The ND Class B Power Rankings Week 8

Photo: Four Winds/Minnewaukan Indians

Michael Herrick February 7, 2021 @ 09:22 PM

There was a big shake-up in the rankings this week. Four Winds/Minnewaukan looks to be the best and most consistent team in Class B. Many of these teams are down to only 4 games left in the regular season. We are nearing tournament time! This is the time of year every team wants to be playing their best basketball. Make sure you are keeping an eye on these teams this week, we have multiple top-10 matchups on the schedule. Here are the ND Class B Power Rankings, a list of #1 to 10. 1. Four Winds/Minnewaukan – 14-1. The Indians picked up three wins this week. On Tuesday they beat Harvey/Wells County by 42 and on Thursday they beat Lakota by 51. On Saturday they had a top-ten matchup with a tough Powers Lake team and won by 5. This coming week Four Winds will play two quality opponents. On Tuesday they host Rugby and Thursday they host Dunseith. The top players for Four Winds are [player_tooltip player_id="750159" first="Bronson" last="Walter"], [player_tooltip player_id="750170" first="Jaeshaun" last="Shaw"], [player_tooltip player_id="1046356" first="Jayden" last="Yankton"], [player_tooltip player_id="1115603" first="Keldon" last="Keja"], [player_tooltip player_id="1115651" first="Caelen" last="Lohnes"], [player_tooltip player_id="1115652" first="Jonah" last="Jackson"], and Jacob LaRock.   2. Grafton/St Thomas – 14-1. The Spoilers had a busy week and collected 3 more wins. They crushed Cavalier by 25-points on Tuesday. On Thursday, the Spoilers drubbed Drayton/Valley-Edinburg by 37-points. On Friday they lacerated Langdon/Edmore/Munich by 18-points. Coming up Grafton plays at Park River/Fordville-Lankin on Tuesday. On Thursday they host Hillsboro/Central Valley, which should be a good battle. The top players for Grafton are [player_tooltip player_id="731907" first="Stevan" last="Garza"], [player_tooltip player_id="1046339" first="Justin" last="Garza"], Luis Balderas Jr., [player_tooltip player_id="1046345" first="Brandon" last="Albrecht"], and William Jiskra. 3. Edgeley/Kulm/Montpelier – 14-1. The Rebels had a monster District 5 victory over Ellendale 40-36. Let us hope they play again in the District Championship. On Friday, the Rebels took down Sargent County 55-51. This coming Tuesday they host LaMoure/Litchville-Marion, which will most likely be a slugfest and a low scoring affair. On Thursday they hit the road and travel to Carrington. The Rebels are a tough and disciplined team who are highlighted by [player_tooltip player_id="750172" first="Alex" last="Huber"], Chayse Entzi, and Adam Nitschke.   4. Dickinson Trinity – 15-2. The Titans had a wild week and went 2-1. On Monday, the Titans had an overtime thriller at Bowman County that resulted in a 69-68 victory. On Tuesday they played their archrival Beulah and lost in double overtime 63-62. It is likely Trinity and Beulah will face each other in the Region7 Championship game later this season. After the loss, they bounced back Saturday with a 20-point win over Bishop Ryan who was previously ranked #10 in our Power Rankings. Trinity has one game this coming week at Mott-Regent. [player_tooltip player_id="1126984" first="Jacob" last="Daniel"] is the floor general and do-it-all player for the Titans. They also have [player_tooltip player_id="1126987" first="Cole" last="Fitterer"] who is an athletic guard that excels at attacking the basket. [player_tooltip player_id="1126985" first="Tanner" last="Soehren"] is the big man for Trinity who is an active player that does most of his damage on the block and in the paint.   