John’s Journal: Cherry Tigers Surprise Everyone But Themselves

Basketball games aren’t decided by what happened previously or by how old or tall the players are. But those things can be meaningful, which led to this line of questioning for Cherry boys coach Jordan Christianson after the Tigers defeated Nevis 68-57 Wednesday in the Class 1A state quarterfinals at Williams Arena…

You lost to that team by 22 points in January. Cherry hasn’t been to state in 25 years and this is Nevis’ third trip to state in three years. You've got junior high kids in the starting lineup. Was this a surprise?

“It was not a surprise to anyone in the locker room or in the community,” the coach said. “They’ve been playing up their whole life. I remember Isaac was in first grade playing with kids in fifth grade or sixth grade.”

Isaac Asuma was sitting next to Christianson in the postgame media room. Isaac is a 6-foot-2 sophomore who had 31 points and 17 rebounds for the Tigers. The other starters for Cherry are seventh-grader Isaiah Asuma, eighth-grader Noah Asuma, senior Sam Serna and senior Nick Serna.

Nevis had won at home against Cherry by a score of 67-45 on Jan. 18, but things were different in the rematch inside the big maroon and gold Gopher gym. Cherry led 30-26 at halftime and used a 10-0 offensive run to build a 17-point lead with five minutes to play. Isaac Asuma hit 11 of 17 field goal attempts and nine of 11 free throws.

Cherry (27-4) is riding a 13-game winning streak and has won 20 of its last 21 games.

“We knew that Isaac was probably the best athlete on the floor, obviously,” Nevis coach Scott Kramer said. “But he was able to get to the basket. We tried adjusting a few things, but he still continued to get to the basket. I mean, he just outhustled us in a lot of areas. And that was the big difference.”

Nevis senior Mathias Warrington said, “They looked small, but they were a lot more physical than they were the last time we played them. I feel like the physicality part was a big variable today.”

Despite the loss, the Nevis Tigers were proud of their accomplishment in finally playing a true state tournament game. Two years ago, they qualified for state before it was cancelled due to Covid-19, and last year their season ended with a state quarterfinal loss to Hancock in a contest played at Perham as those games were held around the state.

“We are in a unique situation because we've qualified for state for the last three years but this is the first time here,” Kramer said. “We really thought we had a game we could win but we just didn't do the things that we needed to.

“But we've had a heck of a run for our seniors. It's been great that we actually got to the Barn at least one time. We would have obviously liked to play more here but that just didn't happen today.”

Back In The Big Show

The Class 1A quarterfinals opened with Hayfield defeating Russell-Tyler-Ruthton 66-49, and the Vikings will meet Cherry in Friday’s semifinals. The other semifinal will be between Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa and New Life Academy.

Hayfield won the state title last year and returned a good blend of experience. Target Center was the tournament site last season so Williams Arena is a new court for the Vikings this week.

“I think we all had nerves going into the game and I think we lost ours sooner and we settled in a lot quicker,” said Hayfield senior Ethan Pack, who had a game-high 25 points. “We've been here and we know what to do to get the job done.”

Hayfield senior Easton Fritcher said playing on the elevated court was definitely something new.

“You have to be a little careful when you're diving out of bounds, that's for sure,” he said. “I know (teammate) Kobe (Foster) and me both suffered bruises, but it's cool. I think the lighting is a little bit dimmer than Target Center. It feels pretty similar, but obviously with different coloring, a different floor. It's just a cool place to play.”

Spud Tradition From 1924 to 2022

In Class 4A, Moorhead made its 24th trip to the boys state basketball tournament this week. All of the coaches listed here have played in or coached the Spuds at state …

The 2022 Spuds are coached by Matt Ellingson, who was a 2012 Spud basketball player who was coached by Corey Zimmerman. … Zimmerman was a 1992 Spud player who was coached by Chuck Gulsvig. … Gulsvig was a 1974 player who was coached by Bill Quenette and Lowell Bolger. … Bolger was a 1953 Spud player who taught and coached with Phil Seljevold. … Seljevold was a 1944 Spud player who was coached by Cliff Halmrast. … Halmrast was a 1928 player who was coached by Glen Hanna. … Hanna was hired to replace Edwin Thune, who coached the first Spud basketball team at state in 1924.

 --MSHSL media specialist John Millea has been the leading voice of Minnesota high school activities for decades. Follow him on Twitter @MSHSLjohn and listen to "Preps Today with John Millea” wherever you get podcasts. Contact John at [email protected]