NHR Scout: Lakeville North vs Rochester JM
Lakeville North did it to Rochester JM once again. The Panthers for the fifth straight season left the Mayo Civic Center with first place trophies in hand and the Rockets thinking about where the key mistakes were. What’s the secret? …
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Continue ReadingLakeville North did it to Rochester JM once again. The Panthers for the fifth straight season left the Mayo Civic Center with first place trophies in hand and the Rockets thinking about where the key mistakes were.
What’s the secret? One is John Oxton, the guy is outstanding. I thought his timeout calls were perfect, his baseline in-bounds set to get the ball in in the final seconds opened up Brooks for a big score, and his defensive minor adjustments proved to be major. His team also came out of a timeout with seven seconds to go hotly defending and all JM could get was a tough pass in followed by a deep corner trey from Isaiah Walden that missed.
What else worked? Having stars. Nathan Reuvers went from a guy that was playing well and on the verge of being a star to making the tough shots that stars make. He scored a very difficult 21 points and is without a doubt moving in many of the same directions as the guy he is often compared to, Jon Leuer.
Down the stretch it was Carter Brooks that put the game away. Knocked out a corner trey, made the game winning free throws, scored 16 points, and Brooks is going to play in the state tournament once again. As is Lakeville North.
Lakeville North
Cal Pesola. Scored only three of his eleven shot attempts but made a couple treys. Rebounds well for a guard and he made some veteran plays too. Like the screen at the end that opened up Carter Brooks to catch, get fouled, and win the game. Cal’s screen made that happen.
David Lindstrand. Good to see him healthy because David is one of the best workers out there. Looked for his offense a lot in the first half and was able to score on three possessions. Liked his one dribble pull-up more now than in the past as its more fluid.
Ethan Igbanugo. Love his build and defensive feel as a junior. Can move laterally with most guards and he can turn, sprint, and beat guys to spots moving up the floor. Also very physical when guys try and body him and if they try to use a shoulder down to turn the corner Ethan can bump them off.
Carter Brooks. We are getting a look into what his college role will be; an active role player who will get good numbers because he does so much on the move and other wings have a problem with stepping in and stopping his cuts, his backside attacks, open floor runs, and the occasional corner turn on a ball screen. He will be a fantastic rebounding three man at CSP because his second bounce is much quicker than that of others. Brooks scored 13 and most importantly late he hit the game winning foul shots that put North over the edge.
Nathan Reuvers. Matthew Hurt was all over Nathan with solid defense but Nate was able to one dribble into just enough space to sink mid-range jumpers even though he likely lost site of the rim before he released. Also hit an NBA trey, his battle in the defensive paint was better than I’ve seen in the past, and overall he just competed as hard as anybody on the floor. In the second half Reuvers continued to play at a high level. Made two falling away 15 footers over Matt Hurt’s reach and then made a momentum exploding deep trey. Scored 21 and was extremely impressive in front of Greg Gard and an assistant.
Rochester JM
Isaiah Walden. Played with more maturity, makes plays with the right demeanor. Like how he calmly strokes whatever the situation is, doesn’t seem to mind if a guy is contesting or not. Made nine but was just long on his game winning three point attempt.
Ray Adams. Used his athletic ability to slash for three early scores. Strong, quick guard that runs the floor ahead of the transition defense which allows him to catch and make plays at the rim on balance against a retreating defense.
D’Andelo Tines. I feel like he will grab on to a nice D3 program someplace and be a good player. Scored eight, had a huge rebound down the stretch, and shoots it better from the arc than people know.
Dedoch Chan. Dedoch has fit into his role very well, almost too well. In the two games I’ve seen him he really doesn’t look for his offense. Just concentrates on energy plays boarding, defending, running the floor for some active buckets at the rim. Admire the way he has come in and fit in by simply working hard.
Matthew Hurt. Scored 16 and did more on the move going at the rim then posting up. His incredible length blocked four shots and made everything Nate Reuvers did difficult. We’ve said a lot of this before but Matthew is a better athlete than people realize. Can’t wait to see how he grows with D1 MN 17U this spring and summer and then what happens next year when this is his team. Nationally I would say top 20 right now at least and moving up (just a guess, don’t know much about 2019 nation wide).
Michael Hurt. Spent the first half moving the basketball and his teammates were able to go into the break with a lead. Helped create a lot of comfortable shots for teammates. In the second half he went to work on the block and scored five times turning over each shoulder to score. The play that will always haunt him was a late three and then his team wasn’t able to get the ball in his hands down the stretch on two possessions that they really needed to.