Ten Best: Goodhue vs. Fillmore Central
Goodhue and Fillmore Central kicked off the Hiawatha Valley League/Three Rivers Conference Showdown Saturday in Rochester and while the Falcons might be an improved bunch this year, they were no match for the Wildcats. Behind a methodical and efficient offense…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingGoodhue and Fillmore Central kicked off the Hiawatha Valley League/Three Rivers Conference Showdown Saturday in Rochester and while the Falcons might be an improved bunch this year, they were no match for the Wildcats.
Behind a methodical and efficient offense and a stellar defense, the Wildcats built up a 13 point halftime lead. Despite the best efforts of Falcons’ Sam Peters, Goodhue pumped its lead to more than 20 points early in the second half, getting excellent performances from Jacob McNamara and Ben Opsahl on the way to a 68-42 win.
MVP: Jacob McNamara (Goodhue)
McNamara was a force for the Wildcats Saturday. He scored 13 points but was the primary facilitator in the middle of the Falcons’ 2-3 zone all afternoon. He used his brute strength to control the paint on both ends and had his way against an undersized Falcons team without Drew Tienter.
Best Offensive Performance: Sam Peters (Fillmore Central)
On a day where very little went right for the Falcons, Peters was a bright spot. The 5-foot-8 guard was terrific on the offensive end, scoring 20 points. He knocked down pull up shots, catch and shoot shots and attacked the lane with success.The Wildcats ultimately pulled away in the second half. The main reason it took until about the 7-minute mark to do so was because Peters kept hitting shots.
Best Defensive Performance: Ben Opsahl (Goodhue)
The whole Goodhue defense was stifling Saturday but the impact guy was the older Opsahl. Playing one of the bottom wings of the Goodhue zone, Opsahl showed off impressive range, covering players at the wing all the way down to the paint. His ability to play the passing lanes triggered a lot of Goodhue’s points and if a Wildcat did make a mistake – and that didn’t happen often – Opsahl was usually there to cover it up.
Best Underclassman: Sam Opsahl (Goodhue)
The younger Opsahl looks like the next great player for the Wildcats. The 6-foot-2 freshman scored eight points with a variety of scoring moves against the 2-3 zone. His passing ability was on display numerous times and his ability to defend allows him to play major minutes now. He’s good now. He’s going to be a stud soon.
Best Player off the Bench: Taylor Buck (Goodhue)
The Wildcats play a lot more players than a typical Class A team. It might be cliche but Buck plays like the team’s sixth starter. When he’s on the floor, nothing changes and if anything, he adds another perimeter scorer to the lineup. Buck scored nine points, knocking down three triples while playing harassing defense.
Best Under the Radar Performance: Riley Means (Fillmore Central)
Means had a quietly nice game for the Falcons. He didn’t score a lot, knocking down two 3-pointers for six points, but he did a solid job pushing the pace when he could. He was active on the defensive end of the floor too, cutting off the few attempts the Wildcats made to penetrate.
Best Shooter: Peters (Fillmore Central)
Peters was excellent from deep Saturday, knocking down five 3-pointers in the game. He didn’t need much space to get his shots off and he knocked down shots in a number of different ways.
Best Passer: McNamara (Goodhue)
This one could probably go to the whole Wildcats team given their overall passing against the 2-3 zone of Fillmore was surgical. McNamara was fantastic in the middle though and his ability to draw defenders and find shooters or cutters on the dime was textbook. Teams that run a 2-3 zone could use his performance for exactly why you don’t want to let the ball get to the free throw line area.
Best Coaching/Strategy: Goodhue’s halfcourt offense
While some may watch Goodhue and come away pining for a shot clock, their execution in the halfcourt is flat-out impressive. The Wildcats passed the ball from side-to-side and were incredibly patient when it came to attacking soft spots and passing for a better look. The interior passing was a thing of beauty and very rarely was there a possession where it felt like the Wildcats didn’t get the look or shot they wanted.
Best Storyline Going Forward: Can anybody in the HVL beat Goodhue? At full strength, can Fillmore Central get to the middle of the pack in the TRC?
First off, Goodhue is legit. The Wildcats are now 8-0 on the year and are beating teams by an average margin of 20.4 points per game. They are San Antonio Spurs-like in the way they plug players in and continue rolling. Their style of play is difficult to handle because they are so sound and it’s hard to see a team in the HVL with enough overall talent to overcome that. Right now, they look like the cream of the crop.
The Falcons are a better team this season. How much better? It might be too early to tell and Goodhue isn’t an opponent you can judge that on because the Wildcats pummel everyone. At full strength, the Falcons should be able to break into the middle of the TRC. Caledonia and St. Charles are clearly in that first tier. A couple other teams might be ahead of the Falcons still but there are rebuilding teams that they could pass up.