Week 7 Mid-Week Standouts

<p>With week seven of the high school season halfway completed, I take a look back at some of the top performers that I’ve seen! The three games I’ve watched this week are Hiawatha vs Avail Academy, St. Paul Central vs St. Paul Johnson, and Minnehaha Academy vs Hopkins.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="962222" first="Jessye" last="Lewis Jr"]. (6’ 2023 PG, Hiawatha Collegiate)- </strong>One of the top prospects in small school metro basketball, Jessye Lewis exploded for 33 points in a win on Monday. He scored 23 of those points in the first half, getting to just about any spot he wanted to off the dribble. Jessye knocked down multiple threes and got to the rack for some nice finishes, but what impressed most was his mid-range jumper. Jessye didn’t use it as much last year, but looked so comfortable pulling up off the dribble and then elevating to shoot with a hand in his face from around the elbow. He hit that shot at a high rate, and also showcased his shifty handle in a comfortable win.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="957623" first="Kaden" last="Doram"] (6’3 2021 W, St. Paul Central)- </strong>Kaden got off to a slow start against St. Paul Johnson, but really got it going towards the end of the first and into the second half. An explosive slasher on the wing, Kaden seemed to score or get fouled just about every time he touched the ball around the basket during the second half. He was attacking from the wing with a quick burst off the dribble, or catching on the block and being able to post up smaller wings. Kaden added in a mid-range jumper and some big plays defensively to help Central take over 1st place in the conference.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="532574" first="Chet" last="Holmgren"] (7’ 2021 F/C, Minnehaha Academy)- </strong>No matter who Hopkins threw at Chet, he just kept finding different ways to contribute. Chet would likely flirt with a quadrubple-double just about every game if he didn’t head to the bench early most nights, as he put up 19 points, 11 rebounds, 8 blocks, and 6 assists against one of the state’s more talented lineups. Chet was scoring with ease around the rim, handling the ball in transition leading to scores for himself and his teammates, and blocked or altered just about every shot around the rim. He does such a good job of keeping the ball inbounds on his blocks, allowing him or his teammates to collect and then get out in transition.</p> <p><strong>Mohamed Doud (6’ 2022 G, Hiawatha Collegiate)- </strong>"MD" was on absolute fire in Hiawatha’s win over Avail Academy. The junior guard was a major threat from beyond the arc, knocking down 10 three pointers on his way to 32 points. Mohamed has a high arcing shot that he hits at a very high rate once he gets into a rhythm. Playing alongside Jessye Lewis who is so dangerous off the dribble, Mohamed did a nice job of floating without the ball and getting into openings to shoot. He also caught a defender with a bad closeout, and he took a couple of dribbles going right by his man to the rim for a lay-up.</p> <p><strong>Donnie Preston (6’1 2021 G, St. Paul Central)- </strong>One of the lesser known players on St. Paul Central’s starting lineup, Donnie put together a really strong first half against Johnson. Although he’s 6’1, Donnie has a very long wingspan that allows him to make plays in the paint. Donnie absolutely dominated on the offensive glass, leading to plenty of second chance buckets for himself and his team. Donnie finished with 18 points on the night, but was also coming up big defensively. He has no fear sliding over and standing his ground to take a charge, a task he accomplished multiple times on the night. Extremely hard worked who’s been playing a key role for his team this year. </p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="774738" first="Jaelen" last="Treml"] (6’4 2021 G, Hopkins)- </strong>It was a quiet night statistically for Jaelen, but I think he does so much for this Hopkins team that doesn’t show up on the box-score. He’s such a grinder defensively, and is always the first person on the floor for loose balls. He was tasked with guarding [player_tooltip player_id="532574" first="Chet" last="Holmgren"] for stretches, and I thought he did a nice job of making things difficult for him. On the offensive end he showed his smooth shooting stroke with a pull-up three, and also had a nice turnaround mid-range shot. One of the best defenders and unsigned guards in the 2021 class.</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="957154" first="Julian" last="Hodges"] (6’ 2021 G, St. Paul Johnson)- </strong>One of the top players in the St. Paul City Conference this season, Julian was fighting to keep his team in it with Central. Julian started off hot scoring 9 early points in a variety of ways. He’s so slippery off the dribble, able to weave and manuever his way through defenders and get to the rim with ease. Julian finishes in a variety of ways, and scored a few times through contact. He also impressed me with his outside shot, making defenders pay for sagging off, knocking down a handful of threes on the night. Defensively he was also a pest, creating turnovers with his high intensity ball pressure.</p>