Class AAA State Tournament: Wednesday’s Top Performers
Who stood out at Williams Arena on day one of the state tournament? NHR breaks down the top players and most interesting performances of the day.
Sage Booker of DeLaSalle, senior. Booker is the guy that initially gets after the other team’s best player and you see David Birkeland scored only three times. Booker had his hand in that plus scored five times.
CJ Dickson of DeLaSalle, senior. Dickson seems to be adopting the “do anything I can to help” thought process. He was the unsung MVP versus Orono and today he acme off the bench to defend, move the ball (5 assists), board (5), and score four times.
Joich Gong of Mankato East, sophomore. The Cougar young guard made a trey, hit five of six shots and put up an efficient 14 points playing within the role he has on the team. Defensively the long activity of Gong helped him total steals and deflections.
Quentin Hardrict of Columbia Heights, senior. This is one of the finer games of the Hardrict has ever played. Had nine assists as he went where he wanted controlling the pace of play all game. The game went the way Quentin wanted it to. Made all 11 of his foul shots forcing the opponents to come to him on the attack plus he put the game away. Outstanding game vs STA.
Tate Hebrink of Austin, senior. Hebrink made his impact today without many shots. Defensive lead in the zone, controlling the pace of play offensively, making clutch foul shots, and hitting double digits on only five field goals. That’s what Tate did today to help his team get to the next round.
Moses Issa of Austin, senior. Moses scored 20 using his explosive athletic ability and strong frame to score some of his eight field goals, and the improved three point stroke to score the rest of it. With a developing shooting stroke, some of the most explosive hops in the state, and a good frame, Moses is a player that schools need to be looking into as the best years could be coming.
Gabe Kalscheur of DeLaSalle, senior. Playing on his future college floor Kalscheur made 9 of 14 shots and didn’t even need to use that trademark three point stroke. Most shots were inside the arc and Kalscheur did everything within the offense including six assists, six boards, and scored 21.
Cody Landwehr of Sauk Rapids-Rice, senior. Cody had a difficult game finding good shots against Austin but he did have a double-double plus made history by becoming the all time leading scorer at his school.
Anthony Massman of Sauk Rapids-Rice, senior. The strong senior year of Anthony Massman continued. Massman scored 18 with 11 rebounds for a state tournament double-double plus dished out five assists. He didn’t shoot at the arc the way he wanted but it was another strong showing for a guy that has greatly improved this year.
Uhana Ochan of Mankato East, senior. East may have lost but the power of Ochan finishing aggressively at the rim made an impression. Ochan went at the cup aggressively for his 18 points and eight boards plus four blocks. Quick off his feet, thick in the shoulders, and arms forever, the potential is there.
Keegan O’Neill of Delano, senior. Several of those D3 coaches watching the Delano/East game kept an eye on O’Neill who once again found his way to good spots in the paint to catch and finish at a high percentage. Made 7 of 9 shots for his 16 points. It’s not as flashy as it is simple and smart. O’Neill was simply in position and he used his size to finish over East.
Deundra Roberson of Columbia Heights, senior. St. Thomas didn’t have guys that could move with Roberson, it’s as simple as that. He was on a run to the rim all game for his 11 of 14 shooting and 24 points. His quickness and explosiveness to the bucket ranks with the best from this state.
Peter Soumis of Hermantown, sophomore. When you are a 2020 and you play the best team in the state and score 15, you did something to grab the eyes of the state. Peter is a 5-foot-10 guard that found space and hit shots.
Sam Vascellaro of St. Thomas, senior. Sam had 18 points and nine boards for STA in the loss. The senior simply did some of everything. Trying to describe him is hard because Sam can handle some, he rebounds hard, can make shots in several different ways, and he’s physically tough with a good frame.
Calvin Wishart of Delano, senior. Nobody wants to run into Calvin Wishart right now. He’s putting massive numbers up on everyone. Made 17 of 22 foul shots and 7 of his 15 field goals for 35 points to lead the Tigers over Mankato East. Add in a dozen rebounds and six assists and you have a dominating player that the Cougars simply had no chance to deal with.