Minnesota Xplosion

 

TWIN CITIES SUMMER CLASSIC

July 12-15, 2008

Minneapolis, MN

Pool Assignments
Pool Play
Bracket

Competing Teams

MPLS Redhawks 43 Hoops Harris Elite Sports Select
Minnesota Heat Black MSB Roadrunners MN Comets Elite
Minnesota Xplosion 94 Feet of Game Minnesota Magic Black
Terry Porter Elite Hoop Masters Big Game Sports
43 Hoops Gameli Mac Irvine Fire Upstate Elite

 

 

Keynote speech by NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson

 

 

 

Special performance by artist Paul Wall

 

 

Full Monday Recap by TC Hoops Czar
Full Sunday Recap by TC Hoops Czar
 Full Saturday Recap by TC Hoops Czar

--Game 1
Minnesota Xplosion 63  - Magic Black 75

Jack Ghizoni 17, Steve Bailey 16, Jordan Reibling 8

By: The TC Hoops Czar
This session is all about the 16U pool of death. Kevin Noreen joined the Magic Black squad for their game with the MN Xplosion. As the Xplosion struggle on the glass, Noreen makes his first appearance at 12:25 with Josh Pella guarding him in a entertaining matchup. The Magic get out to a 14-8 lead after Deron Murphy finds Noreen for a layup with 10 minutes left in the half. The rest of the half is back and forth and a Magic 3 at the horn makes it 37-36 Magic Black at the half. A 9-2 run out of halftime topped off by a Steve Bailey 3 gives the Xplosion a 45-39 lead with 14 minutes left. With the score 52-50 and about 10 minutes left, Noreen makes 1 of 2 FTs and then gets 2 straight layups on postups to give the Magic a 57-50 lead with 7 minutes to play and they won't look back. Magic-Black wins 75-63. Kevin Noreen with 14 points and Deron Murphy with 10 points for the Magic. Jack Ghizoni with 17 points to lead the Xplosion.

--Game 2
Minnesota Xplosion 77 - Upstate Elite (MI) 68

Jordan Reibling 22, Josh Pella 17, Steve Bailey 11

The second pool game was against Upstate Elite from Michigan.  Upstate got off to a quick start taking a 14-4 lead over Xplosion in the first few minutes.  As most games have momentum swings, Xplosion's was just around the corner.  After getting down 10 points early, Xplosion came alive, pulling down rebounds, getting quick transition baskets and picking pockets relentlessly.  A flurry of points came from Josh Pella and Jordan Reibling as they combined for 21 first half points.  Defense stepped up also as Xplosion was able to hold the Upstate Elite to only 13 additional points.  Halftime score was Xplosion by 11, 38-27.  Second half continued much like the first half with Xplosion withstanding a small Upstate comeback attempt.  Upstate was able to cut the lead to 8 a few times but the "X"  was able to stop the runs each time.  Final score was 77-68.

--Game 3
Minnesota Xplosion 59 - Minneapolis Redhawks 60

Jack Ghizoni 16, Rick Starck 12, Jordan Reibling 11, Josh Pella 10

Final game of pool play would be against a very athletic Redhawks team.  Redhawks have played most tournaments this season at the 17U level.  John Rowland (Osseo) and  Dalton Graff (Osseo) are just a few of the players that are big contributors for the Redhawks.  Xplosion came out in a man to man putting ball pressure everywhere and forcing the Redhawks to take bad shots.  Josh Pella continued to go strong to the basket early and was able to get to the line on 4 separate occasions in the first half alone.  Halftime score was Xplosion up 27-25.  Second half would be a defensive battle as the Redhawks tightened it up a bit.  With both teams trying to get to the basket Redhawks finally go up by 1 with :30 left in the game.  After a missed shot by the Xplosion, Redhawks get the rebound and are bringing it down court.  A pass is made at half court and Rick Starck dives to intercept it.  With a tip of the ball he is able to stay on his feet, he stumbles but is able to control the ball as he brings it down court.  Redhawks are able to cover the basket and Xplosion pulls it back out.  Redhawks have 4 fouls to give and there is only :20 seconds on the clock.  The fouls are given just as Xplosion tries to make a move to score, eating up the clock. With :04 seconds left, Xplosion inbounds the ball to Reibling in the corner, Redhawks had him   covered with 3 players and Reibling passes it to Rick Starck at the top of the 3 point line.  Starck has already hit one three pointer in the game and with :01 second on the clock he shoots another.  The shot was straight as can be but had just a tiny bit too much on it as it came off the back of the rim.  Minneapolis Redhawks win 60-59.  Josh Pella collected his 10th double double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

--Game 4
Minnesota Xplosion 68 - MN Heat 55

Jack Ghizoni 18, Josh Pella 14, Jordan Reibling 10

First round of the Championship bracket would have the #3 seed, Minnesota Xplosion, against the #2 seed, Minnesota Heat.  Minnesota Heat is a tremendous program ran by Willie Vang with teams at every age level.  Xplosion comes out quick both hitting outside shots and getting to the rim.  Jack Ghizoni has 14 points in the first half and Xplosion lead by 13 by a score of 39-26.  In the second half the Heat would not go away getting to within 4 points on 2 occasions, one of which was with 4:22 left in the game. Xplosion was able to answer each Heat run with some big shots from Jordan Reibling and Josh Pella.  Xplosion go on a nice run of their own to win, 68-55.  

