Hofschild’s record-setting output was among the best of the best at the Breakdown Tip Off

McKenna Hofschild has been wowing us with her high-wire act for so long now that we sometimes forget just how good she really is. Saturday night at the Breakdown Tip Off, the Prior Lake guard turned in a performance for the ages, a memorable 63-point offensive onslaught that won’t soon be forgotten by anyone in attendance. It is a feat that nobody has ever accomplished in Minnesota girl’s basketball – not Tayler Hill, not Rebekah Dahlman, not Carlie Wagner, not Rachel Banham, not even Lindsay Whalen – and the record may stand for decades to come. I was flitting back and forth between games at the time, but at some point McKenna’s performance became too entertaining to leave. To my left were the aforementioned Coach Whalen and her sidekick Kelly Roysland. Nearby there were a handful of other D1 coaches. To my right was a gaggle of normally skeptical, dismissive teenage boys jumping up and down and squealing like 4th-grade girls over what they were watching. It was a hoot. The numbers are amazing. Hofschild shot 12 of 17 from two-point range, 5 of 11 from three, and 24 of 30 at the line. That’s 63 points on just 28 shots. Remarkable. As usual with McKenna, it was how she made her baskets that was most impressive. There’s only one other player in Minnesota who can elude defenders the way Hofschild can. I have always been amazed by her body control and creativity. She also has extraordinary ability to finish through contact. When Hofschild gets hammered to the floor – which happens more to her than any other player I know – she always seems to be able to shake it off, gather herself and make the majority of her free throws. McKenna Hofschild is a very special basketball player who will surely bring the fans out of their seats in New Jersey next winter when she suits up for Seton Hall of the Big East. Did we mention she’s just 5’3? [caption id="attachment_19625" align="alignleft" width="300"] Although it's not easy to read, the sheer volume of numbers entered across the top line of the score book is testament to McKenna Hofschild's record-setting performance.[/caption] Kay Konerza’s scoring record stood for 36 years It was 1982 when Kay Konerza of Lester Prairie set the previous high-scoring mark with 58 points in a game. That was before the three-point shot and the 28.5 inch ball. Konerza scored 2,715 career points, was a high school All-American and an honorable mention All-American in track. She went on to play basketball at Louisiana Tech, who were the two-time defending national champions at the time and never finished out of the top five during her four years in Ruston. Konerza later played professional basketball in Europe and was an assistant coach at Colorado State before changing course and joining the Fort Collins police force. As if she hadn’t accomplished enough already, Konerza took up handball later in life and qualified for the 1996 U.S. Olympic team. Kay was inducted into the Minnesota State High School League Hall of Fame in 2009. Hopkins handled Eastview in a state championship rematch In recent years there has been no matchup that stirs up the excitement among Minnesota girls basketball fans like Hopkins vs Eastview. So many great encounters, so much great basketball. Last spring, Eastview got the better of Hopkins but only by a hair. It was enough to win a 4A state championship. Saturday night at the Breakdown they met in regular-season play for the first time since then but it wasn’t close as the Royals dominated from start to finish winning 75-48. As we wrote last week in the aftermath of the Hamline tournament, Eastview is going to miss forward Megan Walstad, who is off to a flying start at D1 Milwaukee. The team is now very guard-oriented and Saturday it showed. We must emphasize, however, that the rivalry is not over. Eastview coach Molly Kasper has proven to be an excellent tactician who will no doubt come up with alternative ways of competing with Hopkins, but the Royals are a high-powered machine with more talent than ever. They were led as usual by junior Paige Bueckers with 25 points. The grass is greener for Eastview’s Lauren Glas The one bright spot for Eastview on Saturday was the play of senior guard Lauren Glas. She has now been elevated into a starting role and what a start she had. Glas scored 9 of Eastview’s first 11 points, staking the Lightning to an 11-10 lead. Although the margin didn’t last, as Hopkins went on an impressive 28-7 run to seize control of the game, it was certainly not the fault of Glas. She finished the game with 18 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists, and her motor was running full throttle from beginning to end. Macy Guebert, Emma Carpenter and Cassidy Carson may make the headlines but Glas will be integral to Eastview’s success. The amazing thing about Glas is that she only plays basketball during the high school season. She’s actually a soccer star who next year will take her talents to D1 North Dakota. [caption id="attachment_19628" align="alignright" width="300"] Alexandria junior Ella Grove was a force in Saturday's win over DeLaSalle.[/caption] Alexandria’s Ella Grove is figuring it all out The first time I saw Alexandria’s Ella Grove about three years ago you could see the flashes of potential. Unfortunately, she turned the ball over frequently and suffered from a general lack of confidence, but the raw material was all there. Fast forward to Saturday morning and the only similarity between Ella then and Ella now was the name on the roster. Now measuring 6 feet tall, she’s big and strong, and plays with a relentless intensity that reminded me a lot of Frannie Hottinger. Grove was everywhere, pounding the boards, defending at full volume and putting up 20 points to lead Alexandria to a 59-49 win over DeLaSalle. Grove will be relied upon by Cardinals coach Wendy Kohler to deliver in similar fashion throughout the season if the squad is going to return to the state tournament. Ella is currently ranked outside of the top 100 among Minnesota juniors. That is almost certain to change in January. From doormat to dominance in Chaska There were some dominant team performances on Saturday but none more emphatic than Chaska’s 56-23 thrashing of Maple Grove. The Crimson struggled with a limited inside presence, and are clearly going to miss Katrina Theis, who is now playing her basketball at St. Cloud State. The key to containing Maple Grove is to stop junior guard Abby Schulte and sophomore guard Jordan Lamker. Schulte was held scoreless on Saturday while Lamker had just 13 points. Chaska allowed Maple Grove a mere 9 points in the first half. Led by freshman standout Mallory Heyer and elite sophomore Kaylee Van Eps, Chaska was 3-0 after Saturday’s win. The Hawks did not record their third win of last season until January 19th. Hill-Murray’s D was better than Lariah Washington’s O Lariah Washington had 23 points for St. Cloud Apollo on Saturday and Hill-Murray was happy about that. You see, Washington is a pure scorer who entered the game averaging over 31 ppg. Last year she scored 25 or more points 14 times. Lariah scored 30 or more on seven occasions. On Saturday, thanks in no small part to the defensive intensity of senior guard Delaney Runyon, Hill-Murray kept Washington from doing maximum damage and vacated the gym with a 64-45 win as a result. The Pioneers outscored Apollo by 21 points in the second half. Defense may not win in the NBA anymore but it most certainly does here. That dreaded sound that nobody wants to hear Not all was rosy Saturday, especially for the Simley Spartans. They lost 62-56 to a strong Waseca squad. They also lost one of their core players to a torn ACL. It didn’t look good when junior Ravyn Miles went down in the first half. It sounded even worse. No word yet on how long Miles will be out but it’s likely to be measured in months. More of the load will now be shouldered by junior Sydney Stensgaard, a solid D1 prospect who had 24 points in the loss. Miles joins Centennial’s Sara Stapleton on the sidelines. If you haven’t heard, she recently suffered a serious knee injury, too. Stapleton is ranked 7th in the senior class and is committed to Wisconsin. Top photo: McKenna Hofschild is holding the 'Big Dawg' sign and the Prior Lake senior most certainly was on Saturday night at the Breakdown Tip Off.