This is the 14th preview in my 2020-2021 season preview series.  In this preview, I finish my look at my normal list of conferences with a look at the Lake Conference.  For a list of all the season previews and how they are done, click here.

Buffalo Bison (2019-20 season 16-13, 5-7 Conference, 4th)
The Bison have to replace buckets man Matt Willert (25.3 PPG) on the wing and guard Brandon Maatz (14 PPG).  The lineup will be junior heavy.  Guards Antonio Bluett (13.4 PPG) and Carter Jackson (3.7 PPG) return to the starting lineup.  Zach Zrust mans the post and Will Pool is another solid wing option.  Senior wing Luke Gunderson should round out the main lineup.

Eden Prairie Eagles (2019-20 season 28-0, 12-0 Conference, 1st)
The Eagles were set to complete one of the greatest seasons in state history when COVID hit in the spring.  They were 13-0 against teams that won their league or were ranked at the end of the season with only 3 of those games at home.  Now they have to replace the entire lineup including all 4 double figure scorers who combined for almost 65 PPG.  The guard spots should be set with Cole Tiran, defensive minded Will Foster and junior Ryan Warren.  The size will be inexperienced.

Edina Hornets (2019-20 season 13-14, 4-8 Conference, Tie 5th)
Big man Jacob Hutson and his team leading 17 PPG are off to Loyola (IL) for college.  The next 4 scorers are coming back with a pair of juniors lead the the way.  Combo forward Brady Helgren averaged 10.9 PPG while PG Sammy Presthus averaged 8.9 PPG.  Senior guard Marcus Crawford (8.8 PPG) and forward Bastian Swinney (6.4 PPG) are also back in the lineup.

Hopkins Royals (2019-20 season 24-5, 10-2 Conference, 2nd)
Hopkins has to replace their top 3 scorers.  Kerwin Walton (26.9 PPG) is off to the University of North Carolina.  Cornell Richardson (9.3 PPG) graduated and Andre Gray (8.5 PPG) is now at Minneapolis North.  Wing Xavier White leads the returning scorers with 6.9 PPG.  Combo guard Jaelen Treml averaged 6.2 PPG.  Forward Elvis Nnaji leads the front line with 6.6 PPG.  Forwards Tristan Lee and Andrew Chisley also return to the rotation.  South St. Paul transfer Max Wilson should nicely fit into the role vacated by Andre Gray.

Minnetonka Skippers (2019-20 season 12-15, 4-8 Conference, Tie 5th)
Power forward Cam Steele and 25 PPG have graduated.  Big wings Riley O'Connor and JT Gaffney have also graduated after both averaging double figures as well.  The guard rotation is overflowing.  Junior Cohen Kellogg (4.1 PPG) along with sophs Jalen Cain (7.3 PPG) and Burnsville transfer Ibo El-Amin fill the ball handling and shooting spots.  Vlad Ciubataru (4.2 PPG) also returns to that group.  The front line is a question mark.  Vince Brown and Jacob Durenburger look to be the top interior options.

St. Michael-Albertville Knights (2019-20 season 8-20, 0-12 Conference, 7th)
The Knights struggled through their first year in the Lake Conference.  Now they have to replace most of the rotation.  Wings Evan Wieker (13.6 PPG) and Kale Hoselton (13.4 PPG) need to be replaced along their dunker spot guy Jack Carroll (11.8 PPG).  Junior guard Johnny Tennyson (10.1 PPG) is the lone returning starter.  Nathan Coulson and Uriah Purcell are shooting options.  Jack Hulting should see rotation time.  Wyatt Blakstvedt (3.2 PPG) returns to the rotation.

Wayzata Trojans (2019-20 season 11-17, 7-5 Conference, 3rd)
Coach Bryan Schnettler returns 5 of his top 6 scorers from an injury ravaged season.  The junior class is very experienced and again leads the way.  Wing Camden Heide (15.2 PPG) and sharpshooting power forward Carter Bjerke (14.5 PPG) were the team scoring leaders last year.  Senior Kody Williams (12.3 PPG) is their best creator off the bounce.  Guards Drew Berkland (9.8 PPG), Eddie Beeninga (8.3 PPG) and Ryan Harvey (6 PPG) surround that group with shooting.

Predicted Order of Finish

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

Conference Overview
Wayzata gets the nod here as they have most of their lineup returning.  Hopkins losing Andre Gray is a big loss that they'll have to address.  Who scores for them after Xavier White?  Max Wilson looks to be that guy.  Edina and Minnetonka will try to jump into the mix.  Edina gets the nod here with a more versatile lineup.  It'll be interesting to see how Minnetonka manages all their guards.  Buffalo could make a run here too.  Eden Prairie loses a ton and in a traditionally tough league, that's a big drop.  St. Michael-Albertville has too much to replace to move up.

Conference MVP: Camden Heide - Wayzata

Underclassmen to watch:  

• Easton Breyfogle - Edina
  
• Ibo El-Amin- Minnetonka 
• Hayden Tibbits - Wayzata
  

• Wayzata at Hopkins - Jan 19th
• Hopkins at Wayzata - Feb 12th
  

• Hopkins at De La Salle - Dec 8th
• Moorhead at Wayzata - Dec 12th
  
• Hopkins at Minnehaha Academy - Dec 17th 
• Wayzata at Chaska - Dec 17th
• Hopkins at Orono - Jan 5th
• Hopkins at Chaska - Feb 2nd
  
• Wayzata at Minnehaha Academy - Feb 4th
  
• Minneapolis North at Hopkins - Feb 22nd
  

This is the 15th preview in my 2020-21 season preview series.  Its often asked for and never forgotten.  Therefore its only fitting that my first bonus preview is the East division of the Wright County Conference.  For a list of all the season previews and how they are done, click here.

Delano Tigers (2019-20 season 25-4, 8-2 Conference, 2nd)
Delano loses 4 starters including 2 top scorers in forwards Terron O'Neill (21.2 PPG) and Keagan Smith (18.6 PPG).  Versatile forward Trey Longstreet (14.5 PPG) is a very good returning piece to build around.  Lengthy forward Carter Tool and guard Colin Tolkkinen are 2 pieces that saw limited rotation time in many games.  Guards Trent Techam and Ty Weiman should move up from JV into rotation roles.

Holy Family Fire (2019-20 season 11-17, 2-8 Conference, 5th)
Guard Nick Hendler (13 PPG) was the lone double-figure scorer last year.  Forward Seth Thompson is now playing football at Northern Illinois.  Guard Noah Seck is the top returning scorer with 9.4 PPG.  Jake Kirsch and Gavin Lund return to the guard rotation.  Sophomore Boden Kapke is one of the top big man prospects in his class.  He should see a much increased role.

Hutchinson Tigers (2019-20 season 15-13, 3-7 Conference, 4th)
The school's career scoring leader Russell Corrigan is off to Boise State to play football.  That leaves a big hole in the middle of the Tigers lineup.   The cupboard isn't bare as the rest of the roster for this traditional football power returns.  Talented junior wing Sam Rensch (13.8 PPG) is the top returnee.  Junior post Brayden Johnson and senior Jordan Klinker (7.2 PPG) look to replace Corrigan's production on the front line. The guard play all returns with seniors Zachary Kuseske (13.3 PPG) and Billy Marquart (5 PPG) plus juniors Devon Verhasselt (5.2 PPG) and Aaron Elliot (5.1 PPG)

Jordan Hubmen (2019-20 season 21-7, 13-1 Minnesota River Conference, 1st)
Jordan makes the move to the Wright County Conference this season.  4 starters including star wing Ryan Samuelson (19.1 PPG) need to be replaced.  They'll build around point guard Reagan Koch (15 PPG).  He's committed to Division 2 school Colorado School of Mines.  Forwards Jojo Kleoppel (6.2 PPG) and Cam Dean (3.5 PPG) return to the rotation.  Junior Ashton Sivilay (5 PPG) is another returning guard.  Not much size for the lineup though.

Mound-Westonka Whitehawks (2019-20 season 21-7, 13-1 Wright County West Conference, 1st)
While the Whitehawks have to replace 3 of their top 4 scorers, they still have high expectations.  Leading scorer Jameson Sexton (15 PPG) and post Connor Prok (7.4 PPG) are 2 important losses.  Junior guard Jason Spaeth (10.6 PPG) leads the offense.  PG Santi Phommahaxay returns with forwards Logan Leonard and Jack Linder.  A talented JV squad from last year with juniors Jake Dallman and Jack Eberhart and soph Reese Vanderwilt will provide quality depth options.

New Prague Trojans (2019-20 season 5-21, 1-9 Conference, 6th)
Coach Dan Peterka has to replace 4 of his top 5 scorers.  Guard Parker Johnson and his 21.8 PPG is the biggest loss.  Tommy Traxler (6.2 PPG) is the top returning scorer.  Andrew Nerud is an option for size in the middle.  Matthew Kudrle and Ian Liliquist are other rotation options.

