NHR Scout: 8AAAA semi-finals

The Section 8AAAA semi-finals had some serious moments of excitement before the favorites Elk River and Maple Grove separated themselves for the clear win and they will play next week for the right to play in the state tournament. Below is our take on the games and players that we saw this evening in St. Cloud. Maple Grove vs Rogers Rogers at different points had some momentum but every time they came close to getting within a couple scores the Royals seemed to implode and Brad Davison pounced on every mistake. Stefan Musoke had a nice start, had his fans going wild after a crazy dunk, and then picked up his third foul in the first half, and was never able to get back into the flow of the game. Rogers made a couple second half runs but then their shot selection went from okay to selfish and the way they defended Davison was tough to watch. They defended him right on his hip so Brad spun away and attacked and the defense had no angle to move to stop him and then the help was nowhere to be found. The Crimson used all of their assets to pick up the victory too. First you had Davison scoring in every which way for his 32 points with six boards and six assists, Reed Nikko scored 13 and was the defensive presence you would expect him to be intimidating Rogers from getting deep in the paint, Jack Hutchison hit early treys, Taron Pickford had late attacks, and the role players stepped in and provided energy plays (Jared Martinson and Ryan Bredensteiner). Maple Grove Jack Hutchison. Knocked out three early triples (one was actually and And1m but three possessions of three points) that helped build the early lead for the Crimson. Made half of his eight attempts overall. Brad Davison. I sometimes marvel at how he can contort his body and make difficult shots. Brad makes some of the toughest angled finishes of anybody in state and he does it often. I still have no idea why Rogers was guarding him so close because he spun away about four times for attacking buckets. Created boarded, created, made his foul shots, out played the Royals. Reed Nikko. Made every shot he took scoring a dozen but more importantly his low post presence simply stopped many Rogers drives and forced pull-ups or ball stoppage all together. Also blocked four shots and had some off balance finishes after being bumped. Played well. Taron Pickford. In the second half his push gave the Crimson transition scores from the field and from the line. Was more active on defense than I’ve seen helping him get steals and deflections. Jared Martinson. The future Bethel product brought a ton of energy and his steal into an And1 complete with pumping up his bench after the play. Rogers Steffan Musoke. Great start with a quick couple scores, all of his free throws, and a nasty dunk. He was the top guy on the floor for some stretches and then he picked up foul three and four and both were simply bad fouls. It completely took him out of the game because he had to sit so much. Allen Wilson. Made four treys and that was good but had a tough time defending Davison and turned the ball over six times. The young man has a lot of ability and has really turned some heads this year as he’s played at a level that many didn’t think he was to. Tough ending but a good year. Will Alexander. I thought Will was really good. He made three shots from the arc and scored a team high 13 points on only eight shots. Competed with energy on both ends and I would have liked to see the ball move more to him in this game but it didn’t. Matt Carik. Carik had some fearless basket attacks that he complete off the glass and I liked his halfcourt decision making moving the basketball. Matt made half of his shots for nine points and he will be a nice leader for them next year.   Brainerd vs Elk River The Brainerd crowd woke up this that have been in Hellenbeck Hall a dozen hours with their version of “I Believe” and it was the best one I’ve heard in years. Zeke Delain added to the building’s energy by exciting the Elks crowd with a three and on the way back the other way he had the guns out and then put them back in the holster. The Warrior crowd was massive in numbers and with every play they went wild. There was the Michael Russell trey followed by a scream, the nasty Kobe Ahonen block at the box on a sprint back, and Jaden Miller scored from the perimeter to bring out the crowd life. As good as that was, Matt Keller’s seven treys and 36 points still scared them and Matt got loose in the half making a couple threes. His scores and another Delain basket gave the Elks a 28-26 lead. The second half was a completely different tale than the first. Trent Pink scored the first five baskets of the second session and then Matt Keller knocked out three treys haunting the Warriors once again. The lead ballooned from a single score to double figures quickly and then at one point hit 18 points. Brainerd Michael Russell (Jr, SG). A fearless shooter who knocked out four treys and each one of them brought big excitement from Russell and then the crowd. Definitely a shooter that people around the state should know going into next year. Kobe Ahonen (Sr, F). Kobe is one of the more energetic rebounders Ive seen all season. Grabbed a dozen boards and many of them included explosive leaps, a strong two hand grab with elbows out, and a fierce look on his face. Also had one of the best retreating blocks I’ve seen this year and he knocked down most of his foul shots on his way to his 14 points. Jaden Miller (Sr, SG). Moved off the ball well to create his three scores and each basket seemed to bring life to his crowd. An energetic player that gets a lot out of his frame. Elk River Matt Keller (Sr, G). Keller has definitely become an explosive scorer who has put in a lot of work on his shot from the arc and his ability to separate with the dribble and create is also greatly improved. Also rebounded well once again and did some of the handling and creating. He’s having the type of year that should get him nice post season recognition in the metro and all state in some way. Trent Pink (Sr, PF). Pink’s second half five basket run followed by an assist to Keller on a kick out changed the game. He scored on the block facing up, scored with a hook, moved without the ball to finish, and he scored on the glass. Pink finished with 16 points and six rebounds but more importantly his play out of the half was the major difference in the game. Zekiel Delain (Sr, SG). Opened the game with an energetic triple and provided energy the rest of the way. There was a late half baseline score before the break that gave them the lead going into the half and overall he made the best of his seven attempts scoring five and making foul shots for his 14 points. The best part about Zeke was that he was just as excited for his teammates baskets as he was of his own. Wyatt Morrell (Jr, PG). Liked the role Wyatt played giving a little bit of everything. Knocked out six of seven fouls shots, created scores for others simply making the right pass, and he put in a nice effort on the boards.