The rejuvenated Lakers rose to the occasion Saturday at SSU. They defeated New London-Spicer 68-66. So congratulations to the Lakers. Again they overcame a deficit. All that matters is the final score of course.
Jackson Johnsrud made a layup to give 'Waska the initial lead. The Wildcats promptly snatched the momentum, good enough to hold the lead for over 30 minutes. Brandon Adelman was in top offensive form for the Wildcats. But Adelman's 35 points wasn't enough to put his Wildcats on top at the end. No, it was 'Waska ultimately showing the winning form. Thus they have the opportunity now to play Pipestone for all the Section 3AA marbles.
The Willmar paper reported that Adelman "found stretches of metaphorical unconsciousness with a combination of impressive three-point shooting and efficient floaters in the lane."
"Metaphorical unconsciousness?" As someone who has been judged to be a little unconventional in word choice through my career, I must say this description is quite weird. I wouldn't gravitate to such words.
'Waska coach Phil Johnsrud observed that his team had gotten away from its desired offensive philosophy of late. It certainly didn't hurt them when they defeated our Tigers. Against NL-Spicer the Lakers got back more to their comfortable groove with what the coach called "a lot of dribble-drive and kicking (the ball) out." The coach also credited his team's sheer drive and determination.
Indeed there was potential for the Lakers to fold when they sagged to a 26-9 deficit. At halftime the Lakers had righted themselves some as they trailed 31-25. Adelman kept the wind in the Wildcats' sails through much of the second half. He got help from Ander Arnold who scored in double figures.
But on the Lakers' side, Jackson Johnsrud and sophomore Grant Jensen gave fuel for what would prove to be a winning effort. This they did with 3's and with effective penetration. Jensen exceled in the paint and put in 21 points. Johnsrud was a cog with his outside shooting. Coach Johnsrud said of Jensen that he had a "monster game."
The coach was delighted with Jackson Johnsrud's clutch second half showing. The ingredients were in place to delight the devoted Minnewaska fan following.
Host school has name tweak
I refer to Southwest as "SSU" from the old days but I guess it's "Southwest Minnesota State University." I don't like this "Minnesota State" stuff. Mostly it reminds me of the old Jerry Van Dyke TV sitcom. Did you know that Jerry was considered for the role of "Gilligan" in "Gilligan's Island?" That TV show is often cited as an example of trashy TV from the '60s, devoid of substance or artistic merit. Criticizing the old TV is like criticizing country music: it may seem shallow but it takes genius to create. So it really is art, high art actually.
"Gilligan's Island" as art? I would argue yes, because the show had a message of how we're all really kin in our diverse American society: though we seem different, we can easily bond in situations where we have to. Here's this disparate group of tourists on a cruise, they get stranded and they end up with endearing bonds. I think it's very moving. Years later when a show was done showing the group escaping the island, they had adjustment problems. They missed each other.
You gotta believe (in the Lakers)
Coach Johnsrud said "everybody believes in this team." The Lakers crept up on New London-Spicer and took a much-sought lead with 3:33 left. Ryan Christianson showed deft form to sneak in for a layup, so the score is now 60-59 with 'Waska tasting victory. It seemed like a repeat of the Morris game where the final score was 58-51 as Morris scored zero points in overtime.
The Lakers applied the defensive clamps after Christianson's layup. The Lakers scored again and now they seemed within easy reach of victory. Coach Johnsrud loved his team's defense and rebounding in the second half. All that defense still couldn't contain Adelman very well. The Lakers simply had to survive Adelman's onslaught. The clock ended up working against the Wildcats. Coach Johnsrud could not fault his team's defense vs. scoring terror Adelman. Adelman just showed he was a monster player.
Pipestone owned the No. 2 seed in the South Sub-Section. Pipestone beat Windom 78-53 in the game preceding 'Waska vs. NL-Spicer. The Lakers and Pipestone will clash beginning at 8 p.m. Thursday in Marshall (at SSU or whatever it's called).
Almost an "iron man" effort
Just six players scored for Minnewaska on Saturday, led by the 1-2 punch of Grant Jensen (21 points) and Jackson Johnsrud (20). The other four point-scorers were Matthew Gruber (12), Garrett Jensen (8), Ryan Christianson (5) and Luke Barkeim (2). Johnsrud made three 3-pointers while Christianson and Gruber each made one. Garrett Jensen attacked the boards to collect 13 rebounds. The assist leaders were Johnsrud with four and Gruber with three.
The only other scorer of note besides Adelman (35) for NL-Spicer was Ander Arnold with 14 points. Here's the rest of their list: Tristan Thompson (4), Brandyn Harlow (4), Ryan Wyganowski (3), Jonathan Kaelke (2), Jake Schmidt (2) and Caleb Maxwell (2).
Adelman with his three 3-pointers topped that list. His mates Wyganowski and Arnold each made one '3'. The NL-Spicer rebound leaders were Adelman and Thompson with eight and six respectively. Three Wildcats each executed three assists: Adelman, Wyganowski and Thompson. Kaelke and Arnold each stole the ball twice.
Maybe us Tiger fans could pretend this week like we're on the Minnewaska Area bandwagon.
On the structure of post-season now
I'd like to comment on how the post-season structure can be confusing to the average fan. Even when I was a press writer I could feel confusion sometimes. For much of my life we had the district/region format which was easy to understand. In my elementary school years we'd get excused to go to the cafeteria and watch the state tournament when it really was a statewide focus for all! It was the days of the storied one-class format, which today inspires nostalgia just like when we watch Gene Hackman in the movie "Hoosiers." Nostalgia yes, drippingly so.
Of course those were not the good old days. The one-class system was ridiculously unfair. We later learned that even the two-class format was unfair, so a complete egalitarian mentality took over. It's a good thing but on the other side of the coin, the new system does not appeal to the broad public. There is complexity.
The current Morris newspaper has a headline saying the Tigers lost in the "semis." But, the semis of what? The reference is to the sub-section semis. Problem is, the sub-section finals are effectively the section semi-finals. The "sections" are really just one game. The headline in the Monday Willmar paper says the Lakers won in the "3AA semis." But it really was the sub-section championship game. We can scratch our heads.
Some get out "talking points"
I find that the usual suspects in Morris who try to give cover for our coaches all the time, are eager to use the "semis" language for our loss - the paper echoes that. We in fact hear "talking points" about this, so to pull the wool over numerous eyes. Hey, we lost in the "semis." Just look at the headline in the Morris paper. But what does it mean to lose in the sub-section semis? All it means is that you won one game - in our case, over ACGC - and then we lost.
We did not reach a high level at all. I am accustomed to coming up against "talking points" in this community. But the irritation remains. Coach Torgerson has gotten through his whole lengthy career with this kind of "cover."
A former school board member tells me that the sports constituency of our school is pretty assertive these days when it comes to facilities and resources. I wonder how all those people feel about our basketball teams combining for one win in the post-season this year. I have always tried to be an advocate for Tiger athletics but too often I'm perceived as "the bad guy." Well, you all made your bed, now you can sleep in it. Go Lakers! My late father was a 1934 graduate of Glenwood High School. Those were the days of John Dillinger.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com
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