Class AAA State Tournament Preview

<p><strong>10 a.m. #1 seed, #2 ranked Cooper (26-2) vs unseeded, #11 ranked Alexandria (23-5)</strong></p> <p>It took a nail-biting 46-45 victory over their rivals from Fergus Falls, but the Alexandria Cardinal made it to the state AAA tournament. That&#39;s the good news. The bad news is they drew the high-flying Cooper Hawks in the opening round, a daunting task to be sure. Led by seniors Courtney Gold and Emma Schmidt, juniors Kaye Paschke and McKenzie Duwenhoegger, and talented sophomore Ella Grove, Alex has had a great season. They won 15 games in a row at one point, a streak that was halted by losses to Brainerd and Willmar. With just five losses, you&#39;d think Alexandria would be well-positioned for round one. Probably not.</p> <p>Coach Kiara Buford has been building Robbinsdale Cooper into championship contender, and a drop down from 4A to 3A has seen the Hawks dominate this season. Cooper enters the tournament on an 18-game win streak, including easy section victories over Orono and Benilde-St. Margaret&#39;s. Led by the Wheeler sisters – junior guard Aja and freshman post Kierra – the Hawks have a bus load of quick, athletic, speedsters. Cooper&#39;s only losses were to a pair of elite 4A squads – #2 Hopkins and #5 Centennial – and they boast wins over 3A tournament entrants DeLaSalle and Grand Rapids plus ranked 4A schools Minneapolis South, Eden Prairie, and St. Louis Park (twice). The only thing Cooper lacks is state tournament experience.</p> <p>Our pick: Cooper 66 Alexandria 58</p> <p><strong>12 noon #4 seed, #7 ranked DeLaSalle (19-8) vs #5 seed, #5 ranked Willmar (25-2)</strong></p> <p>Willmar returns to state for the second year in a row. In 2017, the Cardinals came in with nine losses and bowed out in the opening round to the eventual champions from Orono. This time around, Willmar has lost just twice. Alexandria and bring a 10-game win streak to the show. They also haves wins over Fergus Falls (twice), Minnehaha Academy and Hutchinson. Willmar is led by 5&#39;11 senior guard Cayle Hovland, who averages 12 ppg and was named first-team all state by the high school coaches.</p> <p>DeLaSalle has an official record of 19-8, but an actual record of 21-6. That&#39;s because the Islanders had to forfeit their first two games of the season for (allegedly) using an ineligible player. DeLaSalle has improved a lot since then. Senior guard Ayanna Gardner has been good, junior forward Elaina Jones has been better while proving she can score when required. They have limped a little since the departure of freshman standout Nora Francois, who suffered a torn ACL. DLS lost four of their last seven games of the season before beating a ranked Hill-Murray squad in sections and knocking off #1 Mahtomedi. Although they lost earlier in the season to Cooper, the Islanders defeated tournament participants Grand Rapids and Holy Angels. Some believe DeLaSalle will win it all. For sure they will win on Wednesday.</p> <p>Our pick: DeLaSalle 64 Willmar 54</p> <p><strong>2 p.m. #2 seed, #4 Northfield (25-3) vs unseeded, #15 Mankato West (21-7)</strong></p> <p>Welcome to the Big 9, part II, as Northfield and Mankato West meet yet again. Northfield has had an impressive season with just three losses – to 4A #1 Eastview, to a powerhouse Beaver Dam team from Wisconsin, and to 4A #12 Owatonna. Fresh off their third win of the year over Red Wing, the Raiders are disciplined, play great defense and have been consistently good all season. Besides the steady hand of coach Tony Mathison, much of the credit goes to Grace Touchette, the workmanlike senior point guard who combines beautifully with 6&#39;4 D1 senior post Annika. It is a potent one-two that could carry Northfield to the top this week.</p> <p>Mankato West has been somewhat difficult to figure out. The section 2AAA coaches picked the Scarlets as their #1 seed, which was a head scratcher to many given that both Waseca and Hutchinson reside in the neighborhood. As fate would have it, West knocked off New Ulm and Waseca to earn their way fair and square. West has 7 losses on the year, including two to Northfield, and played a strictly regional schedule with just five ranked opponents. Led by 5&#39;3 sophomore Holly Wiste and 5&#39;8 junior Ashley Gustavson (ranked #35 in the class of 2019) West is a nice team to be sure, but they&#39;re likely to be one-and-done.</p> <p>Our pick: Northfield 56 Mankato West 50</p> <p><strong>4 p.m. #3 seed, #3 Holy Angels (25-4) vs unseeded, #8 Grand Rapids (21-7)</strong></p> <p>This one will definitely be worth waiting around for. Everyone knows what Holy Angels is all about: one gigantic, gifted player with all-world potential and a quality supporting cast. Oberg is Oberg – 6 feet, 2 inches of God-given skill. Destinee is big, she&#39;s strong, she can score and she can rebound. She is a handful to defend. If Oberg brings her &#39;A&#39; game to Williams Arena on Wednesday, look out. If not, Grand Rapids is in business.</p> <p>So what makes us think the Thunderhawks might be ready for prime time? After all, they lost to Cooper by 15 and DeLaSalle by 22, and have seven losses in all. Those are cold hard facts, but they have also played a challenging schedule designed to prepare specifically for this week. The Thunderhawks beat two ranked opponents in sections – Hibbing by 17 and Chisago Lakes by 20 – and are peaking at the right time. They also have the premiere point guard in the 3A tournament in Heaven Hamling, a top-10 senior who averages 22 ppg and had 40 against Hibbing. She is joined by top 20 sidekick Hanna DeMars and top 50 forward Meara Beighley. The Thunderhawks are also on the right side of the draw. If you are looking for a day 1 upset, this is it. If you are looking for a darkhorse to go all the way, look no further.</p> <p>Our pick: Grand Rapids 72 Holy Angels 70</p> <p><strong>Semis</strong></p> <p>Cooper 74 DeLaSalle 70</p> <p>Northfield 54 Grand Rapids 50</p> <p><strong>Final</strong></p> <p>Northfield 68 Cooper 62</p> <p><strong>The top 5 players to watch</strong></p> <ul> <li>Heaven Hamling, Grand Rapids, 5&#39;8, senior, guard</li> <li>Grace Touchette, Northfield, 5&#39;8, senior guard</li> <li>Aja Wheeler, Cooper, 5&#39;8, junior, guard</li> <li>Elaina Jones, DeLaSalle, 5&#39;10, junior, forward</li> <li>Destinee Oberg, Holy Angels, 6&#39;2, junior forward</li> </ul> <p><strong>The next 5 include:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Hannah DeMars, Grand Rapids, 5&#39;10, junior, wing</li> <li>Cayle Hovland,  Willmar, 5&#39;11, senior, guard</li> <li>Kierra Wheeler, Cooper, 5&#39;10, freshman, forward</li> <li>Annika Hoff, Northfield, 6&#39;4, senior, center</li> <li>Kaylee VanDerWerf, Holy Angels, 6&#39;1, sophomore, forward</li> </ul>