Maybe time to rethink the "MACA" name

Chokio-Alberta was the "Spartans!" Always remember. 

 

We are fresh from the section basketball phase of the high school post-season. So invigorating of course. Therapeutic, you might say. 

I awoke to fog this morning (Thursday). Another day for a funeral for yours truly. It's Chris Juergensen for whom I'll say "rest in peace" today. Guy was quite close to local athletics. Supported the UMM Cougars for sure. 

On the high school front, isn't it maybe time to consider simplification of our sports identity? I mean, to shift away from the cumbersome "Morris Area Chokio Alberta?" Any hyphens or slash marks recommended in there? Is there a standard form? "MACA" is the short version. The West Central Tribune has never bought the shortened version. It sure has not been effectual that I have directed messages to them in my blogging.

 I mean no disrespect to Chokio-Alberta here but maybe it's time to remove that reference. Oh, I know there are reasons behind the terminology as it now stands. Should I say "nomenclature?" You see, "Morris Area" has a history by itself. We used the "MAHS" reference for a long time. 

Yes there is logic or reason behind the "MACA" thing. Chokio-Alberta continues to have its own school in Chokio up through the 12th grade. So it's essential to make a gesture toward them? I fail to see what is really being accomplished. It is well understood that schools in towns as large as Morris in rural MN aren't just "local." When you hear "Morris" you can assume there's an umbrella that takes in not only "Motown" but Cyrus and Donnelly in addition to Chokio and Alberta. 

Do we really have to get caught up in all these town names? Do the very small towns really want to clutch their "town identity" so much? In a past time maybe yes, to an extent. Those were the days when "mom and pop" businesses prevailed on your typical main street. The local bank president waved the flag of community. Today the banks are headed by "managers" who answer to higher-ups heaven-knows-where. And isn't it almost funny how the banks in our Motown are changing hands so often? Such a fluid world in our digital age. 

In a past time you had special status in your town if your family was established there a long time, like decades. Think "Peyton Place." Think of the local cemetery where names on stones are reminders of old iconic people. That had its charms. But it might be tough for newcomers or people just passing through. 

Remember the scene in the movie "Hoosiers" where a referee berates the Hackman character who was trying to protest a call? The ref said "you haven't been around here long enough." (That was just before a fight scene, if I may jog your memory.) IMHO the movie scene illustrates perfectly the point I seek to make. 

So, in those past times it made perfect sense for very small towns to be, well, parochial to the extent that they guarded "town identity." 

Our Morris school system once went by "Morris-Donnelly." But I was eventually elucidated how this was never "legal." Rather, the name was just a "gentleman's agreement," I was told by an insider. Gentleman's agreements don't fly so well today. So long to "Peyton Place" I guess. For the better? Well in some ways. 

I have read that people are drifting away from traditional funerals and burials because "we live in a more mobile society today," i.e. people "come and go" and there is no handicap associated with this. 

Maybe if Chokio and Alberta sought real meaningful commercial activity, well the identity would mean more. As it stands I don't think it should matter. 

Maybe the West Central Tribune avoids our sports teams these days because they are befuddled by "Morris Area Chokio Alberta." It's no excuse but at least I can understand it some. I have some prejudice about that paper's owners. Just think of a word that Donald Trump uses for people he does not like. I'm too civilized to want to type such a word here. But that's how I'd describe the newspaper outfit in Willmar. 

The WC Trib dropped us. But they report on games all the time where the Tigers are competing. I mean all the time. Mostly they put "stats not available" for MACA while the opponent gets the full meal deal. All I can do is comment about that. But I think it's time for our sports teams to simply be known as "Morris" again. 

No offense to C-A where I devoted lots of attention as a sportswriter once. Worked with Neal Hofland, Paul Daly, Jill Willis and others. The C-A Spartans! I remember getting on the motorcoach bus at an ungodly early hour at the Old Lumber Yard to make the trip to the Metrodome for Prep Bowl. Glory days of the Spartans! 

But hey, we can be the "Morris Tigers" again. Just like when our basketball team made the state tournament in the one-class system in 1955! Forget that the Tigers did poorly in state, it was phenomenal getting there!

