Mason Palmer drives to the rim in Devils Lake’s game on Tuesday against No. 1 Four Winds/Minnewaukan. (Photo by Cameron Carlson)
For the third consecutive week, Four Winds/Minnewaukan is the unanimous No. 1 in Division A boys’ basketball. The Indians have been No. 1 for four straight weeks now.
Devils Lake also received votes in the poll released Wednesday, as voted on by the NDAPSSA.
The Indians beat Devils Lake for the second time this season on Tuesday, 60-46. Devils Lake has lost seven of its last 11 games after a 6-0 start. But the Firebirds have stars Mason and Max Palmer back on the court, and now their focus is on gelling as a team and getting back to where they were at the beginning of the season.
FW/M’s busy stretch of region games is going swimmingly. The Indians’ last five wins have been region wins, worth nine points in the standings. They’ll finish this stretch with a two-pointer against Carrington on Thursday in Minnewaukan. After that, their only region game left is Feb. 27 against Hillsboro/Central Valley.
With a 13-game winning streak going, FW/M is 14-1 overall and 10-0 in region play.
Devils Lake gets to take a little bit of a breather after Tuesday’s hard-fought battle. The Firebirds host Harvey/Wells County on Thursday, then play a non-region game against Shiloh Christian on Feb. 14. Their remaining region games are at May-Port-C-G on Feb. 16 and hosting Thompson on Feb. 27.
Devils Lake’s region record is 4-4, good for fifth place, as of now. Hillsboro/Central Valley is only slightly ahead at 5-4, and the Firebirds beat the Burros twice. H/CV still has H/WC, FW/M and Grafton on its schedule.
Kindred fell from No. 2 to No. 4 in this week’s poll. The Vikings lost 61-52 to Oak Grove last Thursday. Central Cass, despite a recent loss to Wahpeton, moved from No. 3 to No. 2.
Wahpeton also reentered the ranking at No. 5, while Shiloh Christian fell from the top five. FW/M’s only loss this season came to Wahpeton.
Beulah moved from No. 5 to No. 3. The Miners have been ranked as high as No. 2 this season. They were unranked for a short period, too, after losing to Devils Lake and FW/M.
Region 2 foe Grafton continues to receive votes, as well, with a 12-3 record. Statistically, Grafton has the best offense and the worst defense in the region.
On the girls’ side, Turtle Mountain is the only unranked team to receive votes.
Region 2 foe Carrington moved from No. 4 to No. 3 after beating Thompson for the second time this season. The Cardinals received one first-place vote this week, taking away unanimous honors from No. 1 South Prairie-Max. Thompson fell from No. 2 to No. 4.
Carrington has won 14 in a row, locking up the No. 1 seed in the region with a 13-1 record.
Thompson is in second place at 11-2, with third-place Devils Lake (8-3) still holding onto an outside chance at taking over if it can beat Thompson this Friday. Four Winds/Minnewaukan is locked into the No. 4 seed.
In Division B, the Benson County girls were ranked No. 4 for the second straight week. They recently finished their regular season with a 17-2 record. Undefeated Flasher leads the way with 17 of the 19 first-place votes.
The District 4 girls’ basketball tournament will be held Friday, Saturday and Monday in Maddock.
On the boys’ side, New Rockford-Sheyenne received votes but remained unranked with a 13-3 record. The Rockets are now 3-2 in district play after an 0-2 start.
North Star did not receive any votes this week after falling to NR-S, 59-47. The Bearcats bounced back with district wins over Nelson County and Warwick, though — 72-60 and 90-36, respectively. North Star is 14-3 on the season and 4-1 in district play.
Division A boys’ basketball
- Four Winds/Minnewaukan (19) – 95 points (Previous: 1)
- Central Cass – 67 points (Previous: 3)
- Beulah – 47 points (Previous: 5)
- Kindred – 33 points (Previous: 2)
- Wahpeton – 19 points (Previous: NR)
Received votes: Shiloh Christian, Grafton, Devils Lake
Division A girls’ basketball
- South Prairie-Max (18) – 94 points (Previous: 1)
- Valley City – 65 points (Previous: 3)
- Carrington (1) – 62 points (Previous: 4)
- Thompson – 32 points (Previous: 2)
- Hazen – 30 points (Previous: 5)
Received votes: Turtle Mountain
Division B boys’ basketball
- Central McLean (19) – 95 points (Previous: 1)
- Our Redeemer’s – 67 points (Previous: 2)
- Ray – 52 points (Previous: 3)
- Hankinson – 49 points (Previous: 4)
- Midway/Minto – 12 points (Previous: NR)
Received votes: Bishop Ryan, Oakes, New Rockford-Sheyenne
Division B girls’ basketball
- Flasher (17) – 92 points (Previous: 1)
- Central McLean (1) – 70 points (Previous: 3)
- LaMoure-Litchville/Marion (1) – 49 points (Previous: 2)
- Benson County – 44 points (Previous: 4)
- Hatton/Northwood – 28 points (Previous: 5)
Received votes: Garrison, Tioga
