Marcus Logan’s first start came against Barnum, the second ranked 2A team in the state. Logan (23) got his shot off over two defenders’ hands, but it caromed off the rim.
Barnum’s stellar guard Brandon Newman took Barnum’s first 8 shots in its game against the Vikings on Friday, January 9 in a game played in Grand Marais. When he was done shooting it was Barnum 16 and the Vikings 2.
One of the top ranked 2A schools in Minnesota, Barnum’s high flying offense and smothering defense were much-too-much for a young Viking team. The Vikings trailed 55-4 at the half, and Barnum’s Head Coach Rich Newman (Brandon’s father) kept his starters in the game for 10 minutes of the second half before substituting his younger players.
Barnum used a half-court man-to-man defense, but often double-teaming the man with the ball once it crossed half-court. If a Viking player tried to pass out of the trap, it was usually intercepted and resulted in a quick lay-up for Barnum. If they stopped dribbling, a Barnum player was only too happy to rip the ball out of the hands of a smaller Viking player and again pass it to a player releasing down the court for an easy bucket.
Until Barnum’s second team came in, the game was completely dominated by Barnum.
Barnum’s 6’5” junior center Hunter Fetters was also a mismatch for the Vikings. Not only was he a lot taller than any Viking, he was a lot quicker and at 250 pounds plus he scored pretty much at will despite the Vikings’ best attempts to stop him.
Head Coach Pat Eliasen knew this was going to be a tough game for his squad. With only one returning starter from last year’s team, Jamie Wick, this is a rebuilding year for the Vikings.
While the Vikings were overmatched physically and the final score was 94-19, the kids never quit. Sophomore Marcus Logan earned his first start of the year and showed his quick hands on defense. Seniors Jamie Wick and Andy Farley were marked men by the Barnum defenders—every one of them could (and probably will) make the first or second team All-Polar League this year— and were shut down for most of the game. Sophomore forward Sam O’Phelan gets better with each game and guards Rory Bakke and Jared Spry are learning to run the Viking offense. Junior forward Lucas Phillips is also developing a much-needed 3-point shot for the Vikings and improves with each game.
“The Barnum game was a tough one both physically and mentally,” said head coach Pat Eliasen. “They play outstanding man-to-man defense and their ability to score was phenomenal. Our guys did what they could but obviously we were not able to compete with them. I was happy that we kept our turnovers down to 24. We played a pretty decent second half and the guys never stopped fighting. I was pleased to see that and pleased to see that we didn’t get cheap even though we took a pretty hard loss.”
Jamie Wick finished with 5 points and 4 rebounds while Sam O’Phelan and Lucas Phillips each scored 4 points. Andy Farley scored 3 points and had 2 rebounds and Jerod Spry ended his night with 2 points and 3 rebounds with Rory Bakke getting 1 point and 1 rebound.
With three 8th grade players, two freshmen, two sophomores, four juniors and two seniors, the Vikings are very young and inexperienced. The Barnum game gives them a measuring stick to see how good they can become if they practice year-round because as Viking fan know, Barnum, a long time opponent, has spent many years getting to this level.
The Vikings’ next game is Friday, January 16 at Floodwood; they face Ely at Ely on the 17th and then come home to play Two Harbors on January 20. The Two Harbors game will start at 4:45. All three games will be much better competition for the Vikings.
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