Orono Spartans (2019-20 season 10-17, 6-4 Conference, 3rd)
Orono got off to a rough start before playing better in the 2nd half of an abnormally down season.  They expect to bounce back in a big way with all 5 starters and 7 rotation guys coming back.  Bouncy PF Connor Chappell (15 PPG) had a big summer.  Junior shooter Sebastian Loder (10.3 PPG) is the other returning double-figure scorer.  Andrew Mandel (6.8 PPG) gives them a big body in the middle.  Guards Jacob Farrell and AJ Anhorn  round out those starters.  Soph guard Kyle Kallenbach and senior forward Graham Beltrand provide experienced depth.

Waconia Wildcats (2019-20 season 24-5, 10-0 Conference, 1st)
The Wildcats have to replace shooting guard PJ Hayes and his 23.4 PPG.  Connor Schwab's 11.5 PPG will also be missed.  Forward Spencer Swanson and his interior 15.6 PPG is a great start to address that.  Connor Behrens and Ben Christians are primary options behind him.  Wally Wisniewski and Tyson  Freeburg also saw rotation minutes last season.

Predicted Order of Finish

1. Orono
2. Mound-Westonka  
   
3. Delano
   
4. Waconia
5. Hutchinson
   
6. Holy Family
7. Jordan
8. New Prague
   

Conference Overview
The East division has traditionally been a very rugged test for its teams.  So why not make it even tougher by adding last year's West division champs and the Minnesota River champion.  But this configuration is a 1 year only deal, possibly like this preview.  Orono, Waconia and New Prague are departing for the Metro West Conference next season.  That's a move I've thought should have happened long ago.  Southwest Christian will follow Jordan from the Minnesota River Conference as a replacement.

As to this season, once again it will be tough.  You have a pair of top 10 level teams in class AAA at the top.  Orono with everybody back gets my nod despite the Whitehawks winning the matchup last year.  Delano with Trey Longstreet as an anchor gets the nod over Waconia.  Those 2 teams just reload every year so don't count them out.  Hutchinson with most of their lineup back will look to break into the top 4.  Holy Family falls in just behind that group but they have a nice piece in Kapke to build around.  Jordan will battle them but even with Reagan Koch the loss of 4 starters and jumping up into AAA league is too much to ask in year 1.  New Prague was in the cellar last year and loses a ton.  Can't see them making a move.

Conference MVP: Connor Chappell - Orono

Underclassmen to watch: 

• Boden Kapke - Holy Family
• Reese Vanderwilt - Mound-Westonka
  
• Kyle Kallenbach, Grant Gunderson - Orono
  

• Orono at Mound-Westonka - Jan 26th
• Mound-Westonka at Orono - Feb 19th
  

• Mound Westonka at Blake - Dec 11th
  
• Hopkins at Orono - Jan 5th
  

This is the 16th preview in my 2020-21 Season Preview Series.  This is the 4th and final week of this season's preview series.  This second bonus preview covers the 9 class AAAA teams that weren't included in the specific conference previews.  Then for fun, I've included a handful of random AAA and AA teams that I saw last season.  For a list of all the season previews and how they are generated, click here.

THE REST OF CLASS AAAA
Brainerd Warriors (2019-20 season 9-18, 8-8 Central Lakes Conference, 5th)
Brainerd loses their top 3 scorers and they all were in double figures.  PG Conner Powers (16.1 PPG) and forward Owen Davis (13.8 PPG) are the biggest losses.  But big wing Griffin Rushin (11.1 PPG) returns and is poised for a big season.  Juniors Cam Engholm (4.4 PPG) and Nate Staehling (4.1 PPG) also return to the lineup.  The front line will be solid, guard play is my question mark.

Cambridge-Isanti Bluejackets (2019-20 season 24-4, 12-2 Mississippi 8 Conference, 2nd)
Coach Mike McDonald has to replace almost all of his rotation that had played together for years.  That includes star guard Henry Abraham (33.5 PPG) along with shooters Micah Ladd (15.3 PPG) and Ryan Cox (7.4 PPG) on the perimeter.  Forward Connor Braaten (8.9 PPG) is the only rotation guy coming back.  Rigo Mork looks to take over the point guard spot.  Juniors Braden Jones and Reese Bickford are more options to fill the vacated perimeter slots.
 
Duluth East Greyhounds (2019-20 season 24-5)
Another outstate team poised to make a move in class AAAA is Duluth East.  The Greyhounds have the locally committed to UMD duo of wing Mattie Thompson (18.5 PPG) and Noah Paulson (14.8 PPG) in the middle to build around.  Guard Giovani Saldivar (10.2 PPG) also returns to the starting lineup.  Junior PG Will Van Scoy (12 PPG) is out for the year with a knee injury.  Filling his role is a major concern.

Moorhead Spuds (2019-20 season 21-7)
The Spuds appear poised for another year to challenge in section 8AAAA.  Assistant Matt Ellington takes over for Tyler Bormann.  He moved up to the D3 Concordia-Moorhead head job.  Forwards Drew Hagen (16.8 PPG) and Donnavin Hinsz (7.1 PPG) are significant losses.  Hinsz is now at Columbia Heights.  Double-figure scorers Brady Walthall (11.7 PPG) and Trey Feeney (10.1 PPG) lead the solid core coming back.  Shooter Blake Walthall (9 PPG) and Belind Alemadi (8.1 PPG) at the point also return on the perimeter.  Inside there's not much experience.

Northfield Raiders (2019-20 season 8-19, 7-15 Big 9 Conference, 9th)
Northfield looks to make a jump in the Big 9 standings as they lose only 2 seniors.  The guard duo of Kip Schetnan (16.4 PPG) and Karsten Clay (15.2 PPG) return to anchor the offense.  Luke Labenski (6.5 PPG) gives them another ball-handling option.  Its a group of small guards without a true big man.

Owatonna Huskies (2019-20 season 17-11, 14-8 Big 9 Conference, 5th)
Owatonna is another team with a ton coming back that is looking to take another step.  The junior duo of bruising forward Evan Dushek and guard Brayden Williams is a great start.  Dushek is a guy who can go for 20 points and 10 boards on any night.  Williams is one of the better shooters in the league.    Payton Beyer is another key returnee.  Tough PG Nolan Burmeister and Ty Creger give them options to handle it.

Rochester Century Panthers (2019-20 season 19-9, 16-6 Big 9 Conference, 4th)
Its a rebuilding year for the Panthers.  They lose their top 6 players from last season.  Top guard Jack Fisher is the most significant loss from the group that included 4 double-figure scorers.  Guard RJ Saar is the top perimeter returnee.  Luke Kottom transfers in from Schaeffer Academy and will be the top front line option.  He averaged 15.3 PPG last season.  Peter Lynch also provides experience in the middle.

Rochester John Marshall Rockets (2019-20 season 11-16, 9-13 Big 9 Conference, Tie 7th)
Coach Jim Daly has to replace 6 of his top 7 players.  That includes UMD commit Lincoln Meister in the middle and scorer Jacob Daing on the wing.  Forward Ty Tuckner is the top returning player.  Aballa Bagutti should pick up some of the scoring slack on the wing.  Trevale Moe and soph Logan Tuckner are guard options.  I expect a small lineup.

CLASS AAA AND AA SCHOOLS
Chisago Lakes Wildcats (2019-20 season 7-20, 5-9 Mississippi 8 Conference, Tie 5th)
Chisago Lakes has to replace a pair of double figure scorers.  They do have their leading scorer Andrew Koehler (19.8 PPG) returning to anchor the post.  Guard Nick Wasko also returns to the starting lineup.  Ryan Sanvik (6.5 PPG), Noah Lasiuta (4.4 PPG) and Reed Marquart are further rotation options.

Faribault Falcons (2019-20 season 8-19, 7-15 Big 9 Conference, 9th)
The Falcons return leading scorer John Palmer at a guard spot.  Forward Nick Ehlers returns to the starting lineup as well.  Alex Sullivan and Devin Lockerby are options can fill forward spots.  Junior Hunter Nelson is another guard option.

Rockford Rockets (2019-20 season 21-7, 10-4 Wright County West Conference, 2nd)
Rockford needs to replace 5 of their top 7 scorers.  The big front line of Luke Pepin (13.5 PPG), 7 footer Calvin Sisk (11.9 PPG) and bruiser Carter Kulavik (6.7 PPG) all graduates after being a difficult matchup for opponents last season.  Junior Sam Zilmer (4.3 PPG) is the top option to replace them.  Guard Ryan Boysen (10.9 PPG) is the top scoring returnee and will lead the much more perimeter oriented offense.  Junior wing Derek Pepin (4.9 PPG) will be another primary option.

St. Francis Saints (2019-20 season 7-20, 5-9 Mississippi 8 Conference, Tie 5th)
The Saints need to replace leading scorer Wyatt Schroeder (15 PPG) at a forward spot along with 3 other starters.  Schroeder is now playing football at Minnesota.  Despite that the future is bright for the Saints.  Junior Cody Pennebaker averaged 13.6 PPG and should have a huge year.  Soph forward Matt Bothun (6.2 PPG) is also poised for a much increased role.  Forward Jacob Schultz along with guards Bjorn Hallberg and Kadyn Waller are other rotation options.

