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The Weekly Word
bassgemrj@hotmail.com
(posted 11/2007)
(All photos by Dave Hill)
 Tip-off of the season is just days away as teams all over the state are working their 6AM's and afternoon practices. Players are again remembering how low they really have to get in a defensive stance, how vocal they really have to be on the floor, and they are recalling what number "one" was on those in-bounds plays.
Just days away from several games this weekend, the basketball season is right around the corner with top shelf non-conference match-ups that will be catching the eyes of fans around the state.
But can this season measure up to last year? Maybe the greatest game I have ever seen between Cass Lake-Bena and Ellsworth was later followed by Buffalo's unbelievable finish to what was also one of the most incredible match-ups I have ever seen. And let's not forget the overtime win that Holy Family had in double A basketball. There was drama, there was excitement, there were our young student athletes living their dreams in an amazing fashion. And at those times, we enjoyed the athletic spirit and win or losing was not on the minds, it was the game that was supreme.
So what are we going to do to top that this year? Well for starters Cody Schilling is likely to average a triple double and he is chasing Isaiah Dahlman's career scoring record. Schilling is just 858 points behind Isaiah and Cody scored 937 points last season good for the fourth best total in state history. But do you know want number matters to this kid? The number two, as in two state titles.
 You want excitement you can always go check out Cooper and their super athlete Rodney Williams Jr who is sure to bring highlight after highlight for another amazing season. If you want top games you should get a Hopkins schedule because they have just about every top team listed as opponents and make sure to get to those Hopkins-Minnetonka games, that rivalry will hit the top level again. The Skipper senior class has been building for this run for years and the addition of talented Sedrick McBounds gives Anthony Tucker and CJ Erickson another senior class member with scholarship talent.
But you know Hopkins is looking for revenge after last year's playoff upset loss. They have a team full of super juniors to go along with Cal Poly bound Anthony DiLoretto and young DJ Peterson. What will give? Hopkins wants that return trip to state while this Minnetonka squad is looking for their first trip after the loss in OT last year to Cole Aldrich and Jefferson in another classic battle from a season ago.
Defense? Is intense defense your thing? That is the realm of Dave Thorson and Mark Klingsporn who should both have very good teams at DeLaSalle and Tartan once again. And both have a star worth seeing as Royce White may be the state's best player while Titan Mark Sonnen could be the state's smoothest talent.
If you are one of those people who can sit and watch five games at a time with great talent well that is lined up for you as well. The Breakdown has put together another stellar line-up of teams for the Tip-Off Classic the weekend of December 14th and 15th as this event goes two nights in Marshall. The Gatorade Shootout at the Target Center has some major, major talent being brought to the Timberwolves floor and that is the first weekend of 2008 when Maryland, Tennessee, Wisconsin and California bring their best to face our best. Then later that month five of our top teams head to Madison invading enemy territory to face five teams from the land of cheese. That is January 26th and the headline is Jared Berggren's Princeton team traveling to Badger country to play in front of his future fans in Mad-town where he will go to college.
Then of course the talent for the Christmas tournaments is spread everywhere with Hamline lining up a good event, Bethel again putting on a nice show, and the Granite City Classic is back in St. Cloud as many local teams come to do battle.
So the preseason number one some are asking? Our number one is Minnetonka as they have seniors with one final shot after four years of quality basketball. Seven seniors dot this line-up who should all play college basketball and three of them have already accepted college scholarships. But what will Hopkins look like at the end of the year? Will those juniors have the experience to become elite? Osseo is again stacked with size and talent led by Carrington Tankson who should be one of the top playmakers in state. Henry Sibley has shooters, size and now some added toughness as Mike Bruesewitz joins Peter Leslie to give the Warriors some grit.
