Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Saturday, November 9, 2013
Player of the Day, November 8-14, 2013
Wed., Nov. 13--Minnesota Gopher women 90 Charlotte 55
Very impressive and on signing day, too. That is, Carlie Wagner and Grace Coughlin signed their national letters of intent and became Gophers today. Then the team went out and did this. I mean, demolition. 49-27 at the half, and the lead just kept growing in the 2nd half. Rachel Banham scored 20, Amanda Zahui 19 with 12 boards, Micaella Riche 12. Minnesota shot 48 percent to 25 percent for Charlotte.
But the Player of the Day is Kevin Love again, with 33 points and 8 boards as the Minnesota Timberwolves also blew their opponent away, the Cleveland Cavs, 124-95. The margin was 39 at its peak at 115-76. Corey Brewer added 27, Ricky Rubio 16 with 16 assists. And all of this with Kevin Martin sitting it out tonight.
Coach of the Day--Pam Borton, Minnesota Gopher women, who just may be in the process of saving her job. After 18-14 and 19-17 the past 2 years, this team looks much improved. 20 wins and an NCAA bid are required, of course, for Pam to continue, but right now those look like modest goals. 25 wins and top 3 in the Big 10 seems possible.
Tues., Nov. 12--Minnesota Gopher men 84 Montana 58
It was a pretty impressive performance by the Gophers, pulling out to a 40-26 halftime lead, using 12 extra possessions to build an early lead. In the 2nd half the lead ballooned to 54-28, then 80-53 and 84-55 at its highest. The 3 guards dominated: Andre Hollins with 24 points, DeAndre Mathieu continuing his impressive play at the point with 15 points and 5 assists, and Austin Hollins had 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Player of the Day--Andre Hollins, Minnesota Gopher men 24 points. Coach of the Day--Richard Pitino, Minnesota Gopher men.
Mon., Nov. 11--Los Angeles Clippers 109 Minnesota Timberwolves 107
The L.A. Clippers led the Wolves most of the way but Minnesota fought back with 7 straight 4th quarter points to lead 87-86. L.A. then scored 12 unanswered points to take a 98-87 lead. The Wolves almost caught up at 101-99, 107-105 and 109-107. Kevin Martin missed a shot to tie it with 3 seconds left.
Player of the Day--Who else but Kevin Love with 23 points 19 rebounds and 7 assists. Coach of they Day--Rick Adelman.
Sun., Nov. 10--Minnesota Timberwolves 113 Los Angeles Lakers 90
A 23 point margin, better than one for each of the 22 straight losses the Wolves have suffered to the Lakers since 2007. Who'da thunk?
Player of the Day--Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves, who else 25 points 13 rebounds. Coach of the Day--Mandy Pearson, St. Mary's women. Sure, they lost, but D3 @ D2 usually works out that way. But they kept it close, 39-37 at the half, 62-51 at the end.
Sat., Nov. 9--Minnesota Gopher women 73 Northern Iowa 55
A nice official opener for the Gopher women who romped to a 40-15 half-time lead with Amanda Zahui on the bench and Rachel Banham there, too, most of the way. Banham's problem was merely fouls. Zahui has some eligibility issue, which doesn't sound good until it does. Anyway, Banham scored 15, Shayne Mullaney 14, Micaella Riche 13 and (get this) Jackie Johnson 13. All you Jackie Johnson doubters out there, get over it.
Player of the Day--Jackie Johnson, Minnesota Gopher women 13 points 29 minutes. Coach of the Day--Pam Borton, Minnesota Gopher women.
Fri., Nov. 8--Minnesota Gopher men 81 Lehigh 62
What a day. Reid Travis picked Stanford. Mo Walker was suspended for 6 games. Oh, yeah, and Richard Pitino's official debut took place and it was a pretty good effort. Joey King continues to excel. I don't know if he was their MVP but he is the big surprise so far. Last night 20 points off the bench.
But the Player of the Day is Kevin Love of the Minnesota Timberwolves who had 32 points and 15 boards and the Wolves defeated the Dallas Mavericks 116-108 to run their record to 4-2.
Coach of the Day--Richard Pitino, Minnesota Gopher men.
Very impressive and on signing day, too. That is, Carlie Wagner and Grace Coughlin signed their national letters of intent and became Gophers today. Then the team went out and did this. I mean, demolition. 49-27 at the half, and the lead just kept growing in the 2nd half. Rachel Banham scored 20, Amanda Zahui 19 with 12 boards, Micaella Riche 12. Minnesota shot 48 percent to 25 percent for Charlotte.
But the Player of the Day is Kevin Love again, with 33 points and 8 boards as the Minnesota Timberwolves also blew their opponent away, the Cleveland Cavs, 124-95. The margin was 39 at its peak at 115-76. Corey Brewer added 27, Ricky Rubio 16 with 16 assists. And all of this with Kevin Martin sitting it out tonight.
Coach of the Day--Pam Borton, Minnesota Gopher women, who just may be in the process of saving her job. After 18-14 and 19-17 the past 2 years, this team looks much improved. 20 wins and an NCAA bid are required, of course, for Pam to continue, but right now those look like modest goals. 25 wins and top 3 in the Big 10 seems possible.
