Hard Work Finals: Minnesota New (And Some Old) Names To Know

<p>Another 10 hour day in the gym! Nothing better. I made an effort to watch for players who hadn't made a name for themselves yet or were ready to take the next step, and find them I did. Here's Saturday's combined list of names to know after a great Hard Work Final!</p> <p><strong>Brad Cimperman (6-3 G, Select Robinson/Woodbury) -</strong> Nobody wanted to beat Wear Out The Net in that moment more than Brad did Saturday morning. He scored an aggressive 23 to lead the way for Select even though they fell 75-63. I think this game happened a round early, it was super competitive and I loved the energy that Cimperman led with to try and spring the upset. He looks like a go-to option and has the confidence to match.</p> <p><strong>Eli Green (6-0 G, WOTN Bertsch/Farmington) - </strong>Matching Cimperman on the other side with ferocity was Eli Green, known spot-up shooter. Except Saturday he wanted to be known as something else: a number one versatile scoring option. He picked apart interior defense for assists and rim makes of his own, scoring 18. The Tigers have a couple guys who could break out as juniors in a much less topheavy South Suburban Conference this winter.</p> <p><strong>Jake Cochnauer (6-2 G, WOTN Bertsch/Farmington) - </strong>Here's another Tiger ready to compete. Cochnauer is by no means a one-on-one torcher but he runs the floor smartly, finishes in traffic and defends with a lot of pride, using his body laterally very well. Had a couple big buckets to right the ship for WOTN.</p> <p><strong>Francis Nwaokorie (6-6 C, Comets Servaty/Champlin Park) - </strong>Francis is gonna be a force. Plain and simple. He's put a lot of time into his skillwork and he plays so smart down low. Team Flyght had a lot of highflying shot blockers and Francis pump faked them all into the bleachers without losing balance or being timid. Every move was deliberate and efficient. He's a double-double guy in the NWSC with only one or two big men having the ability to stop him. He led with 11 in a close loss.</p> <p><strong>Josh Strong (6-0 G, Comets Servaty/Champlin Park) - </strong>Loved the maturity at the point guard spot from Josh this weekend. He was sure-handed and made every read against the press correctly. Hard to beat a team when their guards don't make mistakes, and Josh gave his best for Comets. He's yet another viable rotation player for the Rebels, who will be top-12 to 15 in AAAA.</p> <p><strong>Mayson Brown (5-11 G, Comets Servaty/Hibbing) - </strong>The most fiery player on this Comets 16s team was Mayson Brown of Hibbing. He's crafty in the lane, can shoot over length, and got an elbow to the face but returned two minutes later like nothing happened, leading to a big triple and a smooth reverse layup. Tough, tough player who will definitely have chances to take over games up north. Nobody has his edge that I saw Saturday.</p> <p><strong>Daydor Phillips (6-3 F, Heat Vang/Spring Lake Park) - </strong>Daydor is an interesting prototype: super strong, physical, undersized power forward who rebounds extremely well and has a jumper that needs a little more seasoning. He does a lot of dirty work for Heat, like running the left wing for three layups in a row against Wisconsin Academy. He knows his role and stays in it. I'd say he's exactly the complement that Gabe Myren and Blake Remme need for SLP. Scored eight points with a lot of boards for Heat in a double-digit win.</p> <p><strong>Finn O'Malley (6-0 G, Fury Kallman/Eagan) - </strong>Things looked a little ragged late Saturday afternoon for Fury, and I get it. It's tiring to play as many games as these guys do in hot July. But Finn O'Malley must have had a little extra sweat on him to slip past defenders in the game I watched. They edged out H.I.T. 55-50 thanks to a great 15 points inside and out from Finn. Eagan has a ton of guys who can score between 8-12 a game and we saw that potential leader for the Wildcats in a consolation game not giving up.</p> <p><strong>Will Woodford (6-3 F, Fury Kallman/Rochester JM) - </strong>Will "The Worker" Woodford! A combo forward with big shoulders and a good attitude. He won't wow you with a double move but he will win you with a double-double level output. Scored a couple times niftily on the pick and roll as a receiver and made smart passes on the interior. Also has a tenacious ability to rebound and run. Promising player with experience that the Rockets definitely need.</p> <p><strong>Luke Schwartzhoff (6-7 F, MN Lightning Schwartzhoff/La Crescent) - </strong>I watched 3/4 of a Lightning consolation game and I lost count of Luke's point total. He canned a few triples off the bounce that impressed me, and showed off his pretty touch right around the lane too. Scored upwards of 22-24 in that game. Nobody will have an easy time with him in SE MN this year.</p>