BENILDE-ST. MARGARET’S WENT UP AGAINST ST. LOUIS PARK IN A BOYS’ BASKETBALL GAME

On Jan. 21, Benilde-St. Margaret’s and St. Louis Park squared off in a boys’ basketball game. Going into the game Benilde-St. Margaret’s had a record of 3-12 while St. Louis Park had a record of 3-9. 

Benilde-St. Margaret’s started the game in a zone defense. That made St. Louis Park swing the ball around the 3-point line. 

St. Louis Park took their time on the offensive end. They were not afraid to attempt deep 3-point shots. As they were able to make shots that they put up. 

It took a while for Benilde-St. Margaret’s to get into a shooting rhythm. Benilde-St. Margret’s looked to get everyone involved in the offense early. 

St. Louis Park used mostly a zone defense in the first half. 

Benilde-St. Margaret’s called a timeout with 13:13 left in the first half. The score was St. Louis Park 15, Benilde-St. Margaret’s 3. 

St. Louis Park was able to score layups in transition. St. Louis Park’s Aaron Ellingson came up with mid-range jump shots and layups. Teammate Jacob Holm came up with deep 3-point shots to keep his team in the game. 

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 9:30 left in the first half. The score was St. Louis Park 20, Benilde-St. Margaret’s 10. 

Benilde-St. Margaret’s Derric Standifer came up with mid-range jump shots and layups. His teammates were able to get him the ball where he could shoot it. If Standifer didn’t think that he had an open look at the basket he wasn’t afraid to pass it to one of his teammates. 

St. Louis Park’s Blake Anderson came up with mid-range jump shots and 3-point shots. He was able to come off screens and get open looks at the basket. Teammate Will Dvorak knock down key shots in the first half. 

Dvorak got past the defense and came up with layups and mid-range jump shots. 

Benilde-St. Margaret’s called a timeout with 3:44 left in the first half. The score was St. Louis Park 36, Benilde-St. Margaret’s 16. 

Benilde-St. Margaret’s attacked the basket late in the first half looking for their shots. 

St. Louis Park took a lot of time off the clock late in the first half by passing the ball around the 3-point line. 

At halftime, the score was St. Louis Park 38, Benilde-St. Margaret’s 23.

As the second half got underway Benilde-St. Margaret’s looked to get the ball into the hands of Jack Kinsey. Kinsey was able to get to the basket and make mid-range jump shots and layups. Standifer got his shot to drop on the offensive end. 

Both teams dove on the floor after loose balls and went after rebounds. There were multiple jump balls throughout the game. 

St. Louis Park looked to make layups in transition in the second half. Their defensive pressure made it difficult for Benilde-St. Margaret’s to make shots they put up. 

Benilde-St. Margaret’s called a timeout with 10:59 left in regulation. The score was St. Louis Park 51, Benilde-St. Margaret’s 31. 

Even though Benilde-St. Margaret’s struggled shooting the ball they kept on attacking the basket and looking for their shots throughout the second half. 

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 6:01 left in regulation. The score was St. Louis Park 62, Benilde-St. Margaret’s 37. 

Benilde-St. Margaret’s continued to look for their shots late in the game. 

Both teams played hard throughout the game. Benilde-St. Margaret’s struggled to shoot the ball throughout the game. They couldn’t make shots that they put up. St. Louis Park was quicker than Benilde-St. Margaret’s. 

 Benilde-St. Margaret’s called a timeout with 1:06 left in regulation. The score was St. Louis Park 69, Benilde-St. Margarete’s 43.

Both teams emptied their bench after the timeout. Both teams put in their JV squads.

St. Louis Park came away with the 70-46 victory over Benilde-St. Margaret’s. 

EDINA TOOK ON ST. LOUIS PARK IN A BOYS’ BASKETBALL GAME

On Jan. 4, Edina and St. Louis Park squared off in a boys’ basketball game. Going into the game Edina had a record of 5-4 while St. Louis Park record was 4-5.

St. Louis Park started the game off in a zone defense. St. Louis Park wanted to make Edina take deep 3-point shots.

St. Louis Park got the ball into the hands of Cire Mayfield. Mayfield made mid-range jump shots and layups.

