AAU Week #3: Best of the Midwest Kickoff Classic
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We’re three weeks into the 2023 AAU season now. Week #1 with a warmup of sorts at the Suns Spring Showcase followed by the Prep Girls Hoops Circuit tournament in Milwaukee in Week #2. This past weekend, however, things got…
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Continue ReadingWe’re three weeks into the 2023 AAU season now. Week #1 with a warmup of sorts at the Suns Spring Showcase followed by the Prep Girls Hoops Circuit tournament in Milwaukee in Week #2. This past weekend, however, things got real at the Midwest Kickoff Classic in Bloomington where many of the most highly-rated prospects in Minnesota went at it tooth and nail. Some 21 of the Top 25 freshmen in the state played at Jefferson. There were 20 of the Top 25 sophomores there too, along with a plethora of state title contending teams. It was a veritable buffet of quality basketball.
Our major focus in these early weeks of the spring and summer campaign are the incoming freshmen – the Class of 2027. We saw a few good ones this weekend and we’ll have evaluations on some of the more intriguing 8th graders in the next day or two. We also focused on the highly-competitive 2026 squads including North Tartan, Minnesota Fury, Minnesota Stars Hill and Minnesota Rise Wright. We’ll take a look at those teams and their top prospects in the next day or two, as well. Let’s kick off our recap of AAU Week #3 with some 2024s and 2025s who stood out this weekend.
STOCK RISER OF THE WEEK
Mallory Czinano Mallory Czinano 6'0" | SF Watertown-Mayer | 2024 State MN – 2024 forward, Metro Stars Szabla
It’s never easy being the little sister. That’s especially true when your oldest sister just helped the University of Iowa to the Division 1 national championship game one week and was drafted into the WNBA the next. That would be Monika. Then there’s the next-oldest sister Maggie, who just happens to be a mainstay for the University of Minnesota. To be fair, we have never anticipated nor expected nor intimated that Mallory could possibly live up to the accomplishments of the other two. That’s just unfair. But we’ve also never seen her look as good as she did this weekend.
Mallory is part of the Metro Stars 2024 squad led by North Central University coach and former University of North Dakota star Leah Szabla. The Metro Stars went 3-0 at the Kickoff in the 11th Red Division, the highest grouping of teams to play the full tournament schedule. Czinano scored 35 points for her squad as they knocked off Crossfire Schuck, Southern Minnesota Fury, and Minnesota Fury Premier.
Built more like Monika than Maggie, Mallory stands about 6’1 with broad shoulders, a big body and a ton of strength. She’s quick for her size, though, and can get up and down the floor at pace with ease. Like her sisters, Mallory has a terrific set of hands, can finish around the rim consistently, and is a great passer with good vision. She is a high-IQ performer who has a nice feel for the game. Mallory led 18-9 Watertown-Mayer in scoring this year at about 11 points per game and reaches double digit rebounds with frequency.
Czinano is a great addition to Coach Szabla’s squad, but she’s not the only one. The Metro Stars have added a pair of elite sophomores in #21 Aneisha Scott Aneisha Scott 5'6" | PG DeLaSalle | 2025 State MN of DeLaSalle and #57 Lydia Schmitter Lydia Schmitter 5'8" | CG United Christian Academy | 2025 State MN of Eagan. Among the new juniors are #35 Nicole Maenke Nicole Maenke 5'10" | CG Shakopee | 2024 State MN (Shakopee), #44 Willow Thiel Willow Thiel 5'11" | PF Perham | 2024 State MN (Perham), #62 Mackenzi Simmons Mackenzi Simmons 6'0" | SG Winona | 2024 State MN (Winona), and #87 Amina Allen Amina Allen 5'8" | SG Minnehaha Academy | 2025 State MN (Minnehaha Academy). The veterans are #30 Drew Buslee Drew Buslee 5'9" | PG Eagan | 2024 State MN (Eagan), #47 Lilly Hahs Lilly Hahs 5'10" | SG Cretin-Derham Hall | 2024 State MN (Cretin-Derham Hall) and #105 Peyton Shaffer Peyton Shaffer 6'0" | SF Stillwater | 2024 MN (Stillwater). It is a formidable group.