KLQP Radio posted this photo of Star Tribune columnist Patrick Reusse with notable Morris alum Bart Hill. Photo was taken when the MACA Tigers played for the Section 3AA title at Southwest State University. Bart had a tremendous baseball coaching career at Lac qui Parle Valley. I remember covering him in his MAHS athletic career. This photo was provided by Paul Raymo of KLQP. Thanks to Del Sarlette for making me aware of the photo. 

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com 

Government attempts to seize media

It is getting increasingly hard for me to wrap my arms around the American persona of 2026. Of course this goes back a few years. It really did not develop slowly. Once DJT got on the national stage as a political hopeful, you might say the dominoes started falling. 

The big city people were not so quick to get on board. The big cities continue to be a bastion against what is happening. Certainly the incidents connected to ICE in the Twin cities reflected that. 

The people aligned with Trump push back by essentially condemning the big cities. Full of sin I guess. While the people out where you can hear the coyotes howl - that's us in Morris - are to be made exemplary. Jason Aldean had a hit song, remember? Did Aldean grow up in a small town? Does he live in one now? Did he write the song? "No" on all three. 

The rural areas of the U.S. have out-sized power in selecting the president. The electoral college accomplishes that. Look at the mojo of voters in Wyoming compared to California. Isn't this prima facie unacceptable? 

 

The Electoral College acted as a mechanism during the Reconstruction era (1865–1877) that allowed Southern states to bolster their political power while disenfranchising Black citizens, reinforcing white supremacy. 

 

Well, Lindsey Graham is happy.

To compound, we have stereotypes of the progressive blue state people pushed by the ruling regime. Of course stereotypes are always dicey. They can surely be useful for people in power. Stereotypes can at least be based on some facts. 

But right at the present, on this cold mid-March day, we learn through open reporting that DJT and his people want to intimidate and literally control the news media. It would be fair to ask "Well, what exactly is the news media today?" 

Oh my God it is stupefying to realize the night-and-day difference in the media between now and yesteryear. Let's suggest the time for when my boomer generation was growing up. In that "yesteryear" the network TV news had such tremendous reach. And at the time, this was a tremendous blessing. Because, "left and right" in America's political sensibilities was a more even proposition. My, you had people filing into our Christian churches here on the prairie who were unabashedly Democrat. 

Spiro Agnew

Most importantly, the media developed sharp skepticism about the Vietnam war after initially being used by the government. Voices rose up within the media. It sought truth as the media always should. And it was unfazed even with then-president Richard Nixon or his sideman Spiro Agnew expressing rage. 

Of course Nixon ended up getting totally hung out to dry. He was judged fairly. He was allowed to resign from office. Something like 60,000 young American men had been killed in Vietnam. We lost the war so badly, servicemen were told not to wear their uniforms on the way home. Welcoming ceremonies were not awaiting them, not like when our National Guard in Morris came back from Iraq. 

For a time, Trump assailed Liz Cheney as a war monger. Now it is DJT issuing the drumbeat of war as much as anyone has. Some within MAGA did back off some from support. But this never lasts! It never lasts! Could a psychologist please explain this to me? 

On Easter our local Christians will gather at their church buildings to celebrate the risen Savior. Mostly these people support DJT and voted for him all three times. Is the percentage close to 100 percent? Is it 100 percent on the nose? It may not be in the ELCA churches. But that once very dominant faction of local Christians has been totally sent on its heels. Spasms of decline. Mainstream Protestant churches of the Midwest have actually all been feeling this. 

But look at our First Lutheran Church in Morris. It would be best now if it just dissolves. Get it over with. And to think how prosperous that church once was. The bleeding started in 2009 and it was rapid. 

The "conservative" churches of our area are reflexively pro-Trump. Again, I would like to have a psychologist explain. 

The headlines right now are totally up-front in telling us that DJT wants control of the media. And we don't care. Well, network TV news sure looks like it could be on the verge of extinction or irrelevance. Trump's FCC chair is threatening the old TV networks. I mean overtly. And he would not be doing this if he felt the public pushback would be significant. Brendan Carr has threatened to revoke broadcast licenses over news coverage of the U.S.-Iran war. He called media organizations "corrupt and highly unpatriotic." 

I thought patriotism meant the cause of ensuring free speech and unfettered discussion. We cannot count on the Supreme Court to hold the line on our home base values. So many of the people I observe around our Morris simply want the values as set down by DJT who I happen to view as a very flawed and dangerous human being. 

People should dismiss their political thoughts when they go to church on Easter Sunday. Such an ideal. But I see no sign of it. 