Edina pushed the ball down the floor and came up with layups in transition.

The score went back and forth in the first half. Neither team went on a huge run. There were multiple ties and lead changes.

With the zone defenses that both teams play that made it easier for the other team to take 3-point shots.

Edina’s Anders Nelson came up with deep 3-point shots. His teammates were able to get him the ball where he was able to make shots. Edina’s Charles Haff came up with mid-range jump shots and layups as well.

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 9:04 left in the first half. The score was Edina 20, St. Louis Park 12.

St. Louis Park’s Aidan Doherty came up with mid-range jump shots and layups off screens. Doherty called for the ball when he was open.

Mayfield and Doherty called for the ball and both took the ball hard to the basket.

Edina came up with fast-break layups. They were able to beat St. Louis Park down the floor.

St. Louis Park went into a scoring drought with under 7 minutes left in the first half. Edina took advantage of that by attacking the basket as they came up with layups.

Edina took time off the clock by swinging the ball around the 3-point line. That made St. Louis Park extend their defensive pressure.

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 3:23 left in the first half. The score was Edina 29, St. Louis Park 18.

St. Louis Park’s Luke Peterson got the ball on top of the key and came up with mid-range jump shots. Peterson did a good job of feeding the ball to his teammates if he didn’t think that he had a good shot.

Mayfield continued to come up with shots late in the first half.

At halftime the score was Edina 29, St. Louis Park 24.

As the second half got underway St. Louis Park kept attacking the basket. St. Louis Park was patient with the ball on the offensive end.

Edina crashed the boards as they came up with rebounds. Edina’s Jack Middleton came up with mid-range jump shots and layups to keep his team in the game. Teammate Jacob Hutson came up with rebounds in the low post.

St. Louis Park’s Joey Whitlock got hot from behind the 3-point line, as he stepped up and made 3-point shots. The defense had a difficult time slowing him down.

St. Louis Park continued to drive to the basket and look for their shots. They were successful at making jump shots and layups.

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 11:44 left in regulation. The score was Edina 40, St. Louis Park 31.

Edina kept on passing the ball around the 3-point line and getting everyone involved in the offence.

Mayfield kept on coming up with 3-point shots in the second half. If Mayfield didn’t think that he could make shot, he would pass it to his teammates.

Edina called a timeout with 4:32 left in regulation. The score was Edina 55, St. Louis Park 46.

St. Louis Park kept on attacking the basket as they didn’t take a lot of time off the clock late in regulation. Doherty came up with layups late in the game that kept St. Louis Park in the game.

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 2:30 left in regulation. The score was Edina 55, St. Louis Park 50.

Edina looked to pass the ball around the 3-point line late to take time off the clock. Neither team was able to score late in the game.

Edina went to a full court man-to-man press with just over a minute left in the game.

Edina called a timeout with 42.7 left in regulation. The score was Edina 55, St. Louis Park 54.

Edina came up with shots late in the game. St. Louis Park continued to put defensive pressure on Edina.

I thought that both teams played well throughout the game. Both teams were evenly matched.

Edina came away with the 58-54 victory over St. Louis Park.

The leading scorers for St. Louis Park were Mayfield with 18 points, Doherty with 14 points and Whitlock with 10 points.

The leading scorers for Edina were Nelson with 18 points, Middleton with 13 points, and Haff with 10 points.

ST. LOUIS PARK WENT UP AGAINST ROBBINSDALE COOPER IN A BOYS’ BASKETBALL GAME

On Feb. 12, St. Louis Park and Robbinsdale Cooper squared off against each other in a boys’ basketball game. 

St. Louis Park looked to score baskets in transition. They were able to push the ball down the floor and were able to score layups and mid-range jump shots.

Cooper started the game in a zone defense. They wanted to make St. Louis Park take a lot of time off of the clock by swinging the ball around the 3-point line. 

Cooper’s Melvin Newbern came up with layups. He took the ball hard to the basket. His teammates did a good job of getting him the ball in spots where he could shoot it. 

It was a very physical game. Both teams dove on the floor after loose balls and they both went after rebounds. 