TEAM TO WATCH
Minnesota Rise 2024 Purfeerst
While the Metro Stars 2024s were having success with a massively reworked roster, the best 2024s from the Rise showed up in Bloomington with the exact lineup that brought them so much success one year ago. Led by Bethany Lutheran coach Emma Purfeerst, the Rise 11th graders feature some strong D2 talent from across Southern Minnesota. Their two biggest names are a pair of Top 20 guards heading to the Northern Sun Conference one year from now: MSU-Mankato commit Rhyan Holmgren Rhyan Holmgren 5'9" | SG St. Peter | 2024 State MN of St. Peter and Southwest Minnesota State signee Kadence Hesse Kadence Hesse 5'10" | PG Sleepy Eye | 2024 State MN of Sleepy Eye. They are the offensive engine that drives the purple bus along with the highly-versatile, always energetic Top 50 twins Rachel Kottke Rachel Kottke 5'8" | CG Buffalo Lake-H-S | 2024 State MN and Kristi Kottke Kristi Kottke 5'8" | CG Buffalo Lake-H-S | 2024 State MN of Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart. All four were outstanding when we watched on Saturday and Sunday. Holmgren is a former North Tartan EYBL athlete who can score in bunches. Hesse is a savvy playmaker who can also fill up the basket.
The Rise beat Minnesota Starks by 10, fell to Minnesota Fury Premier by a bucket, and defeated Southern Minnesota Fury by 8. Hesse finished the tournament with 35 points; Holmgren had 32. They lead a well-oiled machine that includes bigs Abby Maloney Abby Maloney 6'1" | PF St. Peter | 2024 State MN of St. Peter and Brea Mertz Brea Mertz 5'10" | PF Sleepy Eye | 2024 State MN of Sleepy Eye, both in the Top 100 juniors. #55 Daviney Dreckman Daviney Dreckman 5'8" | CG New Ulm | 2024 State MN of New Ulm is a lengthy, athletic guard who wreaks havoc at both ends of the floor. Feisty guard Brooke Christianson Brooke Christianson 5'5" | CG Glencoe-Silver Lake | 2024 State MN of Glencoe-Silver Lake is an elite defender. Length and shooting prowess make Mankato East guard Ellie Edberg Ellie Edberg 5'9" | CG Mankato East | 2024 State MN an important piece of the puzzle. Watch for this team to make more noise all spring and summer.
2025s WHO GOT NOTICED
As mentioned above, many of the very best players in the Class of 2025 were on hand at the Midwest Kickoff Classic this weekend. Not surprisingly, most lived up to the status associated with their particular Prep Girls Hoops ranking. 2025 #3 Jordan Ode Jordan Ode 5'11" | CG Maple Grove | 2025 State MN of Fury 2025 UAA, for example averaged 15 points per game while her teammates #4 Addison Mack Addison Mack 5'9" | PG Minnehaha Academy | 2025 State MN and #12 Liana Buckhalton Liana Buckhalton 6'0" | CG Stillwater | 2025 State MN both drew praise. #6 Tori Schlagel Tori Schlagel 5'9" | CG Eden Prairie | 2025 State MN and #10 Hadley Thul Hadley Thul 6'2" | SG Alexandria | 2025 State MN of North Tartan were similarly successful. Beyond the top-end 2025s, who else stood out over the weekend?
Crossfire Mueller 2025 had a nice weekend playing in the top 10th Red Division winning twice and falling by three to the strong Fury 2026 UAA squad. We were impressed by the play of 28th-ranked Danielle Coleman Danielle Coleman 6'1" | SG Lakeville South | 2025 State MN of Lakeville South and #36 Elayna Boe Elayna Boe 6'0" | SG Lakeville North | 2025 State MN of Lakeville North, who combined for 78 points over three games. Boe’s high school teammates Gracie Winge Gracie Winge 5'10" | CG Lakeville North | 2025 State MN (#23) and Aduke Ojullu Aduke Ojullu 6'1" | SF Lakeville North | 2025 State MN (#43) were also very good along with rising prospect Josie Horner Josie Horner 5'9" | SG Prior Lake | 2025 State MN of Prior Lake.