In the '60s it was John Wayne, today it's Donald Trump. So we apparently are forgetting the lessons of Vietnam. Barack Obama dealt with Iran with the "Iran nuclear deal." But DJT had to trash that because it was Obama getting credit, just like DJT had to deface the Kennedy Center by having his name put alongside JFK's. 

And the public has not risen up to just totally reject this? To say it is an abomination? To suggest impeachment? And why would impeachment be such a terrible thing? Why? Years have gone by as we have dealt with the dysfunction. 

 

Matt Drudge

Look to Drudge 

Getting back to the subject of media evolution, we can be thankful today for "independent media" such as the Drudge Report. Maybe Drudge and like entities could have gotten the U.S. out of Vietnam faster. Eventually the TV networks took charge with reporting that promoted skepticism, lest the daily numbers of U.S. servicemen killed weren't doing the job. 

So Morley Safer who you all associate with "60 Minutes" gave us the "Zippo lighter" story for Vietnam. Morley held up a simple Zippo lighter and suggested we be amazed how such a simple little device could be used to burn down an entire Vietnamese village. 

And today, look at what a simple Tomahawk missile can do to instantly destroy a girls school in Iran. But with that many killed, I guess it's just a "statistic." Ah, one death is a tragedy, several hundred is a "statistic." 

Will we repeat the mistakes of Vietnam? Well, first we will have to start sensing a wave of anger and skepticism about DJT. And I'm not seeing it yet here around Morris MN. Where the coyotes howl. And we'll never see it from our congressperson Michelle Fischbach, mercy. 

I will celebrate Easter with a chocolate bunny. I am not a sadist so I want nothing to do with "Good Friday." 

Maybe the best way to deal with Easter is to go to YouTube and call up the closing scene from the Monty Python movie "Life of Brian." I say this as a "Brian" myself.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com 

Jackson County turns back our historic Tigers

JCC celebrates (KKOJ)

Say it isn't so: the BBB Tigers losing. Well that's a fact. I opened laptop early this morning and noticed immediately that the MACA won-lost was 28-1. That said it all. One loss at the section level and you're out. Can it be? The Tigers had the "zero" under losses all the way through the season. Until last night (Thursday). 

We're singing the blues in Motown. Added to that is the melancholy caused by the absolutely roaring wind all night long. Roaring! Another morning to notice garbage containers blown over around town. And the signs of spring are slow in surfacing. Everything is still brown. Patches of dirty snow, black in some places. I've never seen so much black dirt mixed in with melting snow. 

Really, the conditions right now are inferior to what we see in the heart of winter. But this is Minnesota, be prepared for anything. 

The St. Mary's fish fry is a sign that spring must be nigh. So is a letter in the mailbox from your tax preparer. We will all have to pay for this new war with Iran. A tomahawk missile struck a girls school there, killed so many. Is all of this with cause for us? Didn't Obama negotiate the Iran nuclear deal? Which the current president pulled us out of? And why did he do that? It was because it happened under Obama. 

Trump wants to take credit for everything just like he wanted to put his name on the Kennedy Center. His is the only name that matters. You haven't woken up to that yet? Well, Morris is well-ensconced in bright red Trump country. 

Watch the Trump-supporting churches like Good Shepherd fill up for the services leading up to Easter. Watch the reverence on Good Friday when I suppose our Morris Public Library will be closed again. I have complained about that. Good Friday is a totally religious holiday and one that I find disturbing. So many Christians become ghouls as they hang out to dry this grisly death-by-torture story of Jesus Christ. And then, presto: on Easter Sunday he appears with triumph. Triumph over sin, as they say. 

I still find it hard to accept the very dark atmosphere of Good Friday, made worse by the Mel Gibson movie. I'm not even convinced that Jesus Christ was a real person. He may have been a composite. He may have been a product of mythology. He may have been put forward by a political regime which felt the Christ story would further its ends, and I can't even fault them for that. The Christ story has a lot of benevolence and peace in it. Don't wallow in your problems or grievances, just look to Christ for salvation, the triumph over sin. 

Those are worthy aims. But I can completely put aside the "triumph" represented by Christ and instead feel sorrow about what Donald Trump and his minions are doing overseas. And, about how all that will spill over domestically for us. For sure another wave of inflation to make life even more stressful for us. We had enough stress already. 

