Alec Brown and the Winhawks

Simply put the numbers have been eye-opening. A triple-double of 22 points, 12 rebounds, and a school record 12 blocked shots against Mankato West. A school record 44 points on 18 of 23 shooting with 15 rebounds and four blocks against Rochester JM. Twenty-five points, 15 rebounds, and five blocks in a crushing 21 point win over Irondale.

One may think these numbers belong to Kevin Noreen (they would be right to think so) but these numbers actually belong to Winona seven footer Alec Brown of Winona who has his team ranked in the top five in state at 14-1.

"Alec is playing very good basketball on both ends of the floor," said Winona coach Rocky Peterson. "I still think we are yet to see his best basketball of the season. His size on defense allows our other guys on the perimeter to really stretch out and apply pressure knowing if they make a mistake defensively, Alec will be there to help clean things up.

"I think what makes Alec so tough on the offensive end is his ability to shoot. He doesn't have to play with his back to the basket the entire game, and with his size, he gets off uncontested shots. Alec does a great job of following up his misses and putting points on the board."

At 14-1 Winona has already picked up victories over recent Big Nine powers Mankato West, Owatonna, and Rochester Mayo. The Winhawks have also defeated some other fairly strong teams from around the metro in Irondale and New Prague. At about the midpoint of the conference season Winona has built themselves a 2.5 game lead over Big Nine second place teams Owatonna and Mankato West.

Of course Alec Brown has been a huge part of the team's success but this isn't a one man show. College coaches, high school coaches, area AAU coaches, and some local basketball die-hards have also come away very impressed by some of Brown's teammates particularly junior forward Mark Blacklock. Overall the team is playing well together strongly gelling as a unit.

"I think one of the big keys for our good start is our guard play," Peterson stated. "We knew coming into the season our two big guys were capable of dominating games. We thought our guard play would mature as the season progressed. A pleasant surprise for us has been how quickly our guards have responded.

"Erik Chapman has done a great job serving as our point distributing the ball and handling the pressure. Martin Feddersen has also matured quickly along with John Scheevel, Anthony Inman, and our freshman point guard Chance Bechly who has adjusted to the speed of the game and is giving us productive minutes. Mark Blacklock is Alec's running mate, I don't know if I have seen two big guys work so well together."

Chapman and Scheevel are seniors while Blacklock, Inman, and Feddersen are all a part of Winona's solid group of juniors. As a core this team has shaped it's 2009-10 season into a 14-1 record thus far and all parts of their rotation are playing important roles.

The biggest part is likely coming from Brown who has accumulated scholarship offers from Air Force, Bowling Green, Bucknell, Fairfield, Florida Gulf Coast, UWGB, Loyola-Chicago, UW-Milwaukee, Oral Roberts, and South Dakota State since last spring. Some of these teams have since received commitments from players at Alec's position so an offer may not stand any longer but Brown is still receiving a lot of interest from schools around the nation. In fact, three D1 schools continue to look at him the hardest while three others have started to show more interest.

"Chicago Loyola, Wisconsin-Green Bay, and Santa Clara have maintained their steady interest," said coach Peterson. "I have had conversations with Washington State, Saint Louis, and Northern Iowa over the past few weeks."

With the winter season pushing past its midpoint expect more and more coaches to be stopping at games in Winona. And with the Winhawks having such a strong season there is a very good chance they could make it back to the state tournament for the second straight year. They are certainly the section one, class AAA favorite having beaten New Prague (58-46) who is the only other team in the section with a winning record.

Winona proved last year they can complete the run to get to the state tournament. The Winhawks have the frontcourt to compete, their guards are getting things done, and right now Winona seems like a team that has to be considered a contender.