Fall Exclusive Week 3: The stars came out to play

The kids have had a ton of fun playing in the Prep Girls Hoops Fall Exclusive on the last three Friday nights, and we’ve had a blast watching the games, but it would be hard to top what we saw in week 3 when the stars really came out to play. There were other great games, and plenty of quality performances, but the gym was buzzing at Bloomington Kennedy before, during and after the showdown between of St. Michael-Albertville and of Wayzata. It was a show! We shouldn’t be surprised I suppose. When great talent goes head to head you can expect some fireworks, and we have been fortunate to have drawn some of Minnesota’s best young prospects to play in this first edition of the PGH fall league. Johnson is the #1-ranked prospect in the state’s class of 2023. Braun may be the best-available prospect in the class of 2022, along with of Hopkins and of Chaska. The Fall Exclusive also features the probable #1 player of 2026 – of Crosby-Ironton – along with several of the leading candidates for #1 in 2025 ( of Maple Grove and of North Branch, for instance) and of St. Croix Lutheran is one of the top two or three prospects in 2024. In a rematch of their opening-round meeting three weeks ago, Mara and Tessa played 40 minutes of anything-you-can-do-I-can-do-better on Friday. They traded spectacular moves to the hoop, made seemingly-impossible passes to open teammates, knocked down nothing-but-net threes from distance, and just generally wowed us from start to finish. One of the officials working the game was a less familiar face, not someone we see at girls events on a regular basis. Midway through the second half he turned in our direction and said quite loudly, “Man, who are these girls?!” Johnson is a 5’11 guard who is long, quick, fast and cunning. She can beat you with grace or grit, burn you with speed or smarts, make shots from everywhere and run the floor as well as any player in the state. She played two years up this summer for North Tartan and continues to improve at a steady rate. Braun is also a 5’11 guard who played a year up for North Tartan. She has been considered a can’t-miss prospect for years but it was a pair of remarkable head-to-head battles last winter with that made it obvious Mara has reached a whole other level. Obviously her skills are impressive. She’s long and fluid and athletic. But it is her shear will to win, her ability to take it up another notch when required, her willingness to do whatever it takes be successful, that sets Mara apart. Both have mailboxes full of collegiate offers from elite programs. Put them on the same floor for 40 minutes of run-and-gun and you have an encounter to remember. Beyond the superstars Both teams feature outstanding talent. Johnson’s Sun squad includes such luminaries as of Roseville, of Eden Prairie, of STMA and of Totino-Grace. Hutchinson’s continues to impress as does unranked Katelyn Lindberg of Monticello. and of Maple Grove have been very good, as well. Braun’s Fever team includes of Stillwater, of Roseville, and of Champlin Park, who had about 40 points in two games on Friday. of Champlin Park was good again this week and of Andover did some really nice work, too. The team also includes of Southwest Christian, Bianca Benson of Totino-Grace and of Minnetonka. With five minutes left to play in a 40-minute running time game the two teams had already combined for 160 points. It wasn’t as though the game was a nail-biter, though. It was not, but it was the most entertaining 23-point win you’ll ever see. The final score was 97-74 in favor of the Sun, who finished at 5-1 to earn the top seed heading into the event semifinals on Oct. 13. When the contest had concluded, Mara and Tessa met mid-court for a little needling, a couple of laughs and a commemorative photo for our benefit. We slipped over to the adjacent court for the final game of the night when Braun and the Fever went up against the Liberty, which features the Como Park threesome of , and . Porter played as well in this game as any time we have seen her this summer. Dmytruk has been on a roll of late and was everywhere on Friday night. She followed that up with a huge day in AAU on Saturday for 43 Hoops. The Liberty pulled off a 74-73 victory over the Fever. They, too, posed post-game with Braun. If there’s one impression I’m left with after three weeks of watching the Fall Exclusive it’s this: girls need to play more pickup-style basketball – no schemes, limited strategy, unlimited fun. This approach has produced some great basketball and enabled us to evaluate players in a different type of environment. One thing holds true, however: The stars will still shine the brightest and there are none brighter in Minnesota than Mara and Tessa.