But we voted this guy Trump into office twice. He almost won in 2020. We can only cross our fingers at present. But why have we chosen to bring all this risk on ourselves? Don't we realize how fragile the world is, and even our own country? Trump has an addiction to being the center of attention. Like we need him to do drastic things every day. Literally every day. 

Oh, to have the peace and wisdom with Obama again. But it is not the course we have chosen. 

On this Friday after our MACA Tigers' loss to Jackson County Central, I can only mourn the deaths of those poor girls in the girls school in Iran. Destroyed in a missile attack due to tax dollars paid by us all. Everything else pales in comparison to that incident. 

Triumphant Huskies (KKOJ)

But for the record, the MACA boys were defeated by JCC Thursday night, late at night actually, by a score of 59-54. So the JCC boys from southern Minnesota take the 3AA title and will now play in state. MACA fans will not have to make the substantial commitment of time and money to make three trips to the Twin Cities. Back to normal life. But they'd sure enjoy being in the opposite position. 

I covered the MAHS Tigers in the  state tournament back in the day. Minnesota had the two-class system back then. We took second in state. I covered the boys in their section games at the Concordia Fieldhouse. Every time I mention that, I have to remind how I loved the Polish sausage at that place! 

On Thursday night the JCC Huskies never trailed. JCC coach Alex Hein was proud of his team's defense which made "nothing easy" for our Tigers. 

I was not completely surprised by the outcome. I did some writing on JCC going into Thursday. They have weapons. Like, Roman Voss who scored 27 points on Thursday. Game site was SSU of Marshall. Yes, this meant a long drive home for MACA fans. 

Voss scored 17 points in the first half. He made a '3' at the first half buzzer. Not only was this a "statement" basket, it gave Voss a new school record for 3-pointers. 

Blaise Rowe scored 12 points on four of five shooting. His baskets were all 3's. Ben Gallagher provided six assists and scored three points. Weston Rowe had nine points, five rebounds. Sullivan Hall and Carter Buhl each scored four. Hall blocked two shots. 

Yes the Tigers were hot all season but look at JCC now: winners in 17 of their last 18 games. We do wish them well, don't we? 

I might suggest that y'all contact our congressperson but I fear it is too late for that. Besides, she is 100 per cent MAGA with her eyes glazed over. Will God rescue us? Will God rescue the world? 

The kmrs website has a short paragraph of information. So we see that Alex Asmus scored 17 points. Jonah Huebner had ten points, seven rebounds, five steals. Jack Kehoe had ten points and seven rebounds.

 

A real surprise 

Hey! It's almost never worth the trouble to check the Stevens County Times website because it does not prioritize timely info. So why bother checking? But hey, I just did, and would you believe that on this Friday morning there's actually an article there on the JCC game? Written by their sports guy? Many people won't see it because they won't bother checking. 

So is this an aberration? If I had known it was going to be there, I might have checked for it right away. It's hard for me to interpret all that is going on. "Mongo just pawn in game of life."

  

Congratulations to the Jackson County Central Huskies, No. 1 in Section 3AA. (KKOJ)

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com 

MACA set for challenge vs. Jackson County

MACA boys basketball heads into mid-March not only still standing but undefeated! Now we're looking at a Thursday game against Jackson County Central to determine the section champion. Will the Tigers carry the 3AA banner into state? I for one feel confident. 

Three games are history in the section tournament. We took care of ACGC at the home gym on Feb. 27. Next it was New London-Spicer as the opponent and we handled business pretty easily. We beat the Wildcats 69-37 at the Willmar "Big Red" gym. 

On to Southwest State! That is where the climactic section games are played. The score was 74-44 as it was really "no contest" against Minnewaska Area. 

One game remains for the Tigers at the "R/A Facility" of SSU. On Thursday we'll play the Huskies of Jackson County Central. Unfortunately the game's starting time is late for the folks who drive home to Morris. It's 8 p.m. Everyone had better make sure to be well-rested beforehand. 

I'm always reminded of the years when lots of important post-season games were here at UMM. Memories drifting away. 

Rich memories are certainly being formed with the ascent of this year's Tigers. Incredible how the Tigers have gone through an undefeated season! The numbers stand at 28-0 now. Next we'll be facing an opponent that has a 24-6 mark. Most of you would know that Jackson County Central is located down south. The JCC Huskies sport a 24-6 record. 

