ESKO – It wasn't hard to see that the atmosphere was unusual for a regular season game in January when Esko hosted Cherry Friday, January 12.
Before halftime of the junior varsity game, the gym was three-quarters full, and there was only standing room by the time the early game was over, filled with fans looking up to two of northern Minnesota's biggest sports stars.
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The Tigers' Isaac Asuma, the first Iron Range Boys player to offer a scholarship to Minnesota since Paul McDonald in 1976, faced Gophers football recruit Koi Perich of Esko.
Throughout the first half, both teams played at a fast pace, with Cherry leading 50-44 going into the locker room. Asuma scored 14 points in the first half, but Peric seemed to have the better of the game. In the end, though, the Tigers pulled away and took the 100-74 win back to the Iron Range.
After drawing two fouls on the Tigers' Noah Sundquist in the first nine minutes, Perich took advantage of a defensive standoff to score 16 straight points for Isco, including three straight 3-pointers.
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“We wanted to interrupt his career and see if he could shoot it and hit three in a row,” Cherry coach Jordan Christianson said. “Credit to him because he got hot. It was one of those things where it was like 'yeah, you play good defense, this isn't something you do.' “Sometimes a good offense is better than a good defense.”
The Tigers were able to keep up the pace on the rush, pushing the ball up the field with just one dribble in the backcourt on most drives and scoring from all over the floor.
In the second half, Isaac Asuma switched to guarding Perich and after scoring Isco's first bucket of the second half, he only made two more free throws for the remainder of the game.
“We knew we had to limit him to the slopes because he is a super athlete,” Isaac Asuma said. “Once he gets to the rim, he's got that verticality all the way. He's a great basketball player and a great football player, and it was a fun game to compete in.”
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After a Braedyn Male dunk cut the Cherry lead to seven early in the first half, the Tigers took a 17-3 lead that put the game out of reach. Isco coach Derek Anderson blamed himself.
“I didn't have the kids ready to go tonight and I didn't make enough adjustments to put them in a position to win the game,” Anderson said.
It wasn't a 40-point lead from Isaac Asuma, it was a balanced scoring run based on ball movement. The first team finished with 20 points, but all five Cherry players finished with at least 16 points.
Noah Asuma led the team with 21 goals, while Carson Brown had 20, Isaiah Asuma had 18, and Sundquist had 16.
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“We are a very balanced team, and all five starters can come off the field,” Christianson said. “At any given moment, they're all capable of it and you have to hold everyone accountable. That's what makes us who we are. We're strong at guard, and you can't really unplay one of us or put a weaker defender in there, and we'll take advantage of that.”
What's more, they are a selfless unit trying to live up to the motto behind their warm-ups: “We're not me.”
“Everyone on our team wants each other to succeed,” Isaac Asuma said. “I think that's what fuels our cohesion and playing as a unit. Nobody cares about their stats, everyone just cares about doing whatever it takes to win.
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It was an unusually large crowd for a regular-season game, but it created a “fun atmosphere,” according to Anderson.
“There are a lot of people who wanted to watch this match, to see, on paper, two good teams,” he said.
Christianson and Asuma agreed that playing in front of a crowd is fun, but the Tigers have played in a lot of big games over the past three seasons, with two section titles and four state tournament appearances under their belts.
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“Our guys are used to this type of environment, and they thrive in an environment like this — they love it,” Christianson said. “It makes my job as a coach a lot easier when I don't have to worry about keeping the players calm because they're used to it at this point.”
Cherry (11-2) will play Blake at 7:45 p.m. Saturday at Anoka.
Isco (6-3) will play at Duluth Denfield at 7 p.m. on Tuesday.
Perich declined to give an interview after the match.
Cherry – Andrew Staples 3, Noah Sundquist 16, Isaac Asuma 20, Mason Hitsman 2, Isaiah Asuma 18, Noah Asuma 21, Carson Brown 20. Overall 41 8-9.
3-pointers – Staples, Isaac Asuma, Noah Asuma 5, Isaiah Asuma, Carson Brown 2.
Isco – Jakion Owens 9, Xander Gabel 7, Kwi Perich 21, Jake Randa 5, Sam Haugen 4, Jackson Peterson 4, Dalton Spindler 8, Brayden Mille 16. Overall 30 8-12 74.
Triple goals: Gabel, Perich 3, Randa, Peterson.
