23 teams still boast a perfect record at the midway point

Reaching the halfway point of the basketball season with a perfect record is a nice accomplishment, even in a pandemic-abbreviated 18-game campaign. Entering Wednesday night’s slate of games there were still 24 teams chasing perfection. Now there are 23 as previously undefeated Maple Grove fell to still unbeaten Elk River. That leaves Elk River, Farmington, Hopkins, Chaska, Rochester Mayo, Centennial and Stillwater as the 4A squads with perfect records entering the second half of the schedule. Maple Grove and Elk River were locked in a back-and-forth battle for much of the game with the Elks holding a two-point lead at halftime, and the contest was still in limbo midway through the second period. Then Elk River went on 9-0 run that blew things wide open and gave the home team a 45-35 margin. By the time the teams reached the 5-minute mark, Elk River had turned 9-0 into 17-1 and they were headed for home. Maple Grove could not mount a charge giving the Elks a 61-44 victory. As she often does, senior forward paced Elk River with the St. Thomas commit scoring 19 points while senior (UW-River Falls) was knocking down shots from everywhere to compile 17. Maple Grove was paced by senior point guard (Gustavus) with 19 while junior had 11. With senior ’s high school career now over – the St. Thomas commit suffered a season-ending kneecap injury two weeks ago – much of the scoring burden has fallen on the shoulders of top-10 sophomore . She has been averaging 16 points per game since Lamker went down, but on Wednesday was held to just 4. Elsewhere on Wednesday another of the unbeatens nearly fell off its lofty perch as Centennial struggled to put away a pesky Rogers team. The Cougars led by 8 at the half before the 1-8 Royals demonstrated what we thought they were capable of prior to the season given the amount of talent on their roster. About six minutes into the second half Rogers senior Alex Fuller scored three huge baskets – an and-1 that brought the Royals to within a point, a transition bucket to give her team the lead and a big 3-pointer at the 8:28 mark. That put Rogers ahead 47-43. Fuller continued her second-half heroics a couple of minutes later, following up on her own miss to finish at the rim and keep the margin at four. After Centennial put on a charge to retake the lead, another Fuller triple at the 25-second mark tied the game at 59-59. Centennial had time to execute one last play and they did so to perfection as senior (North Dakota) patiently waited for an opening before slicing to the basket through a phalanx of defenders and then elevating for a soft little lay-in with just 3.5 seconds on the clock. Rogers’ long-bomb inbounds pass was intercepted by Cougars senior (Green Bay) and Centennial had escaped with a 61-59 win, its perfect record extended to 10-0. Guyer finished the game with 12 points, Anderson had 11 and the Cougars were once again paced by junior who continued her breakout season with 19. Fuller ended up with 21 for the Royals while top-10 junior (Grand Canyon) had 15. Who are the unbeatens? Stillwater remained undefeated Wednesday, as well, with a 90-26 win over Irondale to move to 10-0. The Becker Bulldogs have a perfect record in Class AAA as do Marshall, Waconia and St. Paul Como Park. In Class AA Albany, New London-Spicer, Sauk Centre, Stewartville, Esko and Providence Academy are unblemished. There are still six undefeated teams in Class A: Sleepy Eye-St. Mary’s, Fosston, Hancock, Belgrade-Bruton-Elrosa, Pine River-Backus and MInneota. Here’s a rundown on the undefeated teams, including their leaders who are currently ranked in the Prep Girls Hoops Top 150, along with other key personnel. Class AAAA Centennial 10-0

SRs – #20 Jodi Anderson Jodi Anderson 5'11" | CG Centennial | 2021 State MN (North Dakota), #22 Jenna Guyer Jenna Guyer 6'2" | C Centennial | 2021 State MN (Green Bay); JRs – #93 Camille Cummings Camille Cummings 5'8" | CG Centennial | 2022 State MN ; SOs #86 Megan Stacy Megan Stacy 5'7" | CG Centennial | 2023 State MN ; FR #10 Marisa Frost Marisa Frost 5'8" | PG Centennial | 2024 State MN

Elk River 10-0

SRs – #30 Johanna Langbehn Johanna Langbehn 6'2" | C Elk River | 2021 State MN (St. Thomas), #126 Elly Bahr Elly Bahr 5'7" | CG Elk River | 2021 State MN (UW-River Falls); JR – #68 Ava Berg Ava Berg 5'7" | CG Elk River | 2022 State MN , #88 Hope Kanenwisher Hope Kanenwisher 5'6" | CG Elk River | 2022 State MN ; SOs – #15 Ella Johnson Ella Johnson 6'2" | SF Elk River | 2023 State MN , #81 Jordan Langbehn Jordan Langbehn 5'11" | SG Elk River | 2023 State MN , #66 Natalie Murphy Natalie Murphy 5'10" | CG Elk River | 2023 State MN ; FR #41 Kayla Christy Kayla Christy 6'0" | PF Elk River | 2024 State MN

