Best of the Prelims: North Tartan EYBL slips past Metro Stars

With a 9:10 a.m. start, and a big crowd on hand, it felt like the ultimate AAU rivalry game, but with one important twist: the two teams had never played each other before. In fact, one of the teams didn’t even exist until a few weeks ago, but the first ever-meeting between Metro Stars 2020 Starks and North Tartan 2020 EYBL did not disappoint. In fact, it was a very intense, highly physical game with a series of ebbs and flows that met all expectations and more. In the end the contest came down to a single basket and a two-point victory. Isn’t that how it’s supposed to be? The final was North Tartan 55 Metro Stars 53. [caption id="attachment_45894" align="alignright" width="211"] Lauren Jensen of Lakeville North is the engine that drives North Tartan EYBL.[/caption] <strong>THE TEAMS</strong> The Metro Stars team was formed over the winter when the former North Tartan Starks 2020 team split up. It had been a powerhouse squad that was together for a very long time and had about every success an AAU team can have. When the dust settled, Lauren Jensen of Lakeville North, Mallory Brake of Hastings and Courtney Becker of Lacrosse, Wisc. stayed with North Tartan under the direction of coach Gerard Coury. Paige Bueckers (Hopkins), Tee Tee Danso (Simley), KK Adams (Hopkins), Vanessa Alexander (St. Michael-Albertville) and Mia Curtis (Minnehaha Academy) went with coach Tara Starks to the Metro Stars, as did Nyamer Diew, who now lives in Sioux City, Iowa. Liza Karlen (Stillwater) had been playing up with last year’s version of the North Tartan EYBL juniors but also moved to the Metro Stars. Annika Stewart (Wayzata) went to North Tartan Elite (the second NT junior squad) and Jasmine Smiley (Wayzata) elected to take this summer off. The Metro Stars added 8th grader Nunu Agara of Hopkins, junior Miyah Dubose of Champlin Park, and most recently freshman Telia Graham of Minnehaha Academy. Junior Jaide Presley of Hopkins is also on the roster but has yet to play due to injury. North Tartan added Zhane Thompson (Burnsville), Patience Williams (Benilde-St. Margaret’s), Jayda Johnston (Roseville), Ava Hill (Mesabi East), sophomore Sophie Wood (Chisago Lakes), and Maty Wilke of Beaver Dam, Wisc. Highly-sought prospect Lauren Ware of Bismarck, N.D. (a top-40 ranked player nationally) is expected to join North Tartan shortly. [caption id="attachment_45890" align="alignnone" width="300"] 8th grader Nunu Agara of the Metro Stars and junior Mallory Brake of North Tartan.[/caption] <strong>THE GAME</strong> The contest started a little late due to the length of Saturday’s opening game on court 7, an epic contest that wasn’t decided until the second overtime when UVA 2021 Coley defeated Comets 2021 Elite. When the main event eventually tipped off, North Tartan got the early jump as <strong>Zhane Thompson</strong> opened the scoring with a 3-point basket followed by a 2-point field goal by <strong>Lauren Jensen</strong>. Less than 15 seconds later <strong>Paige Bueckers</strong> cashed in on an and-1 and the Metro Stars were rolling. Here’s how it went the rest of the way. <ul> <li><strong>Ava Hill</strong> scored at the 9:50 mark to put NT ahead 16-12. <strong>Mia Curtis</strong> countered 16 seconds later to spark the first big run of the game, a 13-0 gallop by the Metro Stars. After the speedster <strong>Miyah Dubose</strong> scored in transition, and then set up <strong>Liza Karlen</strong> for a transition basket of her own at the 6-minute mark, the Starks team was up 25-16 and North Tartan called time out.</li> <li>When play resumed <strong>Lauren Jensen</strong> knocked down an immediate three for North Tartan. It was followed by a quick steal by Jensen that resulted in a 2+1 that cut the lead to 3 points in just 30 seconds of play. That switched the momentum in NT’s favor. By the time Hill got a steal and a transition basket with 5 seconds left in the first half, North Tartan had completed a 16-4 run that gave them a 32-29 lead at the break.</li> <li>Maty Wilke scored the first two baskets of the second half and followed that up with a pair of free throws to stretch the lead to 7 points. North Tartan had come from 9 down to 7 ahead. Then it was the Metro Stars’ turn as Bueckers scored 7 of the next 8 points in an 8-0 sprint to put her team back in front.</li> <li>Over the next 9:09 the teams went back and forth, making 5 buckets apiece as the lead changed  hands three times. The margin was never greater than 4. When Hill scored with just under two minutes remaining in the game, that put NT ahead by 2 before Karlen tied it at the 19-second mark.</li> <li>After a time out with 11.2 seconds remaining, <strong>Vanessa Alexander</strong> blocked Wilke’s shot but North Tartan ended up with possession of the ball and coach Coury called another time out with 3.4 seconds still to play.