Hard Work Region Finals (17U): Team 1848 is #1
How did Team 1848 come away with 17u Gold? Depth, balance, excellent team basketball, and incredible shooting. We run you through Championship Sunday today at Prep Hoops! Team 1848 is Your 17U Champion Team 1848 didn’t just win the…
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Continue ReadingHow did Team 1848 come away with 17u Gold? Depth, balance, excellent team basketball, and incredible shooting. We run you through Championship Sunday today at Prep Hoops!
Team 1848 is Your 17U Champion
Team 1848 didn’t just win the championship, they blasted through the competition and earned their championship banner, their championship hats and shirts, and I may have even seen some adults with victory cigars in the parking lot!
Knocking off the early low seeds by 28 and 49 points was not a surprise. Team 1848 was a top seed meaning of course they drew early favorable match-ups. What really caught everybody off guard was the 20 point wins (three of them on Championship Sunday) over the Pentagon Schoolers, Minnesota Fury, and Starks Elite !
I’m not trying to be cliche when I say this, Team 1848 won this event with outstanding team basketball. Sure they have some players that starred here and there but when it came to five guys playing strong defense Team 1848 was the best in the Twin Cities this past weekend. When it came to ball movement nobody came close to touching the champs from the Green Bay area. And that outstanding ball movement allowed perimeter shooters to comfortably shoot in rhythm, and it allowed Team 1848 to dagger their opponents. Relentlessly.
Take out the 64-58 win over the Minnesota Rise (the only team that competed with Team 1848 for two halves) and it was an average margin of victory that nearly touched 28 points a contest!
If you look at the box score from the Team 1848 win over Starks Elite you see five guys scored in double figures for the champs: Mikail Harmison Mikail Harmison 6'0" | SF Appleton West | 2023 State WI had 18 points with six boards, Emmett Lawton Emmett Lawton 6'2" | SG Notre Dame Academy | 2023 State WI scored 13 points, Hogan Demovsky Hogan Demovsky 6'2" | CG De Pere | 2023 State WI had 13, Anthony Lieuwen scored ten, and Connor Pytleski Connor Pytleski 6'2" | SG Green Bay Southwest | 2023 State WI had a ten point, ten board double-double. In the semi-final win Lawton had 13 points and eight assists, Hogan Demovsky Hogan Demovsky 6'2" | CG De Pere | 2023 State WI scored 15 points, Harmison had 15 and Pytleski scored another ten. Complete balance.
Player wise I think I came away the most impressed with Lawton, the 6’2 guard from Notre Dame Academy. He leads a balanced team but when it comes to decision making, creating for others, and his own ability to hit shots at a high percentage, I thought he caught my eye the most. When it comes to grinding workers, Connor Pytleski Connor Pytleski 6'2" | SG Green Bay Southwest | 2023 State WI was the most relentless. Every team needs a willing to do everything player and that was Connor. Most dangerous shooter? I felt like every Demovsky had his feet under him on a catch that ball was dropping. Mikahil Harmison was likely the other main weapon for this team. He’s a 6’3 wing that uses his physicality and skill level to consistently produce.
The Starks Elite Run/Isaac Nyakundi Prospect Rise
I could talk to you about the Starks Elite five game winning streak and the Isaac Nyakundi prospect rise in different areas, but it’s very obvious these items are linked together. If you don’t believe that, find a copy of the Starks Elite overtime win over Minnesota Select. Nyakundi had 29 points and 11 rebounds led by Isaac’s seven three point makes! Starks Elite has multiple weapons to defend including Nyakundi on the block, but when this 6’8 big man is hitting seven threes in a game… that makes Starks Elite so hard to defend.
Starks Elite found their groove this weekend and beat National Basketball Academy, ABC Young Lions, Iowa Mavericks, Minnesota Select and Wear Out the Net which was an outstanding five game stretch. Nyakundi and Asher Zubich Asher Zubich 6'1" | PG Mountain Iron-Buhl | 2023 State MN are a big reason for that, but so were Jobe Juenemann Jobe Juenemann 6'2" | SG Duluth East | 2023 State MN from Duluth East and Cuinn Berger Cuinn Berger 6'2" | SG Lincoln | 2023 State MN from Esko. Berger has taken a nice step this summer and Jobe has become a consistent scoring option that has given this team a regular second/third option on the floor at all times.
Back to Nyakundi, for those that have not heard, Isaac is heading to a big prep school out east in Massachusetts and is reclassifying to the 2024 class. Nyakundi has always had that Reggie Lynch low post physical look. He’s been a good low post defender and excellent shot blocker that has a great frame and moves well both laterally and getting up and down the floor. His low post game has taken great steps with improved footwork and the perimeter shooting has really taken off! Isaac is a player that teams MUST close out on and considering you have to do it with size, Isaac shooting the way he does makes him such a tough weapon.
Will Kutzler Will Kutzler 6'7" | PF Lakeville North | 2023 State MN Emerges
This winter Will played junior varsity for Lakeville North as a 6’6/6’7 forward. This is a program that of course had Nolan Winter Nolan Winter 7'0" | PF Lakeville North | 2023 State #98 Nation MN and Jace Hernandez Jace Hernandez 6'8" | C Lakeville North | 2023 State MN in the paint, they had a tough forward in Brayden Manning competing, and of course 6’6/6’7 Jack Robison Jack Robison 6'7" | SF Lakeville North | 2024 State #158 Nation MN can be plugged in a lot of different spots. The way Will has played with Wear Out the Net this spring and summer, you have to believe Kutzler will find a spot with Winter, Hernandez, and Robison (and others this winter).
When I saw Kutzler earlier in the year I thought he was a nice finisher around the basket, a decent stretch four, and a guy that was making strides. Seeing Will play as of late my opinion of him flying higher. I thought he could be a good shooter, now after seeing Will hit four threes in a game, I can see it seems he is a good shooter. I’ve see Kutler use screens and score off screens on the move in ways that make you think, this is a future college basketball player.
Will is surely a stock riser and I am really excited to see how he finishes this July and then move into his senior season.