Class AAA Title Contender Series: Hibbing

<p>Newly Independent squad Hibbing - I’m aware I had them in the Iron Range preview by mistake - will enter the 2020-21 season a top 5-6 squad in Class AAA basketball.  What makes them a contender?  NHR discusses that today. </p> <p><strong>Key Wins in 19-20 (20-8):  </strong>Forest Lake, Princeton, Hermantown, Virginia, Orono</p> <p><strong>Oops</strong>: Minnehaha Academy, Hermantown, Hopkins, Duluth East, Cambridge</p> <p><strong>Moving On</strong>: Hibbing lost a pair of bench talents: Isaac Colbaugh who was one of the first players off the bench, and Joe Paver who was about the 10th man when Hibbing went that far on the bench.  Colbaugh was an honorable mention all league player that is now at Mesabi Range CC to play basketball.  </p> <p><strong>Returning Starters:  </strong>There are five. </p> <p>Junior point guard <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="850731" first="Ayden" last="McDonald"]</strong> has already set the school record for career assists and steals and he’s got two more years to go.  He averaged 21.6 points, 10 assists, 6.7 rebounds, and four steals a game last year.  Ayden is one of the best passers in the state and a dynamic all around player. </p> <p>On one wing is senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="774863" first="Mayson" last="Brown"]</strong>, a 16 point per game scorer that ranks with the better shooters in his class.  Brown plays with a lot of fire plus the confidence one wants in their scorers.  On the other wing is <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="957200" first="Tre" last="Holmes"]</strong>, another senior who can shoot the ball with range but is also a threat putting the ball on the deck.  He scored about 15 a game last season.  The pair scored 31-32 a night for Hibbing with the potential for more. </p> <p>Up front is <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="567088" first="Parker" last="Maki"]</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="774887" first="Eli" last="Erickson"]</strong>.  Maki is bigger at 6-foot-6, Erickson is 6-foot-4 and does more of the dirty work.  Maki averaged 10-11 points and eight boards a game last season and most of the season he wasn’t 100 percent.  With a full slate of health and a face up skilled game to go with it, Maki could have a monster season in the paint.  Erickson is the worker that provided eight pints and five boards a game. </p> <p><strong>Reserves Playing a Bigger Role:  </strong>Considering all five starters are back the term "bigger role" is likely a relative term.  Reserve minutes that Colbaugh played are there for the taking and one name to watch for those minutes - plus his 6th Man minutes from last year - is forward <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="958735" first="Hayden" last="Verhel"]</strong>.  Because of his strength Hayden can back up Maki and Erickson despite being undersized and Hayden is a consistent finisher. The defender off the bench will again be senior <strong>Jack Grzybowski,</strong> a tough player that loves to battle.  Six-foot-3 junior wing <strong>Amari Manning</strong> played a lot more early last season filling in for injuries and that time will allow him to be a dependable reserve frontcourt player. </p> <p><strong>Potentials from the JV:  </strong>Manning played JV more when the frontcourt was healthy so he is both a reserve from last year, and a player coming up from the JV.  Junior <strong>Zach Rusich</strong> may back up McDonald and he can play with him off the ball.  Ruisch and senior Justin Yuretich will team with Grzybowski for that reserve backcourt time.  </p> <p><strong>Final Thoughts: </strong> Talent is there for Hibbing to be a top five team in the state.  Hibbing was expected to use their independent status to schedule a ton of games in the metro - they were in the metro six times last year - but with the different scheduling this year because of Covid it will be interesting to see what their schedule looks like.  Either way, Hibbing has the talent to be a top 5-6 team in the state and make a Class AAA run.  </p>