josh Williams needs to replace all 5 starters.  Guard Gavin Burmeister is the top returnee along with forward William Halverson..  Junior Brendan Klecker will also see interior time.  Junior point guard Willie Moore will see plenty of ball handling time.

Rochester Century Panthers (2024-25 season 7-20, 6-13 Conference, 9th Big 9)
Wing/Forward Nate Long (13.1 PPG) is the lone double figure scorer returning for the Panthers.  Aguek Aguek returns inside.  A full backcourt of SG Sabir Ahmed (16.9 PPG), PG Ricky Wengert (11.9 PPG) and wing Dane Skime (6.5 PPG, now at Orono) needs to be replaced.  Junior Adam Borgmeier is an option to replace them.

Rochester John Marshall Rockets (2024-25 season 26-6, 19-2 Conference, 2nd Big 9)
The Rockets wouldn't let John Oxton retire without getting a section final win against him.  Now the top 7 scorers need to be replaced.  Guards Jackson Daly and Savy Vath lead this year's team.  Carson Guidinger returns on the front line.  Experience will be limited so expect the Rockets to grind out possessions.

Rochester Mayo Spartans (2024-25 season 18-9, 14-5 Conference, 3rd Big 9)
Mayo looks to contend for a Big 9 title with their entire starting lineup coming back.  Bruising PF Reggie Parker had a outstanding summer.  He'll lead the interior with Logan Shimek who can play inside but has a little range too.  Isaac Peterson and Will Gymarty return as a solid wing pair.  Junior Elliot Myszkowski returns as the point guard.

Overview
The northern half (read non Big 9) has all their top guys coming back outside of Chase Thompson and look to have really good seasons.  Section 8AAAA will once again be very fun.  In the south, section 1AAAA looks like rebuild seasons except for Mayo.

Underclassmen to watch: 

• Ty Miller - Alexandria 
• Luke Merseth, Brady Oseland, Dewayne Sims - Brainerd 
• Ty Schingen, Isaac Emerson, Tristan Latimore - Duluth East 
• Romeo Kromah- Moorhead
• Cooper Routh - Owatonna
• Will Ruzek - Rochetser John Marshall 
• Aguer Akech - Rochester Mayo 

Games to Watch

• Rochester Mayo vs Apple Valley- Dec 13th (Tipoff Classic at Edina) 
• Alexandria vs Tartan - Dec 13th (Tipoff Classic at Edina) 
• Maple Grove at Alexandria - Dec 16th
• Moorhead at Alexandria - Jan 6th
• Brainerd at Alexandria - Jan 13th
• Moorhead at Bemidji - Jan 15th
• Eagan at Duluth East - Jan 17th 
• Alexandria at Bemidji - Jan 22nd 
• Moorhead at Brainerd - Jan 24th 
• Brainerd at Duluth East - Jan 27th 
• Bemidji at Moorhead - Jan 29th 
• Alexandria at Brainerd - Feb 19th 
• Moorhead at DeLaSalle - Feb 21st 
• Totino-Grace at Alexandria - Feb 26th 

 

2025-26 Metro West Conference Preview

This is the 13th preview in my 2025-2026 season preview series.  Now its time for class AAAA as we have only 3 powerhouse AAA schools left.  In this preview, a look at the Metro West Conference.  For a list of all the season previews and how they are done, click here.

Benilde St. Margaret's Red Knights (2024-25 season 26-3, 14-0 Conference, 1st)
Coach Damien Johnson has a down year in front of him.  3 stars have graduated including UNI commit Jalen Wilson (20.9 PPG).  Guard Kobbe Willis injured a knee in the offseason.  He was looking at a monster season.  Point guard Conner Watts (3.4 PPG) and wing Milton Nuahn (4.8 PPG) are top returnees.  Seniors Jaidyn Garibaldi and Cameron Best are candidates for minutes.  Braylon Kelly-Taylor comes in from league rival Jefferson after averaging 8.1 PPG.

Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars (2024-25 season 6-20, 2-12 Conference, 7th)
The Jags lost their top scorer midway thru the season.  Another top scorer graduates.  Then 2 more top scorers have transferred.  In addition to Braylon Kelly-Taylor, Isaac Feller (16.7 PPG) is now at Cretin-Derham Hall.  So what's left.  Latif Squires is the lone returning starter (5.4 PPG).  Carson Christensen and Gus Vollmuth return as guards.

