Prep Scene
Mitchell Palmer McDonald
The Hopkins boys’ basketball team, led by University of Minnesota signee JOE COLEMAN, Northern Iowa-bound MARVIN SINGLETON, and point guard SIYANI CHAMBERS, helped the Royals stake their claim as the state’s best with a 101-53 victory over Hyde Park Academy (Chicago) to win the Best Buy Classic at Augsburg College last week.
The Royals are the defending Class 4A state champs.
Johnson loses first game
Class 3A state champ St. Paul Johnson, led by ESTAN TYLER (University of Missouri-Kansas City), Division I prospect ROOSEVELT SCOTT, and sharpshooter MARCUS MARSHALL, saw their prospects of an undefeated season end after losing to Hyde Park Academy 80-74 in the Best Buy Classic.
Lofton leading Columbia Heights
Columbia Heights scoring machine ZACH LOFTON, already turning heads with three 40-plus-points performances in this young season, has the Highlanders ranked among the state’s best with the support of teammates KEANU GLOVER and BEN GLOVER.
McNeal, Travis lead balanced attack for DeLaSalle
The DeLaSalle Islanders are led by two 15-points-per-game scorers in BRETSON MCNEAL and JONAS TRAVIS. Teammates RILEY DEARRING, LAMONT HALL and MARCUS DORSEY round out a balanced attack.
Four leading Robbinsdale Cooper
TERRANCE AVERYHEART (17.3), RAHEEM TYNER (12.4), RASHAD VAUGHN (11.2) and HANDFUL POUR (10.7) are leading a balanced attack for Robbinsdale Cooper.
January dominating for Richfield
Sophomore JESSICA JANUARY, who captured the Class AA 300-meter hurdles title and set a state record (14.33) in the 100-meter hurdles at the state track meet last June, is averaging a whopping 29 points per game for Richfield.
Guard rules at South
SATTORIA RULE, who at one time starred at DeLaSalle, leads Minneapolis South in scoring at 21 points per game.
Baker top scorer in conference
SARINA BAKER (19.8) of Minnehaha Academy is leading the Tri-Metro Conference in scoring.
Sophomores leading the way for DeLaSalle
The sophomore dynamic duo of TYSEANNA JOHNSON (19.4) and ALLINA STARR (14.8) lead DeLaSalle.
Trio has Hopkins off to quick start
Hopkins girls’ basketball team is off to a fast start led by SYDNEY COFFEY, MIKAALA SHACKELFORD and BRIANNA WILLIAMS.
Name dropping
ALLEN HICKS helped St. Paul Mechanic Arts High School finish second in the 1975 Class A state boys’ basketball tournament. Mechanic Arts made history that year, becoming the first predominantly African American team from St. Paul to qualify for the tournament.
Hick’s daughters, AYANA, ANNESSA and ANGELINA, are credited with helping put St. Paul Humboldt on the girls’ basketball map. During the 2008-09 season, all three started at guard for the Hawks.
The following season, with Ayana having graduated (2009) and moved on to Hamline University, Annessa and Angelina led Humboldt to its first-ever St. Paul City Conference Championship and Twin Cities appearance.
Annessa graduated in 2010 and is now playing at Minnesota-Crookston. Angelina, now a senior, averages 19 points per game to lead the City Conference.
History lesson
For those who might think that St. Paul Johnson’s chances of repeating as state champs are slimmer with their recent loss, they need to look no further than another City team that was in a similar situation.
In 2007, St. Paul Central, with ANGEL ROBINSON (Marquette), GEORGIE JONES (Indiana), THIERRA TAYLOR (Iowa), KIARA BUFORD (Minnesota) and MEGAN HOWARD (St. Anselm College, NH), dominated like no other girls’ basketball team in capturing the Class 4A title with a 32-0 record.
The following season four starters were back, but Robinson, who won Miss Basketball and was clearly the state’s top player that season, had graduated and gone on to Marquette. Four regular-season losses to pre-season favorite Centennial, national power Long Beach (CA) Poly, and Minneapolis South (twice) had observers doubting that the Minutemen would even make it back to the tournament to defend their title.
But Buford’s leadership and determination became contagious, and the defending champs defeated South in their third meeting 49-44 to capture the 2008 Class 4A crown.
Mitchell Palmer McDonald welcomes reader responses to mmcdonald@spokesman-recorder.com.