Southwest Christian Stars (2019-20 season 14-14, 7-7 Minnesota River Conference, 4th)
School legend Kit Avery departs as the career leader in scoring and coaching wins for the program.  How many people have that on their resume?  Former Chanhassen assistant Tommy Hutton will lead the Stars through their final year in the Minnesota River. They'll jump to the revamped Wright County Conference next season after their short move away from the MCAA.  The Stars need to replace big man Tyren Harris (10.7 PPG) but return the rest of their top 7 scorers.  Guard Tyson Sandness (14 PPG) leads the way.  Junior Brayden Zimmerman (9.8 PPG) is the goto guy inside.  Sandness has help outside with returning guards Nick Morland (7.8 PPG), Isaac Harrison (6.2 PPG) and Lucas Anderson (5 PPG)

This is the 17th preview in my 2020-21 Season Preview Series.  In this preview, I'll condense my usual section by section previews in to a list of predicted winners for this season.  For a list of all the season previews and how they are generated, click here.

Section 4A: Legacy Christian Academy.  The Lions have way too much returning in a section that isn't very strong.  Jake Wald should be recovered from an offseason injury by the end of the season.  With him at 100% for the section bracket, that's enough.  CHOF once again looks to give them a run.

Section 4AA: St. Croix Prep.  The guard play for SCPA too much to ignore here.  Cristo Rey will look to give them a run with the Burgess twins running the show.  Twin Cities Academy and the McNeal twins is another team with a loaded perimeter crew that can make a run here.

Section 5AA: Minneapolis North.  Larry McKenzie has a loaded roster that is the huge favorite here.  Davon Townley is the major difference maker.  Blake has a talented perimeter group that will make them the next best team here.  But lack of depth and size are too much of an issue to pick them to pull the upset.

Section 3AAA: South St. Paul. Alonzo Dodd leads an explosive offensive team.  I love the feel good story of Matt McCollister taking another downtrodden program to a section title (see also Brooklyn Center).  But they'll have to get past the defending champs Richfield to make it happen.  The Spartans have everybody back including a front line that is a tough matchup for most.  Those 2 teams matching up would be one of the more appealing section title games.

Section 4AAA: Minnehaha Academy.  Speaking of appealing section title games, a Totino-Grace vs Minnehaha matchup would top my list.  Minnehaha with 3 straight state titles and COVID preventing a chance for 4 has to be the pick until beaten.  Losing Jalen Suggs is huge, but Chet Holmgren is such a game changer defensively.  Add in guys like Prince Aligbe and all the other talent to make a roster still good enough to win the whole thing.  TG goes 2 deep at every position though.  Plus they have a star of their own in soph PG Tommy Chatman.  The one weakness they have is youth and Minnehaha has the experience of being there.

Section 6AAA: De La Salle.  Another case where you pick the champ until beaten.  Cade Haskins will put the offense on his back.  While its not the section of death like many years past, it won't be a cakewalk either.  Orono will give the Islanders all they want.  Plus I'm sure they won't forget giving away a section title game a couple years ago.  Mound-Westonka is no slouch either.

Section 1AAAA: Lakeville South.  Coach Joe Janquart has the stars aligned to win the section this year.  The main competition will be from Owatonna and Farmington.  Both have a ton coming back and are looking to make a leap.  But I see too much big game experience for the Cougars.  Reid Patterson makes plays and they have nice role guys around him.

Section 2AAAA: Chaska.  The Hawks have size, guard play and experience coming back.  3 of last year's loaded teams have huge losses (Prior Lake, Shakopee, Eden Prairie).  Edina also losing a star in forward Jacob Hutson.  Prior Lake, Shakopee and Edina all with talented juniors ready to take over though.  Minnetonka has a good guard group that can be a bad matchup.

Section 3AAAA: Lakeville North.  This section title has resided in the city of Apple Valley for a long time.  Coach Oxton is not one to bet against come section time and he has plenty of experience and talent coming back.  Eastview will be the main competition with a talented bench group taking over the rotation.  Rosemount is dangerous with shooter Caleb Siwek returning.

Section 4AAAA: East Ridge.  They have a talented inside-out duo of Kendall Blue and Drew Adams coming back.  Woodbury will be a threat here as well with plenty coming back.  Cretin-Derham Hall can't be discounted with Tre Holloman.  Tartan's defense will have them in the mix as well.

Section 5AAAA: Osseo.  I think this is the most top heavy section in class AAAA.  Osseo is the deepest team here.  Tim Theisen's experience gets it done here.  Champlin Park's duo of Strong and Nwaokorie is more than capable of winning it.  Park Center will still be very talented despite heavy losses.  Mounds View has their scoring coming back.  Their hard-nosed style along with their experience will make them a tough out.

Section 6AAAA: Wayzata.  This is the common Wayzata vs Hopkins theme.  Hopkins having to replace Andre Gray (now at Minneapolis North) is a major hole.  Wayzata's junior group is very talented and experienced.  Health did them in last year but they proved they could play with anybody.  

Section 7AAAA:  Duluth East.  Despite losing guard Will Van Scoy for the season due to injury, the Greyhounds have the easiest run of anybody.  Mattie Thompson and Noah Paulson are a top level duo.  Forest Lake is the only notable threat here.

Section 8AAAA: Maple Grove.  I think the Crimson size makes the difference here.  Add that in with their always solid group of guards and that's enough . Moorhead can give them a run with a ton coming back.  Brainerd and Buffalo look to be spoilers.

Its the week after Thanksgiving and that means its basketball season.  Oh wait, not here in Minnesota due to COVID.  But we have other fools excited enough to play so that means we get to test technology and some new stat keeping thanks to our friends in Iowa.  Opening night in Iowa gives us #4 2A Albia vs 1A powerhouse Grand View Christian on YouTube.  

A familiar face for me seeing GVC center Daniel Tobiloba again.  He's one of the top big man prospects in Iowa's 2023 class.  He didn't disappoint on this night.  I liked what I saw of him in July when I was in Ames.  5 first half blocks controlled the paint.  The good folks at Prep Hoops Iowa had him for 22 rebounds as well.  Very raw offensively but a definite impact guy on the defensive end.  GVC rolled the dice and kept him in with fouls for much of the game.  It a game against a top 5 team, play to win!  Love the decision.  

Albia really struggled in the middle 2 quarters to score.  19 points in the 1st quarter with a 12-0 run (Tobiloba fouls had him sitting).  The next 2 quarters they combined for 23 points that saw them shoot  4-23 during a stretch of that.  I had Albia 2-22 from 3 on the night and plenty of good looks.  A Manny Hammonds 3 to beat the 3rd quarter buzzer pushed the lead to 9 and was a back breaker to conclude a 12-4 run that closed the quarter.  Hammonds with 34 points to carry the Grand View Christian offense.  Expect Albia to be a very tough out down the road and Grand View Christian to jump way up in the polls as well.

4 FACTORS
Effective FG%: Grand View Christian 59.09%, Albia 35.29%
Offensive RB%: Albia 32%, Grand View Christian 25%
FT Rate: Albia 19.12%, Grand View Christian 18.18%
TO Rate:  Albia 9.09%, Grand View Christian 25%
Points per Possession: GVC 1.01, Albia 0.85

Czar's Facts of Basketball 101 rears its ugly head again. Shoot it better, you win.  End discussion.  Basket, Ball, put ball in basket.  Grand View Christian got beat on the offensive glass, turned it over, didn't get to the line as much (and didn't make them when there, only 4-13).  But Tobiloba's influence forcing jump shots was the difference.  Albia couldn't hit the outside shots, game over.

Fond Iowa memories from watching the game.  Albia is within a stone's throw from Knoxville, IA where I once ventured.  This was 1 week short of 11 years ago back when current Nova Classical head coach John Carrier was starting his head coaching duties in Iowa.  I still tell John to this day that nobody would know he won a game there if I hadn't been there to watch it.  I lost my original iPhone the night before that trip so I couldn't even live tweet about it.  The horror!

Speaking of horror, John and many others can tell horror stories of just how tight the officiating is in Iowa.  Nothing has changed in that regard from watching tonight.  No breathing allowed!  The best story I can tell about that is when former Iowa Hawkeye Jeff Horner (an Iowa native) and current head coach at D2 Truman State was coaching in the Timberwolves Shootout.  I was sitting at the end of the scorers table right next to his bench.  Play goes on for a couple of minutes to start the game, contact happens and no whistle.  Horner is like "You don't call that here?"   That was a vastly underrated part of the Timberwolves Shootout for me in the final years.  Sitting next to the out of town bench and hearing them think out loud.

Iowa once upon a time had a rule where you had to raise your hand if you got called for a foul.  Being a Wisconsin guy in high school, we made the trip to Iowa to play and saw this in the JV game (where nobody knew it was coming).  Kid got a T for not raising his hand.  So once the varsity game came along, it was comical.  Everybody was raising a hand to make sure if they got called they showed it.