St. Louis Park’s Mykal Howard came up with 3-point shots and layups. He wasn’t afraid to pass the ball to one of his teammates if he thought that he didn’t have a good shot. 

There were several ties and lead changes in the first half. 

St. Louis Park came up with defensive rebounds and was able to get the ball down the floor and score layups on the offensive end. 

Cooper looked to trap St. Louis Park when they brought the ball across half court. They looked to get steals out of the trap and they were successful at doing that. 

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 9:12 left in the first half. The score was Cooper 23, St. Louis Park 22.

Cooper’s Phillip Howard came up with steals and layups. On the defensive end of the floor Howard was able to slow the guy down that he was guarding. 

St. Louis Park’s Howard and Cire Mayfield both stepped up and were able to make shots that they put up. They were able to get past the Cooper defense. 

St. Louis Park’s Josiah Morrow was able to make cuts off of layups. He also was able to make mid-range jump shots. 

At halftime the score was St. Louis Park 38, Coper 37.

As the second half got underway, both teams continued to push the ball down the floor and score baskets in transition. 

St. Louis Park’s Ryan Domres did a good job of getting to the basket and coming up with shots. His teammates did a good job of getting him the ball in spots where he could shoot it. 

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 14:11 left in regulation. The score was Cooper 50, St. Louis Park 44. 

Cooper looked to take time off the clock by passing the ball around the 3-point line. 

Cooper called a timeout with 11:01 left in regulation. The score was Cooper 54, St. Louis Park 46. 

Melvin Newbern continued to come up with huge baskets in the second half. The defense had a hard time slowing him down. 

St. Louis Park struggled to shoot the ball with less than 10 minutes left to go. 

Cooper went on a 20-4 run in the second half. 

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 5:09 left in regulation. The score was Cooper 68, St. Louis Park 51.    

Both teams played with a lot of intensity throughout the game. Neither team gave the other team an open look at the basket.

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 2:11 left in regulation. The score was Cooper 79, St. Louis Park 64.

St. Louis Park kept on looking for their shots late in the game. In a game that was close throughout the first half. 

Cooper came away with the 81-67 victory over St. Louis Park. 

The leading scorers for St. Louis Park were Domres with 18 points and Ray Whitlock with 16 points.

The leading scorer for Cooper was Melvin Newbern with 39 points. 

I was joined by the Twin Cities Hoops Czar. Check out his thoughts of the St. Louis Park vs. Cooper game.

RICHFIELD WENT UP AGAINST ST. LOUIS PARK IN A FOOTBALL GAME

On Aug. 22 Richfield went up against St. Louis Park in a football game. St. Louis Park kicked off to start the game. Richfield started on their own 35-yard line. Richfield looked to keep the ball on the ground on their own first drive. The St. Louis Park defense stepped up and was able to slow down the Richfield offense. Richfield had to punt on 4th-and-long.

St. Louis Park looked to get the ball into the hands of Austin Nelson who came up with a first down reception. St. Louis Park's Logan Romero came up with big runs that resulted in first downs. The Richfield defense stepped up and was able to stop the St. Louis Park defense.

Richfield's Cristian Frost ran for a 12-yard touchdown. The extra-point attempt was blocked.  

With 3:29 left in the first quarter the score was Richfield 6, St. Louis Park 0.

St. Louis Park looked to get the ball down the field in short spurts. They went able to pick up first downs. The Richfield was able to stop the St. Louis Park offense. They had to punt on fourth down.

Richfield looked to air the ball out and move the ball down the field. They punted on fourth down.

After one quarter of play the score was Richfield 6, St. Louis Park 0.

St. Louis Park continued to pound the ball down the field. The defense stepped up and St. Louis Park had to punt on fourth-and-long.

Richfield's Frost continued to come up with a first down. Richfield couldn't come up with a first down so Richfield had to punt.

St. Louis Park's Romero came up with a 28-yard run. Frost intercepted a pass to give Richfield the ball back on their own 36-yard line. Richfield punted on 4th-and-8.  

At halftime the score was Richfield 6, St. Louis Park 0.

Due to lighting in the area there was a 100-minute rain delay.  

Richfield kicked off to start the third quarter. St. Louis Park started on their own 21-yard line. St. Louis Park couldn’t move the ball down the field and they punted on 4th-and-11.  

