High school hoops helps counter the "down" mood resulting from the weather of late, wouldn't you say? Yours truly just got home after walking to and from town this a.m. (Sunday). I'm just going to neglect the driving until the springtime conditions come. They have to come soon, don't they?
I got downtown and found the snowed-in conditions to be worse than what I expected. DeToy's was closed. That was going to be my sanctuary this morning. I figured the old mainstay Willie's would be open. And yes it was. It was amusing to see the snow removal guy in the lot try to find places to dump snow as he opened up parking spaces. We are running out of space to deposit snow, n'est-ce pas? And it's a heavy snow this morning. It probably challenges the snow blowers. A friend reminds me that it's "heart attack snow." So I'm not going to shovel.
The snow is at present no impediment for yours truly 'cause I'm walking to and from town. Should be acceptable - I did the Twin Cities Marathon three times in the 1980s. Yes, my age is starting to get up there. My next birthday will be my Medicare birthday. Incidentally I had my breakfast at Caribou Coffee at Willie's. I was outraged at the prices. I had two biscuits and coffee. And for one dollar less, even considering the tip at DeToy's, I could have gotten their breakfast special of two eggs, sausages, toast, hash browns and coffee. And to think we used to get free coffee at Willie's.
Tigers 55, Minnewaska Area 50
OK so now it's on to a more fun subject for March: basketball. Unfortunately we're having to travel to Willmar. Don't you miss the days when we played so many games at UMM? Our boys hoops Tigers will play at Willmar on Monday night - it's the sub-section title game. This game could also be called the section semis. We're in 3AA. The game was supposed to have been played Saturday. Weather unleashed its fury. Hey it's mid-March, isn't it? Enough already.
Jaret Johnson was a standout for MACA in our win over rival Minnewaska Area. Johnson poured in 24 points. He connected three times from 3-point range in the Tigers' 55-50 win over the Lakers. The game might have seemed too close for comfort. The score was tied at halftime. The Tigers haven't exactly been burning the nets in first half play. We were behind at halftime in our game vs. ACGC. Well, we outscored the Lakers 32-27 in the second half.
Our win was No. 18. 'Waska ends its season with 18 wins too. In our previous game vs. Minnewaska, during the regular season, the Tigers were so dominant, the refs called for "running time" toward the end. But consider also that in these teams' first matchup this season, we lost. How to make sense of all this? What matters now is that we won in the playoffs, and now we're getting ready to face Redwood Valley Monday at Willmar.
Camden Arndt contributed 13 points to the winning effort Thursday. Jackson Loge cooled off considerably from the ACGC game - this time he had seven points. Durgin Decker put in eight. Jaden Maanum contributed three. Maanum and Decker each made a '3' to complement Johnson's three successes from long-range. Arndt and Loge each grabbed eleven rebounds while Johnson had eight. Arndt with his five assists led there. Maanum executed three assists. Johnson stole the ball three times.
The Lakers had two players in double figures: Grant Jensen (22 points) and Shawn Carsten (11). Here's the rest of their scoring list: Jack Blevins 7, Ryan Amundson 5, Austin Ver Steeg 3 and Luke Barkeim 2. 'Waska had a fair amount of success in 3-pointers led by Carsten who made two. These Lakers each made one: Blevins, Jensen, Amundson and Ver Steeg.
The Willmar paper quoted Jaret Johnson. A major reason I quit the Morris paper was management's expectation, expressed in writing, that I get quotes from student athletes, presumably on a frequent basis. I didn't see much of a point in doing this, and I'd feel uncomfortable doing this.
How will the travel conditions be for the Monday night game? Fans will have to drive home after dark. I'm glad I'm not obligated to make such trips, sorry. Have a good time.
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| Dave Evenson (from sr. perspective) |
Dave Evenson came into Willie's while I was there this morning (Sunday). All good things must come to an end, and the clock is ticking toward Barber Dave's retirement.
As of now we can't expect anyone replacing him as Morris barber. I plan on seeing him later this month with his retirement imminent, to get a haircut in which I'll ask him to make it real short. So, I can live with that haircut for a long time. I may eventually attack my hair with a pair of scissors.
And then after that? When I finally feel I need to see a hair cutter again? Probably I'll have to see a female cosmetologist. I haven't done that for a number of years. And when I get sat down and she applies the apron, I'll keep my hands outside of it and say "OK, I'll keep my hands where you can see them." That's a light-hearted reference to an event from Morris history, the kind of event that will not be preserved by the Stevens County Historical Society. Ah, there's all kinds of interesting characters in Mayberry, isn't there?
- Brian Williams, morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com
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