Wisconsin vs. Minnesota Border Battle Preview (Edited: 2-14)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 18th annual Wisconsin vs. Minnesota Border Battle is set for Saturday at River Falls High School with two games slated after the original date of February 7 had to be postponed due to inclement weather.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tickets will be sold at the door for the event, which includes two Wisconsin teams and two Minnesota squads as several teams could not fit into their schedules to rescheduled date of February 15.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Following is a brief preview for each of the contests:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>1:00 p.m.</strong><br><strong>River Falls (WI) vs. Heritage Christian (MN)</strong><br><br>The host Wildcats of River Falls have played the last seven outings without their leading scorer as junior [player_tooltip player_id='2410538' first='Brody' last='Graetz'] (6-1) continues to recover from an injury. His status for Saturday remains undetermined, but the Wildcats most certainly could use his 17.9 ppg average in the game against a good Heritage Christian squad. River Falls sits at 10-8 heading into its Friday encounter with visiting Hudson and is led by Graetz, senior point guard [player_tooltip player_id='1417497' first='Preston' last='Johnson'] (6-2) and senior forward [player_tooltip player_id='1544742' first='Eli' last='Johnson'] (6-7). [player_tooltip player_id='1417497' first='Preston' last='Johnson'] is headed to play football at Minnesota State Moorhead and is averaging 13.2 points, 3.7 rebounds and 3.8 assists. His toughness and ball handling are vital to the success of the Wildcats. [player_tooltip player_id='1544742' first='Eli' last='Johnson'] is an Iowa football recruit and he provides size and physical strength near the basket. [player_tooltip player_id='1544742' first='Eli' last='Johnson'] is averaging 10.1 points and 7.5 rebounds. Junior Tanner Bottolfson (6-1) is another key player for first-year coach Zach Turpin as he contributes 8.5 ppg and tops the team in made three-point field goals with 33. Heritage Christian is a Class A school (smallest division) in Minnesota and is 16-4 after defeating Twin Cities Academy Thrusday evening. Coach Tim Herman's squad has some size with 6-foot-6 sophomore Aaron Palmer averaging 12.9 ppg., 6-4 senior [player_tooltip player_id='2109935' first='Abu' last='Tarawallie'] adding 13.6 ppg and 6-3 senior [player_tooltip player_id='1617792' first='Owen' last='Haag'] pitching in 18.8 ppg. Guard play also is a strength for the Eagles as seniors [player_tooltip player_id='2175462' first='Joshua' last='Sokeye'] (6-0) and Jonah Moulton (5-11) are averaging 15.7 ppg and 10.4 ppg, respectively.<br><br><strong>3:00 p.m.<br>Eau Claire Memorial (WI) vs. Totino-Grace (MN)</strong> -- (GAME IS CANCELLED)<br><br>Eau Claire Memorial sits on top of the Big Rivers Conference standings and boasts a senior-dominated lineup that has plenty of experience, skill and desire to do big things. The Old Abes have won 15 of 18 games entering Friday's league outing against River Falls and are led by seniors [player_tooltip player_id='1481178' first='Cooper' last='Jesperson'] (6-4), [player_tooltip player_id='2022565' first='Wesley' last='Mboga'] (6-4), [player_tooltip player_id='1962213' first='Julius' last='Clark'] (6-0) and [player_tooltip player_id='2677211' first='Bryce' last='Hedtke'] (6-2). Jesperson leads the team in scoring at 20.1 ppg and has unlimited shooting range. He has made 53 three-point baskets and owns NCAA Division II scholarship offers from a number of programs. Mboga is a good athlete, solid defender and capable scorer and rebounder for coach Chad Brieske's squad. Mboga is averaging 15.4 ppg and a team-best 6.2 rpg. Clark is a quick backcourt defender who competes with aggressiveness. He is contributing 7.7 ppg while Hedtke is a smooth combination guard who is averaging 6.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg and 1.8 apg. Totino-Grace is the defending Class AAA state champions in Minnesota and annually turns out scholarship-level players. Coach Nick Carroll's squad is 15-5 and is led by Wofford recruit [player_tooltip player_id='1574227' first='Chace' last='Watley'] (6-2), who is averaging 21.5 ppg. Two highly regarded juniors -- forward [player_tooltip player_id='1560740' first='Dothan' last='Ijadimbola'] (6-6) and [player_tooltip player_id='1560835' first='Tian' last='Chatman'] (6-4) -- along with two gifted sophomores -- [player_tooltip player_id='2126166' first='Jaylan' last='Hynes'] (6-3) and [player_tooltip player_id='2126117' first='Malachi' last='Hill'] (5-11) -- also play key roles for the Eagles.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->