Ten Best: Waconia vs Waseca (2018)
Waconia improved to 12-10 on the season with a game winner in overtime by Derek Feltmann. The senior scored 14 points with for the Wildcats in the win. MVP. Charlie Gove. This was one of the most efficient and steady…
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Continue ReadingWaconia improved to 12-10 on the season with a game winner in overtime by Derek Feltmann. The senior scored 14 points with for the Wildcats in the win.
MVP. Charlie Gove. This was one of the most efficient and steady games I’ve seen from a point guard lately. The junior played a composed game making seven of eight field goals, knocking down all nine of his foul shots for his 23 points (I mistook one jumper for a three last night). Gove also dished out eight assists and at one point had either scored or assisted on all but one of his team’s first ten scoring possessions. Also defended with a deep stance in disciplined position. Really liked his pull-up jumper too. Very impressed all around.
Offensive MVP. Malik Willingham. A Waseca sophomore that plays with a load of confidence Malik made three treys early, airballed another, listened to the crowd get on his case, and then made two more after that. He scored a team high 22 points and hit several big shots down the stretch highlighted by a baseline one-handed runner. Shot 8 of 18 from the floor and did this with a hand in his face and help leading his way as Adam Schumacher was out with an injury and Kaleb Nelson struggled the first 30 minutes of the 41 minute game.
Defensive MVP. Derek Feltmann. First off I must apologize if I confused some of the Waconia players. Feltmann, Carter Damlo, and Nick Fulford have similar builds and hair, and the Waconia jerseys are not easy to make out number wise unless a player has his full front or back to you because of the purple on black.
I believe the player I want to recognize for his defensive effort was Derek Feltmann, the senior guard who made the game winning free throws. I thought Feltmann did a fantastic job of busting around screens to keep a hand in Nelson’s face and then was strong in helping over to the attack to stop the ball or force turnovers. Derek is a high effort, high IQ defender who also scored his 14 points making three treys and five foul shots.
Top Under the Radar Performance. Kaleb Nelson. I went with the Waconia defender because there was a lot of other guys on the floor that did some flashy things but it was Nelson’s late game 14 point explosion that gave Waseca a chance to win the game. After missing his first six shots Nelson made four of five including two treys and four foul shots.
Top Underclassmen. Willingham. Malik is a sophomore Bluejay. After Malik you would have to pick Waconia freshman PJ Hayes who is a 6-foot-2 guard. Hayes grabbed six boards and hit a three plus was trusted enough to be on the floor in crunch time.
Top Prospect. Jake Guse. At this point I’m not sure how Willingham will develop so I will say Guse who is a top 50 prospect that is hearing from D2 schools, MIAC schools, and NAIA programs. Jake had 18 points on 8 of 14 shooting that included a fantastic tip in late in the game. Jake is much improved as a back to the basket player as he turned over both shoulders to either hook or power score plus he faced up well. Jake put together a double-double with 11 boards.
Top “Don’t Forget About Me” Player. Nick Fulford. If you are a team that recruits locally you should get this 6-foot-6 talent on your scouting list and find him this March, and then figure out which AAU team he’s playing for. Fulford is scoring 15 points per game this season and had an impressive 17 last night on 8 of 11 shooting. Nick looks a lot more agile laterally and he’s quick off his feet. Nice athlete.
Going Forward. How will Waseca rebound from these recent two losses? This is not the way you want to go into the playoffs especially if Schumacher is hurt badly. Waseca will likely have an easy first round section game but will then likely have Faribault or Mankato West in round two. If Kade Hart is back to full health that is a tough game against the Falcons while West has been a surprise getting to 12-11 on the year. Waseca has Marshall this Friday and then finishes the regular season with Kasson-Mantorville next week.
Going Forward 2. Waconia is one of those teams we mentioned to watch out for at the end of the year and they proved it against Waseca just like they did Orono. This is five straight wins for a team that was once 7-10 and struggling. Next up is Minneapolis Southwest, New Prague, Delano, and Holy Family so I would expect them to finish at a minimum of 14-12 and be in that 4-5 game likely against Minneapolis Henry. It is possible that Waconia could skip to the six if BSM wins some games but I feel like the Cats will be the five.
Other. Waconia senior forward Dillon Whittaker missed his first four shots but scored later on four possessions including a three. Was solid until he was called for a technical that nearly cost his team the game…Carter Damlo had one of the most physical blocks I’ve seen this year smashing a shot off the board for the Cats. Damlo had a team high eight boards…