The Region Champions have been crowned and we only have eight teams left in Class B. The State Tournament has been set! The Big Dance starts on March 16th and takes place Thursday-Saturday in Bismarck. It seems like the season just started and now we are down to the season’s final week of play.

Good Luck at State to all the players and teams!

State Tournament Matchups

Thursday, March 16th

(1:00) Shiloh vs. Powers Lake-Burke Central

(2:45) Beulah vs. Medina-Pingree-Buchanan

(6:30) Central Cass vs. Warwick

(8:15)Thompson vs. Des Lacs-Burlington

Final Class B Power Rankings

#1 Central Cass (23-0)

Games this past week: WIN 69-37 vs. Wyndmere-Lidgerwood, WIN 79-71 vs. Hankinson, WIN 44-40 vs. Kindred

Info: The Squirrels made it through the Region Tournament with an unblemished record. Can they remain perfect at State? Central Cass had a couple of scares at NDSCS but not enough to stop them from picking up the wins! CC is a balanced team with loads of shooters and playmakers. They like to play an uptempo style, spread the floor, and share the rock. The Squirrels had 3 players selected to the All-Region 1 Team: Sam Kobbervig Sam Kobbervig 6'3" | SG Central Cass | 2023 State ND , Cole Holzer Cole Holzer 6'6" Central Cass | 2024 ND , and Carter Vrchota Carter Vrchota 6'0" | SG Central Cass | 2024 State ND .

#2 Shiloh Christian (19-4)

Games this past week: WIN 65-33 vs. New Salem-Almont, WIN 73-36 vs. Washburn, WIN 63-46 vs. Garrison

Info: No surprise in Region 5, the Skyhawks won another Championship. Shiloh cruised to 3 double-digit wins and they made things look easy. The Skyhawks are big, have serious shooters, and are deep with talent. Shiloh had 3 players selected to the All-Region 5 Team: Jay Wanzek Jay Wanzek 6'7" | PF Shiloh Christian | 2023 State ND , Atticus Wilkinson Atticus Wilkinson 6'6" | PF Shiloh Christian | 2024 State ND , and Kyler Klein Kyler Klein 6'0" | CG Shiloh Christian | 2023 State ND .

#3 Beulah (20-3)

Games this past week: WIN 75-29 vs. Heart River, WIN 52-29 vs. Dickinson Trinity, WIN 65-55 vs. Bowman County

Info: The Miners were very balanced all tournament. In the Heart River game, Beulah had 6 guys score in double figures, Bennett Larson Bennett Larson 6'7" | C Beulah | 2026 State ND led the Miners with 13 points and 7 rebounds. In the Trinity game, Beulah had three players score in double figures. Trace Beauchamp Trace Beauchamp 6'4" | SG Beulah | 2024 State ND had 15 points and 8 rebounds, Bennett Larson Bennett Larson 6'7" | C Beulah | 2026 State ND had 13 points and 11 rebounds, Braylen Schirado Braylen Schirado 5'11" | SG Beulah | 2026 State ND had 12 points and 5 assists. In the Championship vs. Bowman, Trace Beauchamp Trace Beauchamp 6'4" | SG Beulah | 2024 State ND had 19 points and 9 rebounds, Tarren Larson Tarren Larson 6'3" | SF Beulah | 2023 State ND had 11 points and 6 rebounds. Beulah had two other guys with 9 points, one with 8 points, and one with 7 points. Beulah had two players selected to the All-Region Team. Trace Beauchamp Trace Beauchamp 6'4" | SG Beulah | 2024 State ND and Aidan O’Brien Aidan O’Brien 6'1" | SG Beulah | 2024 ND .

#4 Thompson (17-7)

Games this past week: WIN 62-37 vs. Park River-Fordville-Lankin, WIN 62-60 vs. May-Port CG, WIN 46-41 vs. Grafton

Info: The Tommies had a scare in the Semifinals and were down toward the end of the game. They easily could have lost to the Patriots but they made enough plays and pulled through. The Championship game was a low-scoring, tightly contested, and hard-fought matchup. The Tommies proved to be timely playmakers and came away with the Region 2 Crown. Thompson had 3 players selected to the All-Region 2 Team: Drew Overby Drew Overby 6'1" | CG Thompson | 2024 State ND , Jake Starcevic Jake Starcevic 6'2" | SG Thompson | 2025 State ND , and Karter Peterson Karter Peterson 6'6" | PF Thompson | 2025 State ND .

#5 Des Lacs-Burlington (19-6)

Games this past week: WIN 56-36 vs. TGU, WIN 55-47 vs. Our Redeemer’s, WIN 80-77 vs. Bishop Ryan

Info: It was a crazy game and an amazing comeback by the Lakers on Thursday night. Regulation was not enough time, the Lakers won the big game in overtime. DLB was down 11 points with 2:37 left in the game. The biggest shot of the game was likely the game-tying 3-pointer from Jack Schaefer. Carson Yale Carson Yale 6'9" | PF Des Lacs Burlington | 2023 State ND was also huge down the stretch as he had multiple blocks in crunch time. In the Title Game, DLB was led in scoring by Jack Schaefer with 21 points, Rylan Olson Rylan Olson 6'5" | SG Des Lacs Burlington | 2023 State ND 20 points, and Carson Yale Carson Yale 6'9" | PF Des Lacs Burlington | 2023 State ND dropped 17. DLB had two players selected to the All-Region 6 Team: Carson Yale Carson Yale 6'9" | PF Des Lacs Burlington | 2023 State ND and Rylan Olson Rylan Olson 6'5" | SG Des Lacs Burlington | 2023 State ND .

