Tip Off Classic 5 Takeaways: Tonka destroys Rochester Mayo
Minnetonka made quite the early-season statement Saturday, getting 45 points from Cameron Steele en route to a 105-77 shallacking of Rochester Mayo in the Tip Off Classic. Here are five takeaways from the contest: Cameron Steele is never not going…
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Continue ReadingMinnetonka made quite the early-season statement Saturday, getting 45 points from Cameron Steele en route to a 105-77 shallacking of Rochester Mayo in the Tip Off Classic.
Here are five takeaways from the contest:
Cameron Steele is never not going to be productive
Cameron Steele scored 45 points in the quietest fashion I’ve ever seen Saturday against the Spartans. He scores in so many ways that it’s going to impossible for him to have a real bad night. He won’t score 45 every night but he runs the floor well, he can shoot, he gets to the free throw line, he can burn bad closeouts, he has solid footwork and he’s always around the rim. He’s not the most explosive scorer but it’s a trail 3-pointer here, a put back there, a couple free throws and you look at the box score and he’ll have 20 points more often than not.
Lyric Radford will be the engine for the Skippers this winter
When Minnetonka lost Jalen Dearring and Andy Stafford via transfer, I was concerned with who was going to provide perimeter offense. The Skippers have good bigs with Steele and Gavin Patton and it would appear as though they’ve got an engine on the perimeter in Lyric Radford. Radford’s a transfer from Maryland, so he’s flying under the radar for now. The kid’s got some juice though. Nobody for Rochester Mayo could stay in front of him on the perimeter and his ability to get into the paint ruined the Spartans’ day. He’s aggressive defensively as well. He was arguably the best player on the floor Saturday and if he plays like that consistently, he changes the calculus for Minnetonka’s season.
Can Mayo win if the Madsen brothers struggle?
Mason and Gabe Madsen combined to score 41 points in the game Saturday but I thought they both struggled. It was clear the Minnetonka gameplan was to force them into long, contested shots and while both guys are capable of making them, it’s hard to win games making contested deep threes. Both struggled to get to the paint as well. Some of that is probably the matchup as the Skippers have athletes the Spartans won’t see much of in the Big 9 this winter but Mayo will have to find ways to free those guys up.
Gavin Patton is going to be a hassle for teams this winter
Patton was a varsity regular last season, averaging a little more than seven points per game as a junior. Through two games this year he’s averaged 16.5 after 12 Saturday against Mayo. He’ll probably settle in somewhere in that 11-15 point-per-game range this winter and he’s going to make every game a pain for his counterparts inside. He’s big, strong and active. He sets good screens, hangs around the rim, has good hands and uses his strength to punish people.
Season Outlook for Both?
I don’t want to make a grand statement claiming this game changes the season outlook on both teams because as coaches always say: it’s never as good as it seems and it’s never as bad as it seems. It seemed really good for Minnetonka and really bad for Rochester Mayo. Ultimately this game does change the way I view both teams a little bit though. I think the Spartans have an outside chance at a top-four finish in the Big 9 but I’m not sure they’ve got as much juice as I thought in terms of a ceiling. Minnetonka looked a lot better than I was expecting. The Skippers play in a really tough conference and section, but I think if Radford plays like he did Saturday and their bigs continue to control things in the paint, they’ve got a chance to push 15 wins or so.