Ten Best: Princeton vs St Cloud Apollo
St. Cloud Apollo keeps grinding out games. Are they a .500 level team? You can argue that. Fact is they are .500 and they grinded out another win, this time against Princeton 65-51. In front of their home crowd the…
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Continue ReadingSt. Cloud Apollo keeps grinding out games. Are they a .500 level team? You can argue that. Fact is they are .500 and they grinded out another win, this time against Princeton 65-51.
In front of their home crowd the Apollo Eagles had the last push for the victory in a seesaw game that saw five big scoring swings. Princeton’s youth was able to show signs of quality but in the end a more veteran team from Apollo was just tougher down the stretch both mentally and physically.
MVP: Marquise Smith. Smith came off the bench to score 21 points on 10 of 12 field goal shooting plus grabbed seven boards. The agile six foot guard exploded past Princeton wings against a late rotating defense for scores and also moved off the ball in position to finish. He was the game changer for Apollo.
Best Offensive Performance: Renell Edwards. After Smith the top offensive guy was Edwards. After you get past a couple wild plays Edwards was able to get into the paint regularly which first led to his eight assists and later in the game led to point production. Renell made his final four shots but most importantly he pushed the pace and attacked lanes and the Tiger defense couldn’t react.
Best Defensive Performance: Philip Dromgoole, JR. Phil is usually a high scoring junior and he did get his double figures with ten points on ten points on seven shots but I loved how he moved over screens, trapped in corners, didn’t get face cut, and all out brought defensive energy at key times.
Best Guy Off the Bench: Smith. Marquise didn’t start the game but he sure did play most of it. He was an instant impact guy the second he stepped on the floor.
Best Under the Radar Performance: Elijah Edwards. Another guy for Apollo who did a nice job defensively was Elijah. The six foot junior forward was dependable both ways plus had nine on a tough shooting night.
Best Underclassmen: Adam Williams/James Flicek/Jon Stimmler. The Tigers have some solid sophomores playing a lot of minutes. Flickek is a tough little point guard that loves to come down hill which led to his 11 points and four assists. Adam Williams is a strong sophomore with a beautiful touch. When his feet are set chances are good the shot is going. He scored 15 points including four treys. Finally, Stimmler is a 6-foot-7 boulder on the block. Jon is tough to move which led to his ten points and six rebounds. When he is able improve his footwork and find ways to use that size to bump guys off balance he will be very good.
Best Story to watch Moving Forward: Apollo is playing around a .500 level. Can they maintain? Apollo hasn’t had a high level of talent for a few years but that has never stopped them from battling. They are a team that always works hard which is why they are in games to the end, which is why they upset teams, and why they won this game by 14. They are .500 once again right now playing a bit better than expected.
Best Aspect of the Environment: Home town team. The local writer, local TV, local fans, all of them came out not just to see the great talent at the event, but also to see the Apollo kids.
Best Prospect: Likely Stimmer. This is a tough call. I think I go to Stimmer just because of his size at such a young age. It could be Williams too who shoots well. Or maybe Dromgoole if he continues to improve skill.
Other: Luke Dunsmoor/Alec Schimming. Both of these players had tough shooting nights but they rebounded and played hard. Dunsmoor, a future St. Cloud State football player, grabbed 15 rebounds while Schimming, a junior, had ten.