By Matt Krumrie
MaxPreps.com
Starting Five
1. Delano Getting it Done: One team that has emerged in 3A is Delano. The Tigers are 6-0 in the Wright County Conference and 11-1 overall, ranked No. 8 in the state. Leading the way for Delano is Joey Offerdahl, who averages 16.8 points per game, and Kyle Kreklow, who is scoring 12.8 points per game. Other key contributors this season have been Jay Stevens, Darius Clare, Jake Raskob, Joe Silahacek and Michael Yahnke.
2. Minutemen Making Mark: Central is in fight for the St. Paul City Conference title with rival Johnson. And while Johnson has the upper hand after defeating Central 69-67 on Jan. 13, Taylor Smaller, Jordan Larson, LeDarian Horton and the rest of this team are looking forward to the Feb. 10 rematch that could have serious conference title implications. Smaller leads the team with 15.2 points per game, while Horton is averaging 12.3 and Larson is averaging 12.2.
3. Tartan Titans Tough: There are three losses on the Tartan Titans schedule – all to talented teams: St. Cloud Apollo, Henry Sibley and Richfield. At 9-3 Tartan has snuck into the top 10 rankings in 4A. Led by Northern Iowa recruit Marc Sonnen (19.8 points per game), the Titans are playing well in the tough Classic Suburban Conference (led by Sibley and Richfield). Sonnen scored 29 points in a win over Hill-Murray Tuesday and 24 in a win over Simley Friday. In mid-January Sonnen recorded a triple double with 24 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Derek Peterson averages 8 points per game and Manani Beavers 7.5 for Tartan.
4. Big Win For Bloomington Jefferson: Jefferson earned an impressive Lake Conference road win over 6th-ranked Eden Prairie Tuesday. The Jaguars defeated the Eagles 59-50 to improve to 7-3 in the Lake and 8-4 overall. Chad Foslien and Chad Gilmer each had 15 points to lead Bloomington in the win, while Moses Alipate added 12. Eden Prairie dropped to 8-2 in the Lake and 12-4 overall.
5. Milestone for Matt Zellmer: Blooming Prairie’s Matt Zellmer scored 34 points in the Awesome Blossom’s 86-60 win over Randolph Tuesday. In that win Zellmer went over the 1,000 point mark for his career. He is averaging 19 points a game this year, while teammate Israel Clark is also averaging 19 points per game and Josh Toquam 12.
Three to Watch
1. Plainview-Elgin-Millville: At 9-0 (13-1 overall), P-E-M is in first place in the Three Rivers Conference. On Tuesday Cole Olstad scored 20 points to lead P-E-M to a 67-42 win over a Fillmore Central team coached by Olstad’s uncle, Heath Olstad. Olstad, Ross Grobe and Chris Conrad are among the leaders for P-E-M.
2. Josh Figini, Chisago Lakes: Figini may not play at one of the biggest schools in the greater Twin Cities, but he plays as big as any player in the metro. The Chisago Lakes forward averages 26.3 points and 6 rebounds per game on the season.
3. Chris Breuer, St. Croix Lutheran: Breuer, the son of former Minnesota Gophers star and NBA center Randy Breuer, is averaging 20.6 points per game for the Crusaders.
Two Hot Too Handle
1. Kevin Noreen, Minnesota Transitions: Noreen is pouring in a state-leading 33.9 points per game and averaging just under 13 rebounds per game. He has a season-high of 53 points in a Jan. 15 win over Dunwoody Tech.
2. Ibrahim Abukar, St. Cloud Apollo: Abukar made five 3-pointers Tuesday and Apollo made 10 total as a team in a 80-69 win over Rocori. Andre Garth led SCA with 22 points, while Blake Maslonkowski scored 14 in the win.
Inside the Numbers
82 – Points Anoka scored in an 82-79 overtime win over Andover Tuesday
28 – Points scored by Anoka’s Bernie Ward in that win over Andover. Ward led all scorers and is averaging 18.3 points per game. Other high scorers in that win were: Lomumba Ismail (18), Nick Welle (13) and David Mooers (10).
27 – Points scored by Scott Nystrom of Kimball in a 64-54 win over St. John’s Prep Tuesday.
24 – Points scored by Mankato Loyola’s Jackson Bartlett in a 64-49 win over St. Clair Monday. It was a career-high for Bartlett, who also pulled down 14 rebounds.
25 – Points scored by Stephen Woods of St. John’s Prep in that 64-54 loss to Kimball.
13 – Points Ryan Goetzinger of Caledonia scored in a 53-29 win over Wabasha-Kellogg.
13 – Rebounds Goetzinger had in that same game to finish with a double-double.
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