Harvey/Wells County vs. 4 Winds/Minnewaukan: Standouts
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Fort Totten, ND – We had a Region Region 4/District 7 matchup tonight. There was no shortage of athletic plays in this one. Both teams had multiple dunks tonight. However, the #1 ranked Indians took care of business in an…
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Continue ReadingFort Totten, ND – We had a Region Region 4/District 7 matchup tonight. There was no shortage of athletic plays in this one. Both teams had multiple dunks tonight. However, the #1 ranked Indians took care of business in an impressive fashion. The final score looked worse than it was and the Hornets battled all night. It was a fast-paced and up-and-down game. Read below for the standout out players….
SCORES
1Q – HWC 11 FWM 25
2Q – HWC 26 FWM 38
3Q – HWC 38 FWM 60
4Q (final) – HWC 52 FWM 79
4 Winds/Minnewaukan STANDOUTS
Jayden Yankton Jayden Yankton 6'1" | SG Four Winds/Minnewaukan | 2022 State ND (2022) |6-1 G|
29 points, one 3-pointer, 2-3ft’s. He was a scoring machine tonight. Yankton is a lethal shooter but in this one, he was excellent at attacking the basket and getting into the lane. He scored with floaters, short pull-ups, finger rolls, inside hand layups, soft bank shots, and acrobatic left finish. We don’t want to forget about his 1-handed WHAM in transition! Yankton showed a dirty spin-move vs. a double team and he was fouled on the way up. Jayden is very skilled with all the moves. His first step is deadly when attacking close-out defenders. Jayden is great at pushing the ball in transition and moving the ball ahead. He showed a perfect touch lob-pass to Deng near the rim. He dropped multiple dimes to Leftbear. Jayden is an anticipator and a steal machine that can turn TO’s into instant offense. It was another impressive performance by Mr. Yankton. Get out and watch this kid play!
Dalen Leftbear Dalen Leftbear 6'3" | SF FourWinds/Minnewaukan | 2024 State ND (2024) |6-2 G/F|
22 points. I knew this kid was talented and athletic, but man he is better than that! Dalen runs and jumps like a next-level athlete and he is only in 10th grade. He and Deng are a dynamic-sophomore-duo. Leftbear showed a great shot fake, spin-move, and a 1-handed fall-away floater. He showed his strength early with an AND1 finish and a partially blocked finish in the second half. Dalen is lightning quick in transition, he scores in the blink of an eye. He showed his relentless effort with an offensive rebound bucket in transition. Leftbear showed his shooting range with a silky-smooth pull-up J from 17 feet. I was impressed with his excellent elevation and high release. In the second half, Dalen had a sweet drive and finish with a hang-time-scoop shot. He forced multiple turnovers and grabbed many O-boards. I like how he skies for the ball. Dalen is also a willing passer that drives and dishes. He is a super-soph!
Deng Deng Deng Deng 6'5" | SF Four Winds/Minnewaukan | 2024 ND (2024) |6-4 F|
16 points, many rebounds, and near double figures in blocks. He was an absolute beast and a man-amongst-boys when it came to Deng grabbing offensive rebounds. He scored many of his points off putbacks and tip-ins. His timing, patience, and reaction time when blocking shots were beyond impressive. Deng showed his athleticism in a fastbreak situation with a perfect step-through finish. He had many tips and turnovers throughout the game. Deng had two beautiful spin-move finishes. He has an eye-popping and crazy athletic dunk with a defender in his face. The slam dunk looked like it belongs on the ESPN Top 10 plays!
Jacolby Pearson Jacolby Pearson 6'4" | SG Four Winds/Minnewaukan | 2022 State ND (2022) |6-3 G|
8 points, one 3-pointer, 1-2 ft’s. He is a long-lefty and a smooth player. Pearson has a great follow-through and shooting form. He is a very capable shot blocker with his long arms. Jacolby has good handles. He showed a smooth cross and a killer fake-cross. His hesistation-move might be even better. Pearson nailed his 3-ball from the left-wing.
Kelson Keja Kelson Keja 5'7" | PG Four Winds/Minnewaukan | 2023 State ND (2023) |5-6 PG|
2 points. He showed a smooth and soft floater early in the game for his bucket. Kelson battled foul trouble early with 2 in the first and he had to sit after his 3rd in the second quarter. He eventually fouled out in the fourth. Kelson is a creative player with tight handles. Keja is a bulldog on defense and a sparkplug on offense. I loved seeing him sprinting down the floor and diving on the court to try and save the ball. I bet the coaches run that play back multiple times when they watch the film!
Wade Nestell Wade Nestell 6'0" | SG Four Winds/Minnewaukan | 2024 State ND (2024) |5-10 G|
2 points. He gave nice minutes tonight when a couple of the starters had to sit. Wade had a clever steal in the open court and clean footwork at the basket. I liked his effort when he snuck in and grabbed an O-board. He scored his points with a hustle rebound in transition, Wade put the ball back in for an easy layup. He is very unselfish and he moves well. Nestell did a nice job of running the point when he was subbed in for Keja.
Harvey/Wells County
Tate Grossman Tate Grossman 6'4" | SG Harvey/Wells County | 2023 State ND (2023) |6-4 G|
13 points, one 3-pointer. He is a strong player and an impressive athlete. For being 6’4, Tate handled the ball a ton for the Hornets and he did a nice job with it. I like the way he snapped passes and moved the ball. To get his scoring going tonight, Grossman had a pickpocket steal that led into a wildly-athletic 2-handed slam dunk! Later in the game, Tate blocked a shot so hard that it got wedged in between the rim and the backboard. He showed a quality shot fake and good balance on his jumper. Grossman had multiple tip-in offensive rebounds. Keep your eyes on this athlete!
Madden Thorson (2022) |6-1 G|
11 points, one 3-pointer. He is a nice athlete that made many impressive slashing and knifing plays to the rim. Thorson first stood out when driving and finishing down the lane with a finger-roll over the front of the rim. He also split a double-team and finished quickly with a finger-roll before the defense could recover. Madden showed a nice crossover and good ball skills with a lefty one-handed pass. Early in the 3rd, Thorson hit his 3-ball. He looked fast in the open court with a transition bucket. Madden showed crafty footwork with a euro-step. Late in the game, he kept battling with a run-out layup to try to close the gap a bit. I liked his effort and energy.
Alex Erickson (2022) |6-4 F|
8 points, 2-6 ft’s. He is a long-player and a sneaky good athlete. Erickson had an impressive dunk that seemed to come out of nowhere. Alex also impressed me with O-boards, good hands, and hustle when contesting shots.
Keaton Keller (2024) |6-3 F|
6 points. He showed a soft bank shot near the end of the 1st quarter. Keaton made a nice cut and quick finish on the play. Later in the game, he showed his determination and hustle with an O-board bucket. His last bucket showed his strength. It was from the block and he was partially blocked, Keller got it to go in anyway.