The big names did what big names do: Gary Trent Jr. scored 20 points, Tre Jones ran the offense smoothly and chipped in with eight points, Brock Bertram commanded the lane despite getting into early foul trouble.

But the real story of Apple Valley’s comfortable 70-57 Class 4A quarterfinal victory over St. Michael-Albertville on Wednesday was the play of some of the Eagles’ lesser-known -- but not lesser in importance – players.

Junior forward Cameron Kirksey had a terrific outing in his first state tournament appearance, scoring 10 points, grabbing five rebounds and blocking four shots. Senior forward Riley Parham also had 10 points and five rebounds and spent much of the game harassing the St. Michael-Albertville shooters. Austin Korba played 16 valuable minutes, chalking up five points, while Bertram was out.

“Cameron is such a long, athletic player,” Apple Valley coach Zach Goring said. “When he defends and stays out of foul trouble, he’s a very big part of our team. And I thought Parham gave us great energy on defense.”

Apple Valley looked every bit the part of state title contender, methodically building a first-half lead the ballooned to 20 points, 40-20, at halftime. Kirksey scored all of his points in the first half on 5-of-6 shooting from the floor. 

“Last year, I was a role player,” Kirksey said. “This year, I’m getting more a chance. There’s no real pressure because it’s all about doing the right thing for the team.”

Apple Valley cruised past St. Michael-Albertville 70-57 on Wednesday behind 20 points from Gary Trent Jr. and 10 points each from Brock Bertram, Cameron Kirksey and Riley Parham.

The No. 2-seeded Eagles (28-2) trailed just once, 3-2 in the Class 4A quarterfinal game’s opening minutes. They seized control shortly thereafter, thanks to consecutive runs of 10-3 and 11-3, taking a 40-20 halftime lead.

St. Michael-Albertville (24-6) got 21 points from all-time leading scorer Jackson Greenwaldt.

Check back later for more on the game.