Class AAA Forwards to Watch
Class AAA should interesting this year as DeLaSalle looks like the far-and-away best team in the state. On paper, after that, there appears to be quite a bit of parity though which could make for a lot of good basketball on any given night. Here are some guys to watch this winter:
Matt Onken, Sr., Marshall: Onken is a hoss inside for the Tigers and after averaging 13 points and seven boards as a junior, he’ll be the main dawg for a team that should win 20-plus games and contend for a section championship.
Andrew Morgan, Soph., Waseca: one of several really impressive young players for the Bluejays, Morgan will be an anchor on both ends of the floor as Waseca is one of the best defensive teams in Class AAA. He won’t be the feature guy offensively, but with a plethora of talented guards, he should have a lot of room to operate underneath.
Mason Zick, Sr., Northfield: The Raiders should be one of the better teams in the Big 9 and will again compete with Austin for Section 1 supremacy. Zick was one of the top players in the conference a year ago and will be leaned on even more this year.
Thomas Gieske, Sr., Sartell: Sartell won just four games last year and it’s hard to see a big increase this year but Thomas Gieske certainly gives them a chance. The 6-foot-4 forward is one of the best scorers in the Central Lakes Conference.
DeVonne Harris, Sr., Big Lake: Harris averaged nine points and nine rebounds as a junior and is one of the best defenders in the 2019 class. With a number of talented players back, the Hornets could be in for a much-improved season. Harris’ two-way play is a big key to that effort.
Deng Diew, Jr., St. Cloud Apollo: Apollo looks to be on the upswing. Diew showed flashes of dominant play as a sophomore and seems to get better every time he plays. His athleticism is tough to contend with for most teams in the CLC and the more skilled he gets, the bigger mismatch he’ll become.
Dylan Drees, Sr., Benilde-St. Margarets: Drees is one of the few returners for the Red Knights but after a solid junior season, he had a productive summer. Drees only averaged about six points per game last year but wasn’t really featured. He’s a strong defender and it wouldn’t be surprising if that scoring average more than doubled this winter.
Austin Wetter, Jr., Monticello: Monticello graduates its two leading scorers including Matt Todd, one of the school’s best players ever. The Magic have a number of multi-year starters back so the dropoff might not be quite as severe as one would think. A guy to watch is Austin Wetter as he might be the team’s best shot-creator. If he takes that typical sophomore-to-junior leap, Monticello could be in the mix in Section 5AAA.