AAU Week #6 recap: Perusing the Preliminaries
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Six weeks in and we’re knee deep in the 2022 AAU season. We’ve had warm-up tournaments, a live period weekend, and two Prep Girls Hoops Circuit events on the docket so far. That brings us to weeks 6 and 7…
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Continue ReadingSix weeks in and we’re knee deep in the 2022 AAU season. We’ve had warm-up tournaments, a live period weekend, and two Prep Girls Hoops Circuit events on the docket so far. That brings us to weeks 6 and 7 – without a doubt our favorite stretch of the spring and summer season. This weekend was the State Prelims where the seeding is determined for the Minnesota AAU State Championships that’s coming up this weekend. Throughout the year most of our attention is directed at individual evaluations. At the State Tournament the focus is on team performance and bragging rights for all of the AAU clubs in our backyard. Since team performance is on the agenda, let’s begin our recap of AAU Week #6 there.
WHO PLAYED WELL AT THE PRELIMS?
Class of 2023 (17U)
There were no big surprises at the top of the 2023 heap as both North Tartan EYBL and Minnesota Fury 2023 UAA went undefeated in pool play on the weekend before North Tartan prevailed in the meeting between the two teams. Among the other 17U squads that went undefeated in pool play were Crossfire Kuehnel which defeated North Tartan Elite to win Pool C. Minnesota Suns Blue Star 2023 captured Pool D, Minnesota Rise Wolfe won Pool E and Minnesota Diamond Elite Walker/Begin went undefeated in Pool F.
Tessa Johnson Tessa Johnson 5'11" | SG St. Michael-Albertville | 2023 State #36 Nation MN , the #1-ranked player in the Prep Girls Hoops Class of 2023, continued her run of exceptional play. Johnson turned heads nationally during the live period and this weekend the St. Michael-Albertville junior scored 71 points in four games for North Tartan. The top point producers on a per game basis were Sage Ganyo Sage Ganyo 5'4" | CG Mountain Iron-Buhl | 2023 State MN of High Impact (Mountain Iron-Buhl) at 21 ppg, Megan Corkery of 43 Hoops Premier (Minnetonka) at 20.3, and Abigail O’Reilly Abigail O’Reilly 6'1" | PF PEM | 2023 State MN of the Rise (Plainview-Elgin-Millville) at 18.7.
Class of 2024 (16U)
North Tartan EYBL and Fury UAA also went undefeated in 16U pool play with North Tartan winning the crossover game between the two. These two teams would appear to be clear favorites. Perhaps the most impressive performance was Minnesota Rise 2024 coached by Emma Purfeerst of Bethany Lutheran College. The team, which includes 15th-ranked Kadence Hesse Kadence Hesse 5'10" | PG Sleepy Eye | 2024 State MN of Sleepy Eye and four more Top 75 prospects, scored three dominant wins by an average of 44 points per game to win Pool C. Other undefeated teams included the Metro Stars, North Tartan Elite, 43 Hoops Elite, Crossfire Schuck and Minnesota Stars Zabel.
Tori McKinney Tori McKinney 6'1" | CG Minnetonka | 2024 State MN of Minnetonka had a terrific weekend for North Tartan, Jordan Zubich Jordan Zubich 5'11" | SG Mountain Iron-Buhl | 2024 State MN of the Fury lit it up at 13 points per game, but 2026 prospect Tori Oehrlein Tori Oehrlein 5'10" | CG Crosby-Ironton | 2026 State MN of the Minnesota Suns was right there, as well, playing two years up as usual. The leading scorer in the division was Elizabeth Lukken of North Tartan North. The Underwood guard averaged 23 ppg. Two other notable performances belonged to Elizabeth Corley Elizabeth Corley 5'9" | CG United Christian | 2024 State MN (United Christian) and Madison Malecha Madison Malecha 5'11" | SF Burnsville | 2024 State MN (Burnsville) of Crossfire Corley. In their first game of the weekend Malecha had 33 points, 7 rebounds, 4 blocks and 3 steals while Corley had 29 points with five triples.
Class of 2025 (15U)
Multi-time state champions Minnesota Stars Borowicz went undefeated at the Prelims as did North Tartan Nike before NT took the crossover game 56-44 to earn top seed. Fury 2025 UAA and the Minnesota Suns/Starks Academy squad both went 2-1 before the Fury won their meeting by 5 to get the third seed for State. Among the pool undefeateds were Crossfire South Grismer, North Tartan SE, North Tartan Elite, Minnesota Rise Hulke, Crossfire South Mueller, Minnesota Fury 2025 Premier, Minnesota Comets Notch and West Central Wildcats. Benilde-St. Margaret’s guard Kendall McGee Kendall McGee 5'10" | CG Benilde-St. Margaret's | 2025 State MN of the Stars, the #2-rated prospect in the Class of 2025, led the division in scoring with 57 points with Top 25 Aneisha Scott Aneisha Scott 5'6" | PG DeLaSalle | 2025 State MN of The City (DeLaSalle) just five points behind. Probably the most notable performance in the 2025 Division was that of Suns/Starks guard Chloe Johnson, who turned a lot of heads this weekend. The future Duluth Marshall Hilltopper had the third-highest point totals in the 2025 Division playing three years up! That’s right, she’s a 2028 and scoring isn’t even at the top of her rather lengthy list of superior assets.
