Ten Best: Big Lake vs. Delano
A Saturday afternoon trip just west of the metro gave me a fun matchup at Delano as the Tigers faced the Hornets from Big Lake. I remembered the Delano gym vividly from my travel ball days and looked forward to…
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Continue ReadingA Saturday afternoon trip just west of the metro gave me a fun matchup at Delano as the Tigers faced the Hornets from Big Lake. I remembered the Delano gym vividly from my travel ball days and looked forward to returning.
Delano had the size and pure talent advantage over Big Lake but it was still a fight most of the way. The Tigers led 50-40 at half thanks to Calvin Wishart‘s hot shooting, and finished the game strong with a 92-73 win. Many new potential prospects were revealed and I got a closer look at the already-prominent players.
MVP: Calvin Wishart (PG, 6-2, Jr., Delano)
From the get-go Calvin was running all over the place distributing and running off screens for jumpers. He is smart and shifty and everything else NHR has ever said about him. Wishart’s handles are extremely tight and he can rise up over longer opponents for defensive rebounds like he did Saturday. Scoring 31 on six treys and posting seven assists and six rebounds will get you an MVP vote.
Best offensive performance: Austin Miller (G, 5-10, Sr., Big Lake)
Small and compact Hornet lead guard Austin Miller showed big-time leadership in the scoring department on Saturday, posting 16 points. Undersized and giving up 3 inches to Delano defenders, he created separation off the dribble for open pull-up jumpers and consistently knocked them down.
Best defensive performance: Keegan O’Neill (F, 6-8, Jr., Delano)
The lengthy forward is a big presence inside. When Big Lake scrounged up some offensive rebounds under the basket and attempted putbacks, O’Neill was always in the area to swat it back down. The 6-8 junior forced the whole Hornet squad into settling on the perimeter and altered any loose attempt at the rim.
Best under-the-radar-performance: Zach Gesicki (F, 6-4, Sr., Big Lake)
Definitely the most energized guy on the floor, Gesicki was fearless against the much bigger and stronger Delano frontcourt. His rebounding and efficiency down low was a spark for Big Lake to pull the deficit within 10 at halftime. Gesicki isn’t the tallest or most defined but he has great toughness and tallied 16 points in a great effort.
Best worker: Mitchell Kurtz (SF, 6-4, Sr., Delano)
“Active” is the best word to describe Mitchell. He’s a versatile wing with a defense-first mindset. Scored 14 points mostly on cuts behind defenders who were helping on Wishart. I like his role as a glue guy for Delano and his efforts will pay dividends if he continues to embrace his job in the rotation.
Best underclassman: Derek Techam (G, 5-11, So., Delano)
Techam started hot, with a fast break layup and a corner triple. He didn’t score after that, but was sure-handed with the ball throughout the game and showed really impressive stretches while playing in a six-man rotation. He’ll continue to be a helpful outside asset for Wishart to utilize in the future.
Best play: Offensive rebound bonanza
Delano has very good size for a AAA team. Somehow the basketball snuck through the cracks into Hornet hands multiple times on one trip down the floor, first it was Gesicki, next it was Nate Sandford, then Logan Nagorski, and finally the ball got squeezed out to Austin Miller for an open trey. Big momentum swinger in Big Lake’s direction gave them a boost into the halftime break.
Best big man: Nick Cayler (C, 6-7, Sr., Delano)
Cayler’s a traditional five-man with good feet and an offensive tackle’s frame. He doesn’t get pushed around down low and his post moves are very polished. He also scored 16 on feeds from the Tiger penetration, multiple times finishing through contact.
Best prospect: Calvin Wishart (PG, 6-2, Jr., Delano)
He was the best player on the floor Saturday. He’s arguably the best player in his conference overall. The questions with point guards when projecting them at the next level are length, athleticism and ability to score. Wishart has all three of those attributes and he has proven on the bigger stages in grassroots season that he can compete with the best. Expect more low- or mid-major D1s to give him good looks.
Best storyline moving forward: Conference/section title hopes
Delano is tied for first in the Wright County East with New Prague and they face off tonight. Delano lost the first meeting at home. The rest of their schedule is conference games save for a trip to section opponent Patrick Henry. They sit at 17-3 with a chance to bump Orono down to the 3 seed in section 6AAA as well. DeLaSalle still looms.
Big Lake is enjoying a surprising year and is 7-1 in the Mississippi 8. (Don’t get me started on the geographical disaster in that conference.) A 15-5 overall record is a big step up from recent years and they’re only a game and a half back of Rogers for tops in the conference. They sit in first in section 5AAA by a wide margin and will most likely stay there thanks to QRF seeding.