Back to back nights of online season openers and stories.  Last night it was Iowa.  Tonight its the delayed opening night in Wisconsin.  My online choice has a little local interest in addition to a star team.  Brookfield Central is the preseason #1 in Wisconsin's Division 1.  They host Germantown in a Greater Metro conference game to open the season.  Brookfield Central features Texas commit David Joplin on the wing.  He played with D1 Minnesota during the summer.  Guard Ben Nau is the 1st commit for the St. Thomas Tommies. 

The kids playing in masks but I really didn't see much of a difference in the play by using them.  The game was close for 9 minutes.  Then Brookfield Central knocked down 4 straight shots to start a 27-5 run that covered the last 9 minutes of the 1st half.  Only 2 buckets in the last 18 trips of the half for Germantown.  42-19 Brookfield Central at the break with Nau and Joplin both in double figures.  

A 9-0 run by Germantown would cut the lead to 18 with 9 minutes left in the game but that was as close as it would get in the 2nd half.  Brookfield Central rolls to a 80-52 win.  David Joplin 24 points and 8 rebounds on my sheet and did plenty of damage from deep.  Ben Nau also getting his with 22 points.  Guard Andrew Rohde adds 17 for Brookfield Central.  Andrew Case leads Germantown with 13 points.  Brookfield Central sweeps the 4 Factors which isn't a surprise in a blowout. 

Now to the stories.  Wisconsin often starts their season a week ahead of Minnesota.  That means as part of Thanksgiving travels, I've been able to sneak in some fun openers over the last decade.  I've been to small schools which is always a thrill.  I've been to Thanksgiving events in Milwaukee and Wisconsin Dells.

I saw UW grad Brevin Pritzl in his senior year home opener (and ran into the Augustana guys from Sioux Falls in the process).  Also in the Green Bay area, I took in Sam Dekker's senior year opener.  He didn't make a shot all night against the defending section champs.  Still ended up with 47 points that night.  By the way, if you haven't seen the last minute of his high school career where he stole a state championship, go look it up.  Its amazing.  Also got to see Tyler Herro who's been great for the Miami Heat.  He scored 43 points but turned it over 10 times in a loss to a top ranked small school team. 

That opener is a chance to see a top flight Wisconsin player before the Minnesota season starts.  Over the years that hasn't disappointed.  Even online tonight, knowing the game wasn't top flight, the stars did perform.  Now I might have to go back and watch stars Patrick Baldwin and Leon Bond go at it in another game from the same conference.

We continue our theme of midwest and/or great plains online openers with a Nebraska opener tonight.  High major recruit Isaac Traudt takes his Grand Island squad into Omaha to take on #3 Creighton Prep. The teams split 2 OT games with the margins being 2 points in 1 game and 3 points in the other.  Difference is that Grand Island lost basically everybody except Traudt.  Creighton Prep had their top kid move on to D2 power NW Missouri.  That's the 1 in the 7 of top 8 that's not back.  Nebraska football recruit AJ Rollins leading the big lineup.  No masks for the players tonight.  Minimal fans allowed in the building.  Student broadcast, here we go.

Traudt 2 quick buckets and Grand Island goes up 4-2.  But he goes ice cold the rest of the night forcing tough shots.  The rest of the Grand Island roster was overmatched.  12-3 Creighton Prep run to end the 1st quarter and take a 14-7 lead. Then 8 turnovers and only 6 FGA for Grand Island in the 2nd quarter.  Only 2 baskets for Grand Island from around the middle of the 1st quarter until under a minute left in the 2nd quarter.  That allows Creighton Prep to expand the lead to 29-12 at the half.

6 more turnovers in the 3rd quarter (to go with just 6 FGA) for Grand Island.  They did come out 1-3-1 zone so they had some more energy.  But no offense means they're down 41-17 after 3 quarters.  Creighton Prep PG Justin Sitti with a nasty dunk off a turnover to push the lead to 49-22 in the middle of the 4th quarter.  Sitti is a very nice get for Morningside.  Solid PG handling it and defending.  Creighton Prep rolls 51-33.  Isaac Traudt 16 points, 10 rebounds, 4 TO on 5-18 FG shooting.  Forward Luke Jungers leads Creighton Prep with 15 points, all in the 1st 3 quarters. He has a couple of low D1 offers now but with his shooting, I see upside for the junior.  He played with the OSA Crusaders 16s last summer so I hope to see him again on the circuit this spring.

Creighton Prep wins 3 of the 4 factors. They win the obvious one, EFG by a 51.22 to 35.14 margin.  4-18 from 3 for Grand Island.  Creighton Prep was a passable 8-24 from deep.  They lose the ORB% factor but win the FT Rate and TO Rate factors.  15.69% TO% compared to an ugly 37.25% for Grand Island with 19 total TO.

I have only 1 story of Nebraska basketball travels.  It was sometime around my college days when I made a trip to Omaha to visit family.  I believe we took in a game in Lincoln.  I was like those annoying parents you hear on video.  I feel better laughing at my idiocy now but I also cringe.  Maybe age does bring moments of wisdom.

The opening week of the 2020-21 season is finally upon us.  We get started in the elements on Thursday night.  Here's are the games that stick out to me for the short opening week.

Thursday

Its a battle of titans in the Northwest Suburban as Maple Grove visits Totino-Grace.  The first 5 games in the NWS schedule this year were intended to be non-conference games between league opponents.  But with the schedule changes, those non-conference games are now moved mostly to late in the schedule.  Totino-Grace is as deep as any team in the state.  Maple Grove just rolls over quality guard play year after year and they size to go with it.  CCX Sports will be streaming that game.

The other game notable game of the night is Cristo Rey at Blake.  This is matchup of teams looking to contend in their AA sections.  Blake behind Minneapolis North in section 5.  Cristo Rey looking to once again knock off St. Croix Prep in section 4.  Its also one of the top games in the Skyline vs IMAC crossover series going on this year.  The Burgess twins vs the 3 Amigos of Ganz, Grace and Liu is worth watching here.  Neither team goes very deep.  Game stream can be found on the NFHS Network (subscription required) or follow along on twitter with me live.

Friday

Its a big battle to open the final year of the 7 team Metro West configuration.  Cooper makes the trip to Chaska in a battle of the top 2 teams in the league.  A great contrast of styles with a big, methodical Chaska group taking on an athletic and guard oriented Cooper squad that wants to play fast in the open floor. Can Cooper force enough turnovers and play the game at their pace?  CHBN will have that game online.

Cretin-Derham Hall visits Mounds View in a quality Suburban East opener.  Mounds View will have to figure out a way to slow down Tre Holloman.  The big question for CDH is how they generate offense around Holloman.  All of the other weapons around him are now gone so he'll take on a much bigger scoring burden.  Prep Spotlight will have that game (subscription required)

United Christian Academy visits Avail Academy (FEAR THE RHINO!) in a matchup of 2 of the top teams in the EMAC.  Avail with everybody back from last year.  UCA with major losses but they do return one of the top players in the league in forward Zach Corley.

Saturday

Farmington at Eastview.  Its a tough start for Farmington as they play a couple of the league favorites in the 1st 3 days.  Its home vs Lakeville N on Thursday and then this game.  While Eastview lost all 5 starters, most of the new crew saw notable reserve minutes last season and was very productive over the summer.  But its the opener so it may take time for the group to gel.  Farmington has a ton coming back plus the return of Eli Green from injury.  That experience in a shortened season with limited offseason time could be a big difference maker.

Maranatha at St. Croix Prep.  St. Croix Prep looks to continue their dominance in the Skyline.  Maranatha loses a ton but still projects to be a top half team in the league thanks to a talented group of returning youngsters.  SCPA gets the advantage of having already played as they host Concordia on Thursday.  Maranatha gets the extra couple of days off but its their season opener.

In section 6AAA, its Orono visiting Benilde-St. Margaret's.  New BSM coach Damien Johnson gets a very quick and tough look at where his team is at.  Orono returns most of their roster and will look to contend for the section title.  Connor Chappell and Andrew Mandel make up a very good front line for the Spartans.  Tough matchup for the Red Knights to start the new season.

Prologue
After a long delay, the 2020-2021 season is finally here.  I'm off to Blake to see a quality AA matchup with Cristo Rey making a visit to the Bears' Den.  Blake and Cristo Rey each looking to make a run in section play in a couple of months.  Only a limited number of home fans allowed at this one.  Schools varying in their policies on that.  Masks all around including uniform matching masks for Blake.  We did get 1 broken mask on the night.  Many cases of a mask below the nose.  Despite that and no on-site concessions, I do manage to smuggle in a can of Mug Root Beer.  Nick Rathmann not only doing the usual and extra crazy AD duties thanks to COVID, he's also doing color commentary on the varsity broadcast. 

