Minnesota First Look: Alexandria
The Alexandria Cardinals were one of the top teams in the Central Lakes a year ago and while they lose three of their top scorers, they’ve become a consistently solid program. While the departure of Treyton Thompson lowers their overall…
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Continue ReadingThe Alexandria Cardinals were one of the top teams in the Central Lakes a year ago and while they lose three of their top scorers, they’ve become a consistently solid program. While the departure of Treyton Thompson lowers their overall ceiling, there’s still plenty of talent in the program. With a number of young guys earning minutes last season, expect the Cardinals to be in the mix in the Central Lakes and among the contenders in Section 8AAA.
KEY RETURNERS: Colton Roderick, Carson Jones
Alexandria is going to have arguably the best backcourt in the Central Lakes this winter as Jones and Roderick are terrific.
Jones stepped his game up as a junior last season, showing a really good outside shot and the ability to get into gaps consistently. He looked very good this summer and looks like he’ll have the ball in hands a lot.
Roderick was excellent as a sophomore and looks like a guy ready to emerge as a potential Player-of-the-Year in the Central Lakes. The 6-foot-4 guard is excellent defensively, a smooth slasher, smart and willing passer and a strong finisher. I expect him to break out big time.
STEPPING INTO NEW ROLES: Kristen Hoskins, Erik Hedstrom, Cody Branson,
The Cardinals have a lot of nice young talent still in the pipe despite losing Treyton Thompson.
Hoskins saw varsity minutes as a freshman and showed he can be a guy the team build around. He’s got a lot of skill on the perimeter and was excellent this summer, looking like a guy who can develop into a consistent double-figure scorer.
Hedstrom was on the team last year as a freshman and will likely step into either a starting role or a key bench spot as a sophomore. With a lot of minutes available in the Alexandria frontcourt, Hedstrom could be a guy who eats up a good chunk of those.
Branson was a fringe-rotation guy last year behind several excellent senior guards. He’ll have an opportunity to either start or fill in as depth behind Jones and Roderick this year and could be important if the team goes small more this winter.
QUESTION: Where do the Cardinals stack up in the CLC?
The Central Lakes appears fairly wide open at this point. St. Cloud Apollo is probably the favorite given the Eagles return a big chunk of their core. But after that, there’s a lot of questions. Fergus Falls, Sartell-St. Stephen and Willmar all graduate strong senior groups. Brainerd could be strong again. But Alexandria has the talent to contend in the CLC this winter despite graduating and losing some really key guys.
SEASON OUTLOOK
The Cardinals won 19 games last year and with Thompson, would’ve been the favorite to win the CLC and Section 8AAA. His departure is a big blow. But this group looked really strong independent of him over the summer and there’s a healthy host of young players who appear primed for breakout seasons. Expect Alexandria to continue to churn out victories and be in the mix both in its league and its section.