It hasn’t been the start either Roseau or Minnehaha Academy envisioned before the season started but both got a chance to turn things around with a big win over a ranked opponent on Saturday.

Minnehaha Academy coach Josh Thurow doesn’t mind some early season adversity like his team has faced after a season-opening 69-67 loss to Zumbrota-Mazeppa and a 68-62 loss to Holy Angels on Thursday.

That kind of mentality paid off Saturday when the Redhawks sealed a 65-52 victory over Roseau at the Breakdown Tip Off Classic at Hopkins High School.

“I think we have the best perspective of early season basketball in the state of Minnesota,” Thurow said. “I’ve been to the state tournament 10 times in my 13 years coaching. We’ve won one Christmas tournament. I’ve won 10 section titles, that’s all anyone talks about. If we lose this game today, it doesn’t matter. The last two we lost, it doesn’t matter. Where are you in March? That’s when you have to be at your best.”

Taytum Rhoades scored 14 of her 23 points in the second half to help erase a 33-30 halftime deficit for the Redhawks, who are ranked No. 10 in Class 2A by Minnesota Basketball News.

Rhoades knocked down two 3-pointers, including one to start the second half that tied the game. Rhoades later gave Minnehaha Academy (3-2) its first lead of the game with a shot that came with 14 minutes, 4 seconds to play and put the Redhawks up 35-33.

“Coach Thurow said you’re playing really well — you are attacking well — but you’re not shooting well at all in the first half,” Rhoades said. “He just encouraged us to keep shooting and take our shot. We ended up eventually hitting a few.”

Mia Curtis started to find her shot in the second half as well. She hit a 3-pointer to give Minnehaha Academy a 41-40 lead it didn’t surrender. Curtis finished with 14 points while Terra Rhoades added 15. Avery New pulled down 15 rebounds.

Roseau's Kacie Borowicz tried to keep pace but had a tough time getting shots to fall in the second half. She finished with 20 points after scoring 13 of those in the first half.

Life has been different with No. 2-3A Roseau graduating standout Kiley Borowicz, who helped wrap up last year’s Class 2A state title and complete a 32-0 season. The Rams have also played in the early going without Victoria Johnson, a 6-foot-2 post, who averaged 11.1 points per game last year.

Those missing parts have helped keep the Rams from winning since their 76-20 throttling of Warroad to open the season on Tuesday.

“Honestly, you lose a girl like Kiley — and obviously she could score — but what we’re missing right now is her competitive spirit,” Roseau coach Kelsey Didrikson said. “Just her hunger, her want to, her desire. Our whole team attitude needs to be a little more competitive.”

On Saturday, the Rams (1-2, 1-0) ran into foul trouble to make things difficult. Katie Borowicz played with four fouls in the first half and fouled out in the second half. Kacie Borowicz also fouled out in the second half.

“We took ourselves out of the game by getting into foul trouble and not just adjusting to the way the game was being called and the way we needed to play defensively,” Didrikson said. “We generally play really, really good defense. We just took ourselves out of it. Credit to them for making it happen.”

Roseau led by as much as eight in the first half before Minnehaha Academy closed the half on a 6-1 run to pull within three.

The Rams finished with 23 turnovers as the Redhawks’ pressure caught up to them. Putting pressure on the Borowicz sisters was the plan for Thurow coming into the game.

“We had them in foul trouble,” he said. “We had them right where we wanted them as far as that goes and that was a priority to make sure we were on top of them.”

Taytum Rhoades got going in the second half to lead Minnehaha Academy, which is ranked No. 10 in Class 2A by Minnesota Basketball News, to a 65-52 victory over Roseau (1-2, 1-0) Saturday in Hopkins at the Breakdown Tip Off Classic.

Rhoades scored 14 of her 23 points in the second half to help erase a 33-30 halftime deficit.

Rhoades knocked down two 3-pointers, including one to tie the game at the start the second half. Rhoades later gave Minnehaha Academy (3-2) its first lead of the game with a shot that came with 14:04 to play, which put the Redhawks up 35-33.

Mia Curtis started to find her shot in the second half as well. Curtis hit a 3-pointer to give Minnehaha Academy a 41-40 lead it didn’t surrender. Curtis finished with 12 points.

Kacie Borowicz tried to keep pace for the No. 3-2A Rams but had a tough time getting shots to fall in the second half. She finished with 20 points after scoring 13 of those in the first half.

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