Bloomington Jefferson 73 Orono 70: Five Things to Know

Ryan James March 2, 2022 @ 11:03 AM

Bloomington Jefferson defeated Orono 73-70 and earned at least a partial Metro West Conference title (a one game lead) with a one score win. Here are Five Things to Know. One. [player_tooltip player_id="1151197" first="Daniel" last="Freitag"], a National Talent. If you didn’t believe it before watching last night’s game, now you should be a believer that Daniel Freittag is a national level prospect that has surely earned a top 100 spot. I had [player_tooltip player_id="1151197" first="Daniel" last="Freitag"] for 41 points although the book had him for 40 (the book also totaled 72 points as I think they missed one of Danie’s foul shots or they put a three as a two). I had Daniel for 41 points on amazing 12 of 17 shooting from the floor, 11 of 17 foul shooting, and six threes made. Freitag is athletically a tough match-up because his first step is so lethal and he can attack left or right. Once he lifts to the rim the help defenders can only contest his shot if they are in perfect spots. And when you add in the skill that allows Daniel to lift into six three point makes, you have a tough prospect that is only getting better. Top 100 prospect? Surely. We could be talking about a top 50 talent nation wide. Two. Jefferson’s Attack. Bloomington Jefferson isn’t a big Class AAAA team and they aren’t quite as deep as others that have similar records (they are 18-6). To counter the lack of size the Jefferson offensive approach is patient and methodical, and it’s working. The offense has a lot of movement to it and when that movement stalls, they are patient enough to restart. Taking a minute off the clock for a possession is something they will do but their defense creates turnovers and when they do the Jags pounce. This is a tough squad. [player_tooltip player_id="1288780" first="Samir" last="jones"] is out there playing great defense, Cashaun Scott-Kobold finishes his chances and is a great screener, [player_tooltip player_id="960334" first="Aidan" last="Atkins"] is a smart player, and [player_tooltip player_id="958754" first="Hayden" last="Holland"] has become a solid section option. And defensively they are one of the best two defenses in the Metro West. Three. Orono’s Start. The Spartans opened the game making 12 of their first 13 field goals. With five minutes to go in the first half they had only missed one shot. [player_tooltip player_id="958656" first="Jacob" last="Farrell"] was excellent finishing around the cup (had 21 points including two big And1s late in the game), [player_tooltip player_id="1189958" first="Isaiah" last="Hagen"] attacked for 14 points, [player_tooltip player_id="962230" first="Kyle" last="Kallenbach"] hit four threes scoring 14 points with five assits, and [player_tooltip player_id="962314" first="Grant" last="Gunderson"] worked his way to double figures (10 points). The Spartans did enough offensively to win the basketball game. Four. Jefferson on the Glass. How do you miss only one shot in 13 minutes and have only a three score lead? Bad defensive rebounding and too many turnovers. Orono did a great job scoring but they didn’t box out well at all allowing Jefferson far too many second and third chance opportunities. Orono had only six rebounds total at the half which was about 3-4 boards too short and allowed Jefferson to be within 39-34 at the break despite Orono’s explosive half. Five. What’s Next? I can certainly see both of these teams playing in the state tournament BUT they have tough roads to get there. Orono is a top ten Class AAA team but their section includes Benilde St.-Margaret’s (top ten team part of the year), Mound-Westonka (playing really well and has been top ten), Richfield, Hutchinson, and Holy Angels. Orono is the favorite and they have proved to be the most consistent team in the section. But this is likely the deepest section in Class AAA. Jefferson is in 3AAAA along with Park of Cottage Grove, Eastview, and Rosemount so their road to state is very tough as well.