Preseason All-Conference: Big Rivers
Preseason POTY: Dalton Banks – There’s little sense in questioning Dalton Banks’ adherence to this title. Caden Boser is great, Zac Johnson is likely heir to the throne when Banks leaves, but the Eau Claire North star has dibs. Averaging…
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Continue ReadingPreseason POTY: Dalton Banks – There’s little sense in questioning Dalton Banks’ adherence to this title. Caden Boser is great, Zac Johnson is likely heir to the throne when Banks leaves, but the Eau Claire North star has dibs.
Averaging 23.3 points, 7.1 rebounds, 7.1 assists, and 2.6 steals per game as a junior was evidence enough for his college aspirations, but Banks went and raised national eyebrows this summer, delivering with D1 Minnesota on the Adidas Gauntlet. And now he returns to high school with experience and a name ballooned in the Midwest. Anticipate a stat line of epic proportions.
Preseason First Team:
Dalton Banks, G, Eau Claire North – To piggyback off his case for POTY, I’ll say that I’m not alone in my praise. My fellow admirers range from the Prep Hoops staff to Cal Poly, Illinois-Chicago, Ball State, South Dakota, and other collegiate suitors.
Luke Healy, G, Hudson – Hudson finished with a 21-5 record last year, but they hemorrhaged four of their top-five scorers. Healy, a junior this season and the lone remnant of Hudson’s first 20-win season during coach Jason Swavely’s tenure, will be the torchbearer of an offense predicated on depth and playmaking.
Last season, Healy had six games of 18 points or more, including three outings where he dwarfed 20 points. With more freedom on offense, these types of games will lead to Healy playing with a bright green light on offense. Just how green it will be? Well, it’ll be just enough to churn out a year deserving of an All-Conference selection.
Zac Johnson, G, River Falls – Johnson’s feet seem to be the right size for the massive shoes that will be left behind by Dalton Banks. The guard has division one skill with the ball in his hands and had already assumed a large workload in his sophomore season and on the grassroots circuit.
He averaged 14.9 points per game last season, but in recent summer tournaments, I’ve seen a different fire in his eyes. Johnson does a commendable job at asserting himself into the offense instead of letting the ball find him, which is enough for me to predict a breakout year for the junior guard.
Caden Boser, F, Eau Claire Memorial – As a top-ten senior in Wisconsin, Boser has soaked up interest and offers, but his recruitment hasn’t rocketed as his State ranking would suggest. He’s underrated, especially considering how he could seamlessly join the parade of shoot-first big men that have reformed modern college basketball. I see a breakout year for Boser, who is likely to lead Eau Claire Memorial to a conference championship.
He averaged 20.4 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 2 blocks per game last season. Expect that to spike this year, as the big man showed flashes throughout his junior season with two games over 30 points and six games over 25 points.
Peyton Rodgers-Schmidt, F, Chippewa Falls – I’m one court from Chippewa Falls versus Merrill during the WBY tournament at Kaukauna high school, preparing to watch Franklin and Bayport. I ended up writing nothing on that game — I was lucky enough to turn my head at the right moment. In the half-court offense, Chippewa Falls forward Peyton Rodgers-Schmidt dribbled towards the rim, took off from a step outside the paint, cocked back, elevated, elevated a little more, and posterized a defender.
That was my introduction to Rodgers-Schmidt, who is in line to become a late-bloomer in terms of college interest. He’s one of the most explosive jumpers I’ve watched in the state, and his frame provides both a battering-ram on offense and a rebounding advantage on each end of the floor. Though he brought the ball up most times down the court, he’s a few key skills away (dribbling and passing) from being a primary ball-handler. Overall, though, look for him to improve from his 13.4 points and 9.1 rebounds per game last season and slide into the All-Conference conversation.
Honorable Mentions: Joe Reuter, Tanner Linduski, JT Dougherty