5. Kindred – 12-2. The Vikings had a busy week picking up 3 wins in 5 days. Kindred rolled Richland by 45-points. They squeaked past Oak Grove by 3-points. On Friday, the Vikings muscled past May-Port-C-G by a score of 61-32. This coming week they play one game, at Sargent County on Friday. Kindred is long, athletic, and gritty. They typically dominate the boards and hang their hat on their defense. The Vikings are led by [player_tooltip player_id="731867" first="Gavin" last="Keller"], Ethan McKenney, [player_tooltip player_id="1123711" first="Max" last="McQuillan"], [player_tooltip player_id="812227" first="Paul" last="Olson"], [player_tooltip player_id="1123710" first="Jaiden" last="Peraza"], and Mathew Pearson.   6. Enderlin – 12-3. The Eagles had a cold night on Monday and lost to Wyndmere/Lidgerwood 60-54. They turned things around Thursday with a 56-point win over Tri-State. On Saturday they added another quality win to their resume with a 62-54 victory over Shiloh Christian. This coming week Enderlin has a mega-matchup at Central Cass. These top-tier Region 1 teams have had this game circled on the calendar all year. On Friday Enderlin hosts Richland. The Eagles are led by Division 1 recruits [player_tooltip player_id="787658" first="Joe" last="Hurlburt"] and [player_tooltip player_id="812220" first="Gus" last="Hurlburt"].   7. Ellendale – 13-2. The Cardinals lost a low-scoring game to Edgeley/Kulm/Montpelier on Tuesday 40-36. They had a nice comeback win over a tough Oakes team 58-53 on Friday. Ellendale has a difficult week ahead of them. On Tuesday they play fellow Region 3 team Linton/HMB. This game could potentially be a preview of the Region 3 Championship game later this season. On Saturday they make a 2-hour trip to Casselton for a top-ten matchup against a talented Central Cass team. If the Cardinals win these two games, they will prove they are one of the best teams in the State. [player_tooltip player_id="812224" first="Scott" last="Wagner"] is the leader and big man for Ellendale who is putting up double-digits in points and rebounds every game. 8. Langdon/Edmore/Munich – 13-2. The Cardinals went 2-1 this week and played 3 games in 3 days. On Thursday they had a large margin victory over Benson County. On Friday they played fellow top-10 team Grafton and lost by 18. On Saturday they made a 2 hour and 50-minute trip to Fargo to play Oak Grove and won 88-82. This coming week the Cardinals play Rolette/Wolford and St. John. These two games will be important for Langdon as both teams are in District 8. The top players for the Cardinals are [player_tooltip player_id="750173" first="Grant" last="Romfo"] and [player_tooltip player_id="750183" first="Simon" last="Romfo"]. 9. Beulah – 11-4. The Miners picked up two wins this past week. On Tuesday they beat Glen Ullin/Hebron by 30-points. On Thursday they had a crucial double-overtime win over Region 7 foe Dickinson Trinity 63-62. [player_tooltip player_id="812226" first="Trey" last="Brandt"] had 27-points in that game and willed his team to a victory. The Miners have a hectic week ahead of them with games on Monday, Friday, and Saturday. The first two games are against Hettinger/Scranton and Mott-Regent. The last game of the week is at Bowman and it should be a good one. [player_tooltip player_id="812226" first="Trey" last="Brandt"] leads the Miners, who is one of the best guards in the 2022 class in ND. He is complemented by [player_tooltip player_id="1126988" first="Dawson" last="Zuroff"], [player_tooltip player_id="1126989" first="Nathan" last="Battest"], and [player_tooltip player_id="1126983" first="Trapper" last="Skalsky"]. 10. Central Cass – 12-2. The Squirrels played one game this past week against Hankinson and won 80-47. Coming up they have an important game at home against Enderlin on Tuesday. On Friday they head to Northern Cass. On Saturday they have an intriguing matchup with Enderlin at home. [player_tooltip player_id="731910" first="Max" last="Kobbervig"] and [player_tooltip player_id="1111886" first="Sam" last="Kobbervig"] are the lead guards for the Squirrels. [player_tooltip player_id="1123712" first="Josh" last="Dixon"] is an All-Region frontcourt player that is putting up big numbers for Central Cass.