The ball changed hands early in the third quarter.  

St. Louis Park punted the ball on 4th-and-20.  

Richfield took over on their 15-yard line. Richfield's Patrick Voight came up with a 71-yard touchdown reception. The two-point conversion was no good.

With 5:45 left in the third quarter the score was Richfield 12, St. Louis Park 0.

St. Louis Park kept the ball on the ground as they kept the ball in the hands of Stafford. Stafford was able to get past the defenders and come up with big plays.

Romero came up with a 6-yard touchdown run. The extra-point attempt was good.

With 2:44 left in the third quarter the score was Richfield 12, St. Louis Park 7.

Richfield took over on their own 30-yard line. The St. Louis Park defense stepped up and slowed down the Richfield's offense.

After three quarters of play the score was Richfield 12, St. Louis Park 7.  

St. Louis Park fumbled the ball and Richfield recovered it.  

Richfield couldn’t come up with a first down so they ended up punted the ball.

St. Louis Park couldn't come up with a first down and they had to punt the ball on 4th down.  

The St. Louis Park defense came up a big stop as they stopped the Richfield offense.

St. Louis Park's Ron Brown came up with a huge run for a first down. St. Louis Park couldn't move the ball down the field. They turned the ball over on downs.

Richfield's Frost got the ball into his hands again as he came up with big plays.  

Richfield came away with the 12-7 victory over St. Louis Park.  

MINNEAPOLIS SOUTHWEST WENT UP AGAINST ST. LOUIS PARK IN A BOYS’ BASKETBALL GAME

Minneapolis Southwest and St. Louis Park squared off in a boys’ basketball game on Dec. 22. 

St. Louis Park looked to get off to a fast start as they looked to score baskets in transition. St. Louis Park started the game in a zone defense. 

Southwest started the game in a zone defense as well.

Southwest called a timeout with 14:36 left in the first half. The score was St. Louis Park 16, Southwest 6.

Southwest’s Dakota Fleming did a good job of bringing the ball down the floor and getting his teammates involved in the offense.

St. Louis Park’s Wesley Johnson got his team involved in the offense. They swung the ball around the 3-point line and were able to make layups off screens.

St. Louis Park’s Ray Whitlock came up with steals on the defensive end and turned them into layups on offense.

Southwest’s Keion Alexander came up with steals on defense and made layups in transition.

Alexander also was able to run the Southwest’s offense.

St. Louis Park was able to set the tempo early on. They were quick on both ends of the court.

Alexander was able to come up with defensive rebounds. He did a good job of finding his teammates so they could advance the ball down the court.

After a slow start by Southwest they were able to knock down mid-range jump shots.

Southwest’s AJ Ray attacked the basket and looked to make layups. He stepped up and was able to make free throws.

There were multiple jump balls throughout the first half. Players from both teams dove on the floor after loose balls. 

Whitlock looked to make layups while cutting to the basket off of screens.

Southwest’s Johnny Sykes came off the bench and looked to make layups in the first half. He did a good job of calling for the ball and looked to make good shots.

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 7:44 left in the first half. The score was St. Louis Park 28, Southwest 27.

St. Louis Park played zone defense throughout the first half. Even though they played zone they didn’t give Southwest any open shots. Southwest attacked the zone defense and was able to get to the basket.

There were several ties and lead changes with just under seven minutes left in the first half.

After St. Louis Park’s run to start the game off the score was close throughout the first half.

St. Louis Park’s Nicholas Kjos came up with offensive rebounds and was able to make layups in the first half. He wasn't afraid to attack the glass.

St. Louis Park looked to make layups coming off of screens in the paint. They did a good job of setting screens and coming off the screens for layups. St. Louis Park swung the ball around the 3-point line as they looked to make the zone defense shift as they were able to penetrate the zone defense.

St. Louis Park took a lot of time off the clock late in the first half. They swung the ball around the 3-point line. St. Louis Park ran a lot of motion offense throughout the first half. They set a lot of screens and were always communicating on both ends of the floor.

At halftime the score was Southwest 47, St. Louis Park 43. 


