Boys Basketball: Advance News Release

A seven-week run of Minnesota State High School League winter state tournament events ends this week with the five-day Boys Basketball State Tournament. Three venues will be in use for the event that awards state championships in four enrollment classes.

Quarterfinals in Class AAAA, Class AAA and Class AA will be played Tuesday, March 21 at Target Center in Minneapolis and Williams Arena on the University of Minnesota campus. The Class A quarterfinals are Wednesday at Williams Arena. The semifinals and championship games are at Target Center from March 23-25 and the consolation and third-place games are at the Gangelhoff Center on the Concordia (St. Paul) campus.

NSPN.tv, the League’s streaming partner will stream the quarterfinal games in all four classes, as well as the consolation round and third-place games. You can find the stream at www.nspn.tv . 45TV will broadcast the semifinals and championship games, as well as stream the game free of charge. Find the stream at www.prep45.com .

Here is a look at the quarterfinal schedules:

Tuesday, March 21

At Target Center

Class AAAA

• Andover (22-7) vs. No. 1 Park Center (26-2), 10 a.m.
• No. 5 Eastview (22-7) vs. No. 4 Minnetonka (23-6), Noon
• Buffalo (23-6) vs. No. 2 Lakeville North (26-3), 2 p.m.
• White Bear Lake (21-7) vs. No. 3 Wayzata (24-4), 4 p.m.

Class AA

• Eden Valley-Watkins (24-6) vs. No. 1 Holy Family Catholic (27-2), 6 p.m.
• No. 5 Minnehaha Academy (21-8) vs. No. 4 Maple River (29-2), 8 p.m.

At Williams Arena

Class AAA

• St. Francis (16-12) vs. No. 1 Totino-Grace (21-8), 10 a.m.
• No. 5 Alexandria Area (24-4) vs. No. 4 Mankato East (24-5), Noon
• Hermantown (22-5) vs. No. 2 Orono (24-5), 2 p.m.
• Stewartville (25-4) vs. No. 3 DeLaSalle (24-5), 4 p.m.

Class AA

• Pequot Lakes (25-5) vs. No. 2 Albany (29-1), 6 p.m.
• Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton (24-6) vs. No. 3 Plainview-Elgin-Millville (26-4), 8 p.m.

Tuesday, March 22

At Williams Arena

Class A

• Nevis (24-6) vs. No. 1 Russell-Tyler-Ruthton (28-1), 11 a.m.
• No. 5 Border West (26-2) vs. No. 4 Cherry (26-4), 1 p.m.
• Sacred Heart (27-4) vs. No. 2 New Life Academy (24-5), 3 p.m.
• Mankato Loyola (22-8) vs. No. 3 Spring Grove (29-1), 5 p.m.

State Tournament Notes:

• More than 30 players participating in this week’s state tournament have scored at least 1,400 career points. Six of them have scored more than 2,600. They are: Isaac Asuma, Cherry; Noah Sundquist, Cherry; Nasir Whitlock, DeLaSalle; Owen Leach, Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton; Ethan Arntson, Sacred Heart; Kole Hanson, Holy Family Catholic.
• Lakeville North head coach John Oxton has 663 career victories to rank in the Top 10 among Minnesota boys basketball coaches. This is his 12^th state tournament appearance in Minnesota. He has won a state championship in Gardiner, Montana (1989) and at Lakeville North in 2014.
• Orono head coach Barry Wohler, and his father, Jerry, have won three championships. Barry helped power Bird Island-Lake Lillian, coached by his father, to championships in 1980 and ’81. Barry led Orono to the Class AAA crown in 2011.
• Minnehaha Academy coach Lance Johnson’s five state championships are the fourth most in boys basketball. This season marks his 10^th state tournament appearance.
• Wayzata’s Bryan Schnettler has led the Trojans to a Class AAAA championship in 2021 and a runner-up finish in 2002. He has led Wayzata to five state tournaments.
• DeLaSalle has a 26-3 record in a state tournament run of 11 consecutive trips. The Islanders have won 12 consecutive section crowns dating to 2012.
• Minnehaha Academy has a 14-1 record in state tournament games dating to 2017.
• Buffalo coach Josh Ortmann won a state championship playing for Buffalo in 2007.
• Maple River coach Chad Ostermann won a state championship playing for Maple River in 1993.
• Minnetonka coach Bryce Tesdahl was on the state runner-up team for Crosby-Ironton in 2008. His career point total of 1,943 was the school record until broken by freshman standout Tori Oehrlein this past season. Tesdahl is the grandson of Bob McDonald and is the third generation of the family to coach in the basketball state tournament.
• Alexandria Area coach Forrest Witt and his brothers, Taylor and Zach, combined for 4,117 points playing for Morris in the 1990s.
• Owen Leach of Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton scored 50 points in the Section 8AA final in an overtime win against Thief River Falls.
• Cherry’s Isaac Asuma scored his 2,000th career point as a sophomore during the 2022 state tournament.
• DeLaSalle’s Nasir Whitlock scored 52 points in a 91-78 victory over Hopkins on Jan. 28.

Statistical data supplied by Matt Pederson, the League’s Boys Basketball Historian