Apple Valley players and coaches left the locker room wearing new uniforms following Friday’s game at South Suburban rival Shakopee.

The Eagles traded their traditional postgame attire for gold shirts that read “Conference Champs,” signifying Apple Valley’s most recent accomplishment.

Gary Trent Jr. scored 24 points and Brock Bertram finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds as Apple Valley wrapped up its third consecutive South Suburban title with a 69-58 victory over the Sabers.

Several players have contributed to the Eagles’ success, but one - with a familiar name - has been particularly important in facilitating Apple Valley's high-flying offense: Tre Jones.

Eagles coach Zach Goring said Jones, the brother of former Apple Valley star Tyus Jones, has been a great starting point guard and provides a well-balanced approach to their high-scoring brand of basketball.

"(Jones') stat line is usually between 5-10 points, rebounds and assists," Goring said. "And you don't see that from any other point guards around, being that balanced, and we're not asking him to score much right now."

Jones has taken on the classic role of a point guard, one who moves the ball well with a pass-first instinct. He's averaging 7.9 points per game this season, along with 5.1 assists, 4.8 rebounds and 2.3 steals.

"I think I do a pretty good job (running the offense)," Jones said. "We have a lot of very high-caliber scorers on our team, so I try to set them up to get easy baskets."

After appearing in five games as an eighth-grader, Jones has started every game in his freshman season and is second in minutes played to sophomore star Trent Jr.

Jones' assist-to-turnover ratio may be his most impressive stat. He has 121 assists with just 42 turnovers. Goring said those numbers are just part of the trademark of the Jones name.

"He's such a smart player, just like Tyus (Jones) was," Goring said. "Incredible basketball IQ, and we forget he's only a freshman, playing in big games and conference championship-type games."

Jones said his biggest adjustment has been going from the middle school ranks to playing with guys who are in their third or fourth year of varsity basketball. However, Jones said the more he plays, the better he'll get. He also said his teammates have supported him the whole way.

"My teammates welcomed me as just a freshman with not playing a lot last year," Jones said. "They've helped me lead the way on the floor, so I give a lot of credit to my teammates because they trust me a lot."

Every game this season has been about growth for Jones, even while guiding the Eagles to a 22-2 record and the No. 2 spot in Minnesota Basketball News’ Class 4A rankings. Jones said he's enjoyed all 659 minutes of his freshman season and has loved the challenge it offers him to expand his game.

Goring said part of Jones' maturity has been physical, as he's grown about 4 inches in the last year and is now 6-foot-1. 

"He's such a big kid, when you see him around school, and he's one of the tallest ninth graders in our school," Goring said. "It's crazy. It's been fun. We had five years with Tyus and we'll have four years with Tre, so that's a good run of Jones point guards."

Sophomore Gary Trent Jr. scored a game-high 24 points as Apple Valley defeated Shakopee 69-58 in a South Suburban Conference matchup Friday night at Shakopee High School.

Junior Brock Bertram posted 11 points and 10 rebounds as the Eagles, ranked No. 2 in Class 4A by Minnesota Basketball News, all but locked up a South Suburban crown.

Apple Valley improved to 22-2 on the season and 15-1 in conference play.

No. 9-4A Shakopee got 21 points from junior Steffon Mitchell, but the Sabers fell to 17-7 on the season and 12-4 in the South Suburban.

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