A weekend of hoops and a college commitment

This past weekend I witnessed a classic high school boys’ basketball game, watched three former all-metro

players in NCAA Division I action, and learned that one of the state’s top football players made a collegiate commitment. Check this out!

Friday, January 6, 2012: 

Sophomore center IAN THEISEN’S freethrow with 1.6 seconds left gave Osseo a 70-69 victory over Park Center in a classic Northwest Suburban boys’ basketball matchup.

The game, which was played at Osseo, ended in dramatic fashion. Junior guard QUINTON HOOKER, who finished with 28 points, tied the game by calmly netting a three-pointer with 24 seconds remaining.

After a timeout, Osseo, who also got 15 points from junior guard BRIDGE TUSLER, worked the ball around before Theisen was fouled. Osseo also got outstanding play from MICHAEL BRUSH, CAL BLOOM, WILL JOHNSON, D.J. HEBERT, BRYAN GICHABA and TYLER STROMBACH.

Junior sharpshooter JOSHUA MATTHEWS led Park Center with 13 points. Sophomore sensation ISAIAH MCKAY added 12. Junior forward TREYTON DANIELS’ smooth-as-silk moves allowed him to

contribute 11.

The rematch is Friday, February 10 at Park Center.

Saturday, January 7, 2012: 

I traveled to Kansas City, MO to watch former St. Paul Johnson standout ESTAN TYLER play point guard for the University of Missouri-Kansas City (UMKC) as they took on the University of South Dakota (USD) in a Summit League contest in NCAA Division I basketball.

Tyler, a freshman who led Johnson to the Class 3A state crown in 2010, scored six points in 26 minutes in a 76-57 setback.

The women’s game between USD and UMKC featured two former all-metro players from the Twin Cities. TEMPESTT WILSON (Elk River) led USD with 13 points in 34 minutes of action and teammate PAM JANUARY (Richfield) had two points in eight minutes as theCoyotes lost 61-49. Both are juniors.

Sunday, January 8, 2012: 

Upon my arrival back to the Twin Cities I learned that Hebert, an all-metro quarterback for Osseo this past fall, committed to play football at the University of Northern Iowa (UNI). Hebert, also a guard for the basketball team, hit a key three-pointer in the closing minutes of the victory over Park Center. 

Mitchell Palmer McDonald welcomes reader responses to mmcdonald@spokesman-recorder.com.