Minnesota Playoff Central: Super Saturday!

Super Saturday. Traditionally a day where fans can watch playoff games all day long. The outstate still observes this traditional basketball feast and today we run you through the results!   Playoff Central. The Mayo Civic Center to me is the ultimate spot and that is where I was on Saturday. I just posted my highlights and player observations across three separate articles so look for the information from those games there.   The story of the night was White Bear Lake and Stillwater coming down to the final possession. And why wouldn't they?   The careers of [player_tooltip player_id='962206' first='Max' last='Shikenjanski'] and [player_tooltip player_id='962200' first='Jack' last='Janicki'] have been as parallel as I have ever seen. Same league, same section, AAU teammates for a long time, both received several scholarship options to play basketball but both want to play high major athletics so they are going to Minnesota (football) and Wisconsin (hooos) respectively as walk-ons. Walk-ons that those programs value.   Both have seen their Stillwater and White Bear Lake teams go through struggle, through injury, and there have been some long nights in the past. And both have put up big numbers for their teams over time. Max and Jack have made their teams very good as seniors and both have seen their teams in the Class AAAA top ten this year (a great accomplishment).   Naturally they would face off with their season on the line and naturally it came down to a Janicki pass to Jeremy Kolb for a lay-up on the final play for the game winner.   Thanks to our good friends The Czar and The Marty Party, we know that Jack had 21 points on 9 of 20 shooting with five boards and there assists while Max had 22 points on 10 of 22 shooting with four boards and there assists. Of course similar stat lines!   Upset City. Cambridge-Isanti knocked off Duluth East 73-54 led by sharp shooting [player_tooltip player_id='1434066' first='John' last='Troolin']. The junior scored 24 points with [player_tooltip player_id='1221115' first='Kobe' last='Karels'] scoring 14. After a mid-season stumble, the Bluejackets have won six games in a row and have totaled a very impressive 19 wins this season. Big win for C-I and they get Andover next for the chance to play at state!   Another upset came on a buzzer beater! Winona knocked off high seed Austin in Austin 61-58. Charlie VandeBerg hit a hotly contested volleyball line three for the win. He had 13 points while Bryan Cassellius scored 15 and [player_tooltip player_id='2364156' first='Jackson' last='Harvey'] had 15. It was the second time Winona beat Austin on a buzzer beater this season. Winona entered the playoffs at .500 but they are now 15-13.   The Big Stage. We turn to Southwest Minnesota State for what was another big day of hoops. RTR and Dawson-Boyd won in the Class A games while Eden Valley-Watkins and Redwood Valley won in the Class AA games. Fans were treated to a couple Class AA sub section classics when EVW and RV won in one score games over Montevideo and New London-Spicer respectively.   Top Performers. [player_tooltip player_id='1223070' first='Patrick' last='Bath'] should be in consideration for the Mr. Basketball Final Five, and he didn't even make the top ten. Therefore he is mad at the world scoring 30 points with double figure rebounds as Totino-Grace beat Columbia Heights 96-73.   And in the same breath we bring in the guy he should be competing with for that last spot, who also didn't make the top, that is [player_tooltip player_id='1189958' first='Isaiah' last='Hagen']. What did Isaiah do? Another 30+ point game in a big game situation against a good team. An actually 30 point game where the player shot a good percentage to score his 34 and move his team past another top ten team in Delano.   Minnehaha Academy sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1284157' first='Jerome' last='Williams Jr'] had 25 points and 6 assists as the Redhawks rolled past St. Paul Humboldt by 57 points.   [player_tooltip player_id='962322' first='Alec' last='Wake'] had 34 points in the Northland win over Ely hitting TEN threes. That is back to back games that Wake made TEN threes.   [player_tooltip player_id='1572689' first='Jalen' last='Wilson'] had 30 for BSM countering the 37 points that Richfield sophomore CJ Armstrong scored. [player_tooltip player_id='1284155' first='Jayden' last='Daisy'] had 20 for BSM who won by a dozen.   [player_tooltip player_id='1284105' first='Charlie' last='Theis'] was one of four Raptors in double figures as he scored 16 leading East Ridge past CDH finally breaking their struggles against the Raiders in the playoffs.   Tip of the Hat to the Career. Isaac Mati left the court to a standing ovation on Saturday. He has two Class A state titles, he was the Class A player of the year as a junior, and he can hold his head high for everything he has done.   We spoke on Max already but [player_tooltip player_id='962206' first='Max' last='Shikenjanski'] lost to White Bear Lake and saw his basketball career come to a close (walk on during hoops season too someday if Minnesota needs another ball handler?)   [player_tooltip player_id='962256' first='Buay' last='Koak'] finished his career as the all time leading scorer for Lyle/Austin Pacelli. Koak is one of the most incredible young men on and off the floor that you will find, made a lot of Pacelli alumni proud including my own mother!   There are several others including [player_tooltip player_id='1188850' first='John' last='Mueller'] of Watertown-Mayer, [player_tooltip player_id='1161947' first='Joshua' last='Ofori'] from Prior Lake, Jobe Juenneman of Duluth East, [player_tooltip player_id='1220383' first='Adam' last='Tauer'] of Cretin-Derham Hall, and the Owatonna pair Colin Vick and [player_tooltip player_id='1220355' first='Blake' last='Burmeister'].

Super Saturday. Traditionally a day where fans can watch playoff games all day long. The outstate still observes this traditional basketball feast and today we run you through the results!