2019-20 Class AAAA Basketball: A Sea of Contenders

The 2018-19 basketball season was a nightly battle of the best in the Class AAAA division. Contenders everywhere. Guess what? It will be the same next winter. Here is an over extended list of potential state tournament contenders. Keep in mind, several of these teams don't have a chance to win the state title, but most have a chance to play in the state tournament. A few may have too big of roadblocks to play in the Target Center but could be a factor in how things shape out come March. Apple Valley. Only six wins a year ago but I like what the Eagles have coming back. Isiah Davis, [player_tooltip player_id="774871" first="Noah" last="Friedt"], and [player_tooltip player_id="721973" first="Davy" last="Hosea"] are returning starters. This is a team that rivals Lakeville North and Eastview, and this year will be better off in those games. Buffalo. [player_tooltip player_id="846116" first="Matt" last="Willert"], [player_tooltip player_id="721845" first="Tony" last="Dahl"], and [player_tooltip player_id="846180" first="Brandon" last="Maatz"] return giving high hopes to the Bison and around them will be several role players with experience. Aidan Bouman leaving high school early to go to Iowa State will be frustrating as it leaves a hole in the middle but Buffalo will still win a lot of games. Cambridge-Isanti. [player_tooltip player_id="846135" first="Henry" last="Abraham"] is one of the state's top shooters and he will pair nicely with [player_tooltip player_id="846173" first="Micah" last="Ladd"] for Cambridge making a tough 1-2 punch. Three starters need to be replaced but the Bluejackets are the favorite to get back to state. Champlin Park. Four of the five starters gone? No problem. The Rebels just keep reloading. Francis in the middle with [player_tooltip player_id="721848" first="Cooper" last="Olson"] next to him will give CP a top AAAA frontcourt. There is a great mix of young talent and strong role players all returning. Chaska, The Hawks lost Cole Nicholson and Connor Krenos yes, but they could be even better. Why? The Hawks have three starters back and their entire bench returning to compete. The Hawks will be big, tough, and they will be experienced. Cretin-Derham Hall. The Raiders technically don't have all their starters back, but they will have five experienced starters. Holloman, Carter, Burke, and Jones are all a year older while [player_tooltip player_id="846110" first="J'Vonne" last="Hadley"] will replace Jaeden King. The Raiders are going to be not only better because of experience, but better as a team all around. Duluth East. Duluth East returns more from their rotation than any other team in 7AAAA plus they are coming off of a 18-9 year. Junior [player_tooltip player_id="774755" first="Noah" last="Paulson"] is one of the better bigs in the north and he played with several underclass men last season. East Ridge. Two of the state's elite players but so so much change. [player_tooltip player_id="846105" first="Ben" last="Carlson"] and [player_tooltip player_id="532557" first="Kendall" last="Brown"] are back but the rest of the team is in college. The coach is gone but the young talent coming up (Thomas, Adams, Jeter, Blue) have great potential, but little experience. Eastview. Four starters will return from a state tournament team. The group of [player_tooltip player_id="721823" first="Steven" last="Crowl"], [player_tooltip player_id="721842" first="Tate" last="Machacek"], and [player_tooltip player_id="721854" first="Ryan" last="Thissen"] will give the Lightning one of the most impressive starting front groups of three in the state. Add in talent in the backcourt and this is a contender. Eden Prairie. The Eagles return nearly everything. A full starting line-up of scholarship players and several bench talents that would start for just about every other team in the state of Minnesota. When comparing top teams in Class AAAA only the Eagles return a full starting line-up (Dobbs, Christensen, Henry, Bland, Andrews). Edina. Inside [player_tooltip player_id="846108" first="Jacob" last="Hutson"] is picking up a new D1 scholarship offer with each day (Bradley was the latest, Hutson has seven total) and he could have a 24 point, 12 board senior year. Graduation took most of the rotation but there will be senior guards mixed with last year's underclassmen. Hopkins. The Royals only have one starter back from their state title team but it's [player_tooltip player_id="532358" first="Kerwin" last="Walton"]. In addition, the Royals have their bench back plus size from the JV. [player_tooltip player_id="846158" first="Sawyer" last="Shrake"], a transfer from Illinois, will really help. [player_tooltip player_id="850704" first="Elvis" last="Nnaji"] looks to be the next step coming up through the system. Lakeville North. Please, please, please do not overlook the Panthers. [player_tooltip player_id="846201" first="Carter" last="Patterson"] and [player_tooltip player_id="846193" first="Josh" last="Kamara"] make up the backcourt while the rest of the line-up will come from a JV that won