Tues., Nov. 12--Minnesota Gopher men 84 Montana 58
It was a pretty impressive performance by the Gophers, pulling out to a 40-26 halftime lead, using 12 extra possessions to build an early lead. In the 2nd half the lead ballooned to 54-28, then 80-53 and 84-55 at its highest. The 3 guards dominated: Andre Hollins with 24 points, DeAndre Mathieu continuing his impressive play at the point with 15 points and 5 assists, and Austin Hollins had 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Player of the Day--Andre Hollins, Minnesota Gopher men 24 points. Coach of the Day--Richard Pitino, Minnesota Gopher men.
Mon., Nov. 11--Los Angeles Clippers 109 Minnesota Timberwolves 107
The L.A. Clippers led the Wolves most of the way but Minnesota fought back with 7 straight 4th quarter points to lead 87-86. L.A. then scored 12 unanswered points to take a 98-87 lead. The Wolves almost caught up at 101-99, 107-105 and 109-107. Kevin Martin missed a shot to tie it with 3 seconds left.
Player of the Day--Who else but Kevin Love with 23 points 19 rebounds and 7 assists. Coach of they Day--Rick Adelman.
Sun., Nov. 10--Minnesota Timberwolves 113 Los Angeles Lakers 90
A 23 point margin, better than one for each of the 22 straight losses the Wolves have suffered to the Lakers since 2007. Who'da thunk?
Player of the Day--Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves, who else 25 points 13 rebounds. Coach of the Day--Mandy Pearson, St. Mary's women. Sure, they lost, but D3 @ D2 usually works out that way. But they kept it close, 39-37 at the half, 62-51 at the end.
Sat., Nov. 9--Minnesota Gopher women 73 Northern Iowa 55
A nice official opener for the Gopher women who romped to a 40-15 half-time lead with Amanda Zahui on the bench and Rachel Banham there, too, most of the way. Banham's problem was merely fouls. Zahui has some eligibility issue, which doesn't sound good until it does. Anyway, Banham scored 15, Shayne Mullaney 14, Micaella Riche 13 and (get this) Jackie Johnson 13. All you Jackie Johnson doubters out there, get over it.
Player of the Day--Jackie Johnson, Minnesota Gopher women 13 points 29 minutes. Coach of the Day--Pam Borton, Minnesota Gopher women.
Fri., Nov. 8--Minnesota Gopher men 81 Lehigh 62
What a day. Reid Travis picked Stanford. Mo Walker was suspended for 6 games. Oh, yeah, and Richard Pitino's official debut took place and it was a pretty good effort. Joey King continues to excel. I don't know if he was their MVP but he is the big surprise so far. Last night 20 points off the bench.
But the Player of the Day is Kevin Love of the Minnesota Timberwolves who had 32 points and 15 boards and the Wolves defeated the Dallas Mavericks 116-108 to run their record to 4-2.
Coach of the Day--Richard Pitino, Minnesota Gopher men.
Friday, November 8, 2013
Reid Travis picks Stanford
Ouch! The Minnesota Gophers and new coach Richard Pitino were never given much of a chance to recruit the Big Three 2014s of Tyus Jones, Rashad Vaughn and Reid Travis. But rumors swirled--in fact, we were guaranteed by one source--that Travis would pick Minnesota when he announced his decision today.
That made it all the tougher to hear that Travis will be going to Stanford. He liked their academics or some stoopid thing like that.
There is little or no chance that Jones or Vaughn will pick the Gophers.
That made it all the tougher to hear that Travis will be going to Stanford. He liked their academics or some stoopid thing like that.
There is little or no chance that Jones or Vaughn will pick the Gophers.
Monday, November 4, 2013
Player of the Day November 1-7, 2013
Thurs., Nov. 7--Concordia (St. Paul) men 85 St. John's 71
This is more like it. DII is supposed to beat DIII and that's just was the Golden Bears did, beating the Johnnies by 14 in St. Paul. Concordia didn't dominate anything, but they out-played St. John's just a little bit in most aspects of the game. Mostly they out-shot 'em 47 percent to 45 and 56 percent to 27 from long-range.
Player of the Day--Terez Van Pelt, Concordia (St. Paul) men 22 points 4 assists 2 steals. Coach of the Day--Jim Smith, St. John's, now in his 50th year at Collegeville. I know he didn't win, I just think he's a better coach than Kelly Boe.
Wed., Nov. 6--St. Thomas women 66 St. Cloud State 56
Ruth Sinn and her #5-rated, defending MIAC champions from St. Thomas are rarin' to go into 2013-2104 after an exhibition win over DII St. Cloud State 66-56. The Tommies opened with a flurry to go ahead 13-3 and despite a few back and forth's, that's how it ended, a 10-point game. The Tommies may have found a new star as sophomore point guard Katie Stone hit 3 3s and finished 11 points. Kelly Brandenburg and Maggie Weiers scored 10 each for the Tommies, while Jessica Benson scored 20 and Sam Price 3 3s and 13 points for St. Cloud.
Player of the Day--Taylor Young, St. Thomas women 16 points. Coach of the Day--Ruth Sinn, St. Thomas women.
Mon., Nov. 4--Minnesota Gopher men 101 Concordia (St. Paul) 67
I missed Rick Pitino's exhibition opener, a 79-57 win over Cardinal Stritch but now in game 2 of the Pitino era, things look better. Here is Pitino's rotation so far, accounting just for the "major" minutes.
C--Eliason 14.5 minutes Walker 20
F-- Osenieks 15.5 King 22.5
PG-- Mathieu 22 Ahanmisi 14.5
SG1-- Andre 23.5 Ellenson 12
SG2-- Austin 21 Smith 19
Key stats would include:
C-- Eliason 6.5ppg 4reb 5/5FG Walker 13ppg 9reb 12/17FG. Walker has been more productive offensively but Eliason is a more advanced defensive player. In a Big Ten context, this is not going to be a strength, but it might not be a weakness.
