Midseason Report: Surprise Teams in North Dakota Class A

We are at about the midway point of the basketball season already. Instead of wondering where the time went and why it can’t slow down, let’s take a look at some of the teams that have been surprises, good or not so good, so far this season.

Devils Lake

The Firebirds were solid last year, going 18-6 before getting to the state tournament and losing a pair of games. So far this year, they’ve been the dominant team in the EDC, going undefeated and beating teams by an average margin of 34 points per game. Devils Lake has cleared all the hurdles thus far in the EDC and should win the league by at least a game or two. Can the Firebirds make noise at state? They’ve shown they are elite to this point.

Bismarck St. Mary’s

The Saints went 21-6 last year, beating Mandan and Bismarck Century during the regular season and taking third in the Class A State Tournament. With a number of key contributors back, expectations could’ve been that this team would contend at least for a top-three or four seed in the WDA and be a potential state tournament team. To this point, that hasn’t manifested as the Saints are in the middle of the pack and barely over .500. There’s time to turn things around certainly, but the Saints have had an inconsistent year.

Fargo Davies

The Eagles cruised to EDC regular season and tournament titles last year before getting to state and going 2-1. Fargo Davies has been one of the consistent top-end teams in the EDC for a number of years now and there wasn’t much reason to think that would change dramatically. It has to this point as the Eagles are fighting to hover around .500 and have taken several lopsided losses. It would appear as though they are figuring things out though, so perhaps they can salvage things in the final month of the season.

Bismarck Legacy

The Sabers got to state last year but the regular season wasn’t the prettiest as they went 11-10 in the regular season. Legacy is 11-4 on the season thus far and winning by an average margin of 15 points per game. A stingy defense is the key to their success but the Sabers also have a balanced offensive attack. A third-place finish feels realistic for the Sabers and after that, who knows?