Quantcast
skip navigation

Tip Off the boys' season with the Breakdown

By Breakdown Staff, 11/20/11, 7:26PM CST

Share

Twenty-six top teams hit the courts at Minnetonka High on Dec. 10

MINNETONKA, Minn. (Nov. 18, 2011) – Are you ready to get an early look whether top-ranked Hopkins can overcome graduation losses and aim towards a fourth straight state title? How about getting a glance at defending Class AA champion Perham, which takes on rising St. Thomas Academy? Maybe a battle of top-rated big men when Osseo’s young Ian Theisen tips off with Prior Lake and Carson Shanks? Or perhaps it’s a guard showdown such as Apple Valley and Tyus Jones against Tartan’s Darrion Strong and Xavier Hall? It’s not too early to get a look at the elite in Minnesota boys’ high school basketball. The BREAKDOWN SPORTS Tip Off Classic presented by Eastbay has all those match-ups and many, many more.

Many of the top players and teams in the state of Minnesota will be on the courts at Minnetonka High School for the annual Tip Off Classic, Dec. 10, 2011. Games begin at 10:30 a.m. Saturday morning with a showdown between Roseville and Rocori and conclude at 8:30 p.m. Saturday night with a Minnetonka versus Buffalo grudge match. 

Saturday, Dec. 10 – Minnetonka west gym
11:00 a.m. – Duluth East (No. 10 AAAA) vs. Eden Prairie (No. 7 AAAA)
12:30 p.m. – Champlin Park vs. Lakeville North (No. 6 AAAA)
2:45 p.m. – Perham (No. 1 AA) vs. St. Thomas Academy (No. 10 AAA)
4:15 p.m. – Maranatha Christian (No. 4 A) vs. Dawson-Boyd (No. 7 A)
6:00 p.m. – Montevideo (No. 7 AA) vs. Spring Lake Park (No. 14 AAA)
7:45 p.m. – Apple Valley (No. 2 AAAA) vs. Tartan (No. 8 AAAA)

Saturday, Dec. 10 – Minnetonka east gym
10:30 a.m. – Roseville vs. Rocori (No. 6 AAA)
12:00 p.m. – Braham (No. 2 AA) vs. Orono (No. 9 AAA)
1:45 p.m. – Osseo (No. 4 AAAA) vs. Prior Lake (No. 11 AAAA)
3:15 p.m. – Benilde-St. Margaret’s (No. 1 AAA) vs. Eastview (No. 3 AAAA)
5:00 p.m. – Robbinsdale Cooper vs. DeLaSalle (No. 2 AAA)
6:45 p.m. – Hopkins (No. 1 AAAA) vs. Cretin-Derham Hall (No. 5 AAAA)
8:30 p.m. – Buffalo (No. 14 AAAA) vs. Minnetonka

The Tip Off Classic features at least 110 college prospects, including at least 35 who are being looked at by D1 schools. Twenty-two teams are ranked among the top-15 in the state in our preseason polls and three (Hopkins, Perham and Benilde-St. Margaret’s) are considered preseason No. 1 choices.  

Check out these stats:

  • Thirty-five potential Division I players, including Mr. Basketball candidates Tyler Vaughan (Braham), Isaiah Zierden (Benilde-St. Margaret’s), C.J. Neumann (Cretin-Derham Hall), Joey King (Eastview), Siyani Chambers (Hopkins), Johnny Woodard (Duluth East) and Tyler Flack (Lakeville North) as well as superstar youngsters such as Tyus Jones (Apple Valley), Ian Theisen (Osseo), Stephon Sharp (Hopkins), Andre Wallace (Eden Prairie) and Carson Shanks (Prior Lake).
  • At least 110 players with college basketball possibilities
  • Nineteen of the Breakdown’s Super 50 seniors
  • Fourteen of the Breakdown’s Top 40 juniors
  • Nine of the Breakdown’s Elite 20 underclassmen
  • Eight teams who qualified for state last year, including three of the four defending state champions (Hopkins, Orono and Perham)
  • A great mix of big and small schools, with two top-10 teams from Class A, the top two-ranked program in both Class AA and Class AAA and each of the top eight ranked teams from Class AAAA (including three-time defending state champion Hopkins).

The Tip Off Classic began back in January 2004. The BREAKDOWN staff wanted to showcase teams from across the state and provide unique, competitive match-ups that might not otherwise be seen, including top-rated teams with state tournament aspiration squaring off. The experiment worked out so well that now The BREAKDOWN now hosts the No. 1 single-day classic in Minnesota. 

BREAKDOWN SPORTS USA and our annual publications are Minnesota's No. 1 resource for players, coaches, fans and sports enthusiasts. We are a full-service high school sports company, offering season preview publications, in-season premier events, off-season leagues, great photography and an extensive website with news and notes. 

BREAKDOWN SPORTS USA is growing in many different areas, starting with our volleyball coverage and new events. We’ve also recently introduced our link for high school players to college coaches looking to recruit great student-athletes with our PLAYER PROFILES. We're starting with boys' and girls' basketball and planning to expand in to other sports. 

We're in our tenth year of covering boys’ and girls’ basketball and fourth in girls’ volleyball and boys’ hockey. The goal of the BREAKDOWN is simple: We want to offer players, coaches and fans a complete sports resource and experience that they will never forget. 

Please visit our website at www.BreakdownSportsUSA.com. We welcome all suggestions and comments for upcoming editions by email at tim@BreakdownSportsUSA.com

PRESS/MEDIA INFORMATION
No press or media credentials will be accepted at the gate. If you are interested in covering the event please contact Justin Hegna at 612-454-1440 or email support@breakdownsportsusa.com to receive a media pass. All photography or video taken at the event is for editorial purposes only. No resale of photographs or reproduction of images will be allowed without the written consent of Breakdown Sports USA, Inc.