Section 7A Profile: Cherry is Primed for 5 in a Row

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cherry is a big favorite to win Section 7A once again but are they in a prime spot to play in the title game for a third straight year?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Super Summary</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2126128' first='Isaiah' last='Asuma'] is arguably the best player in Class A basketball. [player_tooltip player_id='2851170' first='Jack' last='Welch'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1560827' first='Kale' last='Misegades'] might argue something different and shoot, [player_tooltip player_id='1601068' first='Noah' last='Asuma'] could be in the discussion as well. But when you one of the elite players in Class A (Isaiah) along with one of the five or six other top players in Class A (Noah) you are surely in the conversation as one of the top contenders for a state title. The question moves to...... does Cherry have the depth that Pelican Rapids, JWP, Braham, Red Lake County, Hills-Beaver Creek or some others have?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With four of the top six players from last year's Cherry team graduated Cherry might not. Kalub Brown will be a senior and likely to move into one starting spot and senior guard Ian Kimmes should find a bigger role as well. Six foot three Jackson Nagel is the tallest player returning and he will be a senior but he has little experience. As for the youth, we don't know much about that as the only underclassman on the varsity roster last year was Isaiah. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cherry will be a top two, three or four team in Class A next year and is a heavy favorite to win the section. But they will need some role players to step up. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>And speaking of the section.... who will be the biggest threat to stop Cherry from getting to a fifth straight state tournament? I would look at Barnum, Deer River, Ely, Mt. Iron-Buhl and South Ridge. Deer River and Mt. Iron-Buhl lost their biggest names but still have some players while Ely and South Ridge should be improved and have some all section players. Barnum is the x-factor here. They come down from Class AA and while they lost two very good seniors, they bring everything else back. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top 3 7A Players</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2126128' first='Isaiah' last='Asuma'] of Cherry</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1601068' first='Noah' last='Asuma'] of Cherry</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Julan Beckstrand of Barnum</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Three Teams That Should Improve Their Record</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Barnum (19-9 a year ago)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cook County (12-14 last season)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Nashwauk-Keewatin (7-20 last year)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Three Teams That Might Not Match Last Year's Win Total</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Deer River (27-3 last year)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mountain Iron-Buhl (24-5 last year)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Littlefork-Big Falls (22-6 a year ago)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->