Farmington 10-0

SRs – #2 Sophie Hart Sophie Hart 6'4" | C Farmington | 2021 State #44 Nation MN (North Carolina State), #11 Paige Kindseth Paige Kindseth 5'10" | CG Farmington | 2021 State MN (Presbyterian), #44 Peyton Blandin Peyton Blandin 5'8" | SG Farmington | 2021 State MN (SW Minnesota State), #133 Maleah Scott Maleah Scott 5'6" | SG Farmington | 2021 State MN ; JRs – #67 Rose Wille Rose Wille 5'8" | SG Farmington | 2022 State MN ; SOs #96 Ellie Mogensen Ellie Mogensen 5'6" | SG Farmington | 2023 State MN

Rochester Mayo 10-0

SRs – #16 Anna Miller Anna Miller 6'2" | C Rochester Mayo | 2021 State MN (Drake), #63 Lynnsey Hady Lynnsey Hady 5'10" | SG Rochester Mayo | 2021 State MN (ND Science), #115 Elli Collins Elli Collins 6'0" | SG Rochester Mayo | 2021 State MN , Mullk Hammaldelniel; SOs – #39 Hannah Hanson Hannah Hanson 5'9" | CG Rochester Mayo | 2023 State MN , #110 Taylor Hill Taylor Hill 5'8" | CG Rochester Mayo | 2023 State MN

Stillwater 10-0

SRs – #18 Alexis Pratt Alexis Pratt 5'5" | PG Stillwater | 2021 State MN (Omaha), #52 Gionna Carr Gionna Carr 5'9" | CG Stillwater | 2021 State MN (Tennessee State); JRs – #16 Lizzie Holder Lizzie Holder 6'1" | PF Stillwater | 2022 State MN , #37 Amber Scalia Amber Scalia 5'9" | CG Stillwater | 2022 State MN ; SOs – #68 Lexi Karlen Lexi Karlen 6'0" | SG Stillwater | 2023 State MN ; FR #11 Amy Thompson Amy Thompson 5'10" | SG Stillwater | 2024 State MN

Chaska 9-0

SRs – #7 Kaylee Van Eps Kaylee Van Eps 5'11" | SF Chaska | 2021 State MN (Lehigh), #69 Kelsey Willems Kelsey Willems 5'8" | CG Chaska | 2021 State MN (Augustana), Kayla Hendrickson; JRs – #4 Mallory Heyer Mallory Heyer 6'1" | PF Chaska | 2022 State #36 Nation MN (Minnesota), #96 Jessica Heir Jessica Heir 6'6" | PF Chaska | 2022 State MN , #117 Kendall Karrmann Kendall Karrmann 6'1" | SF Chaska | 2022 State MN , #121 Zoe Cutler Zoe Cutler 6'0" | PF Chaska | 2022 State MN ; SOs –#4 Kennedy Sanders Kennedy Sanders 5'8" | CG Chaska | 2023 State MN , #18 Ashley Schuelke Ashley Schuelke 5'10" | SF Chaska | 2023 State MN , #41 Anna Lenzen Anna Lenzen 5'9" | CG Chaska | 2023 State MN

Hopkins 9-0

SRs #120 Audry Ensminger Audry Ensminger 5'7" | CG Hopkins | 2021 State MN ; JRs – #1 Maya Nnaji Maya Nnaji 6'4" | PF Hopkins | 2022 State #7 Nation MN , #3 Amaya Battle Amaya Battle 5'10" | PG Hopkins | 2022 State #29 Nation MN , #24 Alayna Contreras Alayna Contreras 5'7" | CG Hopkins | 2022 State MN , #47 Selam Maher Selam Maher 5'7" | CG St. Louis Park | 2022 State MN , #100 London Salberg-Thornton London Salberg-Thornton 5'11" | PF Maranatha | 2022 State MN ; SOs – #2 Taylor Woodson Taylor Woodson 6'0" | PF Hopkins | 2023 State #28 Nation MN , #3 Nunu Agara Nunu Agara 6'1" | PF Hopkins | 2023 State #32 Nation MN , #24 Kelly Boyle Kelly Boyle 5'7" | CG Hopkins | 2023 State MN ; FR – #2 Liv McGill Liv McGill 5'7" | CG Hopkins | 2024 State MN

