Previewing the top 10 at the Granite City Classic

Grant McGinnis December 23, 2024 @ 04:57 PM

Over the holiday season, there are all kinds of girls basketball tournaments to consider, from the three-team gatherings masquerading as tournaments to the big college events at places like Winona State and Southwest Minnesota State, to the long-standing high school happenings at Hill-Murray and elsewhere. And then there is the Breakdown Granite City Classic. Simply put, Granite City is the biggest and the best with the most talent and the best field. Nobody is 100% certain but we think this two-day showcase is the biggest high school tournament in the country.

The cherry on top is the primary site at the College of St. Benedict in St. Joseph, a wonderful college gym with a terrific atmosphere and the only location that features exclusively girl's games. That's where Ally McGinnis and I will be stationed for 12 hours each on Friday and Saturday hanging out with the Bennies basketball players who run the event while enjoying a courtside view of some of the best basketball in Minnesota.

TOP 10 TEAMS ON HAND

When considering the best basketball teams in the state regardless of class, has there ever been a Class 2A team at the top of the heap? It would be difficult at the moment to dispute the assertion that the Providence Academy juggernaut is the best unit in the state. Having already knocked off Iowa power Dowling Catholic, the #1 team in Minnesota's Class 4A in Maple Grove, along with two strong Class 4A schools in Eastview and Lakeville North, it would be tough to argue against the squad led by Kentucky commit Maddyn Greenway Maddyn Greenway 5'8" | PG Providence Academy | 2026 State MN .

In addition to a matchup with Chloe Johnson Chloe Johnson 6'0" | PG Duluth Marshall | 2028 State MN and Duluth Marshall, Providence will get an opportunity at Granite City to bolster their argument for overall supremacy when they meet London Harris London Harris 5'10" | CG Hopkins | 2025 State MN , Alivia Bell Alivia Bell 5'7" | PG Benilde-St. Margaret's | 2027 State MN , Lauren Hillesheim Lauren Hillesheim 5'11" | SG Hopkins | 2025 State MN and Class 4A #3 Hopkins on Friday night. Here are the top 10 teams that will be on hand this weekend:

Providence (9-0, Class 2A #1)

Maple Grove (7-1, Class 4A #1)

Hopkins (8-2, Class 4A #3)

Minnetonka (6-1, Class 4A #4)

Wayzata (6-2, Class 4A #5)

Alexandria (6-2, Class 3A #2)

Orono (8-1, Class 3A #4)

Prior Lake (6-2, Class 4A #7)

Crosby-Ironton (9-0, Class 2A #2)

Rock Ridge (7-1, Class 3A #10)

Other teams to see include Goodhue (7-0, Class A #1), Sauk Centre (7-0, Class 2A #5), Mountain Iron-Buhl (6-1, Class A #3) and Duluth Marshall (4-3, Class 2A #8)

10 BEST GAMES TO WATCH

With more than 40 girls games taking place over two days at seven locations around the St. Cloud area, it's not easy picking and choosing the 10 best. Go to breakdownusa.com or mngirlsbasketballhub.com to see the complete lineup of games set for St. Ben's, St. Cloud State, Sauk Rapids-Rice, Sartell-St. Stephen, St. John's University, St. Cloud Tech and St. Cloud Apollo. Here is our best 10 games to watch:

Friday, Dec. 27

12:00 p.m. – Rock Ridge vs Delano (at St. Ben's)

3:15 p.m. – Hancock vs Mountain Iron-Buhl (St. Cloud State)

4:30 p.m. – Orono vs Duluth Marshall (Sauk Rapids-Rice)

6:15 p.m. – Alexandria vs Lakeville North (St. Ben's)

8:00 p.m. – Hopkins vs Providence Academy (St. Ben's)

Saturday, Dec. 28

1:15 p.m. – Prior Lake vs Wayzata (St. Ben's)

2:45 p.m. – Goodhue vs Crosby-Ironton (St. Ben's)

4:30 p.m. – Rochester Mayo vs Minnetonka (St. Ben's)

6:00 p.m. – Duluth Marshall vs Providence Academy (St. Ben's)

7:30 p.m. – Maple Grove vs Hopkins (St. Ben's)

10 RISING STARS TO SEE

In addition to the well-established underclassmen – players like Chloe Johnson Chloe Johnson 6'0" | PG Duluth Marshall | 2028 State MN , Ari Peterson Ari Peterson 6'1" | SG Minnetonka | 2028 State MN , Sahara Wilson Sahara Wilson 6'3" | PF Lakeville North | 2028 State MN and Adele Changamire Adele Changamire 5'8" | CG Becker | 2028 State MN – there are plenty of rising stars to see at Granite City. Here are 10 more of the best youngsters you'll want to watch:

– freshman guard, Rochester Mayo

– freshman forward, Buffalo

– freshman guard, Rochester Mayo

– freshman guard, Orono

– freshman guard, Edina

– 8th grade guard, Becker

– 8th grade guard, Providence

Farrah Thomas – 8th grade guard, Mountain Iron-Buhl

– 8th grade guard, Edina

– 7th grade guard, Minnetonka

We'll have extensive coverage of the Granite City Classic early next week at prepgirlshoops.com. Over the weekend you can follow me on Twitter (@gmachoops) for updates and top performers. For the complete schedule and pertinent details visit breakdownsportsusa.com.