Might the Tigers be considered a strong favorite if not prohibitive? If our coach Torgerson is typical he'd discourage such talk. 

Jackson County Central lost its final game of the regular season to Belle Plaine, 90-83. They went on to defeat Pipestone Area in round 1 of the post-season. Score of 62-48. 

The JCC "Huskies"

Next the Huskies took on Fairmont and prevailed 70-52. And then it was Montevideo that took the court to challenge the Huskies. Huskies came on strong to win 77-63. 

The story of the 3AA title game is yet to be written. 

JCC faced Montevideo in last year's section title game. Monte scored the final eight points in the last minute. This pushed the Thunder Hawks to an advantage of one point and the victory. 

Fast-forward to the present: JCC appeared on the ropes for a time in this re-match of the two squads. They were down 30-19 late in the first half. It was rally-time as they had a ten-point run. It's anybody's ballgame now. 

The Thunder Hawks righted their ship to score the last four points of the half. They extended their momentum to score the first five of the second half. JCC looked to be in trouble again, down 39-29. 

Roman Voss of the Huskies put on his cape, as it were, and went on a scoring binge. The binge totally got JCC back in the game. a deficit of a mere one point. Lots of suspense and back-and-forth in this game. MACA coach Torgerson will surely know that you can't get complacent facing the Huskies. 

Voss executed a three-point play and fellow Husky Sullivan Hall made a basket. Now the Huskies had their first lead since an early 15-14 advantage. 

Monte had the moxie to keep challenging hard. Monte achieved a 54-50 lead.  The back and forth nature of the game then vanished as JCC ruled. My, the Huskies ruled with a 27-9 run the rest of he way! A string of eight straight points really made a statement for JCC. Voss accounted for four of these, Hall for the other four. 

The scoreboard showed 58-54. Monte scored a basket. Then Weston Rowe sank a '3' for JCC. Voss made a basket and the score became 63-56, JCC looking good with the advantage. Blaise Rowe made a '3' to further stoke JCC's fortunes. This dramatic long-ranger was the start of a 14-2 run. It was over. 

The stat sheet shows Voss in a prominent role with 33 points, 22 of them in the second half. Voss also contributed six rebounds, five assists and three steals. Winston Rowe finished with 19 points, 12 of them in the first half. Hall scored his game total six points in the second half. Blaise Rowe had nine points, four rebounds. 

Ben Gallagher had three points but was probably more important with the defense he played on Monte's Griffin Epema. Standout Epema was held to ten points. Let's acknowledge the bench as Carter Buhl came through with six points. 

Please note: the Huskies have won 16 of their 17 games since a regular season setback vs. Montevideo. 

We're all set here in Motown to watch the Asmus boys and their confident mates take on the dangerous Huskies of Jackson County Central, Thursday at 8 p.m. Get your rest beforehand, guys.

Quite the milestone for Alex Asmus and the Tigers. A thousand career points for Alex, an undefeated record for the Tigers.
 

- Brian Williams - bwilly73@yahoo.com 

Tigers will now seek 3AA crown

Tigers 74, 'Waska 44

MACA fans are in a four-day rest now until the curtain opens again for post-season play. Each step takes us to a higher level. Each new level brings increased interest like from the media. 

Confidence was high for MACA success going into the game of this past weekend. It was another of those games at the place called the R/A Facility. It's in Marshall of course. On the Southwest State campus. Lots of high-level section competition has taken place there through the years. And it's going to happen again on Thursday. What's at stake now is the 3AA title. 

On Saturday the Tigers turned back the Minnewaska Lakers by a comfortable margin. Thus they achieved No. 1 in 3AA-North. I have to concentrate hard on the terminology sometimes. The subsection title games could just as easily be called the section semis. But we'll go with how the High School League describes things. The Tigers defeated our friends to the east Minnewaska Area 74-44. 

A very nice thing about this game was that it was played in the afternoon. A fun day with no suspense for the MACA faithful to deal with. Just watch the orange and black do their thing with an emphasis on defense, it would appear. 

How much suspense will present itself on Thursday? It gets hard to figure at this point because now we're against a southern Minnesota team. Might be considered an unknown quantity. When you're playing Jackson County Central, you're getting to a high level of tournament play. So fans will gather at the "R/A" again on Thursday night to see how the teams match up and who can prevail. 