Class AAA Becker 9-0

SRs – #21 Julia Bengtson Julia Bengtson 5'10" | PG Becker | 2021 State MN (Eastern Illinois), #51 Megan Gamble Megan Gamble 5'10" | SF Becker | 2021 State MN (Concordia-St. Paul), Courtney Nuest Courtney Nuest 5'8" | CG Becker | 2021 State MN (Bethel), #111 Alayna Lindquist Alayna Lindquist 5'8" | CG Becker | 2021 State MN (Northwestern St. Paul); JRs – #35 Adeline Kent Adeline Kent 5'8" | CG Becker | 2022 State MN (Tampa); SOs – #5 Maren Westin Maren Westin 5'8" | CG Becker | 2023 State MN , #35 Dani Nuest Dani Nuest 5'6" | CG Becker | 2023 State MN , #70 Ayla Brown Ayla Brown 5'6" | SG Becker | 2023 State MN

Marshall 9-0

SRs – #39 Jordyn Hilgemann Jordyn Hilgemann 5'10" | SF Marshall | 2021 State MN (Northern State), Emily Meier; JRs Megan Wegner Megan Wegner 5'7" | SG Marshall | 2022 State MN

Waconia 9-0

SRs – #26 Addy Salzer Addy Salzer 5'10" | CG Waconia | 2021 State MN (Iona),#100 Sydni Olson Sydni Olson 5'8" | SG Waconia | 2021 State MN , Dani Dykstra, Melissa Honnold, Allie Zimmer; JRs – #38 Audrey Swanson Audrey Swanson 5'11" | SF Waconia | 2022 State MN , #43 Ava Stier Ava Stier 5'10" | PF Waconia | 2022 State MN

Como Park 6-0

JRs – #20 Ronnie Porter Ronnie Porter 5'2" | CG Como Park | 2022 State MN , #19 Kaylynn Asberry Kaylynn Asberry 5'5" | PG Como Park | 2022 State MN , #59 Jada James Jada James 5'10" | PF Como Park | 2022 State MN , #63 Cloey Dmytruk Cloey Dmytruk 5'10" | PF Como Park | 2022 State MN , #119 Shakyla Walker Shakyla Walker 5'6" | SG Como Park | 2022 State MN ; SOs – #13 Shania Van Nett Shania Van Nett 5'7" | CG Como Park | 2023 State MN (injured)

Class AA Albany 10-0

SRs – #12 Paige Meyer Paige Meyer 5'6" | PG Albany | 2021 State MN (South Dakota State), Abbie Christen; JRs – #106 Madi Herkenhoff Madi Herkenhoff 6'0" | PF Albany | 2022 State MN

New London-Spicer 10-0

SRs – #148 Erin Knisley Erin Knisley 6'1" | C New London-Spicer | 2021 State MN , Ava Kraemer Ava Kraemer 5'10" | CG New London-Spicer | 2021 MN , Grace Deschepper, Emma Hanson, Mackenzie Rich

Sauk Centre 10-0

SRs – #76 Michaela Dammann Michaela Dammann 6'2" | C Sauk Centre | 2021 State MN (Jamestown), Haley Middendorf, Jackie Middendorf, Audrey Zenzen, Claire Neubert; JRs Maddie Nelson, Emma Kittelson; SOs #95 Jenna Gapinski-Vogt Jenna Gapinski-Vogt 6'0" | PF Sauk Centre | 2023 State MN

Providence Academy 9-0

SRs – Olivia Klammer; JRs – #70 Maria Counts Maria Counts 5'11" | PF Providence | 2022 State MN ; SOs – #40 Grace Counts Grace Counts 6'1" | PF Providence | 2023 State MN , #62 Kyra Miller Kyra Miller 5'9" | CG Providence | 2023 State MN (injured); FR – Brooke Hohenecker; 7th – Maddyn Greenway Maddyn Greenway 5'8" | PG Providence Academy | 2026 State MN

Stewartville 9-0

SRs – #122 Maia Peterson Maia Peterson 5'7" | PG Stewartville | 2021 State MN , Jolie Stecher, Raina Stecher; SOs – #73 Haylie Strum Haylie Strum 5'6" | CG Stewartville | 2023 State MN , #85 Keeley Steele Keeley Steele 5'8" | CG Stewartville | 2023 State MN

Esko 7-0

SRs – Brenna Stark; JRs – Sarah Wagemaker, Aila Gabel, Jayden Karppinen

Class A Fosston 10-0

SRs – Taylor Kroening, Jaime Carlin, Jenna Manecke, Kora Norland; SOs – Katelyn Vesledahl

Hancock 10-0

SRs – Alexis Staples; JRs – Carlee Hanson, Rylee Hanson, Tori Pahl

Sleepy Eye-St. Mary’s 10-0

SRs – Sophie Porter; Sydney Windschitl; JRs – #15 Madison Mathiowetz Madison Mathiowetz 5'10" | CG Sleepy Eye St. Mary's | 2022 State MN , Reagan Severson; SOs – Liz Schwint