--Game 5 (Quarter Finals)
Minnesota Xplosion 46 - Comets Elite 69

Josh Pella 12, Rick Starck 12, Jordan Reibling 6

With the win against Minnesota Heat, Minnesota Xplosion advance to the elite 8 and would face the Comets Elite.  In the previous 3 meetings, Xplosion won the first meeting at the Magic Super Regional.  Comets Elite won at the Jayhawk Invitational and at the AAU district championships when Xplosion blew a huge lead.  Additions to the Comets Elite team that stand out for the weekend is Taylor Filipek of the Minnesota Magic Elite.  Right out of the gate, Jordan Reibling drops two 3 pointers but Comets regroup quickly and go on a 12-0 run.  Halftime score was 25-38.  Second half was again a display of pure athleticism by the Comets Elite as they played a great game and would advance to the semi-final game against the Redhawks.  Final score was 46-69.

Images Coming Soon


 

STEVEN'S SPORTS REPORT

MINNESOTA XPLOSION IS TAKING ON THE MINNESOTA MAGIC

BY: Steven MacDonald Froemming

The Minnesota Xplosion is taking on the Minnesota Magic. Both teams are coming out looking to shoot the ball. Both teams are playing a man to man defense here to start the game off.

Minnesota Xplosion is pushing the ball aggressively here in the first half. Both teams are pushing the ball up the court there is a quick pace to this game. The Minnesota Magic team has gained at 6 point lead mid way trough this first half. The Minnesota Magic has been relying on their 3 point shot so far here to start this game off. If they keep hitting the three point shot they will be good but if they miss a few and they don’t feel it could lead to a disaster as the game goes along. So it will be interesting to see how and when they shoot the three point shot.

The Minnesota Magic is on a roll here in the middle of the first half. They have kind of gotten on a run here in. The Minnesota Xplosion is in this game. Both teams are playing extremely well here in the middle of the first half. Both teams are being aggressive in this game.

The Minnesota Magic is playing in a half court defense and they are going man to man. They haven’t played much zone defense yet in this game. The Minnesota Xplosion is running set plays each player knows where he is supposed in the offense. Both teams are playing well here in the first half. Both teams are trading baskets here in the final minuets in the first half.

At half time the score is The Minnesota Xplosion 36 and The Minnesota Magic 37 so this game can go either way.

As the second half gets underway both teams come out fired up both of these teams want to come away from this game with a victory today. The Minnesota Magic is pushing the ball up the court here in the second half. They want to play in transition. That is where their strength is. They have shown that they can play well when they control the tempo of the game. This game has gone up and down the court. Both teams are still playing hard.

Kevin Noreen is playing well here in this game. He is making good cuts to the basket and he is playing hard here in the middle of the second half. The Minnesota Magic is putting a little pressure on Minnesota Xplosion. Both teams are going after loose balls and rebounds they have been many bodies sprawled out on the floor going after loose balls. There is a lot of intensity also being displayed here by both teams. This game is a tight game but The Minnesota Magic has a 57-51 lead with 6:30 left to go in the game.

Both teams have dropped back into a half court man to man defense. They are still going hard at each other but now it is in the half court game. We will have to see if either will pick up full court and press. It looks like they wont and they will keep this game in the half court. Both teams are still shooting the ball well here late in this game. The Minnesota Magic has played well in fact both teams have played well in this game you have to give credit to both teams.

In a good game that was exciting to watch the Minnesota Magic has defeated The Minnesota Xplosion by the final score of 75-63.

STAR TRIBUNE

Magic Johnson addresses summer tournament players

NBA great Magic Johnson addressed participants in this weekend's basketball tournament.

By BRIAN STENSAAS, Star Tribune
 Last update: July 11, 2008 - 9:28 PM

Speaking to a group of mostly high school-aged basketball players and their families Friday night in the stuffy, unairconditioned practice facility at Winter Park, former Timberwolf Chris Carr said playing in the NBA was his "front row seat to the best entertainment in the world."

Less than 15 minutes later, those seated on the artificial turf got their chance to be up close and personal with one of the those who made Carr feel that way.

Magic Johnson gave the keynote address as a part of the kickoff to the inaugural Best Buy Twin Cities Summer Classic, a national basketball tournament for 14- to 17-year-old players. Twin Cities-based 43 Hoops Academy, founded and co-owned by Carr, is playing host to the tournament.

Johnson, in town just for the address, spoke for nearly an hour. He brought with him a message of loving the game and being prepared.

"A lot of you have the (Nintendo) Wii, the Xbox, ESPN and EA," Johnson said. "But while you're at home playing with games, they're out on a basketball court. If you love the game, you'll put time in. I put time in."

The former Los Angeles Lakers star, who during his speech wandered through the crowd holding a basketball as a prop, also advised the young players to play with more steak and less sizzle.

"Get the cool out of your game," he said. "We don't want to see you go through your legs 30 times at the three-point line. Go somewhere. Jump shot. Rebound. It's easy."

Johnson then answered a few questions from the crowd. He was asked who he thought was better between Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan.

Johnson wasted little time in picking Jordan, who Johnson said was so good that on numerous occasions he "made me look stupid." It was one of many lighthearted moments in Johnson's upbeat speech.

The tournament runs today through Tuesday. Information can be found at www.twincitiessummerclassic.com.


 

 

 

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