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(KNSI) – The Albany High School Boys’ Basketball Team tips off its state tournament run Tuesday against Pequot Lakes at Williams Arena.

The Huskies enter the game with a 29-1 record. Head Coach Cory Schlagel says the senior leadership responded well to a Section 6AA Championship game loss last season. The group has constantly improved, says Schlagel.

“They worked extremely hard in the weight room as well as on their individual skills and then we just had to, in November, get them put back together and organize them as a team.”

Albany and Pequot Lakes met in January with the Huskies winning 74-52. Schlagel says the margin is misleading, though. The Patriots were leading for much of the first half before the Huskies pulled away with a dominant five or six minutes of gameplay after the break.

Schlagel says he is most impressed with his squad’s balance. In addition to the likes of Tysen Gerads and Carter Voss, Schlagel talks about the strong post players on the team.

“Each guy that we have at each spot it’s…they’re kind of tailor-made for their positions. We have a five man that can post on the interior. So, we’re really fortunate that we have Ethan Borgerding that can post with his back to the basket and we can get the ball down to him. Sam Hondle, he’s 6’6″. He can play with his back to the basket. He can shoot it from the arc, he can take people off the dribble.”

Schlagel says the balance plays out like chess pieces. He can use the versatility offensively to exploit any defensive strategy an opposing team might use. He says as good as the offense can be, it is Albany’s defensive effort that Schlagel is most proud of.

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