Minnesota Lightning Brings 3 Titles Home

<p dir="ltr">Last weekend the Minnesota Lightning went to the Wisconsin Dells playing in the Garding Against Cancer Classic and three of their teams earned championships.  </p> <p dir="ltr">Lightning Herber (17u), Lightning Ellerbusch (16u) and Lightning Lyga (16u) all all won their four team pool play format. </p> <p><strong> 17U</strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Lightning Herber was missing [player_tooltip player_id="774763" first="Teyghan" last="Hovland"] (Austin) and [player_tooltip player_id="957156" first="Austin" last="Klug"] (Caledonia) because of baseball but they defeated] WI City Hoops Select 49-47, Wisconsin Drip 63-59, and Young Legends 51-44</p> <p dir="ltr">Top Performers:</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>Andrew Kunenius</strong> (Caledonia, 6’2)- Andrew is at his best slashing and scoring at the rim in transition. He is a physical defender that rebounds well at the guard position. He is a hustle guy that sparks the team on the defensive end. </p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="774768" first="Colt" last="Landers"]</strong> (Grand Meadow, 6’5)- Colt was 2nd in scoring for the Lightning this weekend. Colt showed his ability to hit spot up 3 pointers as well as turn around mid range jumpers. Colt is a mismatch at the wing position with his size and strength. </p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="796138" first="Noah" last="Miller"]</strong> (Forest City, IA, 6’0)- Noah is a floor general and showed his ability to knock down long range threes this weekend. Noah is one of the primary playmakers for the Lightning. Noah is great at initiating the offense and passing the ball up for transition buckets. He also moves well laterally and brings great on ball pressure on the defensive end. </p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="957155" first="Okey" last="Okey"]</strong> (Austin, 6’2)- Okey is a knockdown three-point shooter that is a threat from long range every time he steps on the floor. Okey has improved his ball handling and has the ability to score on all three levels. He is very active on the defensive end and uses his length and active hands to create deflections and contest shooters. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1071109" first="Ty" last="Tuckner"]</strong> (Rochester JM, 6’6)- [player_tooltip player_id="1071109" first="Ty" last="Tuckner"] led the Lightning in scoring this weekend. He was efficient in scoring on rim runs in transition and showed his ability to score in multiple ways in the half court. Ty is a mobile forward that is a threat in the low post and has also developed an outside game which has made him a difficult matchup. He uses his length to alter shots on the defensive end. </p> <p dir="ltr"> </p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>16U</strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Lightning Ellerbusch knocked off the Randolph Boys Club (Hugh Roberts) 50-45 and the Hornets 45-37, and then had one loss but won the pool. </p> <p dir="ltr">Top Performers:</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="958655" first="Victor" last="Idris"]</strong> (Austin, 6’4)- Victor led the Lightning in rebounding and blocks this weekend. He averaged 12 rebounds and 3 blocks per game. His length was a problem for post players when they tried to score on him inside. Victor also showed his ability to guard multiple positions. He can switch on to guards and moves well laterally. Victor also did a great job passing out of double teams leading to three-pointers or back door finishes</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="958771" first="Emmanuel" last="Manyuon"]</strong> (Austin, 6’1)- Emmanuel led the Lightning in scoring this weekend. Every time he steps on the floor the defense needs to know where he is at. He knocked down 12 three-pointers shooting 60 percent from long range. Emmanuel also used his active hands on  the defensive end to get steals and create transition finishes. He scored 14 straight points in the second half against Randolph Boys Club to lead the Lightning to a comeback victory.  Averaged 18 points a game!</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="796956" first="Justin" last="Wohlers"]</strong> (Lake City, 6’6)- Justin was the 2nd leading scorer and rebounder for the Lightning. Justin showed his ability to hit 3s from deep range. He is a mismatch at the point guard position and uses his size and strength to attack smaller defenders and finish at the rim. Justin is a floor general and is vocal on both ends of the floor. Justin hit a clutch go ahead 3 pointer against Randolph Boys Club with under a minute to go. </p> <p dir="ltr"> </p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>16U</strong></p> <p dir="ltr">Lightning Lyga defeated Lightning Spencer 36-22, Wisconsin City Hoops Select 44-37, and Coulee Country 38-37 to earn first place. </p> <p dir="ltr">Top Performers:</p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>Wyatt Helming</strong> (Lake Mills,IA, 6’4)-  Wyatt led the Lightning in scoring this weekend. Wyatt  is a threat on the low block and can step out and hit shots as a stretch forward. Wyatt has a big frame and uses it to his advantage to get rebounds and score inside. He scored in double figures in the second and third games of the weekend. </p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>Braden Hemann</strong> (Waukon, IA, 6’3)- Braden was second in scoring this weekend for the Lightning. Braden uses his strength and quick moves to score on the block. He showed his ability to attack players off the dribble and score at the rim at well. He is a physical football player and uses this aggressiveness on the basketball court. </p> <p dir="ltr"><strong>Braxton Stewart</strong> (Waukon, IA, 6’2)- Braxton is a great energy guy for the Lightning. He is undersized at the forward position but uses his speed and vertical to grab rebounds over taller players. He is at his best when cutting to the rim and the other players feed off of his hustle plays. </p>