Competitive balance, as everyone knows, is a thing of the past. So, 3 of our state champions are familiar faces--Hopkins winning its 8th Class AAAA title in 18 years and its 10th overall; DeLaSalle winning its 12th Class AAA title in 25 years and its 7th in 8 years; and Minnehaha winning its 3rd straight and its 4th in 7 years.
Thank goodness for Class A. Henning roared into the tournament with a 28-1 record, good for only a #4 seed. Henning, after all, hadn't played anybody that anybody knew anything about. Meanwhile, Springfield (27-2) got the #1 seed; they at least had played a Class AA state tournament team, St. Peter, and won easily. Ada-Borup (28-1) got the #2 seed; they had played a bunch of AA teams. North Woods (27-2) got the #3 seed; they were in their 3rd straight tournament, so they were a known quantity. And, Henning came it at just #7 in the all-important QRF. And, Henning was making just its 3rd state tournament appearance ever, the first 2 coming in 1965 and 1966. The almost beat Edina in 1966, losing in 3OT. But, that was about as far as their notoriety extended. The smart money was that Henning had no chance.
Wrong. It was Henning's opponents who had no chance, or so it seemed. But, the truth be told, the Hornets were unimpressive in the 1st round, leading CHOF 32-31 at the half and easing away to a 63-56 win as senior guard Sam Fisher scored 20 with 6 assists and 6 steals.
Meanwhile, Spring Grove shocked #1 Springfield 78-67, making 13-of-20 3-pointers versus 9-of-26 for Springfield. Well, now Henning got really revved up, demolishing Spring Grove 67-34. This time Fisher and Peter Fraki each scored 15 points, while Fisher added 8 assists and 3 steals.
North Woods was a slight favorite going into the final with senior guard Cade Goggleye in charge of things for the Grizzlies. Goggleye had made a half-court shot to win a state tournament game in 2017, then led his team to 2nd place in 2018. 1 win, then 2, now it would be 3 and out for Goggleye and North Woods. But, no, Goggleye had one of the worst games of his entire career, scoring just 5 points on 2-of-13 shooting, but you have to consider the opposition--that is, Sam Fisher, who scored 22 on 8-of-11 and hounded Goggleye all over the court. Henning won easily, 67-42.
That was the tournament highlight. Everything else seemed a little anti-climactic. Thank goodness for Class A. Oh, and let's also acknowledge, thank goodness for Minnehaha having the guts, after 3 straight Class AA titles, to move up to Class AAA, where they will challenge DeLaSalle. For one year, at least, we should have competitive finals in AAA and AA, But, that's next year.
Final Top 10
1. Hopkins 27-4, defeated Minnehaha twice, lost to DeLaSalle
2. Minnehaha 29-2, lost to Hopkins twice, defeated DeLaSalle
3. DeLaSalle 27-5, lost to Minnehaha, defeated Hopkins
4. Lakeville North 27-5
5. Park Center 30-2
6. East Ridge 28-4
7. Prior Lake 25-4, lost to Eden Prairie in Section 2AAAA with star Dawson Garcia injured
8. Eden Prairie 22-10
9. Maple Grove 23-8
10. Eastview 19-13
All-State
Matthew Hurt, Rochester John Marshall, Sr., F
Zeke Nnaji, Hopkins, Sr., C
Jalen Suggs, Minnehaha, Jr., G
Tyler Wahl, Lakeville North, Sr., F
Dawson Garcia, Prior Lake, Jr., F
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