F-- Osenieks 5ppg 4.5reb 4/11FG King 11,5ppg 3reb 10/17FG. At this rate, King will be starting soon and Oto's minutes may start to diminish any time now. OTOH Oto was much better in game 2 than game 1. Even so King looks like he belongs at high D1 for now. The Gophers are exceptionally lucky to have him after Tubby ignored him the first time around. Depth is a problem unless Oto gets it together.
PG-- Mathieu 9.5ppg 8asts 7/13FG Ahanmisi 6ppg 2.5asts but also 2.5TO. A true point who has fully 40 percent of the Gophers assists so far. He should help the Hollinses to be more productive on offense by relieving them of primary ball-handling duties. Ahanmisi is an acceptable back-up despite what some people say.
SGs-- Andre 13.5ppg 2 asts 10/19FG Austin 12.5ppg 1.5asts 10/19FG Smith 6.5ppg 3.5reb 4/9FG Ellenson 5ppg 2reb 4/6FG. Pretty solid here.
Player of the Day--DeAndre Mathieu, Minnesota Gopher men 12 its 6 reb 7 acts 4 stls 3 TO 5/7FG. Coach of the Day: Rick Pitino, Minnesota Gopher men
Sun., Nov. 3--Minnesota Timberwolves 109 New York Knicks 100
Say what? Another surprising win!? Already? The season is just three games old and the T-Wolves are already two games ahead of expectations. The real score was, well, 109-100, don't get all melodramatic. But another real story, let's say, is this: Kevin Love 34 Carmelo Anthony 22. The Knicks outscored the Wolves from the field 40 FG to 35, both teams shooting about 44-45 percent. But the Wolves got to the FT line 38 times to just 13 for the Knicks--Love 15 times, Anthony 5--and that, as they say, was the old ball game. It didn't hurt that the Wolves led 40-19 after one period. The Knicks closed to within 100-98 but Kevin Martin scored four of his 30 points to put it away.
Player of the Day--Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves. Coach of the Day--Rick Adelman, Minnesota Timberwolves.
Sat, Nov. 2--Minnesota Gopher women 69 Minnesota State Moorhead 54
The Gophers pulled away from a 35-34 half-time lead to defeat the Dragons, who look for all the world like a contender for the NSIC title this year. What might have happened had Moorhead guard Haley Thomforde hit more than 2-of-17 shots? But Rachel Banham scored 21 for Minnesota, with five assists. Freshman post had 14 points and 12 boards. Sari Noga and Micaella Riche scored 11 and 10. Shayne Mullaney was the fifth starter. Freshmen Joanna Hedstrom (19 minutes) and Stabresa McDaniel (13) are already in the rotation ahead of sophomores Mikayla Bailey (9) and Kayla Hirt (8), and Jackie Johnson, who played sparingly a year ago as a freshman, has also leapfrogged Bailey and Hirt with 20 minutes last night.
Player of the Day--Rachel Banham, Minnesota Gopher women, 21 points. Coach of the Day--Karla Nelson, Minnesota State Moorhead.
Fri., Nov. 1--Minnesota Timberwolves 100 Oklahoma City Thunder 81
What a turnaround. Two nights after beating a mediocre Orlando team at home in OT, the Timberwolves brought their A+ game tonight, jumping out to a 34-19 lead after one period, and 88-60 after three, and hammering the Oklahoma City Thunder 100-81.
Sure, OKC was without Russell Westbrook. But, hey, they (primarily Corey Brewer) also held Kevin Durant, who scored 42 the other night, to just 13 points.
For the Wolves, Kevin Love led again with 24 points and 12 rebounds. Nikola Pekovic, who got badly outplayed against Orlando, bounced back to score 15 with 10 rebound and 4 turnovers. Ricky Rubio had 14 points, 10 assists.
Player of the Day--Cory Brewer, Minnesota Timberwolves, for his defense of Kevin Durant. Coach of the Day--Rick Adelman, Minnesota Timberwolves.
This is more like it. DII is supposed to beat DIII and that's just was the Golden Bears did, beating the Johnnies by 14 in St. Paul. Concordia didn't dominate anything, but they out-played St. John's just a little bit in most aspects of the game. Mostly they out-shot 'em 47 percent to 45 and 56 percent to 27 from long-range.
Player of the Day--Terez Van Pelt, Concordia (St. Paul) men 22 points 4 assists 2 steals. Coach of the Day--Jim Smith, St. John's, now in his 50th year at Collegeville. I know he didn't win, I just think he's a better coach than Kelly Boe.
Wed., Nov. 6--St. Thomas women 66 St. Cloud State 56
Ruth Sinn and her #5-rated, defending MIAC champions from St. Thomas are rarin' to go into 2013-2104 after an exhibition win over DII St. Cloud State 66-56. The Tommies opened with a flurry to go ahead 13-3 and despite a few back and forth's, that's how it ended, a 10-point game. The Tommies may have found a new star as sophomore point guard Katie Stone hit 3 3s and finished 11 points. Kelly Brandenburg and Maggie Weiers scored 10 each for the Tommies, while Jessica Benson scored 20 and Sam Price 3 3s and 13 points for St. Cloud.
Player of the Day--Taylor Young, St. Thomas women 16 points. Coach of the Day--Ruth Sinn, St. Thomas women.
