10 things we learned at Breakdown's Summer State Tourney

The Wayzata Trojans were best among the big schools at the Breakdown Summer State Tournament.

I’m not sure if this qualifies as news or not, but if there’s one thing we learned on Sunday at the Breakdown Summer State Tournament it is this: the Wayzata Trojans are good. Very good. Good enough, in fact, to win the actual high school state championship eight months from now. The Trojans captured the class 4A event in convincing fashion at Maple Grove Middle School, dispatching Maple Grove in their opening-round game by a margin of 42, scoring a 17-point win over Lakeville North in the semifinal, and beating St. Michael-Albertville 67-53 in the championship game. That’s pretty solid.

Wayzata, unlike many of the teams on hand, was able to field a full lineup, with the exception of injured forward Ella Schrader. And quite the lineup it is. The Trojans have six legitimate division 1 players on the roster. Two, of course, have already made commitments: seniors Kallie Theisen (South Dakota State) and Mimi Schrader (Navy). Guard Jasmine Smiley is ranked 11th in the 2020 class and post Annika Stewart is currently #17. Sophomore-to-be Jenna Johnson is ranked #2 in 2021. Freshman Mara Braun, who was a virtual assist machine on Sunday, is among the top five in 2022. Toss in a deep bench and the Trojans have the potential to win it all.

If Wayzata’s high quality of play isn’t that surprising, certainly the margin of victory raised a few eyebrows. The difference was defense, as Wayzata worked harder and more effectively in its own end of the floor than at any time we saw them last season. Credit for that should go to Ken Theisen. He was coaching the Trojans on Sunday in place of head coach Mike Schumacher, who chooses not to participate in summer ball. Theisen, of course, was the coach of the former AAU state champion Crossfire 2019 squad. He demands hard-nosed, physical defense from his players and usually gets it. Will that continue come November? Stay tuned.

In the meantime, here are 9 more things we learned at the Breakdown on Sunday.

#2 – Lauren Jensen is good at basketball

Fresh off a national championship victory with North Tartan EYBL, guard Lauren Jensen was in peak form for Lakeville North on Sunday. She looked very good in games one and two, but it was game three that reminded us why D1 coaches are lining up to watch her play. Against a formidable squad from Centennial, Jensen made 8 threes! She had 27 points in the first half, alone. She was unstoppable. Yes, Lauren can shoot the three but that is just one of the many things she does at an elite level. The Panthers will dearly miss graduated bigs Taylor Brown and Ke James, but there’s a pretty good chance Jensen will pick up the slack.

#3 – Alyssa Peterson is as good as advertised

The little guard from Menahga is ranked #33 in the class of 2019. Sunday at Maple Grove she reminded us why. At 5’6, she’s not exactly imposing, and in the early stages of the game I watched against BOLD she was rather anonymous. Just as I was trying to recall what all the fuss was about – BOOM! – off went Alyssa sparking her team to a big run by employing her great handles, excellent court sense, long-range shooting abilities, and superior athleticism to get to the rim. She’s feisty and strong and clearly very smart. We haven’t heard about her college prospects of late but I’m guessing they are pretty good.

Alexandria captured the 3A title.

#4 – Lily Wilson has been located

Just last week I wondered out loud what had become of Lily Wilson. I was aware that the 2020 guard from Pine City was no longer a part of Stars Antl, where she had been a mainstay for some time, but I had not seen her on an AAU court at all. I just assumed she must be hurt, but there Lily was on Sunday, illustrating clearly that she still has the goods. Turns out Wilson just needed a break from basketball and decided that this summer was the time to take it. No shame in that. Clearly it hasn’t hurt her game one bit. Wilson and sophomore Ellie Hasz of North Tartan Dickman will be counted on to lead Pine City when the games count for real.

#5 – Losing Emma Anderson is a big blow in Big Lake

Big Lake has some very nice young talent in freshmen Caela Tighe (#28 in the class of 2021) and Mia Huberty (#67 and rising), and a respected new coach in Scott Antl. They also have senior guard Emma Anderson of Minnesota Suns Jefferson, who is committed to D1 North Dakota. Well ‘have’ has now turned into ‘had’ thanks to a torn ACL Anderson suffered playing AAU, a serious injury that leaves her senior season in doubt. That’s a big blow for Big Lake, which knocked off Holy Angels Sunday morning before falling to Alexandria and Waconia.

#6 – It’s business as usual for Mountain Iron-Buhl

Some 2,869 people call Mountain Iron, Minn. home. You’d be hard-pressed to find one that doesn’t have a personal connection to the Mountain Iron-Buhl girls basketball program which has established itself as a small-school powerhouse and a source of pride on the Iron Range. The Rangers were there Sunday, with 17 kids in the lineup and guns blazing as usual. Led by seniors Allie Negen and Macy Savela among others, MIB went about its business as usual Sunday, scoring wins over Hayfield, Pelican Rapids and Ada-Borup to take home the title. MIB coach Jeff Buffetta works 24-7-365 to help his girls (and many others on the Range) get better and it shows. I never get tired of watching the Rangers at work.

Rush City captured the 2A crown.

#7 – The Gehloff and Gus Show is a hit in Waseca

The Waseca Bluejays have established a standard of excellence in recent seasons thanks in no small part to the talent, hard work and leadership skills of Madison Gehloff. Now heading into her senior season, the top-30 talent has had a wonderful summer and continues to improve. Her younger teammate Gus Boyer (does anyone other than mom actually call her Augusta?) is a top-30 sophomore who has helped Stars Antl reach new heights this summer. The Gehloff and Gus Show was on the air again Sunday as the Bluejays earned the consolation title with a 40-39 win over the defending state champs from Cooper. Waseca’s supporting cast is also strong. On Sunday, junior Rachel Breck was particularly effective.

#8 – Head west to Waconia but bring a designated driver

They tell me there are three breweries, two wineries and a distillery in Waconia. As if that is enough reason to head west, there is also Addy Salzer. No, you won’t find the sophomore-to-be in any of the aforementioned establishments but she will be appearing regularly at the high school gym – and on the lists of college recruiters. On Sunday, Addy and the Wildcats made it clear they could roar loudly next winter by knocking off Cooper in the opening round. They lost to state tournament team Willmar in the second round by just three before dispatching Big Lake by 20 to take the consolation title. Salzer is a scholarship level prospect, as is 6’2 senior Courtney Freeberg, a top 60 player in the class. Sophomore sharpshooter Sydni Olson was out with injury on Sunday but is certain to make an impact this winter, as well.

#9 – Maranatha is in metamorphosis

Maranatha went 2-1 on Sunday to capture third place in class 2A. There were some familiar faces in the lineup, and the Mustangs wore their usual black and red uniforms, but nothing else seemed the same. It was so strange not seeing coach Chris Buerman bouncing up and down on the sidelines, exhorting his players at full volume to play fast, faster, fastest. Buerman is gone from Maranatha – certainly one of the more curious coaching changes this off season – having been replaced by Mike Willman who moves over from Big Lake. Willman has a formidable task in replacing three departed studs: Jaclyn Jarnot (18 points per game) who is at D1 North Dakota, Kylie Post (14 ppg) who will suit up for D2 UM-Crookston, and talented 2022 guard Desiree Ware who left for Minnetonka.

10 – It’s only July

We had a blast Sunday, and it was great to get a sneak preview of what lies ahead, but it’s only July so we’ll do our best to curb the enthusiasm!

Here are the Breakdown Summer State results from all four classes:

Class 4A