As the second half got underway both teams continued to push the ball down the floor and look to score baskets in transition.

Kjos continued to make layups in transition. His teammates did a good job of finding him on the break.

Southwest’s Arthur Frazier came up with rebounds and layups. He was all over the glass on both ends of the floor. Frazier had a huge low post presence.

Fleming was able to find his teammates as Southwest continued to attack the basket.

St. Louis Park came up with steals midway through the second half. They were able to make layups off steals.

St. Louis Park was able to get offensive rebounds and layups in the second half. All 5 players crashed the glass.

Frazier continued to make layups late in the game.

Southwest struggled to shoot the ball in the second half. St. Louis Park was able to make layups off of steals and in transition.

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 4:31 left in the second half. The score was St. Louis Park 80, Southwest 69.

St. Louis Park started out hot and then Southwest found their shooting touch in the first half. St. Louis Park did a good job of getting everyone involved in the offense throughout the game.

St. Louis Park came away with the 99-81 victory over Southwest.

 

MINNEAPOLIS NORTH WENT UP AGAINST ST. LOUIS PARK IN A BOYS’ BASKETBALL GAME

Minnetonka held a varsity boys’ basketball fall league. Oct. 19 was the second week of the league.

In the first game St. Louis Park went up against Minneapolis North. North moved the ball down the floor well as they were able to make fast-break baskets.

North called a timeout with 16:57 left in the first half. The score was St. Louis Park 8, North 7.

The score continued to go back and forth throughout the first half. Neither team went on a run.  

North was quick down the floor. They were able to get to the basket and make mid-range jump shots and layups.

North also was able to force steals and create baskets off of the turnovers.

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 6:31 left in the first half. The score was North 24, St. Louis Park 15.

St. Louis Park turned the ball over throughout the first half. North was able to get layups off the turnovers.

At halftime the score was North 32, St. Louis Park 20.

 

As the second half got underway North continued to push the ball down the floor as they looked for layups.

North was able to frustrate St. Louis Park as they had a lot of turnovers and had trouble making shots.

North continued to play at the pace that they wanted to play in. They did a good job of taking St. Louis Park out of their game.

Even though St. Louis Park had trouble hitting shots that they put up they were not afraid to shoot the ball.

North was too quick for St. Louis Park. North came away with the 66-41 victory over St. Louis Park.

MINNEAPOLIS SOUTHWEST SQUARED OFF AGAINST ST. LOUIS PARK IN A BOYS’ SECTION SOCCER GAME

On Oct. 9 Minneapolis Southwest and St. Louis Park went up against each other in a section 6 class AA boys’ soccer game. Southwest came into the game as the sixth seed and St. Louis Park came into the game with the third seed.

Both teams looked to control the ball early. Southwest did a good job of controlling the ball as they looked to keep the ball out of the St. Louis Park offensive zone.  

The ball was kept mostly in the middle of the field.

St. Louis Park’s Eric Hendricks was all over the field. He was able to take shots on goal in the first half but was not able to convert the goals.

St. Louis Park’s Conor Bellingham scored a goal with 23:51 left in the first half.

With 23:51 left in the first half the score was St. Louis Park 1, Southwest 0.

Southwest continued to move the ball down the field as they looked to score a goal. The St. Louis Park defenders were all over the field. They did a good job of getting to the ball and getting it to the midfielders.  

Hendricks did a good job of deflecting balls that came his way throughout the first half. The defenders also did a good job of keeping the ball out of the Southwest zone.

St. Louis Park’s Michael Perez scored a goal with 34.5 seconds left in the first half.

At halftime the score was St. Louis Park 2, Southwest 0.

As the second half got underway Southwest continued to look to get the ball down the field.   

The game was physical throughout. Both teams gave everything they got out on the field. The game did get testy at times as tempers flared up. But nothing serious broke out.

Hendricks came up with huge saves throughout the second half.

Southwest’s Callen Kuntson scored a goal with 17:18 left in the second half.

 

With that goal that made the score St. Louis Park 2, Southwest 1.

Southwest kept the pressure on St. Louis Park throughout the second half.  

Southwest had their chances to score, but the ball went to the left or the right of the goal. They fought hard throughout the game.

