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APPLE VALLEY COMPLETES MINNESOTA’S SHOOTOUT SWEEP

Alex Conover
Special to Timberwolves.com

With Timberwolves assistant coach Gary Trent and point guard Tyus Jones watching, Gary Trent Jr. and Tre Jones led the Apple Valley Eagles to a 79-46 victory in the final Timberwolves Shootout game.

The duo with NBA bloodlines pushed the Eagles to victory as Trent scored 27 and Jones had 14. Cam Kirksey also pitched in 12, and Jordan Bolton added 11. But the Eagles weren’t without their miscues; they shot just 34 percent from the field in the first half and struggled from the perimeter, hitting 2-of-14.

The players voiced their slight disappointment after the game on a win that was far from polished. If beating a top team from Tennessee by 33 points is considered “sloppy,” then that speaks to just how good this Apple Valley team can be.

“We want to be a lot better than we are right now,” Jones said. “We’re playing pretty sloppy, and we can clean up a lot of things. Part of that is just getting used to the floor. It’s bigger. But it’s also on ourselves with effort and things like that.”

The defending Class AAAA state champs were matched up against Isaiah Stokes, a 6-foot-8 power forward who holds several high-major football offers. He logged 17 points.

“I thought Brock did a good job against Stokes,” Apple Valley coach Zach Goring said. “He didn’t get quite as many minutes in the second half, but he’s had a great senior season. He did well against Reed (Nikko), too, the other night, and he’s showing what kind of player he can be.”

With all four Minnesota teams winning their games in the Timberwolves Shootout, the talent was on full display. And there is absolutely no shortage of it in Class AAAA.

The state tournament is going to be great this year, and hopefully we’re a part of it,” Goring added. “They’ve redone the sections and spread teams out a little bit. I think it will be the best state tournament in a long time.”