Comets Shootout: Five Things to Know (from North Dakota)
The North Dakota Attack and ECI Prospects both represented North Dakota well at the 17u level of the Comets Shootout this weekend. PHD gives you our five takeaways from the weekend.
One. ECI Makes the Elite Eight. This was a 40 team event and ECI finished in the final eight which is a strong accomplishment. When it comes to first round opponents ECI had one of the tougher out there facing D1 Minnesota Rise who has one of Minnesota’s best players in Jake Kettner. ECI beat them and they defeated Comets DLR which is a team with several D3 college prospects and a couple that may play at the D2 level. In the elite eight round ECI took on tournament runner-up Minnesota Fury Wilde and gave the top five team in Minnesota a good run, but the Fury defense eventually limited all ECI could do. The way that Keaton Hoeg (Fargo North) attacked, the way Mason Walters (Jamestown) battled around the basket, and the way Maleeck Harden (Moorhead) attacked the basket were all things that stood out for ECI. ***We talked more about Harden in the Northstar Hoops (Minnesota) article on the Comets Shootout.
Two. 4-1 is a great way to begin. The North Dakota Attack officially got their program started this weekend and a consolation championship with a 4-1 record was a nice beginning. The Attack received no favors, as a first timer at this event (kind of) the Attack was given a pigtail game to get to the round of 32 and they comfortably handled a game with Andover High School. The Attack lost to Wisconsin Playmakers in their round of 32 game but then went on a run beating the Minnesota Magic, Select Ellis (a top 25 Minnesota team), and then defeated another team from the Wisconsin Playmakers. The Attack had several play well; Hayden Overby of Thompson is active and does some of everything, Seth Hetzel of Stanley had a 20 point game beating Select Ellis, and Cody Perkins of Mott-Regent always seemed to be making the hustle plays. Also, Ben Bohl was in double figures three times including the 23 he scored against the Playmakers on three three-pointers. We saw University of Mary, Mayville State, Concordia-Moorhead, and Jamestown watching these guys play multiple times.
Three. Solidifying Himself as a Prospect. At 6-foot-7 from Grafton Area, Dalton Albrecht definitely helped himself in St. Cloud. When it comes to biggest stock raisers in the event Dalton is up there with them. He is active, springy, and gave consistent effort in the paint. Dalton had 20 points and nine rebounds in the win over Andover and in that game we saw Dalton step away and make a couple long perimeter jumpers comfortably. That ability seems to be there, but Dalton did a lot of his work around the basket (love how he runs the floor rim to rim) which is how he totaled a big double-double of 26 points and 11 rebounds against the Magic. With so many schools watching Dalton play well I’m sure he is getting some nice interest immediately after the tournament.
Four. Joe Jahner is Top Prospect. Jahner is the state’s best 2019 prospect right now. Are there things that he needs to improve at? Surely. And yes Bismarck would of liked to have a better end to the 2017-18 season. That said, Jahner’s shooting touch, range with that touch, his strength in his 6-foot-2 frame, and his comfort handling the ball (which allows him to play a couple spots) set him apart from others prospect wise.
Five. Schwabe was Suave with the Ball. Point guard Cadyn Schwabe piled up the assists all weekend long. As far as distributors go he ranked with the best at 17u this weekend in “had a great tournament passing the ball” Cadyn was up there. He also did a great job moving defenders with fakes and hesitations to get to the rim for scores. Cadyn scored 15 beating Andover, had seven assists against the Magic, and ripped apart the Select defense with 11 assists in an 84-74 win.