The Week That Was #4: 3333333+3333333+3333333

Despite their best efforts, all the Woodbury Royals could do was watch and wonder on Friday night as they were on the wrong end of one of the finest displays of three-point shooting in Minnesota girls basketball history. The Royals fell to Roseville by a score of 93-36, a game in which the Raiders made 21 three-point baskets – that's right, 21 threes – just two shy of the state record. Led by 8 triples from senior [player_tooltip player_id='108324' first='Drew' last='Johnston'], and a triple-double by junior [player_tooltip player_id='215968' first='Kendall' last='Barnes'], the Raiders produced a remarkable stat line. Let's start there in our recap of The Week That Was #4 of the Minnesota girls high school basketball season.   “It was something to see,” said Woodbury coach Bryan Doughty. “I can't remember who it was (note: it was Sara Grosse) but she banked in a three at the buzzer to end the half with one of our players right in her face and me right behind her. All I could do was flip my marker in the air and say it was going to be a long night.” That shot put the Royals down by 31 at the break and Roseville just kept on rolling. “You never want to see it against you but I'm happy for their kids,” Doughty said. “They were having a good time enjoying a moment they may never see again.”   Johnston, a Top 30 senior committed to the University of Minnesota-Duluth, went 8-for-14 from three-point range in a 27-point performance. That broke a school record for triples in a single game that she had tied a couple of times before, most recently on Thanksgiving weekend. Ironically, Johnston did it again on Saturday night with 8 more threes and 30 points against Spring Lake Park. Drew has always been a quality shooter, and she is definitely making the most of her opportunities. “It's challenging to get shots sometimes but I just need to do my work early, be ready to shoot the ball and have my feet set,” she said. “I think I'm getting a good amount of attempts this year. I just need to take advantage of them and knock down the shots when I have the opportunity.”   As much as Drew enjoyed watching her own shots fall, it was the onslaught by the entire team that was really a site to behold. “It was an awesome feeling,” she said. “Our made shots were contagious and everyone on the team shot the ball with confidence. The energy in the gym from our bench also contributed to making it a lot of fun, as well.”   8th grader Analaya Salanoa went 5-for-8 from three for 15 points for coach Tanysha Scott's Raiders. Senior Sara Grosse was 2-for-5 beyond the arc and had 13 points. 9th grader Maddie Sundburg made both of her three-point attempts for 6 points. And then there was Barnes who was 4-of-8 from beyond the arc, 9-of-15 overall and had 13 rebounds and 11 assists. What a night! “Kendall has been so good this year,” Johnston said. “She attacks the basket so well and gets herself to the free throw line. She is able to draw defenders in giving shooters an open look. Her presence on the floor is so important and has a big impact on our team's success.”   As we said at the beginning, however, Roseville's outstanding display is officially the second-best total of all-time, a number that was also accomplished by Stillwater in 2019 against North St. Paul. The record of 23 was set in 2014 by Waconia, one of the most potent offensive squads of all time. The Wildcats set the standard in a win over Glencoe-Silver Lake, needing an overtime period and 65 attempts (35%) to get the job done. The Raiders, on the other hand, made 21 threes on just 42 shots (50%).   Those Waconia teams were a ton of fun to watch. Led by standout point guard Anna Schmidt, who went on to have an excellent college career at Concordia-St. Paul, the Wildcats were the ultimate run-and-gun squadron. They got up and down the floor at record speed with possessions that rarely lasted more than 10 seconds. That year Waconia topped the 90-point mark 18 times, including seven games of over 100 points. Almost unbelievably, eight of those 18 ended up in losses, including a game in which they scored 104 points. The Wildcats were coached by Carl Pierson, one of the all-time greats and author of the acclaimed book, The Other Side of Glory.   BEST OF THE CLASS 4 UNDEFEATEDS   Last week we brought you the story of Lakeville South's best start ever. (You can <a href="https://prepgirlshoops.com/2022/12/undefeated-lakeville-south-is-off-to-its-best-start/">read it here</a>.) On Friday night the Cougars extended their record to 7-0 with a win over Burnsville. Top-ranked Hopkins also remains undefeated at 6-0 after knocking off East Ridge on Saturday. And then there is St. Michael-Albertville. Not only did the Knights stretch their totals to 5-0 with a 97-70 win over Chaska, they did it behind a 51-point performance from 2023 #1 [player_tooltip player_id='108299' first='Tessa' last='Johnson'].   Tessa produced a remarkable stat line herself, going 18-for-32 from the field, including 9-of-15 from three-point range, and was 6-for-7 at the free throw line. Throw in 8 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals and you have a pretty solid performance wouldn't you say? The South Carolina commit has made it obvious over the opening month of the season that she is deserving of the many accolades and opportunities that have come her way. She's averaging just under 27 points per game, shooting over 50% from both two- and three-point range, and 74% at the line. Who knows what she will do next.   