Breakdown Fall League: The best of week 2

The calm before the storm. That's kind of how it felt on Sunday at Minnetonka High School where we spent a few hours watching week 2 of the Breakdown Premier Fall League. The Premier League is a warmup of sorts, a two-week session featuring about two dozen teams looking to get the early jump on autumnal competition. The main Breakdown Fall League begins Oct. 16 with more than 200 teams scheduled to compete. We saw a handful of squads on Sunday, including Maple Grove's varsity and JV teams, Minnetonka's varsity, JV and 9th graders, and the varsity from East Ridge. Here are a few highlight performers from week 2.   RISING STAR   Harley Wock – 2025 guard, Minnetonka   We attended an open gym at Minnetonka a couple of weeks ago with some D1 college coaches and came away very impressed with Harley Wock (photo above), who has most definitely captured the attention of Brian Cosgriff and the new Skippers coaching staff. On Sunday we saw more of the same high-level performance from the 5'11 sophomore who has plenty of length, a ton of athleticism and a motor that will not quit. Harley came to elite basketball relatively late. Two years ago, folks tells us, she was pretty much a hustle player and that was it. Today her skills have come a long, long way.   Wock possesses quick feet and fast hands, plays with a ton of intensity and is willing to dive on the floor and do whatever else is necessary to get a piece of the action. She is an excellent offensive rebounder with substantial vertical leaping ability and a relentless approach to the task at hand. She's also a solid communicator who is very dialed in on defense. Wock has gradually been adding assets to her game. Her ball-handling has improved. Ditto for her shooting stroke and percentages, especially from mid-range where she excels. She is versatile, coachable and willing to do whatever is asked of her. Attitude? Ideal. Personality? Type A. Work ethic? Top-notch. Maturity? Way beyond her years. What we're seeing now from Wock is only the beginning. If she continues down the road she's currently travelling, we'd expect to see Harley playing college basketball on scholarship three years hence.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/10/Maggie-Jones-scaled-crop-2131x1400-1664841390.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-518344" width="400" height="263"/></figure>   FRESH FACE   Maggie Jones – 2023 guard, North St. Paul   When coach Patrick Leslie showed up at Breakdown Fall League one year ago we weren't sure what to expect from his North St. Paul squad. The Polars have had a rough ride in recent seasons with dwindling numbers and very limited success. Now, having posted double digit wins last winter, it's obvious that the Polars are trending in the right direction. The energy, enthusiasm and execution we've seen these past two weekends from Leslie's group has really been impressive. The talent pool is definitely growing. Case in point: Maggie Jones. Last year the 5'7 floor leader averaged about 9 points per game and showed flashes of potential. Coming off an AAU summer with E1T1, we saw first-hand evidence from Jones about the value of hard work and a commitment to getting better. “Maggie came in once the season finished and attacked every phase of our off-season program,” said Leslie. “She is such a skilled offensive player because she can score off the dribble, at the rim and she has elite range. What's impressed me the most is her dedication to improving her defense this year.”   That was obvious on Sunday. Jones was confident, handled the ball well, controlled tempo and executed effectively. She's quick, moves around the court with ease, is a very active defender and she can shoot it with a silky smooth release. I think what we're looking at here is a late bloomer, the type of talented athlete who could benefit from a year or two at the junior college level. After that there's no telling how good she might become. “We are so proud of Maggie,” Leslie said of Jones, who is one of the Polar captains. “We are excited to see her have a great senior season.”   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pgh/uploads/2022/10/Ella-Wolff.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-518355" width="468" height="351"/></figure>   SENIOR TO SEE   [player_tooltip player_id='220826' first='Ella' last='Wolff'] – 2023 forward, Minnetonka   We've been watching [player_tooltip player_id='220826' first='Ella' last='Wolff'] for a long time, primarily with Minnesota Fury 2023 Premier. Now entering her senior season, what we saw on Sunday from Wolff looked like all those years of incremental improvement are starting to pay off. Nearly 6'2 in basketball shoes, Wolff has the kind of height and length college coaches covet. Her footwork has improved a ton and she knows how to execute solid finishes in the low post. Her touch around the basket is better, as well. Ella is a savvy defender who uses her length to make life difficult for the majority of opponents, and she's not shy about getting physical in the paint. Although she does the vast majority of her scoring at the rim, Wolff does have range out to about 15 feet. We'd love to see her take more shots because her potential as a stretch four at the collegiate level is pretty good. It's obvious when you watch that Ella is a great teammate. This should be the year she gets significant varsity minutes. Wolff certainly looked like she deserved that on Sunday at Fall League.

The calm before the storm. That's kind of how it felt on Sunday at Minnetonka High School where we spent a few hours watching week 2 of the Breakdown Premier Fall League. The Premier League is a warmup of sorts, a two-week session featuring about two dozen teams looking to get the early jump on autumnal competition. The main Breakdown Fall League begins Oct. 16 with more than 200 teams scheduled to compete. We saw a handful of squads on Sunday, including Maple Grove's varsity and JV teams, Minnetonka's varsity, JV and 9th graders, and the varsity from East Ridge. Here are a few highlight performers from week 2.