Postseason Report: EDC Wrap Up
Unless something unforeseen occurs, the basketball season has come and gone. There’s a lot to unpack from the last four months of hoops though and before we turn our attention to the AAU and offseason scene, let’s look back at…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingUnless something unforeseen occurs, the basketball season has come and gone. There’s a lot to unpack from the last four months of hoops though and before we turn our attention to the AAU and offseason scene, let’s look back at the season that was.
Fargo Davies and West Fargo Sheyenne were Dominant
Taking a look back at where things were before the season started, there were four teams that appeared to be above the rest of the pack in the EDC. Fargo Davies, West Fargo Sheyenne, Grand Forks Red River and West Fargo.
Two of those proved to be even further ahead of the rest of the pack than predicted.
Fargo Davies and West Fargo Sheyenne were far and away the dominant teams in the EDC this last year. The Eagles suffered just one loss in the regular season (an upset loss to Grand Forks Central in which Bon Hoverson hit nine 3-pointers), cruising to the EDC regular season title. The Mustangs lost to Fargo Davies twice but blew everybody else out, and exacted revenge on the Eagles in the EDC Tournament Championship game.
Fargo Davies overwhelmed opponents with its collective size, athleticism, shooting ability and depth. Five guys averaged double-figures in scoring and they could roll big, athletic kids at opponents in waves.
Sheyenne dedicated itself a little more to the defensive end of the floor than the previous year and leaned on the terrific perimeter trio of Blake Berg, Tyler Terhark and Zion Dettmann. They played with a physicality and a force on both ends of the floor, that only the Eagles could seemingly match.
The way things were heading, it looked like there was a very real possibility that both teams would’ve been playing for a state championship had the season survived another day.
There Were Positive and Negative Surprises
As there are with every season, there were some surprises on both ends of the spectrum this season.
On one hand, Fargo Davies and West Fargo Sheyenne being as dominant as both teams were could be seen as a surprise.
Fargo Shanley and Grand Forks Central popping up and winning 14 and eight games were pleasant surprises.
The Deacons won eight games the year before and went into the year with some hope. That was realized as they won 14 games, reaching the state tournament. Tallon Hoffer turned in a solid senior year. Patrick Bath had some great moments as a freshman and junior guards like Braden DeKeyser and Emmet Kenney were solid.
The Knights doubled their win total, going from four in 2018-19 to eight in 2019-20. They had gotten to 5-5 in the first 10 games before fizzling down the stretch, but with a number of talented juniors like Mason Gravseth, Alex Barbot and Mason Love, they could be in position to be competitive next year.
West Fargo might’ve been the most surprising team in Class A. The Packers were returning three starters and their sixth man from a state tournament team last year and were ranked in the top-five in the preseason. They were a perceived contender. And the team just never put everything together. The final sequence of their season-ending loss to Fargo Shanley – a missed point-blank shot that rolled around every corner of the rim – was something of an encapsulation of their season as a whole. In hindsight, losing Luke Lennon was a huge hole to try to fill and even though the guys in his spot were solid, they weren’t Luke Lennon.
There Were Some Awesome Seniors
On the whole, the EDC was quite senior-dominated.
Fargo Davies played nine guys regularly – eight of which were seniors.
West Fargo Sheyenne relied heavily on its senior perimeter trio and big man Chuck Dubois was an excellent glue piece.
Grand Forks Red River leaned heavily all year on Brady Dvorak, Cole Benson and Bryce Enerson. And senior guard Kobe Springer had some excellent moments.
Fargo North has a solid cache of young talent coming through the system, but it hasn’t manifested at the varsity level yet. Cayden Rickard was one of the best players in the league. Carson Critchley was good – despite dealing with a knee injury all year – and Carter Peratt had a nice senior year.
Devils Lake made the state tournament thanks almost exclusively to senior center Grant Nelson.
West Fargo loses its two best players in Matt Miller and Hunter Lyman.
Fargo Shanley had some young pieces play roles, but the guys who are most responsible for getting the Deacons to state were seniors Tallon Hoffer and Roman Srejma.
Out of the 20 players named All-EDC/Honorable Mention, 16 of the 20 guys are graduating.
What’s 2020/2021 Look Like?
What’s the after-effect of such a senior-dominated league? It sets up a lot of uncertainty heading into next year.
The traditional power teams like Fargo Davies, West Fargo Sheyenne and West Fargo all lose a lot of key senior pieces.
The talent coming through all three programs is strong and there’s a belief that all three will be competitive. But how do the Eagles replace eight guys (including four all-league guys and multi-year contributors) and not suffer a dip?
West Fargo Sheyenne relied heavily on senior guards and while the Mustangs have some intriguing young players, moving up from fourth, fifth and sixth on the pecking order to feature roles is something most players struggle with at least initially.
West Fargo returns three starters including two guys who could be All-EDC first teamers next year in Carson Hegerle and Carter Birrenkott. But can they take a big enough jump to get the Packers into the contending mix?
Grand Forks Red River returns an early favorite to be the Player-of-the-Year in the league in Will Obioha, but the Roughriders have to replace two three-year starters and multiple key pieces.
Fargo North has intriguing talent in its pipeline and next year may be the time to turn those guys loose and take lumps if necessary.
This summer should help clear a lot of questions up but as of now, there are going to be a lot of teams searching for new players to fill key roles left from an impressive senior class.