</li> <li>NT successfully inbounded the ball, getting it into the hands of <strong>Mallory Brake</strong> who slipped past the Metro Stars’ defenders and drove hard to the basket for a layup that won it by a score of 55-53. What a game!</li> </ul> <strong>TOP PERFORMERS</strong> [caption id="attachment_45891" align="alignleft" width="187"] Paige Bueckers of Hopkins was brilliant as usual. She had 25 points to lead the Metro Stars.[/caption] <strong>MVPs</strong> North Tartan – <strong>Lauren Jensen, junior, Lakeville North (Iowa)</strong>: Lauren is the engine that makes this North Tartan team go. She absorbed all manner of punishment, made a ton of big plays, and scored 16 points to lead her team to victory. Jensen tied Bueckers for most points in the tournament with 73. Metro Stars – <strong>Paige Bueckers, junior, Hopkins (UCONN)</strong> : What can you say about the #1 junior in the country? She always seems to come through when it matters. Although Paige went uncharacteristically cold for a brief while in the middle of the game, she finished with 25 points and was excellent as per usual. <strong>Top forwards</strong> Metro Stars – <strong>Liza Karlen, junior, Stillwater:</strong> This is the best I have seen Liza play in a good while. She was running and moving, rebounding and scoring. In other words she was making things happen. The big forward contributed 11 points and a ton of rebounds along the way. North Tartan – <strong>Mallory Brake, junior, Hastings (Creighton)</strong>: Mallory has become so much more versatile, so much more active over the past year or so. That has made her a much more impactful player and it showed on Saturday. She had 11 points, including the winning bucket. <strong>Top guards</strong> North Tartan – <strong>Zhane Thompson, junior, Burnsville</strong>:  Thompson is off to a really good start since joining North Tartan in the roster shuffle. She plays fast and quick and is adapting to the higher-paced AAU games in a hurry. Metro Stars – <strong>Mia Curtis, junior, Minnehaha Academy</strong>: On her high school team Mia has to do it all. With the Metro Stars she has to do her part, and she did it well. Curtis had just 2 points but left her stamp on the game in a number of ways. <strong>Top imports</strong> North Tartan – <strong>Maty Wilke, junior Beaver Dam, Wisc.</strong>: Maty had a huge game for North Tartan. It has been an adjustment coming from Beaver Dam where she has played high school and AAU ball with the same girls forever. She showed Saturday why she is an elite D1 prospect, scoring 13 points and providing energy at both ends of the court. Metro Stars – <strong>Nyamer Diew, junior, Sioux City, Iowa</strong>: When Ny’s family moved from Worthington to Sioux City it wasn’t clear if the lengthy junior would be able to make the 550-mile round trip to the Twin Cities to continue playing for Coach Starks. But she has and is definitely making the most of it. Ny was a top-20 junior before leaving the state and she showed why on Saturday. [caption id="attachment_45892" align="alignleft" width="174"] Ava Hill of Mesabi East turned in a quality performance for North Tartan.[/caption] <strong>Unsung heroes</strong> Metro Stars – <strong>Nunu Agara, 8th grader, Hopkins</strong>: Agara is one of the hottest young prospects in Minnesota, but it is a big ask to play three years up against some of the best juniors in the country. But Agara is the real deal and she looks every bit the part on this team. Nunu used her superior length and athleticism at both ends of the floor and was a beast. North Tartan – <strong>Ava Hill, junior, Mesabi East</strong>: Hill was North Tartan’s great unknown entering the summer season. The Mesabi East guard has never played high-level AAU ball before, but she is quickly adapting. Hill scored four crucial baskets and broke up a couple of big plays in transition through pure speed and effort. She caught Miyah DuBose on one such occasion. Who knew that was possible. <strong>THE REST OF THE TOURNAMENT</strong> Led by Jensen’s 21-point performance and an 18-point night by Jayda Johnston, North Tartan opened the tournament on Friday with a convincing win over Stars Antl. Following the win over the Metro Stars, they knocked off their sisters from North Tartan Elite by 10 before falling in the battle for the top seed to Minnesota Fury 2020 UAA by a score of 56-47. The Metro Stars opened the action on Friday with a win over North Tartan Elite by 15. After their encounter with North Tartan 2020 EYBL they, too, defeated Stars Antl by a margin of 21 behind 14 points apiece for Agara and Diew. On Sunday they beat Suns 2020 Bluestar to capture the third seed in the state tournament. <span style="font-size: 10pt"><em>Top photo: Lauren Jensen of North Tartan went airborne in an attempt to stop a driving Liza Karlen of Metro Stars Starks as Courtney Becker (left) and Mallory Brake (background) did their part. </em></span> <span style="font-size: 10pt"><em>All photos by Jared Martinson of Prep Hoops.</em></span>