Food and Beverage Counter
Mug Root Beer - 12 oz (170 Cal)

Game Time
No Jasper Liu for Blake tonight.  Both teams with small lineups.  The 1st game of year syndrome strikes as its only 4-2 CRJ at the 13:20 mark.  Scoring a problem all half.  Frosh Grayson Okoronkwo with a triple from 1 corner and then the other.  That's all part of a 14-0 Blake run over the last 10+ minutes of the half.  CRJ misses their last 13 shots of the 1st half.  That was after making 4 of their first 6.  21-9 Blake at the half.

After an Okoronkwo 3 point play to start the half, the cold spell strikes Blake.  They miss 6 in a row with 4 turnovers.  CRJ replies with a 10-1 run to cut the margin to 25-19 with 13:31 left.  Then the 1st half takes over again for CRJ.  Rob Grace with a pair of hoops and the lead is up to 11.  Theo Liu with a bucket to push the lead to 37-22 with under 8 minutes left.  Gabe Ganz adds a couple hoops of his own to complete tonight's 3 Amigos list.  That keeps the lead at 17 with 5 minutes left.  Blake wins 43-31.

Post Game
For Cristo Rey, this is the 1st of 4 games in 8 days.  Derek Burgess leads the Pumas with 12 points.  Their top guard Erick Burgess had 9 but really struggled with only 3 field goals.  Cristo Rey is 0-1 and they'll open Skyline play Saturday night at home against Concordia.  They stay home next week for more IMAC crossover games against St. Paul Academy and Mounds Park Academy.

For Blake, they're now 1-0.  Freshman Grayson Okoronkwo leads the way with 13 points.  His last points were at the start of the 2nd half.  Theo Liu with 10 and Rob Grace with 9 as they pick up the slack in the 2nd half. Blake goes on the road next week for 2 IMAC games at Breck and St. Paul Academy.

As the score would indicate, this was not pretty.  Much of that of course due to the 1st game of the year and normal layoff.  Add in the extra layoff and this will happen. CRJ was very 1 on 1 with their offense and not much movement of the ball or people.  Will be interesting to see if they add any off ball actions to try to get the Burgess brothers going down hill, e.g something like a Chicago action.  Right now their 5 out is lots of stand and watch.  Blake got a little bit out of their 5 out curls action.  But beyond a couple of nice BLOB looks, the execution of their sets wasn't as crisp as you normally see.  Good example of night 1 problems. 

Four Factors

Blake wins all 4 factors which is pretty indicative of this one.  Outside about 4 minutes early in the 2nd half when Cristo Rey cut the lead down to 6, Blake was even or in control. Lots of bunnies missed in this one that I'm sure both sides would like to have back to increase the shooting numbers.

Prologue
Its a big clash in the 2020-21 Metro West opener.  Chaska hosting its nickname sharing rival Robbinsdale Cooper in this one.  Ryan Paul with the call on CHBN.  Home style concessions means a Fantastic Friday Feast of a Parlour Burger from the good folks at Borough.  Pepsi a must to go with a quality burger like that.   As for a tune, I forgot to use this yesterday so we'll use it today.

Song of the Day: The Waiting - Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

Food and Beverage Counter
Mug Root Beer - 12 oz (170 Cal)
Pepsi - 12 oz (150 Cal)

1 Parlour Burger

Game Time
Chaska would gradually open this one up in the 1st half.  One run of 9-0 in the middle of the half.  Then you look up and you're down 15.  Bo Powell in foul trouble all night didn't help the Cooper cause either.  Spencer Goetz getting work done inside early in the half.  Junior Jakobe Lyles with a great spark off the Chaska bench with a triple and 3 other buckets in the half.  32-16 Chaska at the break.

Chaska with a couple of bombs to help expand the lead to 44-24 with 13:34 left.  Powell then picks up 2 quick fouls and he's fouled out with 11:14 left.  Jack Frick keeps his hot shooting going in the half.  Outcome never really in doubt in the 2nd half.  Chaska rolls 67-49

Post Game
Cooper starts the year 0-1.  They now go home for 3 straight league games vs Chanhassen, St. Louis Park and Benilde-St. Margaret's.  Bo Powell 1 FG and 3 points as he was bogged down with fouls all night.  Davion Evans with 13 of his 15 in the 2nd half to lead the offense.  Coon Rapids transfer David Osayameh with 7 of his 11 in the 2nd half.

Jack Frick and his shot shooting lead Chaska.  He knocks down 6 3s and 22 points.  Spencer Goetz 13 of his 15 in the first half.  Jakobe Lyles with a great night of 14 points off the bench.  Luke Strazzanti adds 13 points mostly via the charity stripe.  Chaska now 1-0 and they get the early edge in the Metro West race holding serve on home court.  Chaska hosts Kennedy on Tuesday before a trip to archrival Chanhassen next Friday.

Cooper never got anything going on offense and wasn't able to turn Chaska over.  That meant this game stayed at a slower, controlled pace.  That resulted in Chaska taking advantage of their size to dominate the paint.  Add in some quality outside shooting to go with it and it made for easy Chaska offense.  Cooper having Bo Powell out with fouls really hurt their cause too.  David Osayameh adds a nice dimension for them.  The rest of the roster is many interchangeable pieces.

Four Factors

Its another night of dominance in the 4 factors.  Chaska sweeps all 4 with 3 of the 4 coming by substantial margins.  The offense rebound one is a little misleading due to missed free throws for Chaska (every miss must have a rebound etc etc).  The effective field goal diff really shows up with 6 extra made 3s for Chaska.  The difference could have been worse as Chaska struggled at the charity stripe.

Prologue
Opening Saturday of the season takes to a northeast Minneapolis setting as Edison makes the short trip to St. Anthony.  Its the season opener for both teams in this matinee.  No fans in attendance for this one.  One of the AAU All-Stars on the whistle.  I held off on my soda addiction for the afternoon.   Our song of the day goes with staying up and watching all these other games online.

Song of the Day: Sleeping with the television on - Billy Joel

Food and Beverage Counter
Mug Root Beer - 12 oz (170 Cal)
Pepsi - 12 oz (150 Cal)

1 Parlour Burger

Game Time
Edison scores on their first 5 trips with 3 bunnies to jump out to an 11-4 lead less than 3 minutes in.  St. Anthony takes a timeout and gets a couple of buckets.  Then they turn it over on 5 of the next 7 possessions.  Edison converts that into a 14-0 run as they add in a couple of triples.  27-11 Tommies with 10:30 left.  St. Anthony needs another timeout.

The game changes at the timeout.  Edison 10-15 shooting at this point but they go 3-14 over the rest of the half.  Some of that due to St. Anthony switching to a 2-3 zone at the 6 minute mark of the half.  Keep in mind that the Minneapolis schools couldn't start practice until this week.  That means limited time to get all your stuff in.  That showed here.  The Huskies dig their way mostly out of the hole with a 10-0 run out of that timeout.  35-29 Edison at the half.

St. Anthony stays with the zone in the 2nd half and that slows the pace.  Luke Omodt breaks the press for 2 and goes inside out to Max Kachman for a triple.  Huskies barking up the right tree (insert Bill Walton howling here) as they take their first lead 40-39 with 13:45 left.  This one is tight but Edison hanging on to the lead coming down the stretch thanks to Jabari Langley putting the offense on his back.  

Kachman shows up huge down the stretch.  He knocks a pass away and saves it to soph Cayden Hauser for a layup.  Kachman follows that with 2 FTs with 3:25 left for 1 point lead.  Then he drives and returns the favor to Omodt for a layup and a drive of his own for 2 more.  That brings the Huskies from down a couple buckets to up 61-57 with 2:46 left.

St. Anthony misses a couple of shots and 4 free throws from Langley pulls Edison within 2.  Edison then forces the 3rd St. Anthony turnover of the final minute.  That gives the Tommies the ball back down 2 in the backcourt with 7 seconds.  Langley drives and dishes and we have a shooting foul with 1.1 left.  Edison can tie with both.  But the 1st is no good.  The intentional miss of the 2nd bounces around for no shot.  St. Anthony hangs on to win 63-61.

Post Game
For Edison, Jabari Langley leads the way with 21 points on my sheet.  15 of those in the 2nd half.  Johnny Spencer held to 1 triple and nothing else before fouling out.  Their scrambling defense really bothered St. Anthony at the start and end of the game.  Plus they've got a couple of guys who can knock down 3s to go along with those 2 athletic wings.  The Tommies fall to 0-1 overall.  They'll stay on the road the rest of the month for 3 winnable Minneapolis City Conference games.  The first being at Henry on Friday so they do get another week of practice before playing again.

St. Anthony starts off the season 1-0.  They really needed this win as they have a gauntlet of 3 road games at #3AAA De La Salle, Fridley (#1 in the heart of Ryan James) and #4AAA Richfield in the next 10 days.  The inside out duo of forward Luke Omodt and guard Max Kachman leads the way.  Omodt finishes with 14 points, Kachman with 10 as part of his huge plays late.  Junior forward Gani Stevens gave the Huskies good minutes as well with 11 points.  Good balance with 8 guys scoring at least 5 points.

