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Boys Basketball '22-'23: 15 players to watch in southeastern Minnesota

guy n. limbeck, post-bulletin, rochester, minn.
·4 min read

Dec. 5—The 6-foot-7 senior forward/center should be a handful for area teams to contend with this season. As a junior he averaged 17.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.3 blocked shots per game while leading P-E-M to a 28-2 record. He has already committed to play at Division II Southwest Minnesota State University in Marshall.

The dynamic 6-2 senior point guard helped the Vikings repeat as Class A state champions a year ago and was named the Prep Hoops Class A Player of the Year. He led the team in scoring (20.8 points per game) and assists (4.5) while also pulling down 4.6 rebounds. Enters the season with 1,546 career points.

The 6-5 senior forward is perhaps the most lethal scorer in the area. He averaged 22.6 points and 8.1 rebounds per game as a junior and showed his defensive skill as well by averaging 2.8 blocks. He is already

Lyle/Pacelli's all-time leading scorer with 1,677 points.

The 6-7 senior will be a handful for area defenders because of his size as a point guard. Opsahl averaged 14.5 points, 4.7 assists, 5.4 rebounds and 2.8 steals per game as a junior. He has announced his commitment to play college ball at Division II Minnesota State, Mankato. He enters his senior season with 997 career points.

The 6-3 senior guard will soon join the family tradition of playing college basketball. His two older brothers currently play college basketball and father, Lions coach Wade Grinde, was a former college player. The youngest Grinde set a single-season school record when he snatched 139 steals a year ago. As a junior he averaged 16.0 points, 5.3 rebound, 4.8 steals and 3.4 assists for the Southeast Conference champions.

The 5-10 junior point guard burst on the scene a year ago for the Tigers when he averaged 16.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 2.2 steals per game. He excels at creating his own shot and getting inside despite his size.

Peters, a 6-3 senior guard/forward, and Stevens may be the most lethal 1-2 punch in the area and should make the Bulldogs a serious Section 1AA contender. Peters averaged 16.8 points, 6.1 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game as a junior while helping P-E-M go 28-2.

The 6-4 senior guard has great speed for his size. He has been receiving Division I and II scholarship offers as a receiver in football. He excels at scoring as he averaged 17.0 points per game as a junior while also collecting 4.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.8 steals per contest.

Pack was the No. 2 scorer for the Vikings a year ago when they repeated as Class A state champions. The 5-11 senior guard excels with his long-range shooting as he made more than 100 3-pointers a year ago. He averaged 15.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game as a junior.

The 6-9 senior forward should take a huge leap this season as he has started to fill out and feel more comfortable and confident with his growing body. He averaged 9.6 points and 3.0 rebounds as a junior while knocking down 44.7% of his 3-point attempts. He has committed to play college ball at Division II Upper Iowa University.

The 5-11 senior guard was a scoring force (17.0 points per game) for the Gophers last season when they finished 17-11 and he earned All-Three Rivers Conference honors. Schindler is part of a strong core that should have the Gophers in contention to compete for a conference and Section 1AA title. He also averaged 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals per game as a junior.

The 6-1 junior guard was a lethal scorer a year ago on his way to earning All-Three Rivers Conference honors. He averaged 19.5 points and 5.2 rebounds per game for a young Falcons team that returns all of its core players and should be much improved this season.

The 6-4 senior has good size for a guard and that was on display a year ago when he earned All-Hiawatha Valley League honors. He averaged 7.9 rebounds as a junior to go along with 16.9 points and 1.9 steals per game.

The 6-3 junior guard had a solid sophomore season when he helped the Tigers go 20-8 and tie for the HVL title with Lake City. Tschetter earned All-HVL honors as he averaged 12.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.0 steals per game and he should have a much bigger scoring role this season.

The 6-1 senior guard is part of a strong returning unit that should make L/P a contender in the SEC and Section 1A. He averaged 16.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.8 steals as a junior while earning All-SEC honors.