Cretin-Derham Hall tops Alexandria in showcase of standout bigs Tommy Ahneman, Chase Thompson

Alexandria 6-8 forward Chase Thompson gives a quick jab step with his right foot, getting Cretin-Derham Hall 6-10 senior Tommy Ahneman to backpedal slightly off balance. It gives Thompson plenty of room to bury a 22-foot three-pointer.

Ahneman catches the ball on the low block, faking Thompson to the right. Ahneman spins back quickly the other way for a left-handed layup.

The battle between the state’s best two big men in the Class of 2025 — whose games are quite different — didn’t disappoint those in attendance before Thompson left with a right shoulder injury in the second half, allowing Cretin-Derham Hall to rally for a 77-71 victory at the Breakdown Tip Off Classic on Saturday night at Hopkins High School.

Cretin-Derham Hall is No. 1 in the Minnesota Star Tribune’s statewide Minnesota Top 25 rankings; Alexandria is No. 6. In the Minnesota Basketball News class-by-class rankings, the Raiders (2-0) are the top-ranked team in Class 4A while the Cardinals (1-1) are No. 3 in Class 3A.

“That was the best game I’ve ever played in and it’s only the second game of the season,” Ahneman said after he finished with a game-high 22 points and 13 rebounds. “That was super fun.”

Thompson can bring the look of a small forward who can bury a shot from deep or beat you off the dribble while Ahneman is a handful in the low post. They posed problems for each other defensively.

“A matchup like that is more exciting,” Ahneman said. “He’s more of a perimeter player and I’m not a great perimeter defender. It helps me become better defensively. He’s a great player.”

Thompson agreed.

“A matchup like that is exciting,” Thompson said. He finished with 19 points and 9 rebounds despite missing 10 minutes of the second half. “It helps both of us become better players.”

The two will continue to become more acquainted in college. Both are headed to the Atlantic Coast Conference, Thompson to Clemson and Ahneman to Notre Dame. Ahneman transferred to Cretin-Derham Hall after leading West Fargo Sheyenne to a North Dakota state championship last season.

“This was a sneak preview of what the ACC can look like in the next couple of years,” Thompson said.

Thompson left with a right shoulder injury after a Raiders basket pulled them within 48-43 with 12:25 remaining.

“I had a knot in the shoulder coming into the game,” Thompson said. “There was a shooting pain in my shoulder.”

He returned two minutes later with the lead down to one, 50-49. Thompson made a difference defensively as the Cardinals scored six unanswered points, but withered in pain every time he touched the ball on offense. He exited for good with 8:53 remaining.

“I felt paralyzed,” Thompson said.

The Raiders took the lead for good, 69-66, on back-to-back driving layups by sophomore 6-7 forward Ty Schlagel, the state’s top player in the Class of 2027. He finished with 20 points.

Junior guard Mason Witt led the Cardinals with 21 points.

“Everybody was saying this was Ahneman versus Thompson, but I’m a team-first guy,” Thompson said. “At the end of the day, it was Cretin-Derham Hall versus Alexandria. I am really proud of my teammates.”