Perham might not have looked like a state tournament contender on Dec. 1, when it lost by 30 points to Minnehaha Academy in the second game of the regular season.
But the Yellowjackets haven’t lost since and they’re looking every bit like a tournament team now. And while coach Dave Cresap isn't yet prepared to anoint this year's squad the second coming of his 2010-11 Class 2A state champions, the Yellowjackets, the No. 3 team in the Class 2A rankings released by Minnesota Basketball News on Feb. 20, enter the final two games of the regular season on a 21-game winning streak.
Perham (22-1, 11-0) closes its regular season on Friday in our Top Game of the Week against Pequot Lakes (18-5, 7-2), the program it edged 59-54 in last year's regular-season finale.
Cresap, who took teams to the state tournament in 2011, 2012 and 2013, said this could be the school's fourth state tournament team, but getting through the Class 2A, Section 8 tournament won't be easy.
Unbeaten Osakis (23-0) is one of several squads Cresap believes is capable of beating any section team on a given night. East Grand Forks (16-5), Hawley (15-4), Barnesville (15-7), Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton (16-8), Roseau (18-6) and Breckenridge (11-8) are also in the mix.
"Our section is as loaded as it has been since I have been here," Cresap said. "We have legitimate seven or eight teams who could win."
Cresap's 2011 state champions had height and a tenacious defense and the he said this year's Yellowjackets have just enough size if they use it correctly. That means finding opportunities for senior guard Josh Jeziorski, who is 6-foot-3 and the tallest member of this year's squad.
Jeziorski passed the career 1,000-point milestone earlier this season, joining senior teammate Jenson Beachy — who crossed the 2,000-point milestone — in rarified air. The two are members of a senior class, along with Carter Cresap, Anthony Reese, John Lafond, Dawson Stevens and Elijah Schmidt, who have provided unbelievable leadership, Cresap said.
Pequot Lakes, with junior guard Jordan Schommer, won't be a pushover for the Yellowjackets. Schommer put up 30 points in a 65-58 win over Proctor on Dec. 7 and scored 19 in a 64-61 loss at Detroit Lakes on Dec. 13.
The Patriots enter the week riding a six-game winning streak, which will be challenged as they close their regular season on a three-game road trip — at Pillager on Tuesday, at Staples-Motley on Thursday and a visit to Perham on Friday.