Monona Grove over Lakeside Lutheran

Took in a battle of a pair of top 10 teams in the respective divisions tonight. Monona Grove in D2 and Lakeside Lutheran in D3. This was also a battle of top big men with Monona Grove's senior 6'7 Jake Schroeckenthaler going against 6'6 Lakeside junior Cameron Paske. Both big men played well in this one doing their own thing but, it was evident early on that there is a difference between a D2 and D3 school. Typically Lakeside is a very physical team but, Monona Grove was the physical team and brought the pressure. Lakeside did a nice job of adjusting at the half but, they were alittle shell shocked early on.

Like I said early on MG was doing their thing hitting the outside shots and pounding the ball into Schroeckenthaler. Lakeside decided to just let Paske go man to man with Schroeckenthaler but, that was a mistake because Paske is as tall as him but, he's just so wide that Paske had a hard time getting around him and when he fronted the MG guards did a nice job of throwing the pass over the top. Paske got his own points on the other side as he showed some nice moves using his quickness and showed that nice step back base line post up shot that I had seen him shoot in the past. I think Lakeside could of looked for Paske a little more in the post. Lakeside's guards had a tough time just getting the ball across half court at times leading to some easy buckets for MG. At the half Monona Grove threatened to blow things out up 46-32.  Grove looked bigger and faster in every aspect in the game.

In the second half Lakeside tighten up the defense and they found a nice mismatch in going to 6'4 junior Jack Monis in the post. Monis was fairly quiet in the first half but, in the second he was aggressive in the post and he was tough to stop. Everything was running through Monis and Lakeside was able to cut the lead down to eight or possibly seven at one point. In the end though Schroeckenthaler was just too much of a disruption in the paint and Lakeside just gave MG too much of a lead to start the game. Final was 83 to 74. The game was never really in doubt but, it was still an entertaining game none the less.

Top Players 
Jake Schroeckenthaler 6'7 senior Monona Grove- There is a reason he is considered one of the top post players in the state. Has very soft hands and has a high basketball IQ. Really knows how to post up and he's willing to do it even when he's not getting the ball, really seals his defender off.

Sam Hepp 6'7 junior Monona Grove- Had a huge first half hitting his mid range jump shot and hitting a huge three. Also was more aggressive on the glass then I had seen him the first time around. Has the height but, prefers to play on the perimeter.
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Caden Nelson 6'1 junior Monona Grove- Solid lead guard. Hit the three early on which forced defenders to come out on him which allowed him to drive right by them and get to the rim. Showed a nice floater as well.

Cameron Paske 6'6 junior Lakeside Lutheran- Another true big man that used his quickness to score in the paint. Like I said earlier has a nice step back shot on the baseline when he's posting. Willing to battle on the glass.

Jack Monis 6'4 junior Lakeside Lutheran- High energy player that has a lot of highs and lows. Was really tough in the post tonight scoring and dishing to open team mates.

Will DeNoyer 6'0 junior Lakeside Lutheran- He's always going to get his points. Turned the ball over a bit too much tonight and probably takes some bad shots. Does a great job of getting to the middle of the defense and can hit the short to mid range jumper. Really elevates on his shot to get it off over bigger defenders.

Box Score
Monona Grove 83- Schroeckenthaler 29 C Nelson 19 Hepp 11 Jimmy Thome 10 Max Nelson 8 Alex Ogden 4 Henry Huston 2 Kyle Nett 0 Jayden Robinson 0 Anthony Ellis-Krehl 0 Austin Elmer 0
Lakeside Lutheran 74- DeNoyer 18 Paske 18 Monis 15 Caleb Kuepers 11 Cade Olszewski 5 Isaiah Lenz 5 Caleb Raymon 2 Seth Hackbarth 0 Brevin Jegerlehner 0 Isaac Heckmann 0 Charlie Miller 0 Jacob Ulrich 0

I have to say Monona Grove was much more impressive then the last time I saw them play. With their size and post play Monona Grove could make a decent drive in the playoffs. I still like what I see out of Lakeside Lutheran but, with their junior class I think next year will be their year. I honestly could even see them make the deep run this year.