The Four Most Interesting Teams of the Week: Dec. 10-15
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Every week NHR will bring you one team from each class that has something to prove, something to bounce back from, or something to double down on. The most interesting teams of the week are here!
Class A: Heritage Christian – TJ Guggenberger and Brice Boyle are double-figure guys early this season but the Eagles are just 1-2. They’ll hope to pick up a couple wins this week on the road at New Life Academy and Providence, two teams that are tough outs historically. Wins are crucial early in the season to set your team apart and Heritage will jump at the opportunity. We’ll see if they can come through and maybe get a little help after their top two guys. Matchup to watch: Brice Boyle vs. Mark Richelsen. Two power forwards standing 6-foot-2 that usually have their way on the glass, Richelsen and Boyle will mash it up down low and that Heritage/Providence game could get real good for the Plymouth Private School Rivalry. (I just came up with that title.)
Class AA: New London-Spicer – NLS got a big win over Roosevelt on Saturday and they sit at 3-1. Brandon Adelman is picking up where he left off in the summer. Now they get two tough games this week, home against Minnewaska and at Morris Area. Minnewaska was a State team a season ago and Morris has two of the better outstate players in Camden Arndt and Jackson Loge. The test for the trio of Adelman, Ander Arnold and Ryan Wyganowski will be beneficial before NLS gets into Wright County West action next week. Matchup to watch: Brandon Adelman vs. Camden Arndt. Arndt is 6-foot-4 and physical and capable as a ballhandler. He’s going to be the focus for NLS on defense, and I expect he’ll guard Adelman as well. Adelman is scoring the ball with ease and if anyone can get in his way, it’ll be Arndt. I also expect Ander Arnold to get a good chunk of the scoring in both games.
Class AAA: St. Thomas Academy – Wanna talk about double down? How about the Cadets, who dispatched Cooper on Saturday 78-75 thanks to big games from Jack Thompson and Noah Chamberlain. A huge week looms as STA plays host to an upstart Shakopee squad (whom they defeated last year 90-88) on Tuesday and then they face Apple Valley at home on Friday. Expect tons of offense from these two games and I do expect that Shakopee game to be a barn-burner once again. Matchup to watch: Noah Chamberlain vs. Charlie Katona. Two 6-foot-6 wings with inside-out scoring punch? Count me in. Big stage for SMSU-committed Chamberlain to show his stuff against a possible D1 prospect like Katona. BONUS: Jack Thompson vs. Caleb Druvenga will be a battle too. This might be my favorite game of the week now that I think about it.
Class AAAA: Osseo – The Orioles are coming off a tough defeat to St. Paul Central that ended on a buzzer-beater. This week they take on a couple section 1 teams and then road trip north for a Friday night game. It starts with Owatonna coming to town on Monday. The Huskies are a grind-it-out type of team and will be physical. Osseo coach Tim Theisen always prepares his teams well and they adjust to whatever pace is thrown at them. I like Cornell Richardson to be a speedy floor general that takes advantage of the Owatonna defense with his quickness. Lakeville South heads up to Oriole land on Thursday headlined by 6-foot-9 mammoth post Riley Mahlman. Osseo doesn’t really have an answer for that size and strength but it hasn’t stopped them before (related: section 5 finals last year). The annual matchup with Moorhead should prove to be a doozy with Maleeck Harden-Hayes posing a big threat to the Osseo perimeter. Osseo could come out of this week at 3-1 and I wouldn’t be shocked at all, they’re a resilient group. But can they afford to be 1-3 when they return home from Moorhead? We’ll see. Matchup to watch: Cornell Richardson vs. Maleeck Harden-Hayes. Both players create for their teams in high usage. Richardson is more of a distributor and Harden-Hayes creates shots on his own, but it’ll be a battle for both to get to their spots.