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Minnehaha Academy fifth title pursuit among tourney story lines

By JIM PAULSEN, Star Tribune, 03/31/21, 12:15AM CDT

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Ten things to know heading into this year's state tournament.


Chet Holmgren (Jeff Lawler, SportsEngine photo)

After a one-year hiatus caused by the pandemic, the boys open their high school basketball state tournament Wednesday with 16 quarterfinals games across four classes at 10 different sites.

Here are 10 things every basketball fan should know:

1. In its past four state tournament appearances, Minnehaha Academy has come away with the Class 2A state title (2013, ’17, ’18, ’19) each time. There is a good chance that streak will continue. The Redhawks (17-1), who have since moved up to Class 3A, are ranked No. 1 and are undefeated vs. teams from Minnesota. Their only loss came Feb. 6, 73-53 to IMG Academy of Bradenton, Fla. IMG is ranked No. 4 nationally by MaxPreps.com. Minnehaha Academy is No. 10 in those same rankings.

2. Cretin-Derham Hall qualified for the tournament thanks to the last-second heroics of junior guard Tre Holloman. The Raiders gave up a six-point lead down the stretch against Woodbury, but Holloman saved their season by hitting a three-pointer from the right wing as time ran out.

3. Champlin Park enters as the state’s only unbeaten team at 21-0, but the Rebels hope that’s not a harbinger of bad news ahead. They have been undefeated heading into each of their two previous state tournament trips, in 2015 and ’17, only to lose in the championship game. The Rebels are led by the high-scoring duo of guard Joshua Strong (20.2 ppg) and forward Francis Nwaokorie (19.3 ppg, 13.2 rpg).

4. Most basketball fans know that Minnehaha Academy’s 7-1 stretch forward Chet Holmgren is considered the nation’s top senior recruit, and a few other players in the tournament are nationally coveted as well. Among current juniors in the tournament field, Minnehaha Academy 6-7 forward Prince Aligbe is ranked No. 59 nationally, Wayzata 6-6 small forward Cam Heide is No. 68, Holloman is No. 73 and Caledonia 6-3 guard Eli King is No. 84.

5. Wayzata had gone 58 years between state tournament appearances from 1959 to 2017. Since then, the Trojans (16-2), led by coach Bryan Schnettler, will be making their third tourney trip in five seasons.

6. St. Croix Prep, making its first state tournament appearance, is led by 6-3 senior guard Addison Metcalf. He averages just under 23 points per game and is the son of former University of Minnesota guard Rob Metcalf.

7. Hibbing, which made its first state tournament appearance in 1914, is back for the 10th time, but only the second time since 1976, when the Bluejackets finished second in Class 2A. That team was led by Kevin McHale.

8. Minneapolis North will be making its 23rd tournament appearance and has won seven championships, most recently taking home back-to-back Class 1A crowns in 2016 and ’17. The Polars played in eight large-school championship games, winning four, before declining enrollment forced the school to drop to Class 1A. North’s enrollment has rebounded enough to move it up to Class 2A.

9. North coach Larry McKenzie has won six state championships. He coached Minneapolis Henry to four straight Class 3A state titles from 2000 to ’03 and added the two championships at North in 2016 and ’17.

10. Caledonia qualified for the Class 2A field despite not having King, the talented junior guard who has missed the season because of a torn meniscus in his right knee. King has high-major offers from Minnesota, Iowa, Iowa State, Marquette and Stanford.

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