Chanhassen Storm (2024-25 season 11-16, 7-7 Conference, 4th)
Chanhassen has to replace their high powered wing duo of Riley Johnson (23.9 PPG) and John Schmidt (18 PPG).  Junior wing Bennett Barger (11.2 PPG) should see his production dramatically increase as the top returnee.  Senior  Kolby Christl (7 PPG) joins him on the wing.  Nathan Ramler (6 PPG) had a productive summer and will be the top inside guy along with Matthew Daly

Chaska Hawks (2024-25 season 10-18, 6-8 Conference, Tie 5th)
Juniors Tyler Forrest (10.5 PPG) and Kalin Jochum (7.4 PPG) are the top guys coming back.  Forrest will be running the point for his 4th season.  Evan Atkinson (7.2 PPG) and Mayer Lutheran transfer Chase Maetzold will man the wings.  Eli Herzog is a shooter in the rotation.  Marquis Connell will see lots of time handling the ball with Forrest.  Jochum will be a primary front court option.

New Prague Trojans (2024-25 season 3-24, 1-13 Conference, 8th)
The top 2 scorers have graduated from a roster that was offensively challenged.  Guard Andrew King (10.6 PPG) and forward Alex Meyer (8.3 PPG) lead this year's roster.  Forward Myles Tietz and point guard Adam Lee return to the starting lineup.  Spencer Bahn will also see time in the guard rotation.

Orono Spartans (2024-25 season 24-8, 12-2 Conference, 2nd)
Orono has to replace all world guard Nolan Groves (34.2 PPG), forward Brady Wooley (18.7 PPG) and wing Mitchell Kauch (9.5 PPG).  Shooter Grant Hansen and wing Gavin McGuirk return to the starting lineup.  Brennan Doherty, Griffin Mauer and Dane Kanwischer return on the wings.  Wing Dane Skime transfers in from Rochester Century and will be a major lineup contributor.

St. Louis Park Orioles (2024-25 season 14-14, 6-8 Conference, Tie 5th)
The Orioles suffer the loss of the Curtis twins to North Dakota.  They combined for 52 PPG last season.  They lose a bunch of other seniors from the rotation too.  Forward Matthew Johnson (9.3 PPG) is the top returning scorer.  Shooting guard Tanner Rose will be a big boost to the lineup after sitting out last year due to a transfer from Benilde-St. Margaret's.  Josh Rickford returns to the lineup and will be the guy running the point.

Waconia Wildcats (2024-25 season 13-14, 8-6 Conference, 3rd)
Former Concordia-St. Paul assistant Nick Perrin takes over the program.  He'll build around star point guard Will Kirsch (23.4 PPG).  Secondary scoring options include Jaxen Holmlund (6 PPG), Henry Wisniewski (6.2 PPG) and Colton Henke (5.5 PPG).  Nickolas Theis and Luke Hill will man the front line.

Predicted Order of Finish

1. Chaska
2. Waconia 
3. Orono  
4. Chanhassen 
5. St. Louis Park  
6. Benilde-St. Margaret's
7. Bloomington Jefferson
   
8. New Prague
   

Conference Overview
The Metro West takes the biggest hit of any league in terms of graduation losses.  I think Jefferson and New Prague battle to stay out of the cellar as the clear bottom 2.  The top is a jumble and I see another year where we may see results that indicate nobody wants to win it.  A bunch of mediocrity here.  Chaska has experience and talented inside, outside and on the wing.  Waconia with my pick for MVP goes second.  Orono and Chanhassen battle for the next spot.  St. Louis Park could easily jump into that mix.  BSM is a wildcard with everything they lost.
 
Conference MVP: Will Kirsch - Waconia

Underclassmen to watch:  

• Meech Williams - Benilde-St. Margaret
  
• Isaac Johnson - Chanhassen
• Chase Maetzold - Chaska 

Conference Games to Watch

• Chaska at Orono - Jan 20th 
• Waconia at Chaska - Jan 29th
• Chaska at Waconia - Feb 24th

Non-Conference Games to Watch

• Waconia vs Minneapolis Washburn - Dec 6th (Big Stage at Hopkins)
• Waconia at Prior Lake - Dec 9th 
• Chaska at Wayzata - Dec 16th
• Chaska vs Prior Lake - Dec 29th (Shakopee holiday tournament)