While the middle of February doesn’t get the same kind of hype March does, this is the time of year when conference championships are won and tournament seeds are improved in the hopes of making a run to the state tournament. This Tuesday in particular is a big one on the schedule, as there are five games between ranked teams going on across the state, many of which will have a major impact on conference titles.
Class 3A features three of the five ranked team matchups, and top-ranked DeLaSalle is right in the middle of one of them. The Islanders, who’ve been ranked #1 since the start of the season, face their toughest test in the Tri-Metro Conference when they travel to #6 Blake. Both teams are undefeated in Tri-Metro play- DeLaSalle is 8-0 and Blake 7-0- and with each team playing the other ten teams in the conference only one time, the winner of this one will definitely have the inside track to the title.
In the Wright County Conference, #7 Delano travels to #8 Waconia in a huge conference rematch. Delano defeated 65-62 on their home floor four weeks ago; both squads currently sit at 5-1 in the East division of the conference. The winner of this game will take a one game lead with three conference games remaining.
The final 3A ranked team matchup isn’t a conference matchup, but it’ll go a long way toward determining the top seed in Section 7AAA. Fifth-ranked Grand Rapids, coming off a six-point loss to Thief River Falls Saturday, will take on #9 Hermantown in Hermantown’s home gym. Grand Rapids defeated the Hawks by nine two weeks ago, and another Thunderhawk victory would all but lock up the top seed in the upcoming Section 7AAA playoffs. No matter the outcome, the two teams look to be the top two seeds in the section come playoff time.
Class 2A gets in on the ranked team fun with two top 10 matchups on Tuesday night. While the second-ranked Byron Bears have the Hiawatha Valley- Gold championship all locked up, they’ve dropped two straight after an 18-game winning streak pushed them up to #2 in the latest poll. They’ll host #9 Rochester Lourdes in their final conference game of the year in an attempt to get back on track heading into the upcoming Section 1AA playoffs. This will be the second matchup between the two schools this year; Byron edged the Eagles 62-59 way back in December.
Finally, the #3 Hawley Nuggets have a chance to lock up the Heart O’Lakes Conference Tuesday night, but they’ll need to get by #10 Pelican Rapids to do it. With their victory over Perham last Friday, Hawley moved to 8-1 in the conference, trailed closely by Pelican Rapids’ 7-2 mark. The Vikings will have revenge on their mind when Hawley comes to their gym; the Nuggets crushed them 79-51 in their first matchup of the year, a loss that cost the Vikings the #1 spot in the Class 2A poll.
The schedule for teams ranked in the latest Minnesota Basketball News poll, along with last week’s results:
Class 4A
1. Apple Valley (19-1; Last week- #2)
Last week: d. Eagan 86-52; d. Eastview 71-60
This week: at Burnsville, 7pm Tuesday; at Bloomington Jefferson, 7pm Friday
2. Hopkins (17-3; Last week- #3)
Last week: d. Anoka 81-47; l. to #5 Minnetonka 73-61; d. Benilde-St. Margaret’s 78-31
This week: at Edina, 7pm Tuesday; vs. Wayzata, 7pm Friday
3. Osseo (18-2; Last week- #4)
Last week: d. #1 Park Center 66-56; d. Champlin Park 76-62
This week: at Robbinsdale Armstrong, 7pm Tuesday; vs. Maple Grove, 7pm Friday
