The Big Nine Preview
The Big Nine is going to be very interesting this winter. Many teams have improved and it should be a very competitive year in southern Minnesota.
Last Year. Last year the Big Nine was Matthew Hurt dominating the league with Isaiah Walden in the backcourt, Dedoch Chan playing whatever role was needed, and the Rockets dominating the league. Jm went undefeated in 22 league games and 25-4 overall. Austin was 29-3 with two of the three losses coming at the hands of the Rockets, but dominating every one else. Owatonna took a big step forward winning 16 league games and going 18-9 overall. Mankato East, Northfield, Faribault, Winona, and Mankato West were all around the .500 mark. Rochester Mayo won 11 games, Red Wing fell to 20 losses, Century won just three games and two of those Ws were against Albert Lea (who lost all games by an average of 32 points a night).
Conference Commentary
Top Ten in State: Rochester JM, Austin, Mankato East
The Rockets have many holes to fill but they also have the third ranked junior in the entire nation. The Rockets have some other solid players around Hurt but Matthew has the talent to have one of the more amazing seasons in recent Minnesota history. A predicted stat line for Matthew Hurt? It could be a 37/14 level year for him.
The Packers, well, they would have been on the short list of teams that had a very real shot at the Class A title. They are still top 5-6 in the state but when Both Gach left for prep school that took the state’s sixth ranked senior out of Minnesota. Both Gach, Tate Hebrink, and many others will make the Packers a big favorite to make state and a contender but not the championship hopeful that could beat DeLaSalle or Orono (which they potentially could of with Both on the team). Kris Fadness is one of the state’s best coaches, Hebrink should be excellent, and Dutoh Gach should have a huge season.
The Cougars have the talent to make a run, but they were 14-14 last year. Uhana Ochan and Dimani Hayes will make one of the best frontcourts in the state of Minnesota and both are seniors. Edmon Oyet is on the verge of a big senior year, the Cougars have quality role seniors as well, and some excellent sophomore guards. But they were 14-14 a year ago so who knows.
Potential Top Ten: Owatonna, Rochester Mayo,
Top Ten for one of these teams? I think you could definitely see Owatonna in the top ten this year as the Huskies won 18 games last year and bring back most of their talent. Dalton Kubista, Nolan Melo, Andrew Jackson, and Alex Raichle are returning seniors plus Jason Williamson is a top junior. They could sneak into the top ten but their schedule may not compare well with metro teams in terms of rankings unless they beat everyone. Mayo? Rochester Mayo? Yes. Gabe and Mason Madsen are top ten level players in Wisconsin’s 2020 class and now they are in Minnesota as top ten level players. Gabe has a Marquette offer and Mason an offer from UWGB. Adam Leary is a good junior and there are some hard working Spartan seniors so they should be solid.
Compete with Most: Northfield, Winona
Winona also has an outside shot at being Class AAA top ten with so many good players in their now junior class plus Dakota Matthees is a good senior. Northfield’s Alex Rasmussen will lead the way on a team that will have a solid squad after winning 17 last year. They should have solid guards with some size.
Rebuilding: Albert Lea, Rochester Century, Red Wing, Faribault, Mankato West.
Albert Lea, such a struggle. Feel bad for this kids….Century? Watch out for sophomore Jack Fisher….Red Wing has slipped after so many good years….Faribault is going through change again after losing Kade Hart…Mankato West is a total question mark. They have a center but who knows what else. They will be the best of this bunch we think.
Conference Predictions
Big Nine
- Rochester JM
- Austin
- Owatonna
- Mankato East
- Rochester Mayo
- Northfield
- Winona
- Mankato West
- Red Wing
- Faribault
- Rochester Century
- Albert Lea
Preseason All Big Nine
First Team
Matthew Hurt, Rochester JM, Jr
Duoth Gach, Austin, Sr
Gabe Madsen, Rochester Mayo, Soph
Damani Hayes, Mankato East, Sr
Dalton Kubista, Owatonna, St
Alex Rasmussen, Northfield, Sr
Second Team
Uhana Ochan, Mankato East Sr,
Mason Madsen, Rochester Mayo, Soph
Tate Hebrink, Austin, Sr
Nolan Malo, Owatonna, Sr
Michael Sathoff, Mankato West, Sr
Andrew Jackson, Owatonna, Sr
Third Team
Edmon Oyot, Mankato East, Sr
Moses Issa, Austin, Sr
Eric Stai, Rochester JM, Sr
Carter Hodapp, Northfield, Sr
Jake Reeck, Winona, Jr
Alex Raichle, Owatonna, Sr