Heritage Classic: Fergus Falls rolls over Sisseton
Fergus Falls had Sisseton, a team that at one point was top ten in South Dakota’s Class A, running all over the floor in their zone to catch shooters. Sisseton is a rare South Dakota team with length all over…
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Continue ReadingFergus Falls had Sisseton, a team that at one point was top ten in South Dakota’s Class A, running all over the floor in their zone to catch shooters. Sisseton is a rare South Dakota team with length all over the floor but few guards. Therefore they weren’t good in pressure so the Otters pushed the ball, moved it to the wing, continued rapid ball movement, and found shooters everywhere.
With wins over Brained, Rocori, Detroit Lakes, Breckenridge, Tech, Alexandria, and now a recent top ten team in South Dakota, the Otter 14-1 record looks very good. And when you look through their schedule, if they keep playing the way they did today with rapid ball movement and shooters finding space inside and out regularly, I don’t see them losing two or three more games before section time. This is a quality team that has not let distractions get in the way of playing a strong team game.
Matthew Johnson (6-ft-0, SG, Fr). Young player who seems to have a mature frame and game understanding that has helped him battle his way into the rotation at a young age.
Harrison Christensen (6-ft-2, SG, So). One of the most surprising players of the day, Harrison made a quick impact scoring four times early including a top of the key trey keeping feet set and form steady despite a defender contesting like a wild animal. Was the first player on the floor for a loose ball, did an excellent job swinging the ball to open shoots, and was opportune in finishing the opportunities he received knocking out 14 points. Impressive, intelligent young player.
Matthew Monke (6-ft-5, SF, Jr). Monke moved off the ball on the baseline several times and then received after a teammate attack. Defenses would try to close but Matt is so long and fairly agile so all they could do was foul Monke who was seemingly at the foul line all game. The only way Sisseton could have stopped him is by keeping a defender his size in front of him at all times but they played a zone so they had no chance. Monke hit a trey at the top of the key, rebounded very well grabbing nine, and made several foul shots. A better prospect than I thought as a three because of the touch and activity off the ball in a real long frame.
Isaiah Lemke (6-ft-0, Sr, PG). Lemke did a great job moving the ball from the middle of the zone. With a dribble and a quick outlet he helped teammates build up open opportunities throughout the game. Sisseton didn’t have a lead guard that could pressure him so Lemke played scientist dissecting the zone possession after possession. Loved the quick reversals in addition to the ball movement after a dribble or two. Defensively he was really good too. Sisseton didn’t have a lead guard that could turn on him as they had bigs bringing the ball up.
Elijah Colbeck (5-ft-11, Jr, G). A guy that caught our attention because he is always on the wing with hands ready and feet set ready to drop out a trey. Excellent shooter who hit triples at the wing and in the corner moving to spaces the zone couldn’t retreat to against the Otter ball movement.