Gabe Kalschuer (right) has DeLaSalle eyeing a seven straight Class 3A state title. The Islanders are the No. 1 seed in a potentially competitive Section 6, which is home to No. 2 seed Orono, No. 3 Robbinsdale Cooper and No. 4 Waconia. Photo by Jeff Lawler
The boys' basketball postseason is in full swing, and the final state tournament of the winter sports season offers plenty of excitement as highly ranked foes across the state vie for one of 32 berths in the state tournament.
With nearly all of the section brackets posted on MN Basketball Hub, we wanted to take a look at some of the matchups that will be taking place in the coming weeks.
Here are a few sections we're keeping an eye on.
The top seed in this section is perennial power DeLaSalle (21-4). The Islanders, ranked No. 1 in Class 3A by Minnesota Basketball News, come in as heavy favorites -- having won the past six Class 3A titles. Led by senior guard and Minnesota commit Gabe Kalschuer (22.7 ppg), DeLaSalle looks to return to the state tournament and take down some worthy opponents.
One of those challengers is be No. 2 seed Orono (21-5). The No. 4-ranked Spartans also have a future Gopher in senior forward Jarvis Thomas Omersa, who is averaging a team-best 18.4 points per game. Orono and the Islanders did not play in the regular season.
Robbinsdale Cooper (18-6) is the No. 3 seed after winning the Metro West Conference this season. The No. 19-ranked Hawks will have a tough quarterfinal matchup as they take on No. 16-ranked and No. 6 seed Minneapolis Roosevelt.
Waconia is the No. 4 seed. The Wildcats finished second in the Wright County Conference West Division behind Orono and open section play against No. 5 seed Benilde-St. Margaret's.
This section is filled with many Suburban East Conference foes and five teams ranked in the top 20 in Class 4A, including top-ranked and No. 1 seed Cretin-Derham Hall. The Raiders (24-2) are led by senior forward and Minnesota commit Daniel Oturu (18.5 ppg).
East Ridge (21-5) is the No. 2 seed and enters the postseason on a nine-game winning streak. The No. 5-ranked Raptors look to meet Cretin-Derham Hall for a third time this year after falling to the Raiders twice during the regular season.
Woodbury (15-11, 12-4) is another threat to Cretin-Derham Hall as the No. 3 seed. The No. 20-ranked Royals are led by senior guard and Davidson commit Michael Jones (25.7 ppg). Woodbury lost to the Raiders 65-64 in their most recent meeting on Feb. 23.
North St. Paul (22-4), the No. 4 seed, faces a tough challenge in its postseason opener as the No. 9-ranked Polars take on No. 5 seed Tartan. The No. 10-ranked Titans split their two games with North St. Paul during the regular season.
The rest of the section brackets can be found by clicking here.
Tag(s): Home Hub Exclusives Metro East North St. Paul Tartan Metro West Benilde-St. Margaret's Robbinsdale Cooper Suburban East Cretin-Derham Hall East Ridge Woodbury Tri-Metro Tri-Metro West DeLaSalle Wright County Wright County East Orono Waconia Class AAAA Class AAA Class AA Class A Section 1AAAA Section 2AAAA Section 3AAAA Section 4AAAA Section 5AAAA Section 6AAAA Section 7AAAA Section 8AAAA Section 1AAA Section 2AAA Section 3AAA Section 4AAA Section 5AAA Section 6AAA Section 7AAA Section 8AAA Section 1AA Section 3AA Section 4AA Section 5AA Section 6AA Section 7AA Section 8AA Section 1A Section 2A Section 3A Section 4A Section 5A Section 6A Section 7A Section 8A