The West Central Area boys basketball team, who is ranked No. 9 in the Class A Minnesota Basketball News poll, won its home opener, 65-51 over Hillcrest Lutheran Academy on Saturday in Barrett.
“Coach Rogness has the Comets playing a high pressure full-court pressing style of basketball for 36 minutes,” WCA head coach Brian Kjesbo said. “Nothing comes easy when you play against Hillcrest, so we are thankful for the victory and our first win of the season. There were stretches in this one where our offensive continuity and ball movement improved, but we will need to continue to make strides in that area moving forward. Defensively, we defended the three-point line well and won the turnover and rebounding margin. Those will all be important factors as we navigate the season.”
Cash Nelson finished with 22 points, four rebounds, a steal, and an assist for the Knights.
Ben Bye had six points, 12 rebounds, three rebounds, and three assists. Isaac Allen contributed six points, a steal, and an assist.
Dajon Olson had eight points for the Knights. Sam Hanson had ten points, three steals, and four assists.
Marshall Dewey had six points for the Knights, while Owen Sanstead had four points, Gavin Backman had two points, and Jack Sabolik had one point.
WCA (1-1) hosts Melrose at 7:15 p.m. on Thursday, then plays at 7:15 p.m. on Friday at Brandon-Evansville.
Brandon-Evansville boys topple B-B-E in home opener
The Brandon-Evansville boys basketball team moved to 2-0 in this young season with a 68-51 win over Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa at its new gym in Brandon on Saturday.
“We played a nice game from start to finish,” Brandon-Evansville head coach Trent Hintermeister said. “Every player who stepped on the floor had a positive impact for our team. It was a fantastic environment and a fun day of basketball. I’m happy with our improvements from our first game to the second. We took better care of the ball and improved our defensive efforts. Next week is a huge test for us as we have a three-game week with all three games being against sub-section opponents.”
Micah Fuller had a double-double for B-E with 22 points and 11 rebounds. Bryce Froemming and Tanner Riedel had 12 points apiece for B-E.
B-E hits the road to face Hancock at 7:15 p.m. on Tuesday.
B-E INDIVIDUAL STATS – Micah Fuller – 22 points, 11 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 deflections, 2 steals; Bryce Froemming – 12 points, 2 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals; Tanner Riedel – 12 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 4 deflections, 6 steals; Kaleb Fugleseth – 1 deflection; Landon Sullivan – 1 rebound; Logan Haseman – 8 points, 5 rebounds, 1 deflection, 1 steal; Hudson Saxton – 2 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists, 2 deflections, 2 steals, 1 block; Colton Breitkreutz – 5 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 deflection; Royce Aasness – 1 deflection; Dustin Gillespie – 7 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 deflection, 3 steals
The Brandon-Evansville girls basketball team dropped to 0-3 on the season with a 59-50 loss to Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa Jaguars on Saturday.
Stats for this game aren’t yet available.
B-E hosts Hillcrest Lutheran Academy at 7:15 p.m. on Tuesday.
Redwood Valley handles Minnewaska boys
The Minnewaska boys basketball team was dealt its first loss of the season on Saturday, an 87-47 loss to No. 10 Redwood Valley (2-1, Class 2A).
“We didn’t play well, and if you aren’t on your game when you play against a team like Redwood Valley, it can get out of hand,” Minnewaska head coach Zach Traphagen said. “They have two incredibly gifted players who got hot, and we couldn’t do much to slow them down. It’s a tough loss, but we will learn from it and improve from it. We have a busy week at home with three games this next week and we’re looking forward to the opportunity of playing in front of our fans at home.”
Tristan O’Neil led Minnewaska’s offense with 14 points.
Minnewaska hosts New London-Spicer at 7:15 p.m. on Tuesday.
Redwood Valley – 48 39 – 87
Minnewaska – 31 16 – 47
REDWOOD VALLEY TEAM STATS – FIELD GOALS – 32/62; THREE-POINTERS – 14/31; FREE THROWS – 9/12; BLOCKS – 1; REBOUNDS – 32; DEFLECTIONS – 1; FOULS – 17; TURNOVERS – 16
MINNEWASKA TEAM STATS – FIELD GOALS – 16/43; THREE-POINTERS – 4/15; FREE THROWS – 11/23; ASSISTS – 9; BLOCKS – 1; REBOUNDS – 23; STEALS – 8; DEFLECTIONS – 3; FOULS – 13; TRUNOVERS – 24
MINNEWASKA INDIVIDUAL STATS – Tristan O’Neil – 14 points, 2 assists, 1 rebound, 1 steal, 2 deflections; Marc Gruber – 3 points, 2 assists, 6 rebounds; Carter Meyer – 2 points; Zachary Palmer – 2 points, 1 assist, 3 rebounds, 1 steal; Levi Johnson – 4 points, 1 assist, 2 rebounds, 1 steal; Luke Danielson – 3 points, 1 block, 2 rebounds, 1 steal; Connor Frey – 6 points, 1 assist, 1 rebound; Jacob Mrnak – 2 points, 1 rebound; Riley Week – 1 rebound; Drew Bleick – 1 point, 1 rebound; Tenzin Dahl – 8 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal; Kaiden Harvey – 1 assist, 1 rebound; Connor Erickson – 1 assist, 1 steal; Owen Meulebroeck – 1 point, 1 steal, 1 deflection; Oliver Van Der Hagen – 1 point, 2 rebounds
Alex girls get conference, section win over Willmar
The Alexandria girls basketball team improved to 4-1 on the year with a 77-59 win on the road over Willmar.
MaCee Linow led Alexandria’s offensive attack with 22 points, while Hadley Thul had 21. McKinley Hoelscher finished with 12 points, while Chloe Scholl had nine, Kate Hennessy had five, and Allie Haabala and Camree Miller had four.
Alexandria, ranked No. 3 in Class 3A, hosts Detroit Lakes at 7:15 p.m. on Tuesday.
Osakis girls earn a close win
The Osakis girls basketball team trailed by eight points with five minutes left in its game Pierz on Friday but found itself up by two points minutes with a couple of minutes left in the game.
Two free throws by Greta Faber with 33 seconds left sealed a 50-46 win for Osakis on Dec. 6, 2024.
“This was a fun win for the girls,” Osakis head coach Pat Kalpin said. “It was a hard-fought come-from-behind win versus a scrappy, quick Pierz team. It was great to see us come back to get this win on the road. The girls never gave up and showed a ton of resiliency to earn this win, Seeing them work together and stay focused, even when things weren’t going our way. A fun team win again. Individually all the girls contributed to this win.”
Taylor Dirkes led the Silverstreaks with 22 points while Jaelynn Petersen had 14.
Osakis (2-0) plays at 7:15 p.m. at Swanville on Friday.
