No. 8-ranked Four Winds-Minnewaukan at Oak Grove: 4 Takeaways
One of the more intriguing early regular-season matchups took place Saturday evening. The No. 8-ranked Four Winds-Minnewaukan Indians defeated Oak Grove, 75-64 in a non-region battle. The Indians used a 12-1 run late in the second quarter to separate themselves from the Grovers. It was a fast game as both teams seemed to want to run up and down the court. FW-M was paced by sophomore Bronson Walter’s 16 points and 28 combined points from freshman Jayden Yankton and guard Jaymison Green. The Indians have a handful of student-athletes that can make plays.
Bolme one of the best in Region 1
Oak Grove junior guard Mayson Bolme was the most important player on the hardwood yesterday. Bolme was knocking down his 3-point shots and found success inside the arc as well. He finished with a game-high 26 points and hauled down 10 rebounds. Bolme isn’t just an offensive threat, he’ll pressure you with his tight defense. And he isn’t afraid to jump passings lanes as he finished with seven steals. There are a lot of talented guards in Region 1 but Bolme is near the top.
The floor general
FW-M is loaded with athletic players and the Indians are a much deeper team compared to Oak Grove. The guy that makes them go is sophomore guard JaeShaun Shaw. He finished with eight points and is tough to trap in the full court because of his speed. Shaw is a skilled passer and made multiple long passes to his cutting teammates. He might not light up the scoreboard but he’ll get his teammates involved and that’s when the Indians are at their best.
Walter outplayed Oak Grove’s big man
This game featured a few taller than average players with Walter and Tyrell Rodriguez of Oak Grove. But it was Walter that controlled the paint throughout the contest. For an underclassman big man, he has a good sense of direction and a high basketball IQ. There were multiple times when Walter tried to post up and quickly realized a pass was his best option. The FW-M guards also benefit from getting the ball inside to Walter because it frees up space on the outside. The Grovers didn’t use Rodriguez too much as he finished with just seven points. However, he picked up his third foul in the third quarter that sent him to the bench. This Walter vs. Rodriquez matchup was fun too watch because not many Class B teams have size like that.
What does this game mean?
I really felt that Oak Grove outplayed FW-M in the second half. Scoring only one point in the final three minutes of the first half didn’t help the Grovers any. But this game doesn’t mean a whole lot for either squad. It was just the second contest for Oak Grove as they dropped to 2-0. If anything this win for the Indians will give the poll voters a decision to move FW-M up in the Class B poll. Rick Smith’s crew was picked 13th in The Hoopster’s Preseason Power Poll but they are playing at a Top 5 level right now. We have a long season ahead of ourselves but the Indians have goals of getting back to the state tournament.