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Five Twin Ports boys basketball teams and key players to watch next season:
Superior – Six-foot-6 junior forward Calvin Anderson, arguably the premier college prospect in the area, averaged 16 points a game last season. The Spartans finished 6-0 in the recent Twin Ports Summer Jam, defeating Duluth Denfeld 45-38 in the championship game. Anderson's dominating performances were the talk of the 16-team tournament.
Duluth Denfeld (15-12, lost to Rock Ridge 70-57 in a Class 3A, Section 7 quarterfinal) – Senior shooting guard Marnaries Ferguson, who averaged 21.3 points a game a year ago, will lead a relatively young and mostly inexperienced Hunters team that figures to challenge Superior and Cloquet for a Lake Superior Conference championship. Junior point guard Lee Brooks (5.6 ppg) is an emerging star.
Cloquet (14-13, lost to North Branch 95-85 in a Class 3A, Section 7 quarterfinal) – Senior shooting guard Jack Battaglia (18.5 ppg) is the Jacks' best player, on a senior-laden team.
Esko (20-9, lost to Pequot Lakes 55-42 in the Class 2A, Section 7 championship) – Esko begins a competitive rebuild, but senior guard Sam Haugen (13.2 ppg) – a three-year starter – is back. Freshman Braxdyn Male is a youngster to watch.
Duluth Marshall (15-13, lost to Esko 84-47 in a Class 2A, Section 7 quarterfinal) – Brooks Johnson, a 6-6 senior and Bulldogs recruit, averaged 32.1 points and 16.6 rebounds per game a year ago. Junior guard Brody Carlson averaged 8.3 points per game last season, while canning 43 3's.
HOCKEY
Victor Plante of Hermantown, set to play for the USA Hockey National Team Development Program this season and next, has verbally committed to the Bulldogs. His older brothers, Zam and Max, will be freshmen at Minnesota Duluth this fall. The Plante siblings can potentially be Bulldogs teammates starting in the 2026-27 season.
. Winnipeg Jets defenseman Neal Pionk of Hermantown is in the final year of a three-year contract, with an average annual value of $6.5 million, and will be an unrestricted free agent following this season. Despite playing top-four minutes, he has mostly underperformed in the last two seasons, and I wouldn't be surprised if the Jets move him before this year's trade deadline.
