Summer State: Class AAA Thoughts
The Class AAA State Tournament hosted by the Breakdown last Sunday was one of surprises and it was won by St. Thomas Academy who put together an impressive weekend.
St. Thomas (1). The Cadets hammered both Fergus Falls and Totino-Grace and then defeated the Austin Packers by a point in the championship. This weekend has convinced me that 6-foot-5 wing Sam Vascellaro is a more versatile talent than I knew of and a much better player prospect than previously thought. Sam’s perimeter jumper is better, he’s handling the ball much better especially when he’s collecting off the rim and pushing the other way, and Vascellaro is physically bigger allowing him to finish on his preferred side while taking contact. Jack Thompson was solid as always, Noah Chamberlain and George Stewart made an impression, and the biggest piece is that STA has found a coach in Jason Birr who is one of the best young coaches in the state.
Austin (2). They looked every bit of a Class AAA contender for next year, again. Controlling wins over Waconia and Delano followed by the one point loss to the Cadets and that was without Both and Duoth Gach who are the most explosive Packer weapons. Both and Duoth did what they do in the first two games but then had to catch a flight, which is when Tate Hebrink grabbed the attention of Minnesota basketball. Hebrink, a six foot guard, is not just the tough lead guard who moves the ball with few mistakes and defends, he also showed he can handle a big scoring role at times if needed. He had 26 against the Cadets nearly pulling off a one man show style second half to win the event.
Totino-Grace (3). A strong first impression by the Nick Carroll led Eagles beating number one seed Orono by five points and beating Delano by 17. Lost to St. Thomas big but two out of three aren’t bad for Carroll’s Eagles after one week on the job. The Eagles defended at a level we didn’t know they were capable of bringing energy and fight that allowed them to get through screens they didn’t in the past, get to help like they hadn’t been, and they were motivated to rotate into help positions to stop talented players from Orono and Delano. Charlie Jacob is as good as advertised, a D2 recruit or a top MIAC guy. It was Nick Flottmeier and Will Schmidt that really caught or attention. Both played with toughness and skill we didn’t know they had. Against Orono Nick was the best wing on the floor for that one game and Will Schmidt had the best game of all the posts. That’s saying something when you think about the talent on the Orono roster.
Delano (4). The Tigers have gone a combined 2-4 in back to back tough weekend events not quite playing the way you would expect them to. This of course is summer basketball so you know they will be fine next winter but there are some things to work on. Calvin Wishart was able to lead them to a win with an explosive first game but he didn’t play in the final game of the contest.
Waconia (5). The Cats are always that well coached, tough basketball team that is always right there. Wins over Mankato East and Orono speak volumes to the toughness of this program. Sophomore PJ Hayes had a couple good scoring games, Charlie Gove was his consistently tough self, and Nick Fulford had people on the sidelines talking again showing some skill and agility in his 6-foot-6 frame.
Orono (6). A weekend after winning the Mankato event beating Austin in the title game they dropped two of three and this time they had Max Bjorklund. They are still the top ranked challenger (along with Austin) to try and knock off the Islanders but they got hit in the mouth this weekend. Jarvis Thomas came from Wisconsin Team Camp and played even more basketball (nine in games in three days) but had some excellent runs like late in the T-G game when he scored on four late possessions at the cup.
Mankato East (7). Lost to Delano by two scores (beat them last weekend), lost to Waconia by ten, and beat Fergus Falls 67-40. A back end top ten team or a team just outside of the top ten, they have the talent to be there but they need some depth to step forward in the next six months. Growth from the good young players will likely be a big part of it. Damani Hayes continues to show consistent face-up jumpshooting and an ability to use a dribble to beat opposing wings. Hayes has a quick first step that bigger players have a tough time moving with and Hayes is a big wing himself so bigger players have to guard him.
Fergus Falls (8). Tough weekend, not much else to say. Didn’t compete against St. Thomas and Mankato East which was a surprise. The Otters have been to state the last two years and will be a favorite again but there are some things to work on for sure.