Mon., Nov. 4--Minnesota Gopher men 101 Concordia (St. Paul) 67
I missed Rick Pitino's exhibition opener, a 79-57 win over Cardinal Stritch but now in game 2 of the Pitino era, things look better. Here is Pitino's rotation so far, accounting just for the "major" minutes.
C--Eliason 14.5 minutes Walker 20
F-- Osenieks 15.5 King 22.5
PG-- Mathieu 22 Ahanmisi 14.5
SG1-- Andre 23.5 Ellenson 12
SG2-- Austin 21 Smith 19
Key stats would include:
C-- Eliason 6.5ppg 4reb 5/5FG Walker 13ppg 9reb 12/17FG. Walker has been more productive offensively but Eliason is a more advanced defensive player. In a Big Ten context, this is not going to be a strength, but it might not be a weakness.
F-- Osenieks 5ppg 4.5reb 4/11FG King 11,5ppg 3reb 10/17FG. At this rate, King will be starting soon and Oto's minutes may start to diminish any time now. OTOH Oto was much better in game 2 than game 1. Even so King looks like he belongs at high D1 for now. The Gophers are exceptionally lucky to have him after Tubby ignored him the first time around. Depth is a problem unless Oto gets it together.
PG-- Mathieu 9.5ppg 8asts 7/13FG Ahanmisi 6ppg 2.5asts but also 2.5TO. A true point who has fully 40 percent of the Gophers assists so far. He should help the Hollinses to be more productive on offense by relieving them of primary ball-handling duties. Ahanmisi is an acceptable back-up despite what some people say.
SGs-- Andre 13.5ppg 2 asts 10/19FG Austin 12.5ppg 1.5asts 10/19FG Smith 6.5ppg 3.5reb 4/9FG Ellenson 5ppg 2reb 4/6FG. Pretty solid here.
Player of the Day--DeAndre Mathieu, Minnesota Gopher men 12 its 6 reb 7 acts 4 stls 3 TO 5/7FG. Coach of the Day: Rick Pitino, Minnesota Gopher men
Sun., Nov. 3--Minnesota Timberwolves 109 New York Knicks 100
Say what? Another surprising win!? Already? The season is just three games old and the T-Wolves are already two games ahead of expectations. The real score was, well, 109-100, don't get all melodramatic. But another real story, let's say, is this: Kevin Love 34 Carmelo Anthony 22. The Knicks outscored the Wolves from the field 40 FG to 35, both teams shooting about 44-45 percent. But the Wolves got to the FT line 38 times to just 13 for the Knicks--Love 15 times, Anthony 5--and that, as they say, was the old ball game. It didn't hurt that the Wolves led 40-19 after one period. The Knicks closed to within 100-98 but Kevin Martin scored four of his 30 points to put it away.
Player of the Day--Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves. Coach of the Day--Rick Adelman, Minnesota Timberwolves.
Sat, Nov. 2--Minnesota Gopher women 69 Minnesota State Moorhead 54
The Gophers pulled away from a 35-34 half-time lead to defeat the Dragons, who look for all the world like a contender for the NSIC title this year. What might have happened had Moorhead guard Haley Thomforde hit more than 2-of-17 shots? But Rachel Banham scored 21 for Minnesota, with five assists. Freshman post had 14 points and 12 boards. Sari Noga and Micaella Riche scored 11 and 10. Shayne Mullaney was the fifth starter. Freshmen Joanna Hedstrom (19 minutes) and Stabresa McDaniel (13) are already in the rotation ahead of sophomores Mikayla Bailey (9) and Kayla Hirt (8), and Jackie Johnson, who played sparingly a year ago as a freshman, has also leapfrogged Bailey and Hirt with 20 minutes last night.
Player of the Day--Rachel Banham, Minnesota Gopher women, 21 points. Coach of the Day--Karla Nelson, Minnesota State Moorhead.
Fri., Nov. 1--Minnesota Timberwolves 100 Oklahoma City Thunder 81
What a turnaround. Two nights after beating a mediocre Orlando team at home in OT, the Timberwolves brought their A+ game tonight, jumping out to a 34-19 lead after one period, and 88-60 after three, and hammering the Oklahoma City Thunder 100-81.
Sure, OKC was without Russell Westbrook. But, hey, they (primarily Corey Brewer) also held Kevin Durant, who scored 42 the other night, to just 13 points.
For the Wolves, Kevin Love led again with 24 points and 12 rebounds. Nikola Pekovic, who got badly outplayed against Orlando, bounced back to score 15 with 10 rebound and 4 turnovers. Ricky Rubio had 14 points, 10 assists.
Player of the Day--Cory Brewer, Minnesota Timberwolves, for his defense of Kevin Durant. Coach of the Day--Rick Adelman, Minnesota Timberwolves.
Friday, November 1, 2013
Player of the Day October 2013
Wed., Oct. 30--Minnesota Timberwolves 120 Orlando Magic 115 (OT)
Almost a HUGE OUCH here. Kevin Love had to hit a 3 from the left elbow to send the game into OT. Here is the Wolves rotation at this point:
C- Pekovic 30 minutes Turiaf 16 Love 7. Got outscored by Vucevic, mainly, 24-21 and out-rebounded 17-14. Not what they are looking for from Pek.
PF- Love 34 Cunningham 19. Better. Outscored Maxiell, Nicholson and Jones 34-22 and out-rebounded 'em 19-16.