Class of 2026 (14U)
Minnesota Stars Hill topped Pool A in the 2026 Division while the Inspired Athletics NT8 team coached by club director Monte Gordon did the same in Pool B. The Stars finished on top when the two teams met and will be the #1 seed this weekend. If you aren’t familiar, Inspired Athletics is out of the Fargo-Moorhead area (programs that overlap the Minnesota border are eligible for the AAU state title) and is affiliated with North Tartan. Their second team, coached by new Fargo South coach Trevor Olson, also went unbeaten to win its pool. Among the other units with a perfect record at the Prelims were Crossfire Gee, Minnesota Fury Yellow, Minnesota Rise Heiderscheidt, Minnesota Stars Joerger, North Tartan Elite and Minnesota Comets Durbin.
A pair of North Dakota imports – LeeLee Bell and Maggie Fricke – led the 2026 Division in scoring on behalf of P.J. Hill’s Stars’ squad but it was Southern Minnesota Fury point guard Audrey Shindelar who topped the per-game averages at 15.7. Shindelar raised her stock again at the Prelims and the incoming freshman from Stewartville is making a strong case that she is a Top 25 prospect among the 2026s.
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Hutchinson junior Savannah Schlueter Savannah Schlueter 5'5" | PG Hutchinson | 2023 State MN (photo above) is a streaky shooter who has been known to get hot from time to time, but the Top 160 junior was absolutely blistering on Saturday. The Minnesota Rise Busse guard, who has one of the biggest motors in the state, made 10 triples against Minnesota Rise Reinke – yes 10 – in a 49-46 win. Savannah finished the game with 34 points.
THREE UNDER-THE-RADAR PROSPECTS WE LIKED
Allison Berns – forward, MN Suns 2025 Blue Star
It’s not easy to get noticed when you are among the vast stockpile of talented players at Wayzata, which is truly one of the state’s deepest programs at all levels. That’s why AAU is important and Allison (photo above) is certainly making the most of her opportunity while playing for coach Mike Contreras of the Suns. She started the spring season on the wing but in Milwaukee was moved into the post. Suddenly the possibilities became obvious. Berns has length, agility and can run the floor at pace. She knows how to employ her reach at both ends of the floor, gaining position in the paint to grab rebounds and cashing in on her opportunities with a soft touch at the rim. She has nice instincts, elevates well and is abundantly coachable. Allison’s range is improving rapidly, making her a realistic outside threat which bodes well for her future as a college forward. She averaged in double figures at the Prelims.
Maddie Olinger – guard, MN Nice Ellis 11th
Minnesota Nice club director Pierre Ellis has outdone himself again in the department of sartorial splendor. Although fashion is always a matter of individual taste I defy you to show me a cooler looking design than the purple, green and white ensemble that Pierre’s 11th grade squad rolled into the gym with this weekend. They not only looked good but the Nice also played well going undefeated. Among the players who stood out the most was Olinger, a 2024 guard from Jordan by way of Mankato East. Pictured at the top, Maddie is long and lanky and can play either the point or shooting spots. Maddie has nice handles, manages the game with confidence and certainty, sees the floor as you would like, moves the ball efficiently and does all of it with passion and good cheer. Maddie’s IQ is solid as is her level of engagement. By all accounts she is an outstanding teammate, too. Maddie’s arms are long and she utilizes these particularly well on the defensive side of the ball. Add it all up and you have an under-the-radar sophomore clad in over-the-top style.
Leilani Abraham Leilani Abraham 5'8" | PG St. Anthony Village | 2025 State MN – guard, 43 Hoops Black 2025
Leilani is a fiery 5’8 guard from St. Anthony Village who has an extensive arsenal in her cache of weaponry. She’s not particularly big but she is very, very crafty. If you play Leilani too close she’s probably going to blow by you with her deceptively quick first step. If you relax even just a little, Abraham will likely make you pay by knocking down the long ball with precision and consistency. This weekend in the Prelims the 43 Hoops freshman led her squad in scoring at 11 points per game. Against North Tartan SE out of Rochester, she sparked a furious comeback, scoring a pair of triples and 8 points in the last three minutes to give her team a chance. 43 Hoops Black ultimately fell short against a bigger, stronger NT squad but those of us in attendance saw very clearly that Abraham is a force to be reckoned with. She’s also really entertaining!
LOOKING AHEAD
While looking in on other classes from time to time, our main focus over the weekend was to find fresh faces in the Class of 2026. We’ll be naming our Freshmen 50 in the fall and this is part of our due diligence process to see as many of the potential members of that rather exclusive club as we can. We watched approximately 30 of the 2026 squads play over the weekend and have identified 10 under-the-radar talents you’ll want to know about. We’ll tell you about those in a two-part series beginning on Tuesday. Our colleague Rudy Ruffin also has some player evaluations coming up in the next few days. On Thursday we’ll have a preview of what is to come at the AAU State Championships which begins on Friday night. It’s going to be a fun week!
Top photo: Maddie Olinger of Jordan and Minnesota Nice.