Comets Shootout: Playmaker 16s win a Saturday pair

<p>The Wisconsin Playmakers program continues to grow and today we saw both a Northern Minnesota squad and a Western Wisconsin team win at the 16u level. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> [caption id="attachment_722586" align="alignright" width="150"] Richie Murphy[/caption] <p>Wisconsin Playmakers Siler defeated Comets Thuot 66-35 in 16 and Under first round action. The Playmaker defense forced the Comets to miss their first 12 field goal attempts of the game building an early 12-0 lead and the lead steadily built from there. Joe Reuter (Chi-Hi 6-foot-0 guard) and Austin Weis (Cameron 6-3 wing) combined for nine treys and point guard Richie Murphy (Cameron 5-8 PG) did all the distributing.</p> <p><strong>Player of the Game</strong></p> <p>The five three-pointers from Reuter led to a 23 point outing hitting everything when he had a chance to get his feet set. With Murphy doing an outstanding job of finding open shooters it was up to Reuter to cut to position which he did for a 9 of 14 shooting day. Add in the hustle for eight rebounds plus three assists and some steals and you have an easy selection for Player of the Game.</p> <p><strong>Notes</strong></p> <ul> <li>Richie Murphy not only created for teammates in wizard like ways, he made sure every lead was to an open shooter for a high percentage shot. A big reason for his 11 assists was the fact that every shot he created was comfortable for his teammates.</li> <li>Austin Weis was another Playmakers shooter that had a big day catching and hitting of 6 of 12 field goal attempts. Weis – who is 6-foot-3 – made four triples stretching the Comets defense past their limits.</li> <li>Comets Thuok 6-foot-3 2021 Alex Braun of Annandale was one player that was able to put together a consistent game. Braun scored on 5 of 8 field goals for scoring 14 points. Braun at one point had his own personal 8-0 run to give the Comets an early chance.</li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p> [caption id="attachment_722587" align="alignright" width="150"] Parker Maki[/caption] <p>Wisconsin Playmakers North (a team of talented Northern Minnesota kids) took an early shot from Acceleration and then cruised their way to a 66-48 victory. Hibbing pair <strong>Parker Maki </strong>and <strong>Ayden McDonald</strong> led their high school squad into a top ten spot in Class AAA and with performances like this you have to wonder if they can guide Playmakers North into the 16U top ten.</p> <p><strong>Player of the Game</strong></p> <p>Six-foot-6 Parker Maki first grabbed the attention of coaches and fans by dunking physically and effortlessly in the warm-ups but later it was his team high in scoring (17 points) and assists (four) that earned eyes his way. Maki made 8 of 13 shot attempts scoring his 17 points. He's every bit the physical athlete that will draw attention from a range of local college programs</p> <p><strong>Notes</strong></p> <ul> <li>Ayden McDonald is playing up a level (he's a freshman playing with sophomores) and the comfort is there. McDonald aggressively looked for his offense early pushing to a 15 point game sinking half his dozen attempts.</li> <li>Really like what <strong>Mattie Thompson</strong> – a 6-foot-4 small forward – gave to Playmakers North. Made a three, scored on 4 of 7 looks for 11 points and aggressively boarded (8 total).</li> <li>The Playmakers lone double figure effort rebounder was 6-foot-4 forward <strong>Matthew Welch</strong> of Cherry High School. Welch used his length to grabbed ten boards.</li> <li>The game high effort guy? <strong>Ethan Upsahl</strong> of Sauk Rapids and Acceleration. Had 11 points and ten points for a double double. <strong>Griffin Rushin</strong> of Brainerd just missed a double-double (10 and 9).</li> </ul>