Class AA Title Contender: Caledonia

<p>Without nationally ranked guard [player_tooltip player_id="754315" first="Eli" last="King"] the Caledonia Warriors earned a second place finish in the state tournament.  What can they do with him?  They are a state title contender again. </p> <p><strong>Key Wins in 20-21 (23-2)</strong><strong>: </strong>   PEM, Stewartville, Rushford-Peterson, Byron, St. Charles, La Crescent, Goodhue, St. Croix Prep, Minneapolis North</p> <p><strong>Oops</strong>: Waseca, Onalaska</p> <p><strong>Moving On: </strong> Starter Austin Klug led the team in scoring last season and he is now at NIACC playing baseball.  Main ball handler Andrew Kunelius was the playmaker and he’s now making plays for UW-Superior.  Sam was a top scorer, the top rebounder, and the inside force.  He now plays D2 basketball at Northern Michigan.  The fourth starter lost was Casey Schultz and he was the team’s muscle.  Casey is now playing football for North Dakota.  Devin Vonderohne supported the team off the bench.</p> <p><strong>Returning Starters (1): </strong>   The returning starter is [player_tooltip player_id="958700" first="Jackson" last="Koepke"], a 14 point per game scorer that shoots the ball well and is a strong defender.  Jackson will make the extra pass but he’s also a quick, athletic scorer so he will finish in high percentage ways.  Koepke and King will be one of the state’s best backcourts.  Call them, Special K (it was a protein packed cereal from years past).</p> <p><strong>Reserves Playing a Bigger Role: </strong> The bench had a lot of promise and made the Warriors a deep team.  There are several candidates ready to step in and full big roles.  Expect sophomore [player_tooltip player_id="1262106" first="Lewis" last="Doyle"] to do a lot of the ball handling.  He is a really good passer with a deep handle.  Another returning guard is senior [player_tooltip player_id="1282891" first="JaShon" last="Simpson"].  Simpson is 6’3 and can play the wing.  He’s a team guy that will score but also create.  Another returning piece is Than Meiners, a 5’9 senior guard. Thane was a consistent three bucket a game guy as a junior and will likely play in that backcourt handling some as well. The guy inside?  They will be short on bigs but Chris Pieper is 6’2, tough, and experienced.  He is coming off a good football season.  </p> <p><strong>Potentials from the JV:  </strong>Another guy that will battle inside is senior Chris Morrow.  Chris is 225 pounds and they will need that muscle around the basket.  Guard Austin Meyer is also a senior that could get some time.  Juniors Kyle Bechtal and Brett Schultz were sophomores on the JV last season.  </p> <p><strong>New/Returning to the Varsity</strong>: [player_tooltip player_id="754315" first="Eli" last="King"].  Eli is a two sport nationally known talent that is headed to Iowa State to play basketball.  Injury took away his junior year but he was back on the court this summer. King wasn’t at full speed playing with his Warrior teammates and D1 Minnesota but he was playing as he prepares for his future.  We should see King at his best this year pushing up the floor, knocking down jumpers, creating for others, and leading Caledonia to victories.  As I said, Eli and Jackson together should be special together. </p> <p><strong>Final Thoughts</strong>:  Caledonia has won the section title six times in the last eight years.  They are respected state wide for their toughness and team basketball.  That will not change and this is likely their best shot to earn a state title since 1997, the last time they did so. </p>