Tessa wasn't the only Knight to have a big week. Sophomore post [player_tooltip player_id='330743' first='Abby' last='Hoselton'], who moved into the Top 10 recently in the Prep Girls Hoops Class of 2025 prospect rankings, put up a career-high 30 points in STMA's win over Osseo earlier in the week. With South Carolina coach Dawn Staley looking on, Abby shot 13-for-16 from the field and had 3 rebounds and 3 steals.   Rosemount is rolling at 5-0   On Thursday we watched the Irish defeat Two Rivers, the former Henry Sibley High School from Mendota Heights in a solid performance that looked similar to what we have seen from Rosemount so far. Last week we told you about the vast improvement by junior guard [player_tooltip player_id='339142' first='Avery' last='Moeller']. This week we're here to say that point guard [player_tooltip player_id='304920' first='Ava' last='Thompson'] has been absolutely instrumental in Rosemount's success. Against Eagan earlier in the week Ava put up 31 points to lead her team to a 65-53 victory. She made 5 three-point baskets, had 6 rebounds and 4 steals. Of course Thompson's game has never been defined by point production. She is a terrific facilitator who knows how to efficiently and effectively direct an offense at the highest level. She's also a fierce defender who makes life difficult for opposing ball-handlers all night long.   OTHER STANDOUT PERFORMANCES   On Thursday we watched Tartan High School score an impressive come-from-behind victory over St. Paul Central. When we tuned in, the Titans were already in trouble as senior [player_tooltip player_id='474510' first='Anna' last='Rynkiewich'] (Hamline) helped stake the Minutemen to a double-digit lead. The second half was completely different as freshman [player_tooltip player_id='351665' first='Vienna' last='Murray'] and 8th grader [player_tooltip player_id='533847' first='Mia' last='Hernandez'] took over the proceedings, first by playing some high pressure defense to force a ton of turnovers and then by filling up the basket. Murray finished with 40 points on the night while Hernandez had 15 and the Titans went home with a 73-61 victory in a fun, physical contest.   Other top performances included…   <ul> <li>On Monday sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='396431' first='Gabby' last='Fineday'] of Cass Lake-Bena scored 38 points against Fertile-Beltrami, going 13-for-19 from the field, 4-for-8 from three, and 8-of-8 at the free throw line. On Friday Fineday was even better as she nailed 7 three-pointers and scored 47 points in CLB's win over their rivals from Red Lake Nation. Next week you might be reading about her reaching the 1,000-point mark because she's really close.</li>   <li>[player_tooltip player_id='178277' first='Jordan' last='Zubich'] had a couple more gigantic outings last week for Mountain Iron-Buhl, scoring 39 points in a win over South Ridge and 37 against Menagha, a game in which she went 7-for-12 from three. [player_tooltip player_id='352774' first='Sage' last='Ganyo'] had a double-double with 21 points and 10 assists. We'll see the Rangers again live at the Breakdown Granite City Classic Dec. 29-30 in the St. Cloud area. One of their opponents will be Crosby-Ironton, who scored a 77-68 win this week over Wadena-Deer Creek thanks to a 39-point, 22-rebound, 9-assist performance from freshman [player_tooltip player_id='205310' first='Tori' last='Oehrlein'].</li>   <li>On Tuesday [player_tooltip player_id='392470' first='Kristen' last='Watson'] of Hayfield put on an aerial show of her own, making 8 threes and scoring 38 points in a win over Houston. That reminds us that we forgot a standout performance a couple of weeks back from Maddie Schlicht of Maple Lake. The junior guard had a 34-point performance while breaking her own school record for treys in a game with 7.</li>   <li>On Saturday junior [player_tooltip player_id='302304' first='Mackenzi' last='Simmons'] of Winona made 7 three-pointers against Mankato East. Simmons played last season at Maranatha Christian Academy in Brooklyn Park but has returned home to Winona this winter. The lengthy guard is a Top 60 prospect in the Prep Girls Hoops Class of 2024.</li> </ul>   <ul></ul>

Despite their best efforts, all the Woodbury Royals could do was watch and wonder on Friday night as they were on the wrong end of one of the finest displays of three-point shooting in Minnesota girls basketball history. The Royals fell to Roseville by a score of 93-36, a game in which the Raiders made 21 three-point baskets – that's right, 21 threes – just two shy of the state record. Led by 8 triples from senior Drew Johnston Drew Johnston 5'9" | PG Roseville | 2023 State MN , and a triple-double by junior Kendall Barnes Kendall Barnes 5'7" | CG Roseville | 2024 State MN , the Raiders produced a remarkable stat line. Let's start there in our recap of The Week That Was #4 of the Minnesota girls high school basketball season.