SF- Brewer 40 Martin 13. Outscored Harkless and Oladipo 22-16.
PG- Rubio 40 Barea 13. Got out-scored 23-21 but had a 14-8 edge in assists.
SG- Martin 30 Barea 7 Shved 16. Got hammered 33-23 by Aflalo and others.
So on Day 1, Pekovic and Martin got outplayed badly for the Wolves.
Player of the Day--Kevin Love, Team of the Day--nobody, Coach of the Day--Rick Adelman.
Tues., Oct. 29--Minnesota Gopher women 82 Winona State 44
We've published a list of 12 pre-season candidates for player of the year. But the PoY need not be one of the 12, ultimately. The PoY will be based on what happens during the season. And now, the winter 2013-2014 season is one day old and a new candidate has emerged. I don't care who you're playing, 28 points and 19 rebounds is a DEBUT! Amanda Zahui B. stole the show for the Gophers in their exhibition win.
Player of the Day--Amanda Zahui B., Team of the Day--Minnesota Gopher women, Coach of the Day--Pam Borton.
I should add right here, right now, that the 2013-2014 season really began earlier this year. The summer season goes with the following, not the previous season. So the real (as opposed to the pre-season) roster of PoY candidates as of October 31 would have to include:
• Love and Zahui
• the five starters plus Monica Wright of the Minnesota Lynx
• plus the following Players of the Summer.
Boys
2014--Tyus Jones, Howard Pulley
2015--Connor Flack, MN Fury Johnson
2016--Brock Bertram, D1 Minnesota
Girls
2014--Tia Elbert, North Tartan Elite
2015--Sam Trammel, North Tartan both with the 2015s and later on up with the 2014s
2016--Jamie Ruden, Fury Sinn
2017--Jas Martin, Stars Martin, playing up with the 2016s
2018--Kayla Mershon, North Tartan
Almost a HUGE OUCH here. Kevin Love had to hit a 3 from the left elbow to send the game into OT. Here is the Wolves rotation at this point:
C- Pekovic 30 minutes Turiaf 16 Love 7. Got outscored by Vucevic, mainly, 24-21 and out-rebounded 17-14. Not what they are looking for from Pek.
PF- Love 34 Cunningham 19. Better. Outscored Maxiell, Nicholson and Jones 34-22 and out-rebounded 'em 19-16.
SF- Brewer 40 Martin 13. Outscored Harkless and Oladipo 22-16.
PG- Rubio 40 Barea 13. Got out-scored 23-21 but had a 14-8 edge in assists.
SG- Martin 30 Barea 7 Shved 16. Got hammered 33-23 by Aflalo and others.
So on Day 1, Pekovic and Martin got outplayed badly for the Wolves.
Player of the Day--Kevin Love, Team of the Day--nobody, Coach of the Day--Rick Adelman.
Tues., Oct. 29--Minnesota Gopher women 82 Winona State 44
We've published a list of 12 pre-season candidates for player of the year. But the PoY need not be one of the 12, ultimately. The PoY will be based on what happens during the season. And now, the winter 2013-2014 season is one day old and a new candidate has emerged. I don't care who you're playing, 28 points and 19 rebounds is a DEBUT! Amanda Zahui B. stole the show for the Gophers in their exhibition win.
Player of the Day--Amanda Zahui B., Team of the Day--Minnesota Gopher women, Coach of the Day--Pam Borton.
I should add right here, right now, that the 2013-2014 season really began earlier this year. The summer season goes with the following, not the previous season. So the real (as opposed to the pre-season) roster of PoY candidates as of October 31 would have to include:
• Love and Zahui
• the five starters plus Monica Wright of the Minnesota Lynx
• plus the following Players of the Summer.
Boys
2014--Tyus Jones, Howard Pulley
2015--Connor Flack, MN Fury Johnson
2016--Brock Bertram, D1 Minnesota
Girls
2014--Tia Elbert, North Tartan Elite
2015--Sam Trammel, North Tartan both with the 2015s and later on up with the 2014s
2016--Jamie Ruden, Fury Sinn
2017--Jas Martin, Stars Martin, playing up with the 2016s
2018--Kayla Mershon, North Tartan
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
2013-2014 Minnesota Basketball Season Preview
The Lynx
The Tommie women went 24-6 last year and 31-2 the year before. They lost in the Sweet 16 a year ago and in the Final Four two years ago. Only one senior was lost to graduation and post Maggie Weiers, who missed the 2013 season with an injury, will also return in 2014. Taylor Young, Minnesota Hoops readers player of the year in 2012, also returns for her junior year, along with Kelly Brandenburg, Jenna Dockter and Anna Smith. Another 30 win season and another trip to the Final Four would seem to be reasonable ghost for the Tommies women.
In the Northern Sun, the men are down, down, down after 16 of last year's top 20 scorers completed their eligibility. The exception that proves the rule is Mankato State (sorry: Minnesota State Mankato) which has pre-season player of the year, post Assem Marei, and point guard Zach Monaghan also returns. That makes them the class of the NSIC, hands down.
There's a lot more returning talent among the women, but Minnesota State Mankato and Concordia-St. Paul, #1 and #2 in the regular season a year ago, will again battle it out for the title. Mankato forward Ali Wilkinson (17 points, 8 rebounds, 55% shooting a year ago) and UMD's Katrina Newman (16 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals) look like the top two players.
