Dining out at the North Tartan Summer Jam

Spending your Saturday at the North Tartan Summer Jam is kind of like going to an all-you-can-eat buffet on an empty stomach: There’s way too much to choose from, it all looks delicious, and when it’s over you will probably wish you had not eaten quite so much. With 250+ teams spread out over three locations, it’s hard to know what to eat first. The only logical place to begin Saturday was at breakfast. Breakfast of Champions Crossfire Theisen 2019 is one of Minnesota’s most decorated teams. Winners of state championships in 2015 and 2016, the team is a force to be reckoned with led by forward Kallie Theisen of Wayzata (#2 in class of 2019), point guard Taylie Scott of Heritage Academy (#13) and forward Hannah Purcell of Annandale (#10). Unfortunately for Crossfire, the visiting Fairfax Stars from Virginia have savvy 14-year-old sensation Azzi Fudd. Fresh from her gold medal win with Team USA U16 in Argentina – she combined with Paige Bueckers of North Tartan/Hopkins H.S. to make an impressive combination off the bench – Fudd demonstrated why she is the best 8th grader in America. Fudd is smooth and smart and never seems to over-handle the ball. Although she couldn’t get anything to fall early – nobody on Fairfax could – you got that feeling that it was only a matter of time before she got the best of the 10th graders. Fudd’s time came in the final two minutes of the first half: Bucket. Bucket. Bucket. Fairfax led by six and never looked back, recording a 47-33 victory. Let’s do Lunch Mike Durbin’s Minnesota Comets 11 Elite squad is one I have been meaning to watch for some time but the scheduling never seemed to work until now. The Comets aren’t flashy, and their roster is not loaded with golden nuggets, but there are some nice prospects who will no doubt play at the next level. The two that stood out on Saturday were Shea Oman and Annika Sougstad. Oman is a 5-foot-6- inch guard from New London-Spicer. NLS has been a state tournament contender for some time and Oman is a very big reason why. Ranked #36 in the class of 2018, she is a savvy ball protector and a nice distributor who can get to the rim in a variety of creative ways. Oman’s basketball IQ is high and she is virtually certain to be a solid collegiate player. Sougstad would have to be considered a late bloomer. The 5-10 forward from Mahtomedi has always been a nice player but seems to have taken a giant leap forward over the past year. Sougstad is a ball of energy at both ends of the floor. She’s a great rebounder and a tenacious defender who does many of the little things coaches love. She is also a nice spot up shooter who scores 10 points a game. Currently ranked 83rd in the class of 2018, don’t be surprised if her stock continues to rise. In order to spend sufficient time watching the Comets, I had passed up what promised to be a tight battle between two of the more impressive 2018 teams this summer: Minnesota Stars Hersch 11 and Minnesota Metro Stars Weise. This one was bound to go down to the wire, I thought, but when I arrived in time to catch the last few minutes of the game, Stars Hersch was up by 20 and rolled to a 48-27 victory. Wow. Later in the day, Hersch did it again by defeating All Iowa Attack 11th Nike to earn a spot in Sunday’s championship game versus North Tartan 11th Nike EYBL. Stars Hersch has just one Division I commitment to date – Claire Orth of Centennial, a 5-10 combo guard who is ranked 32nd in the class. One of the state's fastest players, Orth punishes people in transition and that speed has landed her a scholarship from the University of North Dakota. A second Star made her college commitment this week, 6-4 center Kristi Fett of Lyle-Austin Pacelli (#29) who verballed with DII Minnesota State-Mankato. Others are likely to follow, particularly if Josh Hersch’s squad continues to impress. What’s for dinner? Last weekend, Warriors Elite returned to action after an extended hiatus and they looked really rusty, but on Saturday Patrick Adams’ high-tempo team was once again in the groove with a 61-43 upset of Minnesota Fury 2018 Gold. Perhaps the smartest thing Adams did on this day was hand over the clipboard to his daughter, Warriors alum Andrayah, who is home from St. John’s University in New York where she plays in the Big East. The younger Adams was definitely in charge on this day, patrolling the sidelines like a seasoned vet, barking instructions to the players, chirping at the officials and making it all look so natural. Of course, that’s how she plays, too. Not long ago, the Warriors were Andrayah Adams’ team, and the club rode her talent and high recruiting profile to a string of tournament wins. On this day, she got them to look at least a little like their former selves. The best prospect now is guard Mikayla Van Nett of St. Paul Como Park, who is one of the state’s best three-point shooters. With Adams gone, however, defenders have been able to focus their attention on Van Nett (#31 in 2018) and she’s had to diversify her game. Van Nett has become a much better ballhandler and she drives to the basket more frequently, but still lives and dies by the three. On Saturday, the 5-8 guard made three of six from beyond the arc for 19 points, a performance that sparked the Warriors to victory over a solid Fury squad led by Hutchinson’s Kenzie Rensch (#25) and Grace Touchette (#44) of Northfield. Any room for dessert? After seeing parts of at least a dozen games, it really was time to step out of the buffet line and call it a day. There was just enough time left for a little WNBA dessert in downtown St. Paul where the arena was crawling with Summer Jam participants and their families. How fitting that they should see North Tartan alum Rachel Banham come off the bench for the Connecticut Sun and spark her team to a 98-93 upset of the Minnesota Lynx. Banham was 4-for-7 for 11 points in 13 minutes, perhaps her best outing as a pro. It was a fine way to end a delicious day.