a lot of games. The Panthers are also coached by John Oxton who will ahve this team winning games. Lakeville South. The Cougars used a lot of use last year and with the reshaping of section play [player_tooltip player_id="774734" first="Reid" last="Patterson"] and [player_tooltip player_id="774732" first="Riley" last="Mahlman"] have a legit chance of leading their squad to state. Maple Grove. Graduation took away the best three players but an experienced group of players is ready to step forward led by [player_tooltip player_id="721977" first="RaShaun" last="Parker"], [player_tooltip player_id="721976" first="Lovell" last="Williams"], and Cade Boettcher. Minnetonka. [player_tooltip player_id="846115" first="Cameron" last="Steele"] should be one of the top scorers in the metro this winter. The Skippers will go through a transition both in program culture and in young players stepping into the rotation, making them a tough opponent each night. Moorhead. This 21-win team brings back six of their top seven guys including [player_tooltip player_id="549379" first="Drew" last="Hagen"], [player_tooltip player_id="846242" first="Quentin" last="Hegg"], and [player_tooltip player_id="567055" first="Brady" last="Walthall"] – all double figure scorers. They could be even better. North St. Paul. If you haven't seen the Polars lately you are likely questioning me. If you have you know that Coach Johnson has [player_tooltip player_id="721921" first="Shaheed" last="Muhammad"], [player_tooltip player_id="846165" first="Brenden" last="Lankford-Johnson"], and [player_tooltip player_id="958644" first="Shawn" last="West-Zimpel"] back which will make them one of the Metro East favorites. Osseo. The combo of Coach Thiesen, a senior backcourt of [player_tooltip player_id="721866" first="Tariq" last="Henry"] and [player_tooltip player_id="846140" first="Cornell" last="Richardson"], and the six sophomores will make this a top ten level team. How good can they be? Because they are so young it's tough to know the ceiling right now, but they will be very good. Park Center. The Pirates are no doubt a title favorite, they have [player_tooltip player_id="846104" first="Dain" last="Dainja"], [player_tooltip player_id="549408" first="Josh" last="Brown"], DT Frierson, [player_tooltip player_id="846133" first="David" last="Ijadimbola"] and others back in green. The team did lose a really good backcourt though, Chatman, Broadway, and Tamba will not be easily replaced. Prior Lake. At first look most people think PL will take a big step back. We say, no. [player_tooltip player_id="532352" first="Dawson" last="Garcia"] has a chance to play in the McDonald's All-American game plus [player_tooltip player_id="721843" first="Tyree" last="Ihenacho"] returns and there is more size coming up from the JV ([player_tooltip player_id="850712" first="Malcolm" last="Jones"] is a name to know). But who will coach them? Robbinsdale Armstrong. [player_tooltip player_id="846186" first="Jake" last="Breitbach"], [player_tooltip player_id="721919" first="Hezekiah" last="Iyawe"], and [player_tooltip player_id="549398" first="Adam" last="Biewen"] all scored in double figures a year ago for the surprising 18 win Falcons. A step forward will likely be taken next year with Jon Bryant as head coach, another year into his regime. Rochester Mayo. Don't be fouled by the late February slip the Spartans had, [player_tooltip player_id="846106" first="Gabe" last="Madsen"] and [player_tooltip player_id="721826" first="Mason" last="Madsen"] are two of the elite players in Minnesota and in the Midwest. They also have several young guards that now have experience around them. Shakopee. The Sabers have four starters back in Katona, Cordes, Lockwood, and Druvenga and the expectations of a championship season. Several of these players will have had four years on varsity, this is the year they have been shooting for. Spring Lake Park. [player_tooltip player_id="846121" first="Blake" last="Remme"], [player_tooltip player_id="721857" first="Gabe" last="Myren"], and Daydoor Phillips led the Panthers over Eastview and Osseo early last year before things fell apart. But, the group is now more experienced and should be a 20 win club. St. Michael-Albertville. Kale Holston and [player_tooltip player_id="846151" first="Evan" last="Wieker"] were the best players on the team last year and both return. Much needs to be replaced around Kale and Evan but they could be a 40 point combo. Tartan. 20 wins again? Yes. Kimmons is gone but this is still Tartan with Singer, Binns, and Kearney leading the way. The Metro East is also going to be way down with the Titans the likely favorites. Wayzata. [player_tooltip player_id="532609" first="Kody" last="Williams"] and [player_tooltip player_id="850703" first="Camden" last="Heide"] plus [player_tooltip player_id="850713" first="Carter" last="Bjerke"], [player_tooltip player_id="774744" first="Eddie" last="Beeninga"], and Jacob Wildermuth make a really nice combination of guard play, size, and skill. The Trojans are well taught making them a serious contender to win the title next March.