PGH Ponderings: 2020 Players Poised for a Big Summer

Featured image of Gus Boyer courtesy of The Waseca County News As you may have noticed (but probably didn't), I was pretty much non-existent with regards to PGH during the high school season. Thankfully, (as you should be well aware of by now) Grant is one of the best in the business, and (as you should also be well aware of by now) he doesn't really need my help to bring you all consistently amazing and entertaining stuff to read. I also loved keeping tabs on the Minnesota high school hoops landscape throughout the winter via Todd's computerized team rankings (quick observation here: Todd is WAY smarter than me). The moral of the story here is that Prep Girls Hoops Minnesota continued to thrive in my absence (which should be surprising to no one). That being said, I did have the opportunity to take in my fair share of basketball this winter. I spent most of my evenings either coaching or scouting, and I tried my best to take notes throughout the high school season so that I could bring some of my thoughts back to you. With that in mind, I'm going to be putting out a short series of articles over the next week or so. With the high school season officially in the rear-view mirror, and the AAU season still in its infancy, now felt like as good of time as any to sort through a slightly jumbled collection of thoughts, observations, and opinions about some of the best players and performances that I saw throughout the past four months, as well as what I'm looking forward to this spring and summer. So that's the plan! In the name of consistency and good, old-fashioned alliteration, we'll call the series PGH Ponderings. One last thing: I want to preface this series with a note that it's not meant to be a list of "best fill in the blank," "top fill in the blank," or "fill in the blank of the year" winners. We'll have plenty of those articles posting throughout the summer. Rather, my goal here is to write about some prospects whose performances I admired and appreciated throughout the high school season, and look forward to seeing more of this summer. Now that we've cleared that up, let's get started! FIVE 2020 PLAYERS TO KEEP AN EYE ON THIS SUMMER GUS BOYER - WASECA & MN RISE MARTIN - Boyer was a major piece of an incredibly successful season for Waseca, a team that finished the '18-'19 regular season with a record of 25-1. But Boyer has also had the luxury of playing alongside some really talented players. Madison Gehloff and Brianna Highum have been outstanding members of the Bluejays the last few seasons. They will also be heading to college in a few months. As we look ahead to next winter, there's no doubt that Waseca will be Gus's team to run. Boyer will have had plenty of experience in that position by the time her senior season rolls around, as she'll be running the PG spot for MN Rise Martin this spring and summer. Gus is long, athletic, and has one of the best outside shooting strokes in her class. Boyer and her MN Rise teammates will have big shoes to fill after the success of MN Rise Wolfe in 2018, but we're looking forward to watching her play against some of the best competition the state has to offer. Your first opportunity to see Boyer this summer will be at the Midwest Kickoff Classic in Bloomington on April 12th-14th. MALLORY BRAKE - HASTINGS & NORTH TARTAN EYBL - Brake was a do-it-all player for Hastings this past winter. I know that's kind of a cliche thing to say, but I mean it in the most literal way possible. Mallory led the Raiders in every fathomable statistical category. Points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, etc. etc. etc. You name it, she did it. While Brake's individual season was impressive to say the least, the unfortunate part of the equation is that she was surrounded by a pretty young and inexperienced supporting cast throughout the winter. It's for that reason that I'm looking forward to Mallory getting back together with her North Tartan EYBL teammates this spring and summer. If North Tartan is one thing, it is BIG. Between Brake, Courtney Becker, Jayda Johnston, Patience Williams, and Sophia Wood, NT certainly will not be hurting in the height department. I'm curious to see if North Tartan's embarrassment of riches at the forward position will lend themselves towards opportunities for Brake to play more on the wing. Mallory is so dynamic when attacking the basket, and I can't help but imagine the severe mismatches that she would pose if she was being guarded by opponents' 2's and 3's. Brake and the new-look North Tartan EYBL will be playing the two Sunday games at the Midwest Kickoff Classic in Bloomington on April 14th (NT 16's will play on Saturday). MIA CURTIS - MINNEHAHA ACADEMY & METRO STARS STARKS - You can take pretty much everything written above about Boyer and apply it to Mia Curtis. Curtis led the state champion Redhawks in points, 3-pointers, assists, and steals this past winter. And next year she'll be asked to carry even more of the load, after the graduation of Taytum Rhoades (UMD), Nevaeh Galloway (Bemidji State), and Avery New. Curtis is a sharp-shooter that Minnehaha coach Matt Pryor used masterfully in the pick & roll game throughout her junior year. She is an ideal player to work in space, as she is a threat to fill it up from outside, as well as find her way to the basket. I'm excited to watch her play off the ball a bit more this summer, as I could see being more of a combo guard as a natural fit for her at the next level. I'm expecting for her to get her fair-share of open shots while her Metro Stars teammate Paige Bueckers (UCONN) draws the attention of opposing defenses. You'll be able to watch Curtis and the rest of the newly-formed Metro Stars Starks at the Midwest Kickoff Classic in Bloomington on April 12th-14th. TAYLOR JANSSEN - ROSEMOUNT & MINNESOTA FURY UAA - I remember the first time I watched Janssen was last summer at the Mill City Invite. At that time, she was running with the Fury's 2020 Yellow team. And after watching about five minutes of stopping by her game I remember thinking to myself "wow, that girl can play." Fast forward nine months, and Taylor sprouted to 6'3", she was a major piece in a complete turnaround of Rosemount's program and season, she was moved up to the Minnesota Fury UAA squad, and she recently committed to play Division 1 basketball at Montana State University. That's not a bad nine months if you ask me. I can't wait to watch how Taylor fits in with her new team this summer. She's a floor-spacer as a legitimate outside threat. She can protect the basket with her length and defensive instincts. And I think she will thrive on this team while being surrounded by some of the most talented players in Minnesota's class of 2020. The first tournament for Janssen and her new Minnesota Fury UAA team will be next weekend at the Midwest Kickoff Classic in Bloomington from April 12th-14th. NATALIE MAZUREK - EDEN PRAIRIE & MINNESOTA FURY UAA - Mazurek is a player who really impressed me this past high school season. I remember watching her last summer and thinking to myself that I didn't really think she knew how good she could be. She would consistently haul in rebounds at a high rate, but it often felt like she would defer on the offensive end to her Fury teammates. Fast forward to this past winter, and I saw a completely different player when I watched Eden Prairie play. Mazurek and teammate Nneka Obiazor were a nightmare match-up inside for the Eagles. While Obiazor was pound opposing teams to death on the block, Mazurek showed off her well-rounded game. She'd work inside, hit mid-range jumpers with confidence, and even step out to the 3-point line to keep defenses honest. Much more will be asked of Natalie this summer, to be sure, with former teammate Jayda Johnston suiting up with North Tartan this summer. And I'm looking forward to seeing the continued progression of her game. As noted above, the first tournament for Mazurek and her Minnesota Fury UAA team will be next weekend at the Midwest Kickoff Classic in Bloomington from April 12th-14th.   Credit for Mallory Brake's in-article photo belongs to the Hastings Star Gazette