4. Park Center (18-2; Last week- #1)
Last week: l. to #4 Osseo 66-56; d. Coon Rapids 79-43
This week: vs. Anoka, 7pm Tuesday; at Elk River, 7pm Friday
5. Minnetonka (17-3; Last week- #5)
Last week: d. Wayzata 69-64; d. #2 Hopkins 73-61
This week: at Centennial, 7pm Tuesday; at #6 Eden Prairie, 7pm Friday
6. Eden Prairie (15-5; Last week- #6)
Last week: d. Edina 65-45; d. Robbinsdale Armstrong 59-56
This week: vs. Wayzata, 7pm Tuesday; vs. #5 Minnetonka, 7pm Friday
7. Tartan (17-3; Last week- #7)
Last week: d. Hill-Murray 65-56; d. Richfield 73-60
This week: at Henry Sibley, 7pm Tuesday; vs. St. Thomas Academy, 7:30pm Friday
8. Woodbury (17-3; Last week- #8)
Last week: d. Hudson (WI) 59-32; d. Stillwater 56-55
This week: vs. White Bear Lake, 7:15pm Tuesday; at Forest Lake, 7:15pm Thursday
9. Roseville (16-4; Last week- #9)
Last week: l. to Cretin-Derham Hall 77-61
This week: vs. Park of Cottage Grove, 7:15pm Tuesday; vs. Stillwater, 7:15pm Friday
10. Lakeville North (16-4; Last week- #10)
Last week: d. Burnsville 75-38; d. Eagan 61-56
This week: vs. Bloomington Jefferson, 7pm Tuesday; at Rosemount, 7pm Friday
Class 3A
1. DeLaSalle (16-1; Last week- #1)
Last week: d. St. Paul Academy 75-34
This week: at #6 Blake, 7:30pm Tuesday; vs. Concordia Academy-Roseville, 7pm Thursday; vs. Cretin-Derham Hall, 4pm Saturday
2. Austin (20-0; Last week- #2)
Last week: d. Mankato West 83-41; d. Albert Lea 80-53
This week: vs. Faribault, 7:30pm Tuesday; at Rochester Century, 7:30pm Friday
3. Holy Angels (14-6; Last week- #5)
Last week: l. to Chaska 55-53
This week: at Red Wing, 7:30pm Tuesday; vs. Farmington, 7:30pm Friday
4. Marshall (19-2; Last week- #7)
Last week: d. Pipestone 81-27; d. Sioux Falls Roosevelt (SD) 67-51
This week: at Watertown (WI), 7:30pm Tuesday; vs. Worthington, 7:30pm Friday
5. Grand Rapids (15-4; Last week- #6)
Last week: d. Deer River 70-39; d. Hibbing 50-32; l. to Thief River Falls 64-58
This week: at #9 Hermantown, 7:30pm Tuesday; vs. Superior (WI), 7:30pm Thursday
6. Blake (14-5; Last week- #3)
Last week: d. Concordia Academy-Roseville 58-46; d. St. Agnes 75-35
This week: vs. #1 DeLaSalle, 7:30pm Tuesday; at St. Anthony Village, 7pm Thursday; vs. Richfield, 2pn Saturday
7. Delano (18-2; Last week- #4)
Last week: d. Orono 63-58; d. Mound-Westonka 76-50
This week: at #8 Waconia, 7:30pm Tuesday; vs. Annandale, 7:30pm Friday
8. Waconia (17-4; Last week- #9)
Last week: d. Mound-Westonka 73-56; d. Hutchinson 46-39
This week: vs. #7 Delano, 7:30pm Tuesday; at Holy Family Catholic, 5pm Saturday
9. Hermantown (16-3; Last week- #10)
Last week: d. Hibbing 64-59; l. to Superior (WI) 70-65; d. Chisago Lakes 61-60
This week: vs. #5 Grand Rapids, 7:30pm Tuesday; vs. Moose Lake-Willow River, 7:15pm Thursday; vs. Ashland (WI), 7:15pm Friday
10. Columbia Heights (13-7; Last week- not ranked)
Last week: d. Fridley 74-67; l. to St. Louis Park 77-55
This week: at St. Francis, 7:15pm Tuesday
Class 2A
1. Melrose (20-1; Last week- #1)
Last week: d. Montevideo 77-50; d. Morris/Chokio-Alberta 77-55; d. Lakeview Christian 89-86
This week: at Morris/Chokio-Alberta, 6pm Thursday; vs. Minnewaska, 6pm FRiday
2. Byron (18-3; Last week- #2)
Last week: d. Pine Island 42-30; d. La Crescent 52-42; l. to Hayfield 47-46; l. to #5 Fairmont 63-42
This week: vs. #9 Rochester Lourdes, 7:15pm Tuesday; at Goodhue, 7:15pm Friday
3. Hawley (17-1; Last week- #3)