Four Factors

The teams split the 4 factors with Edison's defense and athleticism winning the turnover and rebounding percentage battles.  Forcing 20 turnovers and grabbing 21 offensive boards turned into 11 extra shots for the Tommies.  But at the end of the day, they still couldn't make enough shots.  Czar theory of EFG still holds.  Granted its an entirely different discussion if Edison makes those last 2 free throws and then wins in overtime.

A fun weekend of games.  Let's do some comments on a couple of games I went back and watched online and then take a look at the 1st complete week of the shortened 2020-21 season.

Friday: Mounds View 64 Cretin-Derham Hall 51
In the handful of games I've watched so far, Mounds View has the been the most impressive team I've seen.  They were in control of the Suburban East opener vs CDH from the get go.  They looked in late season form with their 4 out motion offense and solid man defense.  Junior guard Kobe Kirk was fantastic with 20 points.  Defensively they played Tre Holloman much like Eden Prairie played Jalen Suggs last year.  Attempt to stay in front of him, don't reach and make him finish over the top.  Plus they went under every ball screen to try and exploit the main hole in Holloman's game, shooting.  CDH started out with ball screen stuff that was mostly ineffective.  Their best offense was their 2-3 high.  I liked the tweak to put Holloman as the screener and then pop for a top iso.  Holloman held to 4-15 shooting, 1-5 from 3, 16 points with 0 assists and 4 turnovers.  With the offense now revolving around him this year, if Holloman has nights like that, CDH is going to struggle.  Coach Kline can I get the old Bill McKee set for a Jack Tauer three please.  Mounds View with a ridiculous 75% EFG% for the game and over 60% of the FGs assisted. 

Saturday: Benilde-St. Margaret's 77 Orono 58
I've been really high on Orono during the offseason.  I was shocked to not see them in the preseason top 20 in class AAA.  Then I saw this score and it got my attention.  The final is a bit misleading as it was a 6 point game with 2:40 left.  BSM finished the game on an 11-0 run thanks to 5 straight Orono turnovers at the end.  Granted it could have been this thanks to a 14-0 BSM to start the 2nd half.  That put the Red Knights up 51-31 before Orono was able to get as close as 57-53 with just over 5 minutes left.  Maddox Alipate with the 1st 8 points of the game for BSM.  He'll obviously fit in right away.  Daniel Ijadimbola was fantastic with 23 points and distributing.  Guard Sam Best with 20 points and 5 triples.  Every one of those 3s seemed to be at a dagger moment.  All 3 of those players are juniors for new coach Damien Johnson.  Connor Chappell 15 points to lead Orono but a quiet 2nd half of only 1 FG.   BSM right around 70% EFG for the game.

Week 2 Preview
Tuesday's highlight is a big Lake Conference showdown with #1AAAA Wayzata visiting #3AAAA Hopkins.  Hopkins needed a 4 point play late just to tie the game and then steal one 48-45 vs Eden Prairie.  Wayzata had no problems at St. Michael-Albertville.  CCX Sports will have that game live online.

Wednesday is all about the Northwest Suburban.  Osseo visits Maple Grove in the top game there.  Its starts a brutal stretch for both teams.  For Osseo its at Maple Grove on Wed, at Park Center (CCX Sports live) on Friday (non-conf), at Totino-Grace on Monday, Park Center at home on Thursday (conference).  For Maple Grove its Osseo, Champlin Park (non-conf) on Friday, at Park Center on Monday.  Maple Grove has the road loss at TG already against them.

Thursday's highlight is South St. Paul at Tartan in a critical Metro East showdown.  PG Alonzo Dodd is off to a great start for 2-0 South St. Paul.  Tartan and their PG DeWayne Thompson opened with an easy win over North Branch.  Great contrast of styles there with a Tartan team that doesn't have a ton of firepower and grind you out defensively vs a free wheeling get up and down 1st to 100 wins Packers team.  Prep Spotlight has that game live (subscription required)

Friday's big game is the pride of Lakeville with South visiting North.  A headstart in the South Suburban standings on the line there.  South struggled in the 1st half against Eagan on Saturday before winning a close one.  Holy Angels at Columbia Heights in a sleeper Tri-Metro game as well.  Minnehaha goes on an iron range roadtrip.  They're at Duluth East on Friday and Hibbing on Saturday.

Prologue
An early season clash of titans as #1AAAA Wayzata visits #3AAAA Hopkins.  Lake Conference, Section 6AAAA and state poll bragging rights all depending on the outcome.  Limited crowd but at least we get a Billy Crystal sighting on the whistle.  No surprise that Hopkins flipped the benches to the opposite side so they were away from the normal bleachers and entry way.  2 hot dogs on my homemade concessions menu for the evening.

Song of the Day: King of Pain - The Police

Food and Beverage Counter
Mug Root Beer - 12 oz (170 Cal)
Pepsi - 12 oz (150 Cal)

1 Parlour Burger
2 hot dogs

Game Time
Hopkins gets off to a good start.  Elvis Nnaji with 1 dunk and then off a turnover Max Wilson goes up high to him for another dunk.  16-7 Hopkins at the 11:50 mark.  Lead holds there as Cam Heide goes to the bench with 2 fouls just outside the 7 minute mark.  Xavier White converts a turnover and the Hopkins lead expands to 39-20.  Hopkins with 3 late turnovers in the half to trigger an 8-0 Wayzata run going to the locker room.  39-28 Hopkins at the break.

They look to continue the momentum with the 1st 5 points of the 2nd half.  Wayzata tries to cut into the lead with back to back triples but Hopkins has answers.  Tristan Lee for 3 and Jaelen Treml dunks a turnover to keep the lead at 56-39.  Carter Bjerke with the torch lit in the 2nd half.  One of his 5 triples cuts the lead to 63-54 with 8 minutes remaining and hang on we have a game.

76-63 with under 4 minutes left as Wayzata tries to rally.  Eddie Beeninga 2 free throws and a triple to cut the lead to 6 with 1:33 left and 2 more freebies to make it 5.  Bjerke with his last triple of the night with 34 seconds left cuts it to 4.  But Lee keeps Wayzata at bay with 6 of 6 free throws late.  A late turnover and miss seal the deal.  Hopkins wins 87-80.

Post Game
For Wayzata, Carter Bjerke with 5 triples and 24 points to lead the way.  16 of those points in the 2nd half.  Cam Heide had fouls in the 1st half but had 11 of his 16 in the 2nd half.  Eddie Beeninga 12 of his 15 in the 2nd half.  Trojans were an ice cold and sleepy 9-34 shooting in the 1st half but heated up to over 50% in the 2nd half. Wayzata now 1-1 on the season and in the Lake Conference.  They'll go home on Friday for their home opener and start of 4 straight home games (and 6 straight home conference games in a weird schedule quirk).  A trip to Minnehaha is sprinkled in there.

Hopkins improves to 2-0 overall and in the Lake Conference.  They host STMA on Friday before going on the road for 4 games.  5 in double figures for the Royals.  Xaver White with 21, Elvis Nnaji 19, Tristan Lee 18 including 6-6 free throws to seal it.  Jaelen Treml adds 16 and center Jack Hernandez solid with 11 points.  Nnaji was active inside and even stepped out and hit a 3 along with a couple of blocks.  I liked the 2 bigs, high low motion that coach Novak pulled out of the hat.  He used that a couple of years ago with the Joe Hedstrom crew and I was left wanting more of it.  Their defensive pressure did bother the Wayzata offense.

Four Factors

Hopkins wins 3 of the 4 factors.  The EFG could have been much worse if not for a blazing hot 2nd half from Wayzata that largely offset a dismal 1st half.  Hopkins with double the assist total of Wayzata on my officially unofficial sheet.  Wayzata relies more on that sharing so you wouldn't expect a big loss in the assist percentage but that happened here.

Prologue
The NW Suburban takes over this section of the Czar's schedule.  A full slate of games tonight and Friday to get in.  So I take the chance to see Champlin Park host Spring Lake Park.  I avoid the home concession hot dogs for the evening to save for the weekend.

Song of the Day: Blinding Lights - The Weeknd

Food and Beverage Counter
Mug Root Beer - 12 oz (170 Cal)
Pepsi - 12 oz (150 Cal)

1 Parlour Burger
2 hot dogs

Game Time
Spring Lake Park starts the game with a make then misses 12 straight shots.  That sets the tone for the evening.  Champlin Park not doing much better from the field.  Kaleb Skelly breaks the cold streak for Spring Lake Park and the Panthers are only down 10-7 at the 9:10 mark.  Champlin's star post Francis Nwaokorie sits with 2 fouls at the 7:26 mark after a dicey dipping the shoulder call.  Skelly gets his 2nd just after that.  Trey Johnston with bonus freebies and a driving bucket to give the Panther offense a late boost.  Last bucket of the half puts Spring Lake Park up 21-20 at the half.   Teams combine for 16-60 FG shooting (0-11 from 3) with 15 turnovers.

After a streak of bad shooting in the 1st half, its a streak of turnovers that does Spring Lake Park in the 2nd half.  They turn it over on 10 of their 1st 15 possessions of the 2nd half.  Champlin Park with a layup drill getting hoops on 10 of 12 possessions.  PG Josh Strong with a triple to start the big Rebels run.  Francis Nwaokorie with a And 1 dunk.  Champlin Park opens up a 46-30 lead with 9 minutes left.