Southwest couldn’t get the ball into the net. The defense was too much for Southwest. St. Louis Park did a good job of moving the ball around the field.

In a well-played game St. Louis Park came away with the 2-1 victory over Minneapolis Southwest.  

WACONIA TOOK ON ST. LOUIS PARK IN THE MINNETONKA FALL LEAGUE

Waconia and St. Louis Park went up against each other in the Minnetonka Boys’ Basketball Fall League.

 

The game got off to a quick start as each team raced up and down the floor looking for layups.

 

Waconia was able to get past the St. Louis Park defense. St. Louis Park used mostly a zone defense in the first half. Waconia used mostly man-to-man.

 

Waconia was able to get fast-break baskets. They were quicker than St. Louis Park on both ends of the court.

 

There were many loose balls and both teams dove on the floor after them.

 

St. Louis Park kept on attacking the basket. Even though they were not able to hit shots that they wanted to they didn’t give up and quit shooting.

 

At halftime the scored was Waconia 38, St. Louis Park 20.

 

As the second half got underway both teams continued to fly around the court cutting and passing trying to get open shots.

 

St. Louis Park stung some baskets together midway through the second half. Waconia then answered the call as they caught fire.

 

Waconia was too much for St. Louis Park. In the end Waconia came away with the 77-37 victory over St. Louis Park.

 

ST. LOUIS PARK TOOK ON EDINA IN A MINNETONKA FALL BASKETBALL LEAGUE GAME

St. Louis Park and Edina went up against each other in the first game of the Minnetonka Fall Basketball League on Nov. 3.

 

The game started out on a quick pace as each team raced up and down the floor trying to make layups.

 

Edina had a 19-12 lead when St. Louis Park called a timeout with 11:37 left in the first half.

 

St. Louis Park did a good job of moving the ball around the three-point line as they looked to get the ball inside as they wanted to get a good shot at the basket.

 

At halftime the score was Edina 42, St. Louis Park 25.

 

As the second half got underway Edina kept on shooting the ball as they looked to get easy baskets.

 

Edina continued to hit layups on the fast break. That is how they made most of their shots in the second half. Edina was a little bit quicker than St. Louis Park on both ends of the floor.

 

St. Louis Park was not able to get their shots to drop in the second half. Edina was a little quicker than St. Louis Park.

 

Edina came away with the 72-49 over St. Louis Park.

 

ST. LOUIS PARK OPEN NEW SEASON WITH A NEW FIELD

St. Louis Park High School opened the 2012-2013 sports season with a new athletic field. Before they put down the new turf the field would only be used for Varsity games and graduation.

No sports teams, P.E. Classes or the community could not use the field. If there was poor weather events would be canceled or rescheduled because of poor field conditions.

Lots of support from the community. Pushing for a while. 15Years participation has grown. More kids less space.

The Athletic Director noted that St. Louis Park, The University of Minnesota Gophers practice field and Minnetonka all have the same type of surface. He also mentioned that the field has, “Been used more this season that all of last year. The project also came in under budget and it was school board supportive.” “Lots of support from the community. Pushing for a while. 15 years of sports participation has grown. More kids less space.”

TIM SENSION IS THE NEW GIRLS BASKETBALL COACH AT ST. LOUIS PARK HIGH SCHOOL

According to the Hopkins Patch.com “Tim Sension, who spent the last seven years as the associate head girls basketball coach at Hopkins High School, will be taking over the Orioles this year. He will replace Ha-Keem Abdel-Khaliq, who took the head boys basketball job at Mound-Westonka. Abdel-Khaliq led Park to a 5-21 record last season.

Hopkins went 30-1 and won a second-straight 4A state title in 2011-12.

Sension also has head coaching experience at Bethany Academy and Breck. He works at St. Louis Park High School as a grade level coordinator.”

THE ST. LOUIS PARK ORIOLES WENT UP AGAINST THE WAYZATA TROJANS IN A BOYS' BASKETBALL REGION GAME

St. Louis Park Orioles traveled to Wayzata to take on the Trojans in a boys' region basketball game. The winner of the game will play in the semifinals of the tournament. This was the first time the teams faced each other this season. Going into the contest St. Louis Park had a record of 14-12 and was the number 5 seed in the region. Wayzata had a record of 18-7 going into the contest and they were the number 4 seed in the region.

