Class AAA State Tournament: Semifinal Preview
The Class AAA State Tournament tipped off Wednesday at Williams Arena and things went pretty much entirely to chalk. The top teams advanced and in all but one game, did so without a whole lot of drama. Turning the page…
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Continue ReadingThe Class AAA State Tournament tipped off Wednesday at Williams Arena and things went pretty much entirely to chalk. The top teams advanced and in all but one game, did so without a whole lot of drama.
Turning the page and focusing on the positives, that means we’ve got a chance at what should be two very compelling games Thursday before the state title game Saturday night.
Here are the matchups:
Game 1: DeLaSalle vs. Princeton
DeLaSalle is the heavy favorite in this tournament and has been the No. 1 team all season long at the Class AAA level. It’s been something of a revolving door of teams that could pose as a challenger and in through one of those doors, all season, has been Princeton. The Tigers don’t have the Division I level talent to match the Islanders, but they’ve got excellent balance and six guys who can be relied upon to make a play.
This will very much be a battle of offense vs. defense as DeLaSalle is the best defensive team in the state against a Princeton team that may boast the best offense. The Tigers want to play fast, they space the floor, they’ve got a great host of shooters and playmakers and they share the ball as well as any team in the state. The Islanders have great size up front and great athleticism in their first row.
The battle inside between Jon Stimmler and Jalen Travis will be an interesting one. Stimmler is one of the biggest, strongest, pure fives in the state and crushed Mahtomedi yesterday on the offensive glass. Travis is up there with the biggest, strongest fives in the state too though and both guys will throw their weight around.
I’d suspect James Flicek will be matched up with Tyrell Terry for a majority of the time the two are on the floor and while Terry is the superior player, Flicek needs to hold his own.
Can Princeton slow down Jamison Battle? The Tigers don’t have a guy like him (nobody really does) as they really play four guards around Stimmler. They’ll have to rebound by committee and slowing down Battle will take a village. On the other end though, Adam Williams and Reilly O’Neill both struggled shooting in the first round, combining for 30 points on 30 shots. They got good looks but were just off. If they get open looks against the Islanders – which will be much fewer and further between – they’ve got to cash in.
DeLaSalle goes into this game a heavy favorite and it’s going to take a monster effort from any team to beat them. Princeton does have firepower though that few other teams have. They’ve got kids who have seen the kind of athleticism DeLaSalle can put on the floor and they are old. There shouldn’t be an intimidation factor.
Game 2: Waseca vs. Austin
Both these teams won by double figures but neither one dominated from start to finish in the first round Wednesday. This is another offense vs. defense type of game as Waseca has arguably the best offense in Class AAA while Austin will always hang its hat on the defensive end of the floor.
It’s going to come down to avoiding turnovers for the Bluejays. Austin forced 27 turnovers against Monticello. The Magic actually shot a respectable percentage from the field – although struggled from distance – but never threatened in the second half because of so many turnovers. The Bluejays have a crop of guards that, on paper, should be able to handle that Austin pressure. Malik Willingham and Ryan Dufault are both veteran players – by years of varsity experience at least – and while there is no simulating the kind of length and athleticism the Packers can come at you with, there’s some trust built up from those guys. They’ve played Mankato East and Minneapolis North recently so the shock factor should not be a thing.
There’s a lot more to the Packers though than simply pressing and trapping and selling out for turnovers. They’ve got a host of athletic, tough, hard working kids who can lock teams up in the halfcourt. They’ll play fast at times and scoring off their defense will always be a big key, but they’ve also got a number of guys who can shoot from deep and stress teams off the dribble. Medi Obang has been one of the best players in the state, the Deng brothers are both well-rounded two way guys and Agwa Nywesh practically gave them nothing Wednesday and they still won by 18.
Can Waseca get the ball in deep? Andrew Morgan scored 21 points on 10 shots Wednesday and Austin doesn’t have a guy who can challenge him at the rim. Kyrese Willingham is tough to stop if he gets to the paint as well and if there are leaks in that Austin defense, the Bluejays have shooters to make it hurt.
It’s hard to pick against Waseca in this one given the Bluejays firepower. For all that, they play excellent defense too. They are well-schooled on that end of the floor and have no shortage of size and length either. Austin’s pressure shouldn’t affect them as much as it did Monticello. The Packers have been here three straight years though and that’s definitely not to be discounted. They’ve got guys who can take over the game on both ends of the floor. This should be the best game of the day.