The Boys
In a word, Repeat. Apple Valley with point guard extraordinaire Tyus Jones is an obvious (prohibitive?) favorite to win a second straight state title, while DeLaSalle with Reid Travis is an even more obvious favorite to win a third.
A and AA look to be more wide open. Rushford-Peterson, defending champion Southwest Christian, 2012 champ Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa and Battle Lake should all contend in Class A. The crystal ball says...Rushford-Pete.
AA is even more wide open. Instead of 5 or 6 bona fide contenders, there may be 10 or 12. Esko is probably the best bet to win a section, but state...? Fairmont and Minnehaha will be tough. And there are 3 or 4 contenders from Section 8 alone. The crystal ball says...
Well, Crosby-Ironton would at least be a sentimental favorite. Here's a school that played for the state title twice in the good old days (1944, 1947) and twice quite recently (2008, 2010) and always came up empty. Maybe this is the year. But on the other hand Perham and Hawley are at least co-favorites in Section 8. So let's just say that somebody from Section 8 will win.
The Girls
Stop me if this sounds like a broken record. Hopkins will repeat in Class AAAA. DeLaSalle...wait. Did you want to stop me? DeLaSalle is not the obvious favorite in AAA this year. After 3 straight titles, it appears that the losses to graduation are just too great. Fergus Falls, Park Center and Hill-Murray appear to be poised to finally get a share of the wealth.
In AA, New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva would appear to be a shoo-in for a 2nd straight title behind the exploits of Carlie Wagner, who has already scored 241 points in 6 state tournament games. In A, most of the teams that appeared last could be back. Best bets are defending champ Minneota and runner-up Ada-Borup, plus 2012 finalists Maranatha and Mountain Iron-Buhl, and Win-E-Mac from the frozen north.
Awards Contenders
Roll it all together and the most likely to win our annual awards next March-April include the following. But keep in mind, the awards are not limited to players, teams, coaches, etc., who are on this pre-season listing.
Team of the Year Top 10 Contenders...okay, 12
Minnesota Lynx
Apple Valley boys
Hopkins girls
St. Thomas women
DeLaSalle boys
Mankato State men
NRHEG girls
Rushford-Peterson boys
Mankato State women
St. Thomas men
Minnesota Timberwolves
Concordia-St. Paul women
Player of the Year Top 10 Contenders
Tyus Jones, Apple Valley boys
Rachel Banham, Minnesota Gopher women
Reid Travis, DeLaSalle boys
Maya Moore, Minnesota Lynx
Carlie Wagner, NRHEG girls
Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves
Assem Marei, Mankato State men
Nikola Pekovic, Minnesota Timberwolves
Taylor Young, St. Thomas women
Deandre Mathieu, Minnesota Gopher men
Coach of the Year Top 5 Contenders
Cheryl Reeve, Minnesota Lynx
Zach Goring, Apple Valley boys
Matt Marganthaler, Minnesota State Mankato men
Ruth Sinn, St. Thomas women
Tom Vix, Rushford-Peterson boys
Best Games of the Year
As we've done in the past, we'll have a feature game every day...or two, really. There will be a list of games that is published beforehand, and then there's a list of games afterward, because let's face it. It usually turns out that there's a game each night that is better than the one you thought would be the greatest
And if we had to pick right now, the pre-season picks are:
Team of the Year--Minnesota Lynx. They'll be tough to beat.
Player of the Year--Tyus Jones. Especially if he decides to go to the U.
Coach of the Year--Cheryl Reeve.
One thing is already clear about the 2013-2014 Minnesota basketball season. The Minnesota Lynx are WNBA champions for the second time in three years, and they are the team to beat for Minnesota hoops team of the year. Cheryl Reeve is out ahead in the race for coach of the year honors.
But as to player of the year? Well, they Lynx have too many great players for any one to dominate. I guess I would pick Maya Moore as the Lynx' MVP, but Lindsay Whalen is riiiiiiiiight behind. Bottom line: The door is open for somebody else to be Minnesota's 2013-2014 player of the year.
The T-Wolves
But somehow the bloom seems to be coming off the rose of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Too many injuries, too many lost opportunities. Are they really ready to fulfill their potential in 2014? I am not convinced. Kevin Love and Nikola Pekovich, yes, they're among the elite at their respective positions. Ricky Rubio? Can he hit the shot? Can he be a complete player? Again, I am not entirely convinced.
And Kevin Martin? Yes, he's a huge improvement. But I keep hearing that the Wolves must be a better defensive team, but you don't sign Kevin Martin for his defense. And Corey Brewer? Is he really that much better than two years ago? Can he hit the shot? Or is he another one-dimeinsial player?
If I had to say, I would say the Wolves are a .500 team, and that isn't going to get you very far in the post-season, nor get you any player or team or coach of the year awards.
Gophers
Similarly, I don't have a good feeling about the Gophers, men or women. Don't get me wrong. I'm a big supporter of Rick Pitino. He will get his kids to play harder and to get more out of their talent than Tubby did. But with Trevor Mbakwe and Rodney Williams gone, the talent in the front court is just not Big 10 caliber. I will be shocked if this is a .500 team, and if it's a .500 team in the Big 10 then Pitino should be coach of the year.
As for the women, well, the talent on the court could be a bit better than it's been if 6-5 Swedish post Amanda Zahui proves to be the real thing. But the talent level on the bench will be what it has been for the past decade, which means that getting out-coached will be a weekly thing and a late-season let-down will lurk unless it happens earlier. I expect that this will be a .500 team, but contending for the Big 10 title? No. And a trip to the NCAA tournament? Maybe, but then once-and-done.