Both of these teams looked relaxed and focused when they were in they were going through warm ups. That was also the case when they took to the floor. The coaches for each team were also intense.

St. Louis Park moved the ball around the three-point line as they looked for their shots. Wayzata started out in a zone defense. St. Louis Park was able to confuse Wayzata on the defensive end.

Wayzata's Kyle Kalivoda who started the game took the ball hard to the basket. He was able to score off some contested lay-ups. St. Louis Park had multiple players guarding him. Kalivoda was able to what he wanted to do on the offensive end.

There was blood on the floor with after playing only 7:07. As a result the call was made to clean up the floor the score was St. Louis Park 12 and Wayzata 6.

St. Louis Park got the ball into the hands of Makhi Taylor Moore. Moore was quick on his feet and was able to get to the basket from the paint. Moore got the ball from point guard Kashif Hayes near the top of the key. Moore usually drove to the basket as he looked to get a lay-up from the free throw line. Hayes also went coast-to-coast on a couple of plays. He played with a lot of emotion and energy and his teammates played off that.

Wayzata did a lot of switching on the defensive end. They didn't want Hayes or Moore to get easy baskets. St. Louis Park took quick shots and maintained a frenetic pace throughout the game.

St. Louis Park was able to step up big and drained consecutive shots. Wayzata wanted to slow down the momentum so they called a timeout with 6:07 left in regulation. The score was St. Louis Park 26 and Wayzata 18.

Out of the timeout Wayzata went to a zone defense. St. Louis Park looked to trap the ball out of the timeout. Hayes did a good job. St. Louis Park called a 30 second timeout with 4:27 left in the first half. The score was St. Louis Park 27 and Wayzata 20.

Wayzata went on a run after they called a timeout at the 4:27 timeout. St. Louis Park called a timeout with 3:35 left in the half; the score St. Louis Park 27 and Wayzata 26. Wayzata's Kyle Kalivoda scored a basket at the three minute mark to give Wayzata the lead. That was the Wayzata's first lead of the game.

Colin Nugent played well in the first half. He started the game and shot the ball well in the first half. He knew where he was on the floor and he got his teammates involved in the offense by passing them the ball when they were open by the basket.

Zach Robertson came up big in the first half. He found his shot early and often.

At halftime the score was Wayzata 34 and St. Louis Park 27.

Both teams brought back their starter to begin the second half. Wayzata came out in zone defense which provide to be helpful in slowing St. Louis Parks offensive threat

Both coaches stood for most of the second half. I thought that they did a good job of shouting out instructions to their players. They really let the kids dictate the outcome of the game.

St. Louis Park ran plays to get lay-ups. They set screens in their motion offense and they looked for guys to come off the screens in the paint as they were looking for their shots. Most of their points came from in the paint.

In the Wayzata offense they ran a lot of motion. Everyone on the floor was moving and they were calling out screens. Their motion offense gave them options to drive first or pass it back out to an open shooter. St. Louis Park tried to play zone in the second half but Wayzata was able to attack the gaps in the zone and get to the basket.

Wayzata pulled away with 8:00 left in the second half. St. Louis Park maintained their composure and looked to score from the arc. Robertson drained a three-point shot and St. Louis Park called a timeout with 7:36 left in regulation. The score was Wayzata 53 and St. Louis Park 39.

With 6:00 left in regulation Wayzata looked to burn time off the clock. They passed the ball around the three-point line as they burned time off the clock.

Wayzata went to a trapping defense and which forced St. Louis Park to turn the ball over. Nugent came up with some good lay-ups off of the steals. St. Louis Park called a full timeout with 4:15 left in regulation. The score was Wayzata 61 and St. Louis Park 45.

St. Louis Park went to a full court press after the timeout. They wanted to trap the ball and looked to get easy steals. St. Louis Park was able to pick up a few easy points off the steals. But it was not enough to get them back into the game.

Both teams brought a good student fan base and both supported their teams with good team spirit. Both student sections stood the whole entire game.