Last week: d. Perham 68-50
This week: at #10 Pelican Rapids, 7:30pm Tuesday; vs. Frazee, 7:30pm Friday
4. Maple River (17-4; Last week- #5)
Last week: d. Blue Earth 68-37; d. Worthington 58-57
This week: at Mankato Loyola, 7:30pm Monday; vs. Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial, 7:30pm Thursday; at Martin County West, 6pm Saturday
5. Fairmont (17-3; Last week- #6)
Last week: d. New Ulm 71-58; d. #2 Byron 63-42
This week: vs. Redwood Valley, 7:30pm Tuesday; at Waseca, 7:30pm Thursday
6. St. Peter (16-2; Last week- #7)
Last week: d. Waseca 67-49
This week: at Blue Earth, 7:30pm Monday; at New Ulm, 7:30pm Tuesday; at St. James, 7:30pm Friday
7. St. Cloud Cathedral (15-4; Last week- #4)
Last week: l. to St. Cloud Apollo 90-74
This week: at Becker, 7:30pm Monday; at Mora, 7:30pm Tuesday; vs. Little Falls, 7:30pm Friday; vs. Rocori, 7:30pm Saturday
8. Minnehaha Academy (15-5; Last week- not ranked)
Last week: d. St. Croix Lutheran 86-72; d. St. Paul Academy 61-40; d. Waterville-Elysian-Morristown 62-38
This week: at St. Agnes, 7pm Tuesday
9. Rochester Lourdes (16-5; Last week- #10)
Last week: d. Winona Cotter 84-53; d. Plainview-Elgin-Millville 66-58; d. Chatfield 66-62
This week: at #2 Byron, 7:15pm Tuesday; vs. Zumbrota-Mazeppa, 7:15pm Friday
10. Pelican Rapids (14-5; Last week- not ranked)
Last week: d. Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton 89-52; l. to East Grand Forks 65-56
This week: vs. #3 Hawley, 7:30pm Tuesday; vs. Breckenridge, 7:30pm Friday; vs. Pequot Lakes, 2:30pm Saturday
Class 1A
1. Maranatha Christian (19-1; Last week- #2)
Last week: d. #9 West Lutheran 68-36; d. Minneapolis Washburn 79-73 (OT)
This week: at PACT Charter, 7:30pm Tuesday; at #7 Heritage Christian, 7:30pm Friday
2. Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa (19-1; Last week- #1)
Last week: d. Maple Lake 57-36; d. Rockford 74-50
This week: at Kimball, 7:30pm Thursday
3. Southwest Minnesota Christian (18-1; Last week- #3)
Last week: d. Fulda 89-42; d. Worthington 78-44
This week: vs. Murray County Central, 5pm Tuesday; vs. Mountain Lake, 7:30pm Friday
4. Upsala (17-0; Last week- #4)
Last week: d. #6 Browerville 63-56
This week: vs. Osakis, 6pm Thursday; vs. Bertha-Hewitt, 3:45pm Saturday
5. Russell-Tyler-Ruthton (21-1; Last week- #5)
Last week: d. Canby 75-66; d. Tracy-Milroy-Balaton 60-46
This week: at Lincoln HI, 7:30pm Friday
6. Browerville (14-2; Last week- #7)
Last week: d. West Central 43-38; l. to #4 Upsala 63-56
This week: at Menahga, 7:30pm Monday; at Swanville, 6pm Tuesday; vs. St. John’s Prep, 6pm Thursday
7. Heritage Christian (19-2; Last week- #6)
Last week: l. to #9 West Lutheran 77-75; d. Legacy Christian 77-62
This week: at Minneapolis Roosevelt, 7pm Tuesday; vs. #1 Maranatha Christian, 7:30pm Friday
8. West Lutheran (17-4; Last week- #9)
Last week: d. #6 Heritage Christian 77-75; l. to #1 Maranatha Christian 68-36
This week: at Legacy Christian, 7:30pm Tuesday; vs. PACT Charter, 7:30pm Thursday
9. Dawson-Boyd (16-4; Last week- #10)
Last week: d. Renville County West 75-37; l. to MACCRAY 53-47; d. Montevideo 50-40
This week: vs. Lakeview, 7:30pm Friday
10. Rushford-Peterson (18-3; Last week- #8)
Last week: d. Mabel-Canton 71-44; d. Dover-Eyota 59-33; d. Southland 72-61
This week: vs. Fillmore Central, 7:30pm Tuesday; vs. Lanesboro, 7:30pm Friday
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