 Eastview plays as well together as anybody out there and Stillwater will be led by Joel Armstrong who is brought up by coach after coach as a player many people would love to have. Eden Prairie could make a name for its self on the court this year with a ton of toughness and size while Rochester Mayo's D-1 pair of Jordan Hicks and Lucas Kuipers will make them a tough task every game. The big schools have the talent but it takes that chemistry formed at the right time to win it all, right coach Guida?
Then class AAA. What you have here is a St. Thomas team looking to repeat behind Fritz Waldvogel and Alex Schneider and a Benilde-St. Margaret's team that has a dynamite pair in Jordan Taylor and Armond Battle. Jordan and Armond have passed every goal on their chart, except one and that is to win the state title. Spring Lake Park will again be dangerous and if they can get past injuries this year, Reggie Perkins's Washburn team should take the City and then push for a state berth. Right behind them is Henry and the Princeton team that will be on the shoulders of their Paul Bunyan Jared Berggren.
But our pick is DeLaSalle. They have Royce who can do so much, a great point guard in Jeremy Randle, a shooter in AJ Barker plus a load of young talent that should fill in some gaps. But their most important piece is coach Thorson who will be molding this talented group into a contender for the state title. Now they just have to ignore this press clipping and others, listen to their coach and get it done. But their section, they have Benilde-St. Margaret's, Washburn, Waconia, Holy Angels and more. Just getting out of there deserves a crown and that winner will be battle tested.
This is going to be a fun year in class AA and picking a number one was nearly impossible. Montevideo has one of the state's best backcourts in Trammel Barnes and Tyler Grey, Nick Haugen and Rockford bring back a lot of talent and experience, Holy Family has Cameron Cain and Trent Johnson, two important pieces in their state title run plus others returning. There are so many good teams in AA its tough to not forget some. Osakis will be good, Pelican Rapids could get back down to Minneapolis in March, St. Bernard's will again be tough, Maple River still has talent, Fairmont, Blue Earth and so many others. And then the number one is Crosby-Ironton whose kids played together basically all year last year and they have one goal set in mind, get coach Dave Galovich that state title. Bryce Tesdahl is a top talent and Trevor Dickie and Derek Swanhorst are not to bad themselves.
 And then single A where last year's state tournament was as fun to watch as any. Will there be a rematch between Cass Lake-Bena and Ellsworth someplace along the line? You know the fans want to see another Cody Schilling triple-double at the Target Center as he made the game winning assists two times in three games last year plus had a triple-double to blow by the Bulldogs of St. Bernards. David Hanson will again lead Maranatha and Badger-Greenbush-Middle River will welcome anybody up to their swamp. If you want to see a game, go check out the potential sectional match-up between those Gators and Cass Lake-Bena up north. If these teams get there that should be as fun as sections games can be. The Breakdown picks Cass Lake-Bena because to win it all as they have the inside play of the Salscheider twins Joel and Nate, plus the state's most underrated player in Travis Huesners, a strong young talent in Martin Wind, and an incredible coach and man in Dan Ninham.
So there you have the Breakdown's early thoughts on the season. In Minnesota we have to learn to expect the unexpected but there are also sure things around here. The sure things include that Jordan Taylor will step on the floor and be the best leader at the guard spot you will find. A sure thing includes the smoothest stroke in the state belongs to Anthony Tucker and you can bet you will learn from his offensive game by watching. Sure things include Cody Schilling being one of the state's most unselfish players and John Nance is the state's best big point guard.
Surely Hopkins will improve to be the most dangerous at the end of the year and Rodney Williams will produce a nightly highlight. Of course Hopkins and Owatonna will have the nuttiest fans and Jake Lindstrom has the top stroke from the left-handed side. Berggren will out block anybody's shot and Royce White may outscore everybody.
And come March all the individuals, all the records, all the stats, they will mean nothing to the players, coaches and fans. What means something is getting that W and bringing their best game with the best five that can be put on the floor. Can anything top last year? Maybe, maybe not but what's for sure is that the state is in for another fun ride as basketball continues to reach new heights in Minnesota and talent continues to improve. |
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