Recruiting Report: Zach Kjeseth (2018)
Wabasha-Kellogg might not be the easiest school for a lot of college scouts to frequent during the basketball season. So Zach Kjeseth needed to make an impression during the AAU season. He made one.
Kjeseth, a 6-foot guard, was one of the most consistent performers for Southeast Minnesota Lightning during the AAU season. While the team struggled at times due to the roster being in flux at times, Kjeseth was one of the constant producers.
“I think it went alright,” Kjeseth said of his team’s season. “We didn’t have a lot of chances to practice so we had a hard time establishing great chemistry. I’m not sure there was one tournament where we had our full team so that made it tough sometimes. But we had some real talented pieces. It was a good time.”
While not having a full team sometimes cost SE MN Lightning a chance to advance deep into tournaments, it did allow for the players that were there an opportunity to showcase themselves more. Kjeseth was one of those guys.
“That definitely can help,” said Kjeseth. “Guys need to step up. You guard better players and have to do more. That helped my game a ton. I think I could’ve played better at times but it’s always a good experience to play top players in and out of the state. It showed me what I need to work on and it’s really helped me; I know I’ve improved a lot. My coach always wanted me to guard the best player which helped my defense tremendously and helped me grow as a player.”
Kjeseth is a natural point guard though he spent a lot of time sharing those responsibilities with Marc Kjos during the season. He said playing off the ball – which he doesn’t do nearly as much for his high school team – was another great opportunity for him to grow his game.
Kjeseth showed during the summer that he’s a capable scorer. He’s a good outside shooter and while he doesn’t have elite quickness, he’s crafty with the ball and does a good job getting to spots on the floor where he can either get a shot or find a teammate.
A number of colleges have expressed interest in Kjeseth.
“I’ve talked a lot with Viterbo college; they’ve shown a lot of interest,” Kjeseth. “University of Jamestown, I’ve talked a little bit with St. Mary’s as well. I have a camp coming up at Jamestown so I’m looking forward to that.”