As Section 8-4A gets tougher, Bemidji's 'scrappy' senior class feels up for the challenge

Nov. 27—BEMIDJI — Recently, Bemidji High School basketball senior Jaxon Boschee was asked if he's a shooter at heart. He may as well have been asked if the pope is Catholic.

"I feel like that's always been my best skill," he said. "Even when I was in third grade, I could always shoot better than everybody. So I've tried to build my game around that."

Boschee is more than just the son of Bemidji State men's basketball head coach Mike Boschee. The 6-foot-2 guard has made a name for himself as arguably the most dangerous Lumberjack on the court. Last season, he routinely put up 20, 30, even 40-point games as the Jacks went 15-11 in the regular season.

"Jaxon's an exceptional shooter, probably the best shooter that I've ever coached," head coach Steve Thompson said. "He can hit shots from anywhere on the floor. It makes him hard to guard when you can stretch the floor like he can."

There isn't an argument that Boschee is one of the most prolific scorers in program basketball history. This season, though, he has a chance to make history. He's scored the second-most points while wearing a BHS uniform and has a real shot at breaking the school scoring record.

Senior teammates like Jeron Huseby are just glad they only have to face him in practice.

"It's pretty crazy having someone like him on our team," Huseby said. "I mean, he's going for the school record. It's just really nice to have someone like that who can score at will whenever you need."

Boschee will be relied on as a consistent scorer as the Jacks navigate a new-look Section 8-4A. With Sartell, Buffalo and Sauk Rapids-Rice out of the section, Alexandria and Monticello moved in when the Minnesota State High School League conducted its competitive section realignment.

Alexandria went 29-3 in Section 8-3A last season, helped in large part by Chase Thompson, who was recruited to play Division I basketball at Clemson. Monticello, meanwhile, went 24-5 last season in Section 5-3A. Both teams defeated the Jacks last season.

Bemidji hasn't had a winning record against section opponents since 2021-22, going 3-2.

Even with section stalwarts like St. Michael-Albertville and Moorhead, Thompson believes in this year's team as they kick off the season at St. Cloud Apollo on Dec. 2.

"I like the makeup of this group," Thompson said. "I believe in the pieces that we have. It's just a matter of buying into that process of getting better and working hard, and we're going to have to work through adversity. That's what happens every season, and how we handle those things are going to be important."

As seniors like Boschee, Huseby and Austin Riewer grew up playing together, they've been described as tight-knit and hard-working. And most importantly, scrappy.

"Just a scrappy group that gets a lot of steals, pushes it out in transition and gets a lot of open layups," Riewer said.

They complement each other well. Riewer, a Bemidji State commit, is known as one of the best all-around players on the team, using his 6-foot-6 frame to defend while also being a good shooter.

"He's a gritty, hardworking dude," Boschee said. "Kind of does all the little things that you ask of him. He's skilled, he can shoot, score, he defends. He's got a high motor, so there's a lot of benefits to having him on the floor and not a lot of negatives."

While Boschee is known for his shooting skills, he's also a good leader off the court. Riewer praised him for his camaraderie with everyone on the team.

"He's a guy you can approach, great scorer, but also a great person off the court," Riewer said. "You can go up to him and talk to him if you're frustrated. ... He's very accepting. He wants the team to do as well as it can, in just whatever it takes."

Huseby, meanwhile, couples the offense by doing the dirty work of getting rebounds and playing tight defense.

"Jeron's one of those glue guys for your team that brings everyone together," Thompson added.

Bemidji has a very experienced team. In fact, junior Wyatt Tverstol is the only non-senior on the Lumberjacks roster.

As those seniors play their final year, winning a section title and going to the state tournament is at the top of their goals for this season.

But as big as those goals always are, Thompson likes to shrink their focus to the little things. That includes improving on something in their game every day in practice.

"You can't get lost in the goals and the expectations and whatnot from the outside," Thompson said. "You have to stay focused on what's happening right here every day. That's our process, and we just need to stay true to that throughout the course of the season."

Even so, players like Riewer believe that this year's team can really go places. All they need is to stay as a tight unit and play good basketball, no matter who their section opponents are.

"I think on paper, we have everything we need," Riewer said. "We have the weapons we need, we have the athleticism we need, the skill we need.

"It's just gonna be the on-court stuff, getting along, putting the team first. It's just gonna be whether we take the team-first and just keep it as a slogan or whether we put it into action."