Spring Lake Park tries to rally with 3 free throws from Johnston and a Skelly triple to cut it to 10.  Then its a pair of Champlin Park turnovers that result in a Johnston steal for a bucket and 1 of 2 free throws.  That cuts the lead to 52-47 with 3:25 left.  Champlin Park stops the bleeding with a couple more easy buckets.  They seal it with 7 of 8 FTs to end the game.  Champlin Park wins 65-50.

Post Game
Spring Lake Park falls to 1-1 overall and in the NW Suburban standings.  Tough and quick turnaround for the Panthers as they host neighbor #2AAA Totino-Grace on Friday night.  That's a non-conference contest as part of the 13/5 league schedule this season.  Trey Johnston leads the Panthers with 15 points.  Kaleb Skelly adds 11.  25 turnovers were just a killer.  That had nothing to do with a press or trap.  Champlin Park just played basic man to man so much of the damage was self-inflicted.  Not to mention the Siberian level cold shooting of 16-54.

Champlin Park improves to 2-0 on the season and in league play.  Josh Strong leads the Rebels with 23 of his 25 points in the 2nd half.  Most of those on easy buckets at the rim.  He did add a couple of 3s to go with 7-8 FT shooting.  Francis Nwaokorie largely held in check with 12 points.  The Panther size did a respectable job on him.  Champlin Park also has a tough turnaround on Friday with a trip to #8AAAA Maple Grove.  After a cold first half of their own, they shoot 15-19 in the 2nd half.

Four Factors

The teams split the 4 factors but Champlin Park wins the 2 factors that I deem most important.  Those are EFG% and TO%.  Huge advantage in EFG too much to deal with.  The turnover margin was a big factor in that as it generated easy buckets.  Spring Lake Park's offensive board edge played a bigger factor in the 1st half than it did in the 2nd half.

Prologue
Its a day in the Metro East in The Kingdom.  2 tape delay games and then this big one live as #7AAA South St. Paul visits Tartan in a battle of the 2 league favorites. Now think about this.  Just a couple of years ago, if I told you these 2 were playing and only SSP was ranked, would you have thought you'd see that?  That's the quick turnaround that the Packers have pulled off.  Tonight's point guard matchup of DeWayne Thompson of Tartan (formerly of Henry Sibley) and Alonzo Dodd of SSP is a highlight.

Food and Beverage Counter
Mug Root Beer - 12 oz (170 Cal)
Pepsi - 12 oz (150 Cal)

1 Parlour Burger
4 hot dogs

Game Time
This one gave me visions of yesterday's ugliness.  But that's to Tartan's liking as they want a slow grind it out pace.  Neither team every jumps out to a big margin in this one.  8 all at 13 minutes, 16 all at the midpoint of the half.  Alonzo Dodd picks up a 2nd foul and that triggers a Tartan run.  DeWayne Thompson with a jumper to end a 6-0 run and flip the scoreboard from 3 down to 3 up.  AJ Burns adds 1 of his 2 triples of the half.  Tartan builds their biggest lead of the game 27-21.  They'll take a 31-27 lead to halftime.

Alonzo Dodd converts a turnover and that brings the Packers out strong with 9 of the 1st 12 points in half number 2.  Tartan takes a timeout and promptly scores the next 7.  That forces a South St. Paul timeout.  41-36 Tartan with 14:07 left in regulation.  Shawn West-Zimpel and Devin Newsome (the main guys behind Dodd) both go to the bench with 4 fouls with 11 minutes left.  Coach McCollister goes all out and brings them back quickly.  West-Zimpel's triple with 6:19 left puts the Packers up 53-51.  Tartan goes up 60-57.  Newsome drives and scores, then another South St. Paul layup.  Curtis Favors counters in the post and we're tied at 62 with 45 seconds left.  SSP takes a timeout and holds.  Dodd gets 1 last chance that is no good.  62 all and we'll play free basketball.

Dodd starts the extra session with 2 free throws.  Those are matched by Burns with 2:49 left.  Then a loose ball bounces SSP's way.  The next pass finds Newsome for a pure left corner triple.  Tartan sends the ball back inside to Favors.  He finds Thompson on a great cut.  That 3 point play is also the 5th foul on Newsome.  67 all with 1:12 left.  Thompson then dives on a loose ball and gets the timeout to steal the possession away with 55.7 left.  Favors converts that into 2 free throws with 36 seconds left.  Dodd comes right back down the lane for a 3 point play with 29 seconds left.  Tartan down 1 and they play it out.  Clock winds down, nobody attacking.  Fadeway 10 footer at the horn is no good.  South St. Paul wins 70-69.  Its the first win for the Packers over Tartan in who knows how long.

Post Game
Tartan falls to 2-1 with the loss and 1-1 in the Metro East.  DeWayne Thompson leads the Titans with 23 points.  AJ Burns adds 14, D'Marco Chelley 11, Marko Vukomanovich 10. Those 3 are all juniors.  The game was mostly Tartan's pace, especially in the 1st half and overtime.  They'll need this kind of offensive balance as the season goes on.  Coach Klingsporn with a couple of early timeouts as he wasn't happy with a couple of easy hoops given up.  Tartan is on the road next week for 2 league games at Hastings and Henry Sibley.

Alonzo Dodd leads South St. Paul with 23 points.  Guard Devin Newsome continues to be a major factor for the Packers as well.  He added 17 points.  Marquise Gleb with 13.  Lots of dribble weave action for the Packers.  They had a ton of chances inside that they missed.  That turned into a huge advantage on the glass as they grabbed 32 offensive boards.   Keep it close and while he missed at the end of regulation, Dodd came up with the game winning 3 point play in overtime.  The Packers are now 4-0, 3-0 in the Metro East.  They continue their 5 game league road trip with games at St. Thomas Academy and North St. Paul next week.

Four Factors

So a violation of Czar's law in this one as Tartan not only wins Effective Field Goal Percentage but wins it big and some how loses.  How you ask?  The Packers got up 19 more shots thanks to those 32 offensive boards and 26 Tartan turnovers.  Both teams actually had equal FT attempts so not much difference there.  South St. Paul left a bunch of points on the board with interior misses and free throw misses.

Prologue
West to North to East and now to the South metro to end the week.  Its a catfight in Lakeville as the North Panthers host the South Cougars.  Coaches vs Cancer night as well for the small crowd on hand.  Both teams trying to gain the edge in the South Suburban standings.  The Fantastic Friday Feast brings me Spicy Chicken Rigatoni from Buca di Beppo.

Food and Beverage Counter
Mug Root Beer - 12 oz (170 Cal)
Pepsi - 12 oz (150 Cal)

1 Parlour Burger
1 Spicy Chicken Rigatoni
4 hot dogs

Game Time
It has not been a good 3 days of hoops for me.  Lakeville North starts the game shooting 2-19 from the field.  GAAAH!  The Bolsheviks would send people to Siberia for less.  I as your loving Czar of course would do no such thing.  Lakeville South gets their 1st 5 of the game from Avery Mast as they open an 8-1 lead.  South doesn't shoot it much better after that.  North has it within 14-11 at 7:17.  Reid Patterson heats up for South.  He converts a 3 point play and hits a pair of triples for the Cougars.  That opens up the biggest lead of the night 27-15 at the 3:20 mark.  South doesn't make another field goal and North finally starts to see the ball go in.  Nolan Winter with a triple in a 7-0 run to end the half.  27-22 South at the break.

That momentum carries thru halftime for North.  Cooper Laufenberger scores on an iso and Noah Nephew buries a left corner triple.  The Panthers run is 15-0 to take a 30-27 lead with 15 minutes left.  South finally breaks a run of 10 straight misses to stop the bleeding.  Sam Fliehe with a bucket and a 3 point play.  Avery Mast with back to back catch and shoot 3s.  Its a 14-4 run for South and they once again lead by double digits 47-36.  North claws their way back.  Frosh Jack Robison to the spin cycle for 2.  Sam McWell with the steal and finish.  South lead down to 50-48 with 2:17 left after the 12-3 Panthers run.  Lakeville South finishes the game off with 6-6 FTs.  That includes 2 from Patterson to ice it with 5.7 seconds left.  Lakeville South gets an important road win over their archrival 56-52.

Post Game
Lakeville North falls to 2-1 with the loss.  They host Eastview in another big league game on Tuesday before a trip to Eagan on Friday.  Cooper Laufenberger leads the Panthers with 10 points.  Will Blascziek adds 9, Noah Nephew with 7.  The mindset of a John Oxton team showed by hanging around despite the ice cold start and then getting down double digits a 2nd time and almost coming all the way back.

Lakeville South improves to 3-0.  They have an interesting week ahead with a trip to Rosemount and hosting Prior Lake.  Reid Patterson and Avery Mast each score 15 points.  Patterson with most of his damage in the last 5 minutes of the 1st half scoring 9 of those points.  He was held without a field goal in the 2nd half.  Avery Mast picked up the slack as he was a catalyst during the run that pushed the lead back to double digits after North had taken a 3 point lead.