#6 Powers Lake-Burke Central (20-4)

Games this past week: WIN 63-43 vs. Mandaree, WIN 55-52 vs. Stanley, WIN 77-58 vs. Kenmare-Bowbells

Info: The Ranchers had their toughest game of the Region Tournament in the Semifinals against Stanley. Powers Lake lost in the Region Championship last season to Stanley. I imagine it was fun for the Ranchers to get revenge on the Blue Jays. Powers Lake-Burke Central is led by Tyson Enget Tyson Enget 5'11" | PG Powers Lake-Burke Central | 2023 State ND who is a top player in ND. On Thursday, he was named the Region 8 Senior Athlete of the Year. The Ranchers had 3 players selected to the All-Region Team: Tyson Enget Tyson Enget 5'11" | PG Powers Lake-Burke Central | 2023 State ND , Kyle Huseby, and Luke Fraunfelter.

#7 Warwick (19-6)

Games this past week: WIN 65-56 vs. Harvey-Wells County, WIN 58-52 vs. North Prairie, WIN 56-52 vs. North Star

Info: Unless you are from Warwick, I do not think many people gave the Warriors a chance to win Region 4. Warwick came into the Tournament as a #6 seed, it rarely happens that a #6 seed wins the Region Tourney. Mark Fassett Mark Fassett 6'0" | SG Warwick | 2023 State ND is the top player for the Warriors and he was selected as an All-Region player. Fassett is a skilled player that can score in bunches. Jason Lenior is a good defender, rebounder and can hit open triples. Dorvan McKay handles the ball well, is talented at getting to the basket, and does good work creating open looks for others. Dwight Hunt is a talented shooter off the bench that can fill it up in a hurry. Elijah Feather Elijah Feather 6'0" | CG Warwick | 2025 State ND is an impressive 3-point shooter. Last but not least, Dalton Joramo and Marcus Joramo are legit threats that will knock down open shots.

#8 Medina-Pingree-Buchanan (21-4)

Games this past week: WIN 58-41 vs. Carrington, WIN 47-39 vs. Linton HMB, WIN 57-56 vs. Ellendale

Info: The Thunder have been flying under the radar all season as they never jumped into the Top 10 Rankings. MPB is obviously a tough team, they won 21 games and made winning plays when it mattered. The biggest play of the season came on Thursday night in the Championship vs. Ellendale. The Cardinals were up 56-54 with 10 seconds left in the game, the Thunder went the distance of the court, and Sawyer Wanzek nailed a deep triple with 4.4 seconds on the clock. The Thunder got a stop on the next possession and they won the Region Championship. The top two players for the Thunder are Josh Moser Josh Moser 6'1" | SG Medina-Pingree-Buchanan | 2023 State ND and Rylen Wick Rylen Wick 6'6" | SF Medina-Pingree/Buchanan | 2024 State ND . They also have a nice group of role players and they are a physical team. Region 3 does not have an All-Region Team. However, Rylen Wick Rylen Wick 6'6" | SF Medina-Pingree/Buchanan | 2024 State ND and Josh Moser Josh Moser 6'1" | SG Medina-Pingree-Buchanan | 2023 State ND were selected to the All-District 6 Team.

#9 Four Winds-Minnewaukan (22-2)

Games this past week: WIN 79-29 vs. Lakota, LOST 46-51 vs. North Star, WIN 63-55 vs. North Prairie

Info: The Indians were the favorites for most of the season, almost everyone expected them to win Region 4 and get to State. Unfortunately, the Indians had 3 players injured against North Star and ultimately came up short in the semifinal game. It is tough to beat a team 3 times and when you have 3 players injured, it is really tough to be a team 3 times. 4Winds had 3 players selected to the All-Region 4 Team: Deng Deng Deng Deng 6'5" | SF Four Winds/Minnewaukan | 2024 State ND , Dalen Leftbear Dalen Leftbear 6'3" | SF FourWinds/Minnewaukan | 2024 State ND , and Kelson Keja Kelson Keja 5'7" | PG Four Winds/Minnewaukan | 2023 State ND .

#10 Bishop Ryan (21-3)

Games this past week: WIN 67-37 vs. Bottineau, WIN 68-44 vs. Mohall-Lansford-Sherwood, LOST 77-80 (OT) vs. Des Lacs-Burlington

Info: They did not make the State Tournament but the Lions are still one of the most talented teams in Class B. On Thursday night, Bishop was in control for most of the game. The Lakers made a run late and before everyone knew it, the Lions lost in OT. It was a fun season but ended a week too early for the Lions. Brady Feller Brady Feller 6'2" | SG Bishop Ryan | 2023 State ND won the Senior Athlete of the Year in Region 6. The Lions had 3 players selected to the All-Region 6 Team: Brady Feller Brady Feller 6'2" | SG Bishop Ryan | 2023 State ND , Ian Johnson Ian Johnson 6'4" Bishop Ryan | 2023 ND , and Ramsey Walz Ramsey Walz 6'7" | PF Bishop Ryan | 2025 State ND .