MINNEAPOLIS SOUTH HOSTED MINNEAPOLIS SOUTHWEST IN A BOYS’ BASKETBALL CONTEST

Minneapolis South took on Minneapolis Southwest. Coming into the game South had a record 14-11. Minneapolis Southwest had a record of 2-19.

Minneapolis South won the tip. South looked to push the ball from the beginning of the game. South wanted to get the ball into 6-6 center Alonzo Taylor’s hands. Taylor is a talented senior center.

Southwest looked to get the ball out and looked to control the tempo from the early goings. Julius Williams got the ball and he looked to shoot. He was able to hit some shots early in the contest.

The Lakers were passing the ball around the three point arch trying to find their shots. Matt St. Anthony looked to find his shot in the first half. He was not making it at the beginning but he didn’t get frustrated.

South was not able to hit their shots in the early goings. They got down early. South didn’t get down on them selves. They went on a run with about 10 minutes left in the first half.

With 6:00 left in the first half the score was South 20 and Southwest 17.

Both teams did a good job of boxing out in the first half.

Southwest played both man-to-man defense and zone defense in the first half. They both worked effectively well.
South had a 33-27 lead over Southwest at half time.

As the second half got underway both teams really came out and played really aggressively. South continued to push the ball and they continued to score in transition.

Chris Anthony Hatcher played really hard throughout the game. He really lead the rally that South went on with about 11:00 left in the second half. That kind of took the wind out of Southwest’s sails. Southwest didn’t give up. They kept on playing hard.

South really opened up the lead in the second half. Southwest didn’t back down. They played aggressively the whole game.

South came away with the 74-58 victory over Southwest. Southwest falls to 2-20 in the regular season and South goes to 15-11.

I was joined by the Czar of Twin Cities boys Hoops. Check out his thoughts on the South VS Southwest game.

Alonzo Traylor was South's leading scorer. He finished with 23 points. The leading scorers for Southwest were Ayrton Scott with 20 points and Matt St. Anthony with 20 points.

FRIDLEY TOOK ON MINNEAPOLIS SOUTHWEST IN BOYS’ HOOPS

Fridley took on Minneapolis Southwest in boys’ basketball. Southwest looked to push the ball up the count and looked to get open shots in transition.

On the offensive end, Southwest wanted to swing the ball around the three-point arch. They seemed to start their offense from the three-point arch. They were able to make some nice drives to the basket.

Fridley was able to pick off passes that Southwest was throwing. Fridley was able to bother Southwest early in the game.

Devin Memmerich made some nice plays for Fridley midway through the first half. He was able to get his teammates involved in the game.

At half time the score was Fridley 34 and Southwest 21.

As the second half got going Fridley was able to knock down some shots early. They kept attacking the basket.

Fridley was able to hit shots when they could and they did a good job of moving the ball around the three point circle.

Fridley was just able to attack Minneapolis Southwest on the offensive end. They played well together. I really thought that from the beginning of the game Fridley did a better job of handling the ball and handling the pressure of Southwest.

Fridley was able to come away with the 76-51 win over Minneapolis Southwest.

SOUTHWEST TOOK ON NORTH IN A MINNEAPOLIS CITY CONFERENCE BATTLE

The Minneapolis Southwest Lakers were in Polar country as they took on Minneapolis North. Southwest started playing in a zone defense and they picked up three quarters court. Their goal was to try to slow North down from the beginning of the game. North tried to score in transition but was unsuccessful.

Both teams started playing zone on the defensive end. They wanted to try to slow the game down from the beginning. North was looking towards Malik El-Amin to get them into their offense and was able to get the Polar's into their grove.

Neither team seemed to find there groove early in this game. Southwest looked to score some easy buckets in transition. They were successful in doing that for a period of time in the first half.

Both teams played a tight first half. Each team went after each other throughout the first half. Southwest looked to push the ball up the court as soon as the ball left the rim.

Spencer Puckett had a few nice moves at critical times for North in the first half. He had a one drop step dunk that got the fans into the game.

At half time the score was North 29 and Southwest 22.

Southwest started the second half in a zone defense. They did a good job shifting in the zone to get North off balance.

Southwest was not afraid to shoot the ball either in the second half as they came out shooting. They kept on looking for open shots.

This game was kept close throughout the second half as each team kept fighting at each other. Both teams played zone for much of the second half.

In a game that went back and forth from the start. Dominique Dawson played hard and strong around the basket he was able to find his shot. He finished with 27 points.

The game came down to the wire. Both teams fought extremely well. Ariel Deloney hit the winning shot at the buzzer to give Minneapolis North the 58-56 victory.

BRIAN SMITH TO COACH MINNEAPOLIS SOUTHWEST

Brian Smith, who is Tubby Smith’s youngest son, will be coaching basketball at Minneapolis Southwest this upcoming season. Brian will coach the JV team and assist with the Varsity.

The Lakers new head basketball coach for the 2008-2009 campaign will be Tom Wekiow, who was a girl’s coach last season at Mounds View.