I personally would say odds look good for the Tigers. The JCC Huskies are coming off a 77-61 win over Montevideo. 

Another win means state! And my goodness, the Tigers under Jacob Torgerson have done nothing but win all season! This is truly history. The Tigers are 28-0 and are ranked No. 1 in state. The latter distinction might be assumed! 

We beat Minnewaska three times this season. Those Lakers finished the campaign 18-10. Boys and girls hoops are doing well in Minnewaska country (even if referendums are such an uphill battle). Referendums always pass here in Motown. 

The 'Waska BBB coach describes MACA as "phenomenal" in the defensive phase. Of course the Tigers have guns who can put points on the board too. We shot 59 percent from the field Saturday. It was a 29-for-49 performance. In 3's our numbers were 8-for-20, 40 percent. 

 

Riley Asmus top scorer 

Writing about the Tigers means you always use the first initial or first name with the Asmus last name. Senior Riley Asmus had the most productive day for us on Saturday. He had a hot hand in the first half with 19 points. His game total of 26 was team-best. He's a 6'3" presence. MACA was up 36-22 at halftime. 

Riley is actually a baseball specialist! He did not play football in the fall, as a means of avoiding injury. Not that injuries don't happen in basketball! But everyone knows football is worse. 

Alex Asmus, a junior, put in 16 points. The Tigers outscored the Lakers 38-22 in the second half. 

Our coach Torgerson is quoted in Sunday's article on the WC Tribune website. Is this a first for the season? I think it might be. 

I was hoping to see a full stat review for the Tigers also, something beyond individual points and 3-point shooting. No such surprise. 'Waska gets the full treatment that includes rebounds, assists, steals and blocked shots. We'll take what we an get. Another win and we'll start getting attention in the Twin Cities press. 

The Asmus boys - brothers, incidentally - were complemented by these teammates on the scoring list: Ben Tiernan 9, Jack Kehoe 8, Tyson Grove 7, Tanner Friesen 4 and Jonah Huebner 4. Alex Asmus and Tiernan each made three 3-pointers. Grove and Riley Asmus each made one. 

Marc Gruber was the standout for the Lakers with 19 points. He was one of three Lakers who each made a '3'. The other two were Tristan O'Neil and Connor Erickson. 

If 'Waska has a trademark it is 3-point shooting from an array of players. But on Saturday the Tigers applied the defensive resistance and 'Waska had 3 of 14 numbers in 3's, 21 percent. 

 

The JCC "Huskies"

On to face Huskies 

Let's take a look at those Huskies of JCC: they have a 24-6 W/L, 13-3 in section and 12-2 in conference. They're a perfect 13-0 on their home court. So far in the post-season they have turned back Pipestone (62-48), Fairmont (70-52) and Montevideo (77-63). 

Get ready to rumble on Thursday! The curtain will rise at 8 p.m. Unfortunately, a late starting time. Be careful driving back home.

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesote - bwilly73@yahoo.com 

The next MACA opponent: 'Waska

Today (Thursday) is surely the epitome of the "crappy March day." Every year I go through this, thinking in mid-winter that surely, as we go beyond the winter solstice, weather will get more pleasant. Then every year I get the realization that March can be truly forgettable. Look outside today: wet, overcast, patches of dirty snow. On days with wind it's even worse. 

But we have basketball! We are in the heart of the most intense stretch of basketball. Slowly the teams are getting thinned out. Morris survives! In fact, Morris Area Chokio Alberta is the cream of the crop, the way it looks. It is easy to envision a climb all the way to the top of Minnesota AA! 

R/A Facility at SSU

A "down" aspect of that is that fans have to travel a long way through the section phase. In the "old days" the Tiger faithful might go out to our UMM P.E. Center for games at this level. No more. The norm for some time now has been to make trips to this place called the "R/A Facility" on the SSU campus. That's to the south of here in Marshall. 

I get concerned about fans having to drive home late at night. But we're in good shape for this Saturday's game. Presto, a 2:30 p.m. start for the sub-section finals! We're in 3AA-North. We're coming off a win over New London-Spicer at Willmar. My blog post inspired by that game is on my companion blog "Morris of Course." Here is the permalink and thanks for reading.

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2026/03/tigers-take-it-up-to-eleven-vs-new.html 

  

The Saturday game in Marshall will have us squaring off against Minnewaska Area. Those Lakers are the No. 3 seed in the North. And the Tigers? Can there be any doubt? We are No. 1-ranked in Minnesota so we are certainly the favored kingpin in the North. 

