THREE PEAT: Red Lake boys basketball tops Northern Freeze, wins 3rd straight 8A title

THIEF RIVER FALLS — The Red Lake boys’ basketball team earned its third consecutive Section 8A championship Friday night, topping the Northern Freeze 65-44 with a big second half.

The Freeze (23-7) held a 25-22 advantage at the break, led by Jonah Underdahl’s 10 first half points and Connor Sorenson’s eight.

Rob McClain kept the Warriors (26-4) close, tallying seven points in the opening period to keep the Red Lake deficit within a single possession.

In the second half, however, the Warriors reminded the section why it still belonged to them.

Red Lake outscored Northern Freeze 43-19 in the final 18 minutes. McClain nearly outscored the Freeze himself, tallying 16 second-half points for a game-high 23.

Northern Freeze wasn’t able to keep up, surrendering their halftime lead and falling by double-digits.

McClain’s 23 led all scorers. Kendall Whitefeather finished with 11, while Jeremy Martin and William Morrison scored nine apiece.

Underdahl led the Freeze with 18 points, with Sorenson also finishing in double-digits with 10. Cole Dahl had eight points.

The Warriors will advance to the Class A State tournament for the third consecutive season, but are still searching for their first win in the recent run after dropping their opening-round game to Maranatha Christian each of the last two seasons.

The state tournament begins on Thursday at Williams Arena in Minneapolis. The Warriors will be seeking their first state win since 2003.

Red Lake 65, Northern Freeze 44

NF 25 19 — 44

Red Lake 22 43 — 65

Northern Freeze — Zak Anderson 3, Cole Dahl 8, Connor Sorenson 10, Will Johnson 3, Jonah Underdahl 18, Caleb Knutson 2

Red Lake — Jamie Cook 7, William Morrison 9, Rob McLain 23, Robert Beaulieu 3, Kendall Whitefeather 11, Jeremy Martin 9, Brent Pemberton 1