The Small Colleges
Two words. Saint. Thomas.
Unfortunately, the only way anybody else is going to contend, much less win, an MIAC title is if the Tommies implode--and I mean the men, and I mean the women. The men went 30-2 last year and advanced to the D3 Final Four before losing in the national semis. Four prominent players from that team have completed their eligibility, but forwards Connor Nord and Zach Reidemann and guards Erik Tengwall, Marcus Alipate and Dylan Stewart return.
Augsburg center Dan Kornbaum is the top individual returnee.
As for the women, well, the talent on the court could be a bit better than it's been if 6-5 Swedish post Amanda Zahui proves to be the real thing. But the talent level on the bench will be what it has been for the past decade, which means that getting out-coached will be a weekly thing and a late-season let-down will lurk unless it happens earlier. I expect that this will be a .500 team, but contending for the Big 10 title? No. And a trip to the NCAA tournament? Maybe, but then once-and-done.
The Small Colleges
Two words. Saint. Thomas.
Unfortunately, the only way anybody else is going to contend, much less win, an MIAC title is if the Tommies implode--and I mean the men, and I mean the women. The men went 30-2 last year and advanced to the D3 Final Four before losing in the national semis. Four prominent players from that team have completed their eligibility, but forwards Connor Nord and Zach Reidemann and guards Erik Tengwall, Marcus Alipate and Dylan Stewart return.
Augsburg center Dan Kornbaum is the top individual returnee.
The Tommie women went 24-6 last year and 31-2 the year before. They lost in the Sweet 16 a year ago and in the Final Four two years ago. Only one senior was lost to graduation and post Maggie Weiers, who missed the 2013 season with an injury, will also return in 2014. Taylor Young, Minnesota Hoops readers player of the year in 2012, also returns for her junior year, along with Kelly Brandenburg, Jenna Dockter and Anna Smith. Another 30 win season and another trip to the Final Four would seem to be reasonable ghost for the Tommies women.
In the Northern Sun, the men are down, down, down after 16 of last year's top 20 scorers completed their eligibility. The exception that proves the rule is Mankato State (sorry: Minnesota State Mankato) which has pre-season player of the year, post Assem Marei, and point guard Zach Monaghan also returns. That makes them the class of the NSIC, hands down.
There's a lot more returning talent among the women, but Minnesota State Mankato and Concordia-St. Paul, #1 and #2 in the regular season a year ago, will again battle it out for the title. Mankato forward Ali Wilkinson (17 points, 8 rebounds, 55% shooting a year ago) and UMD's Katrina Newman (16 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals) look like the top two players.
The Boys
In a word, Repeat. Apple Valley with point guard extraordinaire Tyus Jones is an obvious (prohibitive?) favorite to win a second straight state title, while DeLaSalle with Reid Travis is an even more obvious favorite to win a third.
A and AA look to be more wide open. Rushford-Peterson, defending champion Southwest Christian, 2012 champ Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa and Battle Lake should all contend in Class A. The crystal ball says...Rushford-Pete.
AA is even more wide open. Instead of 5 or 6 bona fide contenders, there may be 10 or 12. Esko is probably the best bet to win a section, but state...? Fairmont and Minnehaha will be tough. And there are 3 or 4 contenders from Section 8 alone. The crystal ball says...
Well, Crosby-Ironton would at least be a sentimental favorite. Here's a school that played for the state title twice in the good old days (1944, 1947) and twice quite recently (2008, 2010) and always came up empty. Maybe this is the year. But on the other hand Perham and Hawley are at least co-favorites in Section 8. So let's just say that somebody from Section 8 will win.
The Girls
Stop me if this sounds like a broken record. Hopkins will repeat in Class AAAA. DeLaSalle...wait. Did you want to stop me? DeLaSalle is not the obvious favorite in AAA this year. After 3 straight titles, it appears that the losses to graduation are just too great. Fergus Falls, Park Center and Hill-Murray appear to be poised to finally get a share of the wealth.
In AA, New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva would appear to be a shoo-in for a 2nd straight title behind the exploits of Carlie Wagner, who has already scored 241 points in 6 state tournament games. In A, most of the teams that appeared last could be back. Best bets are defending champ Minneota and runner-up Ada-Borup, plus 2012 finalists Maranatha and Mountain Iron-Buhl, and Win-E-Mac from the frozen north.
Awards Contenders
Roll it all together and the most likely to win our annual awards next March-April include the following. But keep in mind, the awards are not limited to players, teams, coaches, etc., who are on this pre-season listing.
Team of the Year Top 10 Contenders...okay, 12
Minnesota Lynx
Apple Valley boys
Hopkins girls
St. Thomas women
DeLaSalle boys
Mankato State men
NRHEG girls
Rushford-Peterson boys
Mankato State women
St. Thomas men
Minnesota Timberwolves
Concordia-St. Paul women
Player of the Year Top 10 Contenders
Tyus Jones, Apple Valley boys
Rachel Banham, Minnesota Gopher women
Reid Travis, DeLaSalle boys
Maya Moore, Minnesota Lynx
Carlie Wagner, NRHEG girls
Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves
Assem Marei, Mankato State men
Nikola Pekovic, Minnesota Timberwolves
Taylor Young, St. Thomas women
Deandre Mathieu, Minnesota Gopher men
Coach of the Year Top 5 Contenders
Cheryl Reeve, Minnesota Lynx
Zach Goring, Apple Valley boys
Matt Marganthaler, Minnesota State Mankato men
Ruth Sinn, St. Thomas women
Tom Vix, Rushford-Peterson boys
Best Games of the Year
As we've done in the past, we'll have a feature game every day...or two, really. There will be a list of games that is published beforehand, and then there's a list of games afterward, because let's face it. It usually turns out that there's a game each night that is better than the one you thought would be the greatest
And if we had to pick right now, the pre-season picks are:
Team of the Year--Minnesota Lynx. They'll be tough to beat.
