The Winter Lakes Classic Junior Standouts
The junior class was well represented at the Winter Lakes Classic. Here are the top seven junior talents from the event. Rasmussen (Sr) along with Diggins and Morris Finn Diggins (6’5, PF, 2021) of Perham. If there is anybody at…
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Continue ReadingThe junior class was well represented at the Winter Lakes Classic. Here are the top seven junior talents from the event.
Rasmussen (Sr) along with Diggins and MorrisFinn Diggins (6’5, PF, 2021) of Perham. If there is anybody at diving to the basket in Minnesota high school basketball show him to me, because I want to see somebody that times it out with as much precision as Finn. He had six straight scores in the second half and most of them were sharp cuts finished with strength and a touch all in a rhythm. He’s also added a consistency to the perimeter jumper it seems (three triples) and he always boards. Finn was good for 22 points on 9 of 15 shooting with seven boards in a good win over Osakis.
Trey Longstreet (6’6, Wing, 2021) of Delano. Trey Longstreet has to be one of the most effective players I’ve seen when it comes to producing in the lane. His floater and pull-up jumper were a constant in the win over Alexandria as the Cards didn’t have a player with the right combination of size and agility to try and guard him. Longstreet had 21 points on 8 of 12 shooting plus dished out six assists with four boards.
Elijah Morris (6’1, SG, 2021) of Perham. Let’s get the obvious out of the way, Elijah can shoot the ball very well. Hit a couple threes and the threat of him shooting moves defenses. But I believe he’s really improved going towards the rim and I was really blown away at how well he passes the basketball. Elijah is a shooter that takes the right shots and looks to create for others within the framework. Several excellent balls moved for six assists plus he scored 17 points on 7 of 13 shooting. An efficient day (four boards too).
Grant Moscho (6’1, SG, 2021) of Melrose. The one area that EVW had trouble moving to on defense was the Moscho halfcourt possession. The threat of his jumper brought players an extra step towards the perimeter and Grant’s quick first step into his pull-up is tough to move with (especially when scrambling to the other side of the floor). That quick first step also got Grant to the rim for attempts and foul shots (scored 16 points on 5 of 13 shooting, 5 of 6 foul shooting).
Rowan Nelson (6’5, PF, 2021) of Melrose. I took a bit of time for Rowan to get going but in a tough game we could still see a good sampling of his ability/potential/ This is a forward that has both face-up abilities and back to the basket talent. I really like his soft mid-range touch getting free from bigger players but he’s really quick with his back to the basket as well. Scored four times for 11 points.
Joshua Streit (6’7/6’8, PF, 2021) of Eden Valley-Watkins. This was second half foul trouble away from being one of the best individual performances of the basketball season. I mean, where do I start?Let’s go defense. Rowan Nelson is a very good player but Josh is bigger in height, stronger, and moves his feet just as well if not better. Streit kept his length in front of Nelson forcing misses on his first eight shots. Then you have the passing. Streit is so focused and bought in on the team gameplan that he never forces a bad shot. One of the best players I’ve seen rotating the ball as well as moving into a cut after the pass. Add in nine rebounds and the fact that Streit scored on his first nine shots and you have a dominating performance. Streit scored 26 points on 11 of 12 shooting plus he made three of five foul shots with a team high five assists (all of this despite sitting most of the second half).
Sam Votava (6’1 Point Guard 2021) of East Grand Forks. Votava is a tremendous all around junior guard and that was on display today as he pretty controlled the pace of the game from opening tip to the final buzzer. Sam had a triple double that included him chasing down 13 rebounds with most of them coming on the defensive end. Range was showed on the jumper hitting a couple threes and scoring 17 points on 7 of 11 shooting. Sam forced little only taking shots when the space was large and the time was right. And speaking of timing, his patience in the halfcourt set led to several leads to cutters finishing at the rim. The other half of his assists were after his D-board into a transition push. Sam finished with 17 points, 13 rebounds, and ten assists.