Park Center boys basketball team’s 2023/24 season came to a close last week following a series of challenging as well as triumphant moments, eventually earning the Class AAAA consolation championship against Farmington.
The week began with a 73-70 loss to Eagan at the Target Center on Mar. 20 in the Class AAAA quarterfinals. The first half against Eagan was a strong one for Park Center, which took an early lead early and looked confident with the ball. Ari Gooch and Casmir Chavis guided the way on scoring, helping the Pirates to a 36-26 lead at halftime.
The Pirates survived a few promising runs from Eagan, who kept the gap to a respectable width.
Chavis had 10 points for Park Center in the first half with four rebounds, while fellow team-veteran Jackson Fowlkes had three points, six rebounds, and two assists.
The momentum began to transform in the second half. Park Center led for the first 10-plus minutes of the half, but their lead shrunk incrementally throughout. Eagan closed the gap to just three points early on with great use of height and a set of 3-point shots, but Park Center eventually returned to a strong position.
Eagan’s shot accuracy proved vital later on to re-close the gap, making it a two and then one-point game as the half entered its final legs. While Eagan made use of every opportunity, Park Center had begun to struggle to stack up points as they had in the first half. Shots were not going in and calls began to consistently go Eagan’s way.
At the same time, Park Center was faced with the task of playing without Chiang Ring, who had been a major force in the first half bit exited in the second in visible discomfort.
The Wildcats took the lead in the final two minutes and suddenly Park Center was on the chase. The pressure did bring points out of the Pirates, who never allowed Eagan to run away with it, but the Wildcats held on, earning big calls, netting their free throws, and adding some big shots from play.
The final score read 73-70, Eagan, marking one of the biggest upsets in the first round of the state boys basketball tournaments.
Park Center head coach James Ware noted after the game that Park Center’s performance at times reflected the complex transition they’ve had through the season regarding the health of key players like Ring and Fowlkes, both of whom missed large portions of the season with injuries.
“The section final was the first game we played where we had the starting five we hoped to have this season. ... We were certainly not ourselves. That being said, give credit to Kevin McKenzie and Eagan. They beat us. They executed down the stretch. They made tough shots. Our guys fought hard but it wasn’t enough to get over the hump.”
As for how to move forward, both for the consolation games that followed and the offseason to come, Ware added that the team has to find focus through collective courage after the day’s surprise result.
“We have Pastor Paul Slack with us and often times players get to ask about what they need. Often times its strength. One of the things I think we need now is courage. ... Because we came into this looking to play for a championship. We didn’t overlook this game. We talked about it like it was the championship game.”
Fowlkes told the Sun Post that he will take many good memories from his years with the team with him.
“We’ve had a lot of great moments throughout the years. My sophomore year we won the state championship. Even though we lost the championship last year, we still made some great memories. even better memories this year. So, it’s a tough way to go out. The best way for me to process this loss is just to look back to the great times I’ve had with the this team.”
Chavis had one of the biggest individual performances of the entire day, scoring 36 points against Eagan with seven rebounds, three assists, and two steals. He also led on minutes with 35. Gooch earned 13 points, adding four rebounds and one assist in 27 minutes. Fowlkes was a key supporting figure, earning eight rebounds, two assists, and two turnovers.
Consolation bracket
The quarterfinal loss meant that Park Center would enter the consolation bracket held at Concordia University in St. Paul. In a video put out by the team in the build-up to the game, Ware told the locker room that the consolation semifinals meant “you get to play more games with your brothers.” That intent was reflected in the Pirates’ performances.
Park Center responded with a resounding 90-54 win over Coon Rapids on Mar. 21 in the Class AAAA consolation semifinals.
Gooch put up 30 points against the Cardinals, with Fowlkes and Chavis adding 27 and 18, respectively, against their familiar foe. Park Center beat Coon Rapids 110-48 during regular season Northwest Suburban Conference play on Jan. 16. Chavis earned a triple-double — nearly a quadruple-double — with 14 rebounds, 12 assists, and nine steals.
The next day, Mar. 22, Park Center defeated Farmington 90-76 in the consolation championship game. Chavis put up 25 points with eight assists and six steals in his final game with the program, while Memene and Fowlkes each scored 20 points.
The consolation title adds another piece of state history to the Park Center boys basketball program. The school earned the championship in 2022, were runner-up in 2013 and 2023, and earned third place in 2019.
Park Center boys basketball will graduate six seniors, including guard Aiden Memene, Chavis, Fowlkes, Gooch, forward Boona Morke and Ring.
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