Player of the Year--Tyus Jones. Especially if he decides to go to the U.
Coach of the Year--Cheryl Reeve.
Monday, October 21, 2013
Announcing: Northstar Girls Hoops now open for business
I set out to cover Minnesota hoops. All of it. Everything. From the high schools to the pros. And I've done that.
But from Day 1 it was obvious to me that what got the greatest readership was Minnesota girls basketball in the high schools and the clubs. You girls hoops fans just cannot get enough. Of course, there's the fact that the traditional media do a so-so job of covering girls hoops, at best, and the traditional media quite specifically does a totally crappy job of covering AAU ball.
So little by little at first--then by leaps and bounds with the addition of girls player rankings--Minnesota Hoops came to emphasize girls hoops quite a bit more than anything else. And don't get me wrong, I love girls hoops. But mainly, if it's what my readers wanted, I was happy to write about what got the strongest response.
Well, I'm not the only one who noticed this phenomenon. I mean, 1st and foremost you've got the dean, the deacon, the king, the jack, the ace, the foremost authority of Minnesota girls basketball, Kevin Anderson. (His Web site in case anybody doesn't know is kjasr.com.) I've had the privilege that past 2-3 years of working with Kevin. Right up to and including this summer's Tartan Meltdown, I send/sent my game reports to Kevin to publish on his Web site. Of course, you needed a subscription to read them.
Announcing North Star Girls Hoops Report
Some of you may be familiar with North Star Hoops Report. For the past year or so, they've been covering Minnesota boys basketball. But the fact is the North Star guys have a football site, too, and on Monday, October 21, they will launch a girls basketball site called North Star Girls Hoops Report. It will be located at:
www.northstargirlshoops.com
And the North Star guys have approached me and offered to pay me actual cash money to go to work writing for North Star Girls Hoops. Now I can assure you I'm not going to get rich doing it. Minnesota Hoops was a labor of love, totally. North Star Girls Hoops will still be 2 parts labor of love for every 1 part of anything else.
But I'm going to be writing about girls hoops--in the schools and in the clubs--for North Star Girls Hoops. And girls hoops is going to mostly disappear from Minnesota Hoops. And, yeah, you'll need a subscription to read my posts...and my player rankings.
Minnesota Hoops will continue. I'll be writing about everything except the girls. I hope you'll continue to visit, though I know that for many of you it's the girls that bring you here.
Thanks for visiting, thanks to everyone who sent in a comment. I think you know that your comments have influenced my player ratings and have influenced them for the better.
Again, I hope many of you will keep on coming. But for you girls hoops fanatics, I sure hope to see you over at North Star Girls Hoops.
But from Day 1 it was obvious to me that what got the greatest readership was Minnesota girls basketball in the high schools and the clubs. You girls hoops fans just cannot get enough. Of course, there's the fact that the traditional media do a so-so job of covering girls hoops, at best, and the traditional media quite specifically does a totally crappy job of covering AAU ball.
So little by little at first--then by leaps and bounds with the addition of girls player rankings--Minnesota Hoops came to emphasize girls hoops quite a bit more than anything else. And don't get me wrong, I love girls hoops. But mainly, if it's what my readers wanted, I was happy to write about what got the strongest response.
Well, I'm not the only one who noticed this phenomenon. I mean, 1st and foremost you've got the dean, the deacon, the king, the jack, the ace, the foremost authority of Minnesota girls basketball, Kevin Anderson. (His Web site in case anybody doesn't know is kjasr.com.) I've had the privilege that past 2-3 years of working with Kevin. Right up to and including this summer's Tartan Meltdown, I send/sent my game reports to Kevin to publish on his Web site. Of course, you needed a subscription to read them.
Announcing North Star Girls Hoops Report
Some of you may be familiar with North Star Hoops Report. For the past year or so, they've been covering Minnesota boys basketball. But the fact is the North Star guys have a football site, too, and on Monday, October 21, they will launch a girls basketball site called North Star Girls Hoops Report. It will be located at:
www.northstargirlshoops.com
And the North Star guys have approached me and offered to pay me actual cash money to go to work writing for North Star Girls Hoops. Now I can assure you I'm not going to get rich doing it. Minnesota Hoops was a labor of love, totally. North Star Girls Hoops will still be 2 parts labor of love for every 1 part of anything else.
But I'm going to be writing about girls hoops--in the schools and in the clubs--for North Star Girls Hoops. And girls hoops is going to mostly disappear from Minnesota Hoops. And, yeah, you'll need a subscription to read my posts...and my player rankings.
Minnesota Hoops will continue. I'll be writing about everything except the girls. I hope you'll continue to visit, though I know that for many of you it's the girls that bring you here.
Thanks for visiting, thanks to everyone who sent in a comment. I think you know that your comments have influenced my player ratings and have influenced them for the better.
Again, I hope many of you will keep on coming. But for you girls hoops fanatics, I sure hope to see you over at North Star Girls Hoops.
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