St. Cloud Cathedral is having another successful season. A year removed from finishing fourth at the Class 2A state tournament, the Crusaders (18-5, 12-0) have secured the Granite Ridge Conference championship already and are preparing to make another deep postseason run. A victory over Sauk Centre on Saturday could serve as fuel for St. Cloud Cathedral.
Augustana University (S.D.) commit Michael Schaefer leads the team in points (24.4), rebounds (12.5), steals (1.7) and blocks (1) per game and will be the hub for much of what St. Cloud Cathedral does on both sides of the court. Schaefer is not the only threat that Sauk Centre and other Class 2A, Section 6 opponents will have to account for, with senior Mitchell Plombon pitching in 16.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game and junior guard Jackson Baustian-Jangula keeping things ticking with 4.8 assists per game.
Sauk Centre has been up and down this season, never winning or losing more than three games in a row. The Mainstreeters (13-11, 8-6) could break that trend with a win on Monday against Long Prairie-Grey Eagle and roll into the postseason on a five-game streak if they can knock off the Crusaders.
Senior Cade Neubert (16.3 ppg) leads Sauk Centre and has help from sophomores Casey Schirmers and Jacob Jennissen, who both average 12.7 ppg. With a strong performance from the trio, the Mainstreeters will have a shot at taking down one of the preeminent teams in their section and gain some real momentum going into the postseason.