Gabrielle Fineday Gabrielle Fineday 5'8" | SG Cass Lake-Bena | 2025 State MN of Cass Lake-Bena, the 49th-rated prospect in the 2025 class, made her debut with the Fury’s top UAA squad, knocking down eight triples over the three games. That particular skill is what got her a spot on a loaded roster that includes seven players in the Top 30, and she did not disappoint.
#61 Kendyl Lodermeier Kendyl Lodermeier 5'11" | CG Goodhue | 2025 State MN of Goodhue moved to Metro Stars 2025 3SSB this spring and she was a difference-maker this weekend with her rebounding and inside presence. Kendyl had an outstanding state high school tournament and was named Prep Girls Hoops Breakout Player of the Year. She joins a Metro Stars roster that includes Top 25 prospect Brooklynn Holmberg Brooklynn Holmberg 5'11" | SG Prior Lake | 2025 State MN of Prior Lake, #46 Brandi Washington Brandi Washington 5'5" | CG Fridley | 2025 State MN , #48 Vanessa Jordan Vanessa Jordan 5'7" | CG Eden Prairie | 2025 State MN of Eden Prairie, #54 Kate Kapsner Kate Kapsner 5'11" | SF Benilde-St. Margaret's | 2025 State MN of Benilde-St. Margaret’s and 2027 standout Ava Cupito Ava Cupito 5'10" | CG Hopkins | 2027 State MN of Minnehaha Academy.
Top 100 sophomore Lauren Hillesheim Lauren Hillesheim 5'10" | SG Hopkins | 2025 State MN of Hopkins was on fire this weekend for Legacy Hoops 10th Elite. Lauren put up 58 points in three games to lead the 10th White Division in points production, including a 23-point, 5-triple performance against Minnesota Stars Peterson. Stock riser Celia Lind Celia Lind 5'11" | SF Holy Angels | 2025 State MN of Holy Angels had 16 for the Stars.
Unranked Maya Meisinger of Legacy Hoops 10th Silver is a player who has impressed us a lot the last three times we have seen her. The Eagan sophomore lit it up this weekend with 47 points in three games to lead all scorers in the 10th Black Division.
Allie Zittel is a newcomer whose name surfaced for the second tournament in a row after a strong showing for Air Minnesota’s 17U squad, which went undefeated in three games. Zittel made 6 three-pointers in a 53-51 win over High Impact. Allie’s situation is a little unusual in that she lives in Altura, Minnesota but attends Luther High School in Onalaska, Wisconsin. We’ll put her in the Minnesota rankings if and when she earns that distinction.
One other 2025 athlete we should mention is Desirai Chappell Desirai Chappell 5'6" | PG Richfield | 2025 State MN of Richfield. The crafty guard, ranked #82 in the sophomore class, is now with Legacy Hoops 10th Gold playing for our colleague Tony Ragulen. Chappell recorded 36 points over the weekend to lead the 10th Blue Division in scoring, just ahead of Eden Prairie’s Ella Hardwick Ella Hardwick 5'8" | SG Eden Prairie | 2025 State MN of FBC Real Lark.
COMING UP
Week #4 cranks it up yet another notch as the first NCAA Division 1 live viewing period takes place across the country. With no major viewing event in Minnesota this time around, the shoe-circuit teams will be on the road in pursuit of influential D1 eyeballs. Other squads will be in Ames, Iowa for the All-Iowa Attack Spring Showcase. We’ll be hanging close to home where the 13th Annual Spring Showdown hosted by the Minnesota Fury is on tap with games at Bloomington Kennedy and Jefferson along with Eden Prairie. You’ll find the tournament schedule at aauevents.com/spring-showdown.