In a hard fought game Wayzata came away with the 71-56 victory over St. Louis Park. The leading scorers for Wayzata were Zach Robertson with 24 points, Colin Nugent with 21 points and Kyle Kalvoda with 9 points. The leading scorers for St. Louis Park were Kashif Hayes with 17 points and Dj Pollard with 18 points.

I was joined by the Twin Cities Hoop Czar. Check out his thoughts of the St. Louis Park vs. Wayzata boys' region basketball game.

ST. FRANCIS HIGH SCHOOL WENT UP AGAINST ST. LOUIS PARK HIGH SCHOOL IN A BOYS' BASKETBALL GAME

The St. Francis boys' basketball team traveled to St. Louis Park High School for a boys' basketball game. St. Francis came into the game with a record of 9-14. St. Louis Park had a record of 11-12.

St. Louis Park won the tip. On the offensive end they took there time as they wanted to take time off the clock.

St. Francis called a timeout with 16:10 left in the first half. The score was St. Louis Park 5 and St. Francis 0.

St. Louis Park stayed in their man-to-man defense out of the timeout. It was difficult for St. Francis to hit shots.

St. Louis Park did a good job of getting everyone involved in the offense. They looked to get the ball into the hands of Kashif Hayes. Hayes was all over the floor on the offensive end. He was a quick guard who blew by his defenders.

St. Francis didn't get bothered by not being able to hit shots. They kept on shooting.

St. Louis Park did a good job of scoring baskets in transition. They were able to get the ball out of the St. Francis net and push it down the other end of the floor.

St. Louis Park played mostly man-to-man defense. They did however mix in a little zone defense.

St. Louis Park's Kashif Hayes did a good job of running the offense. He shouted instructions to his teammates and pointed out of the floor where he wanted them to go.

St. Francis called a timeout with 10:10 left in the first half. The score was St. Louis Park 14 and St. Francis 4.

St. Louis Park's Makhi Moore was all over the floor. He took the ball hard to the basket and was able to make easy shots.

St. Louis Park was able to make a lot of fast break baskets.

Both teams dove on the floor for loose balls and went after rebounds.

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 6:22 left in the first half. The score was St. Louis Park 25 and St. Francis 15.

Austin Carlson hit some key deep three-point shots for St. Francis. He was not afraid to shoot the ball when he was open.

St. Francis went on a run late in the first half.

Austin Carlson for St. Francis found his shot late in the first half. He gave his team energy when he was on the court.

At halftime the score was St. Louis Park 32 and St. Francis 27.

St. Louis Park did a good job setting the tempo early in the second half. They didn't want to give up any easy baskets.

St. Francis didn't back down. They kept on fighting and looking for shots that they thought they could make.

Carlson did a good job of getting rebounds on both ends of the floor.

St. Louis Park called a timeout with 14:12 left in regulation. The score was St. Louis Park 36 and St. Francis 31.

Moore was able to get some steals and turn them into points as he was able to make easy layups.

St. Francis went on a run and made the game close in the second half. St. Louis Park missed some shots and St. Francis took advantage of that as they were able to hit shots.

St. Louis Park looked to kill the clock with just over 6:00 left to go. They spread the floor and passed the ball around the three-point line. That made St. Francis get out of the zone defense and went to a man-to-man defense.

St. Francis didn't quit in the second half. I liked that they kept on playing hard and battling going after loose balls and rebounds. The bench did a good job of cheering for their teammates when they were not in the game. That also was true for St. Louis Park.

St. Francis called a timeout with 4:05 left in regulation. The score was St. Louis Park 51 and St. Francis 45.

I thought that this was a good game. Each team played well throughout the game. I was impressed by the play of Kashif Hayes and DJ Pollard for St. Louis Park and I was over all impressed by the play of the whole St. Francis team. Neither team gave up. St. Francis put up a good fight but in the end St. Louis Park came away with the 64-51 victory St. Francis.

The leading scorers for St. Francis were Jake Johnson with 11 points, Austin Carlson with 10 points, and Andy Julkowski with 9 points.

The leading scorers for St. Louis Park were Kashif Hayes with 19 points, Makhi Moore with 16 points, and DJ Pollard with 14 points.