Class AA State Tournament: Day 1 Recap

Matt Bigelow

March 21, 2019 @ 12:01 AM

After a day featuring a mixed back of intrigue and blowouts, day one of the Class AA State Tournament is in the books. Here’s a quick recap: Minnehaha Academy 78, St. Peter 47 The Redhawks shot 7 for 25 for 3-pointers and scored 78 points on 73 shots overall but still won by 31 because their defense was absolutely suffocating. They forced 20 turnovers and held the Saints to 34 percent shooting. Jalen Suggs notched a triple double with 21 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists and Chet Holmgren blocked a whopping eight shots. Minneapolis North 61, Esko 53 One of the few competitive games on the day, the Eskomos gave Minneapolis North all it could handle before ultimately running out of juice late. The Polars did Polar things, forcing 23 turnovers and putting the clamps down in the second half. It wasn’t pretty for either team as North shot 12 of 27 from the free throw line to help Esko hang around but Willie Wilson’s offense and Omar Brown and Eli Campbell’s defense (13 steals combined) were the big keys. Payton Wefel knocked down four triples for the Eskomos, scoring 16 points in defeat. Perham 73, Redwood Valley 58 The Yellowjackets were in full control in this one, getting out to a double-digit lead early in the second half and never looking back. Finn Diggins was one of four guys to score in double figures, finishing with 15 points and 12 rebounds. His activity level inside was hard for the Cardinals to handle. Charlie Rasmussen led the way with 19 points. Cole Woodford led Redwood Valley with 23 points. Lake City 60, Melrose 44 Lake City has one of the best defenses in the state and it showed Thursday as the Tigers held the Dutchmen to 38 percent shooting from the field. Nate Heise was very good, scoring 18 points on 12 shots and he got help from Justin Wohlers and Ethan Heitman, each of whom scored 11. Preston Keaveny struggled for the Dutchmen, scoring 13 points on 5 of 14 shooting.