Tip Off Classic 5 Takeaways: CDH overwhelms Rochester JM
Cretin-Derham Hall used a fast start in the first and second half to earn an 81-64 win over Rochester John Marshall in a game that never really felt competitive. Here are five takeaways from the game: Trejuan Holloman doesn’t look…
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Continue ReadingCretin-Derham Hall used a fast start in the first and second half to earn an 81-64 win over Rochester John Marshall in a game that never really felt competitive.
Here are five takeaways from the game:
Trejuan Holloman doesn’t look or play like a freshman
Holloman will get a whole bunch of ink over the next few years as he’s the next superstar national level prospect in Minnesota so I won’t spend a ton of time on him. He’s a freshman and people who read this probably know who he is already. When he was in the game, Cretin-Derham Hall looked like it was playing against a JV team. When he went out with two fouls, the field evened a bit. When he went back in to start the second half, the Raiders got right back to dominating. He is extremely active defensively. He’s got a terrific in between game and can pick apart teams in ball screen actions. He’s big, athletic, loud and impactful. As he grows, this CDH team will grow.
Matthew Hurt scored, but the Rockets didn’t get much from anybody else
Hurt put up 42 points in the game and did it in typical impressive fashion. There isn’t a whole lot Hurt can’t do on the court but him getting a ton of points was expected. The question for JM the last two years and the question again this year is who else can beat teams? Because Hurt has to do too much. The Rockets will win 22-plus games and feast on most Big 9 teams. But the goal isn’t to beat up teams in the Big 9 for JM.
Curtis Jones should get talked about more for CDH
Curtis Jones averaged 17 points per game as a sophomore for a decent Minneapolis South team and it feels like he’s a bit forgotten when it comes to the CDH picture. Jaeden King is a top player. Holloman is already drawing crowds. Jones might lead the team in scoring this year. He knocked down seven triples Saturday. His range seems limitless and he’s got no conscience.
So should Amari Carter
Amari Carter was a role player last year for the Raiders, providing energy in small doses off the bench. He’s the anchor now and he’s handling it well thus far. He was a force Saturday, scoring 23 points. He knocked down a 3-pointer in the process but he’s at his best when he’s hanging around the paint, finishing in traffic, drawing fouls and wearing opposing bigs out. If he provides consistent double-double type production, the Raiders are going to be even better than anybody thought.
What can JM’s ‘role players’ provide?
There’s no shame in losing to Cretin-Derham Hall. It isn’t surprising. Getting a chance to play teams of that caliber is good for the Rockets given 22 of their 26 games are in conference against teams that other than Austin typically and maybe Mankato East simply don’t have the athletes of that caliber. But it was a bit eye-opening to see just how much the Rockets struggled. Everybody knows what Hurt is capable of. But they’ll have to get more from Montrae Hiatt, Simon Werven and Lincoln Meister on a consistent basis if they are going to sustain success outside of Hurt averaging 40-plus points per game.