While the Tigers won in a rout over the NL-Spicer Wildcats to get where they are now, 'Waska had to survive a close game. The score was 60-56 as the Lakers turned back Litchfield. 

Drew Bleick is a name that I have not typed often for the Lakers. Any obscurity he had, he shook off in the closing stages of the Litch game. He is a senior guard. A captain, his playing time has nevertheless been limited. He was a clutch performer on Tuesday as he scored all four of his points when these points could serve as a dagger. The points were on freethrows. And these came in the last two minutes of play. 

The game was played in Willmar. 

My final post on he 'Waska girls  basketball team is on my companion site "Morris of Course." The 'Waska girls lost to New London-Spicer at UMM here in Morris. Here is the link and thanks:

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2026/02/nl-spicer-overcomes-injury-burdened.html 

  

The Litchfield boys were seeded second in the North. Litch was way down on the scoreboard at halftime, 33-17. They turned on the jets to make the score 57-55 (trailing) with under a minute left. 

The West Central Tribune has quotes from both of the game's coaches in its coverage. As for the Morris vs. NL-Spicer game, the Willmar paper only got quotes from the NL-Spicer coach, even though MACA won the game by 32 points. 

It's hard to say what exactly is wrong with the WC Tribune these days. Strange. At some point they might suddenly act like they are interested in MACA. This wouldn't matter so much if at all, if our own Stevens County Times could produce some dynamic timely coverage on its website. I make suggestions but nobody listens. 

'Waska now has an 18-9 record. The smart money is on Motown! Have a good time y'all. I have never been to a basketball game at SSU. Do the Morris fans fill the bleachers? 

 

Gruber with hot hand 

Let's look at the 'Waska individuals. Marc Gruber was a headlining player with his four 3-pointers and 24 total points. Luke Danielson supplied punch with his 13 points. And Caleb Kath scored ten. Other totals: Tristan O'Neil 5, Cavin Thorfinnson 4, Drew Bleick 4. 

Gruber's four 3-pointers were complemented by one each from O'Neil, Thorfinnson, Danielson and Kath. Kath's eight rebounds was tops. Thorfinnson showed some nifty passing and picked up six assists. O'Neil had three steals. Kath blocked a shot. 

 

A dark backdrop 

We're bathing in March basketball excitement while the weather outside is just "blah." But that's not the worst of it. The hoops joy has to be dampened now by how Donald Trump has taken the U.S. into war. This will cause an uptick in the cost of living for us all. So much for the "affordability president." 

I am amused by how Jay Thomas of WDAY Radio gets right on board with war jingoism now. Sounds like he fully supports Trump. But people like Thomas have for years been beating up on people like the Cheneys - Dick and Liz - for being war mongers. Human nature is strange. A guy like this just has to get on the cult bandwagon for the Orange Man now. It's a business/professional decision. 

Conservative commentators put their fingers up to the wind. They appeal to all the souls who fill the pews at churches like our Good Shepherd in Morris (to name just one). 

But you won't even hear a famous quote from Jesus Christ in such places: "Blessed are the poor." A minister would be engaging in self-destruction if he were to say that. Trump is the priority over Jesus Christ among many souls in rural outstate. I take sides with Jesus.

 

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

We're still early in boys tournament

Well, are we just getting warmed up in the post-season? In Morris Area Chokio Alberta boys basketball? Many fans are anticipating a long climb. A quite reasonable expectation. What an array of weapons our BBB Tigers possess. So are we just in the early phases? Could well be. The most devoted fans had better start budgeting lots of time and have gas $ ready. I know all about this. 

Today I follow Tiger basketball by staying put. I do put up blog posts like you're seeing now. Perhaps I need to concentrate a little harder. I had to make a correction in my previous post after it had been up for 4-5 hours. At least I can make a correction. In my newspaper days this option was not available. Print is permanent. I wouldn't want to enter that jungle again, not if I had to try to be all things to all people. So many teams, sports and fan constituencies. Such intensity on the part of the fans. 

The mood was milder in the days when I first entered the field. I can offer one theory on that: many people smoked cigarettes in "the old days" and cigarettes are a sedative. 