Four Factors

I almost thought we'd get back to back violations of Czar's Law.  That didn't end up happening thankfully.  Lakeville North's 2-19 start totally torpedoed their EFG.  But they were 20-38 afterwards.  Overall they end up 2-14 from 3 which isn't like them.  Throw out the 0-10 stretch across halftime for South and they were 17-33.  They ended up only 9-26 from 2 but 8-17 from 3.  Go figure.  Overall hardnosed defense and mostly patient offense from both squads.  South's free throw rate slightly inflated by North having to foul 3 times at the end which accounted for almost a third of the attempts.

Prologue
The Saturday matinee is a class AAA matchup between Delano and St. Thomas Academy.  Delano undefeated and senior laden.  The Cadets winless and young.  But the Cadets are experienced and Delano had to replace a ton of pieces.  The one piece they didn't have to replace is their star Trey Longstreet. 

Food and Beverage Counter
Mug Root Beer - 12 oz (170 Cal)
Pepsi - 12 oz (150 Cal)

1 Parlour Burger
1 Spicy Chicken Rigatoni
4 hot dogs

Game Time
St. Thomas with an early cold spell as they miss 6 shots in a row.  That allows Delano to open an 11-4 lead 6 minutes into the game.  Trey Longstreet with his 2nd charge of the game a minute later.  Coach Techum will let it ride with him.  The Tigers stretch the lead to 24-14 before STA closes it to 28-24.  Longstreet for 3, a layup off a shuffle cut and he converts a turnover into a layup.  That mutes Michael Kirchner's rock concert of 3 triples.  A late turnover allows STA to take a timeout and get Ryan Chamberlain a desperation triple from the top of the key.  That pulls the Cadets within 37-36 at the break.

Give me an encore as Kirchner buries a 3 to start the 2nd half and put STA on top by 2.  Longstreet 2 freebies and a bucket to reclaim the lead for Delano.  Longstreet with a 3 point play and a free throw to push the lead to 52-44 with 10:45 left.  The Cadets won't go away.  John Grismer with a 3 point play and a putback.  Ryan Chamberlain effective all day from the left block going to the jump hook over the left shoulder.  Delano stops that but he goes to the counter by spinning back for the lefty finish.  Its a 9-0 St. Thomas Academy run.  Timeout Delano as they trail 55-53 with 7:31 left.

Who else but Longstreet.  He converts a 3 point play and makes a free throw to quickly put the Tigers back in front. Cadets on the offensive glass to putback a 3rd attempt.  Cadets go back on top 64-61.  Delano going to a pet set with Longstreet setting the screen from THE WORLD'S WORST OFFENSE and then popping to the right elbow for an iso.  He catches, jabs, 1 dribble and rises up for the short jumper.  Then he's on the offensive glass for 2 free throws.  66-64 Tigers back up with 2:10 left.  

Cadets with a chance to tie but they convert only 1 of 2 free throws.  Delano converts 2 free throws, Cadets miss a 3 to tie with a minute left.  Longstreet with a free throw and another Cadets miss.  Delano wins 73-67.

Post Game
St. Thomas Academy falls to 0-3 on the season.  Ryan Chamberlain took advantage of single coverage inside all day for 8 interior buckets.  Add on the end of 1st half triple and he leads the way with 19 points.  Michael Kirchner adds 4 triples for 12 points.  John Grismer active with 13 points.  The Cadets return to Metro East play next week.  They host another undefeated team in #7AAA South St. Paul on Tuesday.  Then its a trip to Hill-Murray on Friday in a battle to stay out of the league cellar.

Trey Longstreet came up big for Delano.  He finishes with 31 points to lead all scorers. I had him 10-22 FGs, 2-5 from 3 and 9-12 from the charity stripe.  He made the big plays to pull Delano back from any St. Thomas Academy momentum.  Will Strandemo with 11 of his 13 points in the 1st half.  Nice outing for the freshman guard.  Levi Farniok with 11, Carter Tool adds 10 for the Tigers.  Delano is now 4-0 on the season.  They return to Wright County East play with home games this week vs Jordan and Waconia.  Then they go on the road for big league games at Mound-Westonka and Orono.

Four Factors

Delano wins 3 of the 4 factors.  Czar's law barely holds.  In a close game like this, you would expect the factors to be close and they were.  Delano with 1 more turnover, 2 more offensive rebounds.  The big advantage here was Delano 16-3 in made free throws.  Only 5 FT attempts for the Cadets.  Overall a much cleaner game than what I've seen recently.  Solid PPP values, low turnovers and largely good shooting numbers.

Prologue
I continue my online tour of the metro by staying on the west side for tonight's live game.  Its a section 8AAAA matchup between Moorhead and Buffalo. These 2 teams looking to make noise behind favorite Maple Grove in the section.  Moorhead coming in winless.  Buffalo coming in with only a single close loss to Edina.

Game Time
Close game early on.  Brady Walthall with a pair of 3s to put Moorhead up 11-10 4 minutes in.  15-14 Buffalo just over 6 minutes in when Buffalo goes off on a 17-4 run.  Buffalo ball movement leading to quality open looks that they knock down.  32-18 Bison at the 6:39 mark as the run takes just over 5 minutes.  Moorhead pulls it back to 9 before a 10-0 Buffalo run closes the half.  Antonio Bluiett with 2 freebies and a jumper to beat the horn (foreshadowing).  44-25 Buffalo at the break.

Moorhead comes out in a zone to start the 2nd half.  That flusters Buffalo to the tune of a 16-2 Spuds run.  Buffalo with a stretch of 6 straight live ball turnovers during that run.  Zach Zrust stops the bleeding to start a 7-0 Buffalo run.  Blake Walthall with another triple in the half to cut the lead to 53-51.  Zrust bangs home a 3 off the extra pass and adds a 3 point play.  65-58 Buffalo Blake Walthall again for 3.  Buffalo lead down to 72-68 with 3 minutes left

Belind Alemadi with the 3 point play to cut the lead to 3 with 42.8 left.  Buffalo misses a bunny and Moorhead has it with 30.3 left.  Out of their last timeout, the miss a triple but its Alemadi finding the rebound and the range for 3.  All tied with 8.1 left.  Buffalo takes timeout to go full court.  Its Bluiett going coast to coast with everybody else out of the way for winner at the buzzer.  Surprisingly easy look.  Buffalo wins 80-78.

Post Game
Moorhead falls to 0-4 on the season.  All 4 losses on the road and 2 of those in Fargo to the top 2 teams in the North Dakota class A poll.  The Walthall brothers lead the way for the Spuds.  Brady with 26 points on my sheet, Blake with 16.  Blake with 4 triples and 14 of those points in the 2nd half.  Brady using his quick release to 4 triples of his own.  Belind Alemadi adds 18 including the last 6 to tie it.  Better defensive intensity in the 2nd half to almost come all the way back from being down 19 at half.  Moorhead gets a tough home opener on Thursday against #10AA Fergus Falls. 

Buffalo gets great balance from their roster.  Zach Zrust and Antonio Bluiett each with 22 points.  Cameron Green comes up big with 6 triples and 20 points playing off of those guys for easy catch and shoot looks.  Will Pool adds 12.  Fun to watch the Bison move the ball.  While I love the spread 5 out pass and cut and their 2-1-2 DDM looks, I do miss their old motion offense from coach Ortmann's playing days.  Buffalo improves to 3-1 overall.  They visit Wayzata on Friday.

Four Factors

Time to catch up on the Minneapolis City Conference.  The league got started a week later than the state schedule due to local guidelines.  So their teams are just getting into league play this week.  A big week for Minneapolis North as they knocked off archrival Minneapolis Henry on Monday.  Now its tonight's game against upstart Minneapolis South.

South with a group of 5 talented freshman plus an 8th grader on the roster.  4 of those kids saw varsity time at Brooklyn Center and Minnehaha last year.  Add in talented senior wing Anthony Martin and you have a group looking to make noise in the league standings.  This game gives me a quick litmus test for where they're at. 

Ultimately this one provided to be size and experience over youth and vigor.  Davon Townley did his thing inside for the Polars  Too big and too strong for South to deal with inside.  Willie Wilson leading the outside offense for North.  I had Townley with 18 points, Wilson with 19 on my officially unofficial (with no scoreboard, clock or PA to help) scoresheet.  South showing youth with too many turnovers and got beat up on the offensive glass.  Star forward Chiang Ring missed a big chunk of the 1st half with what appeared to be foul trouble.  PG Jerome Williams once again leading the offense.

North is now 2-0 overall and in the conference.  They'll stay at home next week to play Roosevelt and Southwest.  South is now off for 10 days as they won't play again until Saturday February 6th when they host Washburn.  Their non-conference game next Tuesday against North St. Paul has been postponed.  Their record falls to 2-1 overall and in the league.  The loss leaves Edison and North as the only teams still undefeated in league play.