Max’s Mid-Week Minnesota Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Seven of the prospects who have stood out in the four games I've watched so far this week!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1560850"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-69a05ddd05a4f"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Tristan put in a strong showing on Wednesday night to keep things a lot closer than many would've expected against a tough Osseo team. The senior wing/forward broke 1,000 career points with his first bucket of the game, and went on to finish with 28 on the night. At 6'5 he showed now problem popping out to the perimeter and draining a number of threes from the top of the key. Showed he can go to work in the paint against a 6'8 big, while also being able to find space to catch and shoot when defended by smaller wings/guards. Gritty performance from the Centennial senior.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2524650"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-69a05ddd05aed"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Going right at the Centennial defense on the other end was Kwa Silikpoh. It may not have been the explosive scoring performance that we've seen out of Kwa in the past, but his team leading 15 points combined with a handful of assists helped lead Osseo to the win. His quickness changing direction on the ball is as good as it gets in Minnesota, and Centennial defenders had a hard time sticking in front of him. Kwa excels at getting into the lane where he's a fearless finisher against size, while also having the vision to locate an open man when the help defender steps in on him. Kwa was an absolute pest on the ball defensively, and was all over the floor looking to force mistakes out of Centennial guards.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2436914"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-69a05ddd05b62"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">St. Paul Johnson had no answer for the length, mobility, and shooting touch of [player_tooltip player_id='2436914' first='Kellen' last='Troup'] on Monday night. The 6'7+ junior was able to catch on the block, face up, and elevate for a jumper over the top of his defender, or catch out on the perimeter and take one/two dribbles to get to his spots to pull-up. Fluid athlete who covers a lot of ground with each step he takes, and runs the floor like a gazelle in transition. Showed some explosive pop with an alley-oop dunk over the top of a defender on his way to 33 points in a win. Kellen also added 16 rebounds and 2 steals in the win.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2388499"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-69a05ddd05bce"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">[player_tooltip player_id='2388499' first='Anthony' last='Byrd'] was dominating in the paint against DeLaSalle on Tuesday. They simply couldn't keep the 6'8 forward off the offensive glass, and it allowed him to rack up a bunch of second chance points for Hopkins. Any time one of his teammates attacked the basket, Anthony was crashing hard to collect and go back up with any missed lay-up. In what was a close game, Anthony came up with a handful of late finishes in the second half to push his team ahead as they came away with the win. Really long frame combined with some strength/explosiveness that allowed him to produce with efficiency around the basket.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2120509"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-69a05ddd05c38"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">After falling behind big in the first half, Kamp's second half helped bring Johnson back into the game. He became a lot more aggressive looking for his own shots, and his outside shooting touch helped open things up for Johnson. After draining a handful of jumpers, Minnehaha was forced to stretch their defense out, helping open up some more driving lanes for his teammates. He finished with a team high 16 points on Monday night.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2431593"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-69a05ddd05ca0"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">You don't find a lot of players with Aidan's mix of height and outside shooting touch. He's been stepping into a key role for East Ridge this season as a junior, and on Tuesday night he drained six threes to help lead his team to a win over Stillwater. He does a nice job of getting his feet squared to quickly catch-and-shoot off the move, allowing him to get shots off before chasing defenders can catch up to him. His range extends to well beyond the high school three point line as well. Aidan finished the game with 22 points just days after scoring 23 against Roseville.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["2126474"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-69a05ddd05d07"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Kamar had a huge game off the bench against Hopkins. DeLaSalle couldn't get anything going in the first few minutes, but things changed when Kamar checked in as he brought a different level of toughness and energy. After a few quick buckets Kamar was getting his team fired up and from there they were competing every possession with Hopkins. Kamar is a terrific finisher who can score with touch over the top, can extend away from his body to finish against length, or can go right into defenders and score through some contact. I really liked the way he went out and competed on both ends of the floor.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->