I'll share a mea culpa here: my blog post on the Tigers the other day temporarily referred to "Lac qui Parle" in a couple places where it should have been "Atwater Cosmos Grove City." I can offer somewhat of an excuse: Both those athletic programs are often identified by four initials. For Lac qui Parle it's "LQPV" and for Atwater Cosmos Grove City it's "ACGC." I think the whole post became ship-shape after I made the corrections. 

I re-read my post after a "sixth sense" told me something might be wrong. 

Is my mental acuity OK? I am now 71 years old. I began writing about Tiger athletics back in 1972. It certainly has been a long run. I took much of the 1970s off from this. As a boomer generation member I was too distracted by fun-seeking activities. Remember the old "Tip Top Tap" in Morris? It was where the Old No. 1 Southside is now. 

In the 1970s many people associated me with the 1967 Oldsmobile Toronado that I drove. My family got it from Bill Dripps. A dazzling and unique automobile. I spent much of the 1970s in St. Cloud. Frankly, I was spinning my wheels and I'm not proud of it. But societal values have evolved. 

My generation had the drinking age lowered for it. We later reversed course. DWI penalties were not yet life-changing. If a cop was suspicious late at night, he might come up to the window of your car and ask "are you sure you're OK to get home?" "Drunk" humor was common on TV. 

Today we have cleaned up our values almost too much. We don't accept our kids just "screwing around" with their time like in the past. We all have cheeks sucked in: it's "tight." 

Sometimes I actually pine for the more relaxed older days. Hockey used to be a "sandlot" type of sport in Morris. A more informal air. No indoor arena. No gymnastics or swimming in the public school. Today the pressure is massive on anyone covering "sports" in the commercial press. Maybe today's publishers have found ways to adjust to this, somehow. 

Am I correct in assuming that the Morris community is comfortable with the Anfinsons? If so, the Anfinsons have learned the tricks for keeping constituencies of sports parents happy or at least restrained! The paper only comes out once a week now. It was twice in my "heyday." 

The paper has a website which it quite obviously under-utilizes. But maybe the public thinks it's no big deal. If Mike Martin were still here, would he have twisted arms with the new ownership? Get richly-compensated for writing sports? Would he be able to push around or threaten the Anfinsons? I couldn't see it. 

Well, today the Anfinsons have the embarrassment of riches with our boys basketball team being ranked No. 1 in the state. How about that? And we're just one game into the post-season as I write this. So much history yet to be made. That is, if we don't run into a giant-killer. 

 

Today vs. the Wildcats

Today (Tuesday) we are playing New London-Spicer. NL-Spicer does not have an aura in BB like it does in girls hoops. Let me see if I can get all this right: NL-Spicer is seeded fourth and they just beat No. 5 Paynesville 60-55. Obviously a very contested game. We're talking the 3-AA North playoffs. 

NL-Spicer has a quite mortal won-lost mark of 13-14. The smart money will be on our Tigers. Action is set for 5:45 p.m. today (Tuesday) in Willmar. Keep an eye on Zachary Lageson of the Wildcats. The junior guard scored 19 points and had two steals in the win over Paynesville. Keep an eye also on Gavin Vick the 6'4" junior center. Vick put in 13 points plus he snared nine rebounds and stole the ball five times.

 

Hectic spring underway

Well we're getting into spring which means school activities ramp up and not just in sports. I remember well the pace of things from when I was in the press. Today I support music as a booster. A couple years ago I cut a check for $2000 to help the band with its trip to New Orleans. 

Attending concerts can be kind of a problem. There seems to be a  strange "custom" at school music events at our concert hall. If you arrive about 15 minutes ahead of time and you want to sit in the front section, even if you see seats available it might be "no dice." Why? Here's what I learned the hard way, starting with the Barb Wilts retirement concert of the choir program. No matter where I tried to sit down, I'd be told "these seats are saved." 

I got bailed out that night by a friend who was seated higher up and who waved to me. He could see I was getting exasperated. "These seats are saved." I find it odd. I felt that the Barb Wilts choir concert should have been divided into two concerts - the place was too crowded. 

Since then, I have been at a band concert where I again had to confront "these seats are saved." One obvious remedy is to not go to the concerts. Band had a concert on Monday and I did not attend. It's easier to spend the night at home anyway. 

Will I open my checkbook again for band? Well, maybe. I got a nice letter from the school administration signed by all the board members the last time. Give me a break, I still try to be relevant.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com