Section Scout: 5AA Afternoon Quarterfinals
Photo courtesy of the Star Tribune
Saturday was a busy day and it was kicked off with a couple 5AA games at St. Michael-Albertville High School. The section spans a wide area ranging from the north metro all the way to fringe central Minnesota. Here are the summaries and top performers from Eden Valley-Watkins/Breck and Annandale/Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted.
Quarterfinal 1: #4 Eden Valley-Watkins vs. #5 Breck
I had never watched either of these teams and was expecting some contrasting styles, especially on offense. EV-W is a disciplined, patient, solid-screening team that doesn’t use pick and roll. Breck was slower-paced than I assumed they would be but ran throw-and-go wing ball screen offense all game, plus they isolated sophomore star David Roddy in the post. EV-W slowly grinded out the first half with a 28-23 lead, thanks to a couple Reese Jansen triples. Breck edged back into the game and took a permanent lead with significant help from role players and Roddy’s playmaking. The Mustangs lived to fight another day and won 58-50 over the Eagles.
Jacob Streit (F, 6-4, Sr., Eden Valley-Watkins) – The big-bodied but athletic Streit was the best rebounder on the floor Saturday. He’s a tight end signed to play at Northern State next year. He skied above the whole Breck lineup for nine rebounds, to go along with 15 points in the paint.
Dominic Schlangen (SG, 6-2, Jr., Eden Valley-Watkins) – Schlangen put up buckets from every spot on the floor in the first half, whether it be reverse layups, midrange jumpers, or catch-and-shoot threes. His offensive spark and ability to get in passing lanes defensively were keys to EV-W’s halftime lead.
Reese Jansen (G, 6-0, Sr., Eden Valley-Watkins) – A compact, speedy lead guard for the Eagles, Jansen missed a couple shots early but found himself open more and more as the game wore on. He was in perfect position to receive offensive rebound kickouts for three-pointers, and he knocked down two of them in the final minute of the first half. Sure-handed with the ball and sound on defense.
David Roddy (F, 6-5, So., Breck) – The sophomore had a well-rounded game of 16 points, five rebounds, four assists and five blocks. He made plays wherever he was: setting screens and rolling, driving and kicking out, or taking his man one-on-one at the block. He got teammates involved (four other Mustangs had eight points or more) and saved plays on defense with his athletic rim presence. He played very under control and I was impressed.
Josh Roddy (G, 6-1, Jr., Breck) – The other Roddy is more than just a guy off the bench. He worked off of David very well and there were some pretty exchanges between the two leading to easy baskets. Josh poured in 12 points (10 in the second half) to support the Breck scoring balance. Also snagged four rebounds.
Kerwin Walton (G, 6-2, Fr., Breck) – Starting on the wing for Breck as a frosh, Kerwin Walton showed big potential in a couple of ways. First, he hit back to back contested treys to stop an 8-0 EV-W run in the opening minutes. His stroke is a good one. Then he used that threat to pump fake, blow by his defender baseline, and throw a beautiful drift pass to a teammate in the corner for another three points. He’s already 6-2 and competitive; expect a big couple years from Walton down the road.
–Breck will face #8 seed Holy Family Catholic in the section 5AA semifinals on Tuesday, March 14 at 8 p.m.
Quarterfinal 2: #3 Annandale vs. #11 Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted
The bleachers filled for this one on the Annandale side, which was surprising because their hockey team was playing in a Cinderella-story state championship game at the same time. Small communities love their high school sports. The fans saw an offensive outburst from Annandale in this one while HLWW couldn’t put much together. The Cardinal production came early and often in the form of junior Nick Bieniek, who bombed in five treys for 19 first-half points. It was smooth sailing from there, ballooning to a 30 point lead, and HLWW found the bottom of the bucket later to make it a final score of 64-49 in favor of Annandale.
Nick Bieniek (G, 6-3, Jr., Annandale) – There could have been three HLWW Lakers guarding Nick and he would have made his FG attempts. His smooth release is balanced and crisp from start to finish. Finished with 21 points on five 3-pointers. Could be a good name to watch this summer with MN Comets Little on the 17U circuit.
Jarod Wilken (F, 6-6, Sr., Annandale) – The lanky and slippery stretch four has been a mainstay in the Cardinal rotation and was solid again Saturday afternoon. He made few mistakes with the ball and played very solid on-ball defense, exactly what you need out of a veteran. He scored 19 with a handful of rebounds.
Cameron Decker (PG, 5-11, Sr., HLWW) – Decker has some crazy-tight handles. It wasn’t just seen walking the ball up the court either; he would get caught in a web of three Cardinal defenders and then somehow squeeze out of the trap with very low and fast dribbles. Had a very cold shooting day just registering five points but he was the undisputed floor general of this Lakers squad.
Brad Bickmann (F, 6-2, Sr., HLWW) – Bickmann came on aggressively in half two, driving from the wing and the top for contested floaters. He made a small run by himself to get the HLWW offense going while Decker fed him the ball. He had a quiet but impressive 17 points plus five tough boards.
–Annandale will face #2 seed Watertown-Mayer in the section 5AA semifinals on Tuesday, March 14 at 6 p.m.